I was just getting ready for bed when Liam arrived, which was unusuallyte for a visit.


    One look at his face told me something was wrong.


    “What is it?” I asked, sitting up straighter in bed.


    Liam closed the door behind him. “There’s been an incident at the northern border. Alexander went to handle it.”


    My heart stuttered in my chest. “What kind of incident?”


    “A bunch of rogues banded together and took over a property on the border. It turned violent when Ashw warriors went to kick them out. Alexander had to go personally to handle it, and one of the scouts just returned saying that there’s an intense battle going on.”


    “Is Alexander okay?” My voice came out as a squeak, and I hated how small I sounded, but I couldn’t help it. A small presence in the back of my mind seemed to roil at the thought of something bad happening to him.


    Liam hesitated. “I don’t know. I haven’t heard anything about Alexander since he left.”


    “How long ago was that?”


    “This morning.”


    The room suddenly felt too small, and my heart began to flutter nervously in my chest. Every instinct in my body began to hum, as if my very fibers were pulling me to get out of here and get to my mate.


    Alexander was in danger. Fighting. Maybe hurt. Maybe worse.


    Without thinking, I threw back the covers and swung my legs over the side of the bed.


    “E, what are you doing?” Liam breathed.


    “I need to go,” I said. “I need to find out what’s happening.”


    “You can’t leave! You’re still sick-”


    But I wasn’t listening. Panic had taken hold, drowning out reason. All I could think about was Alexander, bleeding out somewhere in the forest.


    I yanked the IV from my arm, ignoring the sharp sting and the drops of blood that welled up in its ce.


    “E, stop!” Liam reached for my arm, but I dodged him, my bare feet pping against the cold tile floor as I bolted out of the room and down the hall.


    Liam


    Liam stood frozen for a split second, stunned by E’s sudden flight. He hadn’t expected her to react so violently to the news about Alexander. Worry, yes. Concern, certainly. But this level of panic?


    “Lilith!” he called out, rushing to the doorway. The older woman had been in the hallway getting coffee. “E’s run off!”


    Lilith appeared at his side, coffee forgotten. “What do you mean, run off? Where would she go in a hospital gown?”


    “I told her about Alexander at the border,” Liam exined, already moving down the hallway in the direction E had fled. “She just… lost it. Pulled out her IV and bolted.”


    Lilith’s face paled. “We need to find her before she hurts herself. She’s still weak.”


    They split up, Liam trailing E while Lilith went to g down hospital security. He pushed through the door into the stairwell, taking the steps two at a time. E was nowhere to be found-how did she even move that fast in her condition?


    He burst out of the exit door into the parking lot just in time to see her figure weaving between cars, hair streaming behind her, Alexander’s sweatshirt hanging to her knees over the thin hospital gown.


    “E!” he shouted, breaking into a run.


    She either didn’t hear him or chose to ignore him, continuing her desperate flight toward the street. Her bare feet pped against the asphalt, leaving small smears of blood in her wake.


    She was pushing herself too hard; her body was too weak for this kind of exertion. She was tearing her feet on the asphalt, and yet… she didn’t stop. Didn’t even slow down.


    Liam didn’t have time to wonder why she didn’t just shift if she was so desperate to get to Alexander, but he did realize one thing as he took off after her.


    E was in love with Alexander. Despite everything, she truly cared for him.