Page 259 of Pucking Feral: Part Two

His whole body shudders, just once.

I pull his hands back to my lap.

His grip is very, very tight.

Gods, I hope my mate is going to be okay.

Chapter 54

Ivy

Hospitals stress me the fuck out.

Always have, always will.

Nowhere near as much as Wraith is stressed, though. His eyes are a brighter, icier blue than usual, pupils pinpricked, the way they always look when everything inside him is screaming to bolt and the only thing keeping him here is sheer, stubborn willpower.

And he's in pain with the face gaiter on. I can tell.

"You okay?" I whisper to him in the lobby.

He nods.

"You sure?"

Doesn't matter, he signs with a shrug. It's important.

My sweet, selfless mate.

Ahead of us, Whiskey rounds the corner of the lobby in what I can only describe as an unnecessarily thorough commitment to the bit.

He's wearing a full-body superhero suit, for starters. Gray and black, fitted, armored panels molded to his massive frame and a utility belt slung low on his hips.

He even has a cowl.

"Whiskey." Thane stops walking. "What the fuck are you wearing?"

"Shh." Whiskey holds a finger to his lips. He glances left, then right, theatrically scanning the hospital corridor. "There's no Whiskey here, bro."

"We're not doing this."

"Whiskey who? I don't know that name." He adjusts a gauntlet on his forearm. "The name's Silver Ghost."

Plague pinches the bridge of his nose.

The pediatric ward is on the fourth floor. We take the elevator and I keep my hand in his the whole ride up. His grip hasn't loosened. He's pale and clammy.

Every second that mask is on is killing him.

"We can leave whenever you want," I tell him quietly as the elevator dings.

He shakes his head. I'm okay. Promise.

Stubborn fucking alpha.

The pediatric ward is painted in bright colors with murals of animals and rocket ships splashed across the walls. A nurses' station sits in the center, flanked by two corridors of rooms. Through open doors, I catch glimpses of small beds and IV poles and stuffed animals.

A woman in scrubs with a lanyard decorated with various faded bumblebee stickers meets us at the station. She shakes Thane's hand, then Plague's, then Whiskey's gauntleted fist.