The Alpha's Regret: Return Of The Betrayed Luna-Chapter 412 Healing 2
"W-What... happened?" Levi rasped. His voice sounded foreign to himself, hoarse, raw, like metal scraping against concrete.
The moment Zion heard him, his head snapped toward the bed. Their eyes locked, Levi wide with confusion, Zion’s rimmed red and shining with disbelief, as if he couldn’t decide whether to be relieved, terrified, or both at once.
"How... how are you fine?" Zion stammered, disbelief cracking his voice. He had just come from the doctors’ office, where every word had painted a picture of Levi teetering on the edge of death, his condition so grave that they were preparing for the worst.
And yet, here Levi was, sitting up, meeting his gaze with a healthy complexion, looking nothing like someone who should have been fighting for his life. His voice was still hoarse and grating, raw from the oxygen and strain as it was dry, but aside from that, Levi was fine.
For the first time, Zion realized with a jolt that his worry now belonged elsewhere, Addison. It was her he needed to think about now, but before he could reorganized his thoughts, the door burst open.
"What... what happened here?"
The newcomer’s voice cut through the daze surrounding Zion and Levi, and he froze as he took in the scene, both of them staying still as they stared at each other like fools.
"So... Levi’s condition really did stabilize? But wait... something’s not right..." His words trailed off as his gaze landed on the figure in Zion’s arms. His pupils immediately dilated, a low, furious growl ripping from his throat.
In two long strides, he was at Zion’s side, shoving him roughly aside.
"What happened to Addison?" Maxwell’s angry growl shattered the stunned silence, snapping both Zion and Levi out of their daze. Zion, in particular, felt his head spin, his thoughts scrambling to make sense of what happened, but the pieces refused to fit, leaving him reeling.
"I-I don’t know..." Zion stammered, glancing helplessly at Maxwell.
Maxwell’s anger faltered for a moment as he saw the confusion and worry etched across Zion’s face, as if Zion were silently asking the same question: ’What just happened?’
His brows furrowed deeper. He had just woken from a long rest, hoping that by the time he opened his eyes, the problems surrounding the Golden Hue Pack and Levi’s condition would have improved.
Stretching his stiff muscles, Maxwell had made his way toward Levi’s ICU room. Coming from the left side of the corridor, he hadn’t passed the window and therefore had no idea what was happening inside.
In his mind, Levi was still a strong werewolf; after a blood transfusion, a little rest would have him back on his feet. He hadn’t accounted for the wolfsbane preventing Levi’s wolf from healing him.
So when Maxwell suddenly burst through the door, he froze, first at the sight of Zion on the ground, then at Addison lying unconscious. Shock and anger surged through him before he could even process it, and his furious gaze snapped toward the two, bristling with intensity. 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺
"Then, why was Addison unconscious?! And why are you even back here?!" Maxwell first questioned Zion.
Zion’s Alpha temper flared at Maxwell’s tone, and a low, dangerous snarl escaped him. He didn’t like the way Maxwell was speaking and felt his patience slipping. Levi, having just awakened, sensed the tension escalating and knew he needed to step in before their confrontation turned into a full-blown brawl.
Clearing his throat, Levi reminded them, "Before you two start fighting, I think it’s best to put our mate back in bed and check her condition..."
His gaze softened as he looked at Addison’s pale, fragile form, and his heart ached at the sight. Being a Beta, he was used to managing Alpha tempers, especially when egos clashed, and he knew that any physical fight could easily endanger Addison. He was the only one keeping his calm in that heated moment.
Only when Levi spoke did Maxwell and Zion remember why they had been so on edge in the first place. Levi gently got up and stepped aside, giving Zion space. Zion rose carefully, still cradling Addison in his arms, and laid her down on the bed, still warm from Levi’s body heat.
As soon as she was resting there, Zion’s trembling finger brushed lightly under her nose. Feeling her weak, shallow breaths, a swirl of emotions hit him: relief that she was still breathing, worry that she had lost consciousness again, and a gnawing fear that she might be in pain.
He didn’t know whether to be comforted or terrified, and all he could do was watch her fragile form with a racing heart.
"What really happened here?" Maxwell asked again; this time, he was keeping his tone measured so as not to anger anyone in the room. Earlier, his emotions had overtaken his reason the moment he stepped in and saw his mate unconscious.
His protective instinct had flared, and before he realized it, his anger had surged past his reason. Now, taking a moment to steady himself, he recognized how unreasonable he had been and made sure to speak more calmly.
"I didn’t actually know at first," Zion began, his voice steady but carrying the weight of worry.
"I went to see the doctors to ask about Levi’s condition because he looked so pale, like a dead man, and his chest was barely rising with each breath. I was afraid it would affect Addison again, since she became sick and suffered so much when she sensed through our mate bond that Levi’s life was in danger. That’s why I rushed back here with her to see what was really going on."
He took a deep breath, gathering his thoughts before continuing. "It turns out that all three of us share the same blood type. If I hadn’t stepped in, not only Levi but even Maxwell’s life could have been at risk from the blood loss for donating too much blood at once."
"I shared the burden, thinking everything would be fine once the severed veins in Levi’s wounds were stitched closed and some blood was transfused to his veins. But the doctors explained that his injuries were too close to his heart; some major veins connected to it were severed by the silver dagger, which prevented the blood from pumping properly. Because of that, Levi’s life is still uncertain..."
Zion paused, glancing at the other two men surrounding the bed. Both looked at the woman lying there with gentle, protective eyes, and in that moment, the weight of the situation hung heavily in the room.
"So, the doctors told me to prepare for the worst if the wolfsbane still took a few more hours to leave Levi’s system... I came back to check on Addison and Levi because I was unsettled by the news I’d received, only to find Addison gone from where I had left her."
"She said she wanted to see Levi, so I brought her to his ICU room... and when I returned, I found her unconscious on the floor."
Zion’s shoulders slumped as he finished explaining the gist of the situation, his own confusion and frustration evident, but he still couldn’t fully understand what had happened.
