Alyssa had already woken from the thumping of boots that jolted her out of her sleep. Her eyes went wide, wide enough that they felt like they might pop from their sockets, her small ears catching every word being said as she tried to piece together the full picture, though the more she tried, the more confused she became.
She jumped down from Nina’s hip the moment they reached the hallway, her tiny feet hitting the floor before Nina could catch her, certain the child was about to fall.
"What’s wrong with Uncle, and why is he lying down with pale lips?" Alyssa asked, her curious mind taking over completely.
"Nothing." Nina answered quickly, bending down to whisper it to the girl.
But Alyssa wasn’t buying the lie. She shook her head, disagreeing completely.
"I saw blood dripping from his mouth, and Teacher Meridian said if blood comes out of someone’s nose, mouth, or any other part of the body, the person needs to go to the hospital." Alyssa recited, touching each part of her own body as she listed them.
"So Uncle isn’t fine, and Uncle Dax and Dr. Quinn aren’t taking him to the hospital."
Nina crouched down, brushing a strand of hair from Alyssa’s forehead. "Alyssa, your teacher is right to have taught you that, and you’re a good girl for reading your books and trying to apply what you’ve learned. Your uncle isn’t feeling too well right now, but Dr. Quinn and Uncle Dax are taking care of him."
"It doesn’t seem like they are. They just let him lie there with that..." Alyssa stammered, her lashes already wet.
"Alyssa." Nina called out, but Alyssa wasn’t listening anymore, her mind already racing toward the next question.
"Is it a stomach ache? Or is it like when he gets angry and his eyes go dark?" She shook her head. "No. It can’t be that. Anger doesn’t make someone bleed." She reminded herself. "Is it serious?"
"Not really, Alyssa. It’s just a grown-up sickness, a little complicated. For now, let your mind rest. Remember, you have school tomorrow, and you need to sleep." Nina’s voice wavered, her eyes darting toward the closed door a few steps away.
Alyssa frowned, arms crossed over her chest, tapping her foot against the tiles as she wiped away tears threatening to fall. Her eyes scanned the hallway, searching for the one person she believed could actually give her an answer.
That was when she saw Aurora.
Two guards had her by the arms, pulling her toward a room while she struggled to keep up with their pace, her face streaked with tears. Alyssa’s stomach dropped at how weak Aurora looked, her hair disheveled.
Before Nina could stop her, Alyssa ran toward Aurora, pulling at one of the guard’s pants.
"Let her go!" she screamed, but the guards kept pulling Aurora forward. "Can’t you see she’s already weak from how tight your grip is?" she shouted louder, drawing the attention of everyone around them.
"Alyssa, stay back." Dax’s voice cut through the hallway as he stepped between them, his jaw clenched.
Alyssa shut her eyes, wishing her uncle wasn’t in the condition he was in. He would have told the guards to let Aurora go.
"I want to stay with her," Alyssa muttered, her chin trembling as she fought back tears, refusing to move.
"Alyssa, please, not right now. Go with Nina. You need to sleep." Dax said, trying to stay calm.
Alyssa had never been good at knowing when to stop. Uncle had taught her that persistence usually got her what she wanted, though he was also a stubborn man who rarely backed down himself. A sad smile tugged at her lips at the thought.
"I want to sleep in her room. I’m scared of mine." Alyssa’s voice cracked, her small hands shaking at her sides as she balled them into fists while the guards pulled Aurora into her room.
"Okay, fine." Dax finally relented, exhaling sharply and rubbing a hand down his face.
"You’re really something. Saint really needs to get off that bed and get back to handling you himself." Dax muttered with a faint smile, earning a small tug of a smile from Alyssa in return.
"Nina, take Alyssa to Aurora’s room, and make sure the guards stay close."
Aurora sat curled at the edge of the bed, her mind far from where she actually was, drifting back to sweet memories with her mother before she left, smiling wildly through tears gathered in her eyes, waiting for just a blink to let them fall.
Just then the door creaked open. She flinched, nearly falling off the bed, her heart hammering in her chest before she could register who had come in. Her mind snapped back to reality, the thought of Saint still lying on that bed, the one she’d been trying to forget, rushing back in.
"Uncle’s wife." Alyssa’s small voice cut through the air as she stepped fully into the room, walking toward Aurora.
"Why were you being pulled like that by those grumpy guards?" Alyssa asked, lying back and resting her head against Aurora’s stretched-out legs.
"Umm. Nothing." Aurora answered quickly, not in the mood for Alyssa’s questions, too afraid to let the child know how tangled up she already was in her uncle’s condition.
"Everyone seems to be lying a lot lately, while Uncle lies there with blood trailing from his mouth and that pale, sickly face." Alyssa said, adjusting her head against Aurora’s lap.
Aurora swallowed a lump that had formed in her throat. She turned her face away from the child’s sad expression, completely speechless, not knowing how she could possibly comfort Alyssa when she didn’t even know her own part in what had happened. The silent guilt built inside her, and she bit down on her lip, opening her mouth to say something before shutting it again, too afraid of making things worse.
"Umm. I was just scared. Your uncle is sick, that’s why." Aurora stammered after a long moment of thinking of what to say, unable to meet Alyssa’s eyes as the girl looked up at her.
Tears streamed down her cheeks as she pulled Alyssa up from her lap and pressed her tightly against her chest, the tears spilling freely now, one after another.
Alyssa went still in her arms, startled by the sudden embrace, by the way Aurora’s body shook against her. She wrapped her small arms around Aurora’s neck, sniffing her scent.
"Does that mean my uncle is going to die?" Alyssa asked, her voice barely above a whisper.
"No." Aurora answered quickly, shaking her head as she looked at Alyssa’s face and tightened her arms around her. "No, I promise. Nothing will happen to your uncle."
She had no way of knowing if that was true. Saint’s condition was unpredictable. But Aurora said it anyway, because Alyssa needed to hear it, because that seemed to be the only word the child needed right now, and because some small part of herself needed the reminder too.
Alyssa patted her back clumsily. "Uncle is okay, and when he wakes up I’ll tell him I want him to make you my mom while he’s my dad. I love both of you, even though you left me at the mall and made Uncle worry."
"Huh." Aurora muttered in shock, before letting out a laugh and pressing a kiss to the top of Alyssa’s head. "You don’t need to make me your mother."
"Don’t you want to be my mom?" Alyssa asked, watching Aurora’s face with complete seriousness.
"I don’t know yet, Alyssa. I mean, you don’t know me yet." Aurora tried to explain, but Alyssa had already settled her head back onto Aurora’s lap, her eyes drifting shut as she struggled to keep up with the conversation.
"Seriously, Alyssa." Aurora muttered with a smile.
"Mmm." The girl mumbled, already asleep.
Down the hall, Dax stood at the foot of Saint’s bed while Dr. Quinn examined him, Saint’s body pale, blood wiped from his mouth where it had finally stopped flowing.
"Talk to me. How is he?" Dax asked, staring intently at Dr. Quinn before his eyes drifted back to Saint.
"There’s a toxin in his system." Dr. Quinn said, not looking up from the monitor he’d rigged beside the bed. "It’s been inside him for more than an hour now, and it’s been spreading through his body."
"An hour?" Milo repeated from the doorway. "That’s even before Aurora brought him the water."
"Exactly." Dr. Quinn added. "Whatever this is, it didn’t come from that glass."
"Then what did it come from?" Dax demanded.
Quinn hesitated, running a hand through his hair. "I need to know everything."
Milo’s face went pale. "He had a drink at the warehouse today. Half a bottle of champagne, already open. He finished it while he worked. He seemed stressed when he got there too, like something was running through his mind."
"And you don’t know where it came from?" Dax asked, a brow raised in suspicion.
"I never said that," Milo replied quickly.
"Did anyone come to the warehouse? Anyone at all?" Dr. Quinn asked.
Milo’s brow furrowed. "No one, just me and him. Unless..." He trailed off.
"Unless what?" Dax asked, impatient.
"Nicole stopped by the warehouse with a bottle of champagne before Saint got there," he revealed.
Dax and Dr. Quinn exchanged a look, then turned back to Milo.