Fated: The Alpha's Unwanted Luna

Chapter 287: Bad Condition

"Yes..." Ember whispered, setting down the bottle and frowning as she looked down at her wrist that was beginning to look swollen where the wolfless had gripped her. She had thought even back in Moonwillow, when Viola had bumped into her during the moon festival and she fell onto the drink table, that something was strange about her strength, and now she had confirmed it again with the way she had grabbed her wrist and that energy that radiated from her.

Ember hadn’t wanted to believe there was anything beyond the uselessness of a wolfless girl in Viola, and she had ignored it because she believed Viola would eventually be killed in the North Pack. But now she couldn’t ignore it anymore, because this bitch had done something to her that was making her feel completely out of herself.

"If that’s everything I will go ahead and see to the preparations for your ceremony and check on the progress. Are you sure you don’t need to see a doctor? You are starting to look very pale." Leni voiced her concern but Ember waved her off to go ahead and get on with the work.

As much as she liked Leni as a friend, she could get annoying sometimes with her eagerness to please, and Ember was suffering too much to care right now. "Go ahead, I will be fine."

Leni reluctantly left and Ember decided to take a nap, hoping she would feel much better by evening because she intended to personally deal with Viola and have Javier punish her until she confessed what she had done.

The sun slowly descended toward the horizon, casting a golden-yellow hue across the sky. As darkness gradually crept over the city, the lights began to shine brightly, while flocks of birds flew together across the darkening sky.

Ember woke up in that evening expecting to feel better but her condition had turned worse. Her skin looked like sandpaper, so dry she thought you could scrape vegetables on it, and her lips had cracked open. When Ember looked at her reflection in the mirror she almost screamed at what looked back at her; her skin appearing to peel away from her face in thin, papery layers.

She brought her hands up to touch her cheeks and began to shake her head. "No, no, no, I can’t look like this before my wedding day." She cried, her voice coming out so hoarse it barely carried.

She touched her throat and winced at the dryness there, every swallow feeling like she was forcing sandpaper down. When Ember raised her eyes to the mirror again her soul almost left her body when she caught sight of Sofia standing behind her, her hair hanging around her face, nearly giving her a heart attack on top of everything else.

"How many times have I told you to stop appearing like that like a ghost? Do something about that crazy hair." Ember chided as she made her way back to her bed, holding her throbbing head. "Get me some really cold water and a towel."

Sofia stared at her for a moment before she bobbed her head and went to do as she was told. When she got into the kitchen she grabbed a bottle of water from the refrigerator and stood staring at it for a long moment before she uncapped it.

Ember’s eyes were beginning to hurt along with her head and she couldn’t help but moan in pain. What was taking this imbecile so long to bring her water and a towel? Ember thought, and just then Sofia hurried in with both.

"What took you so long? I almost thought you found yourself a bed in the kitchen." She snatched the water from her hand and tried to uncap it, but her condition had left her so weak she didn’t even notice that the cap wasn’t sealed as she brought it to her mouth and gulped it down, feeling the chill hit her dry throat.

Ember didn’t lower the bottle until it was empty. But instead of quenching her thirst, it only made the dryness in her throat feel worse, as though it was intensifying.

Then she looked at Sofia, who was staring at her nervously, and said, "I don’t think this will pass. Call Javier for me, I think I need—"

Her words suddenly trailed off as a sharp pain twisted violently through her stomach, forcing her to double over on the bed.

"Shit. Hurry up...get me Javier, my stomach..." She groaned, grabbing her belly, and then she began to cough up blood as her vision turned blurry. Through the blur she watched Sofia standing completely still, not moving an inch to go and call Javier or the doctor, just staring down at her as she suffered.

"Sofia...what did you..." Ember’s voice began to fade as she coughed violently, and soon enough her body gave way and she went silent and still, her eyes wide open and staring up at Sofia.

Sofia didn’t move from her position until she was certain Ember had gone still. Then she checked her pulse and heartbeat, stepped back, and ran from the room to find Javier.

"What the fuck is wrong with her, Sofia?" Javier chided as she had pulled him from an important meeting by saying something was wrong with Ember.

"I don’t know. She’s not looking good."

Javier massaged his temple. He was already drowning in pressure from the elders and didn’t have time for this, but Ember mattered to him and his plans to be Alpha and so he followed Sofia to the penthouse to see what she was talking about.

When Javier entered Ember’s penthouse he called her name as he made his way to the bedroom, but only silence met him. When he reached the bed and found her lying face up, his brows drew together.

"Ember?" He called gently, walking toward her, and then stopped short when he came close enough to see the blood trailing from her nose and mouth and the state of her skin.

"Fuck, Ember!" He rushed forward and urgently felt for her pulse, and everything in him went still when he found nothing. No heartbeat. No breath. His heart dropped into his stomach.