Forty Seven.

Dylan

Lecia was finally asleep and I watched her as I she laid there in the recliner next to my bed. We had stayed up late into the night talking and the nurse, who I learned was named Casey was really sweet.

Casey was the night nurse in charge of the clinic and she and Lecia had become great friends since had been here with me so often. Apparently she knew Lecia's mom and she had talked Dr. Pavel into letting her stay most nights here with me.

Mrs. Silvera, who I would be meeting very soon, had sent the twins over to drop off some food for us since I was finally awake. Since there were other patients in the clinic Casey didn't let them stay long, but I was glad to get to say hi to them.

The ache in my chest at everyone's reactions to my being awake felt both good, but a bit uncomfortable. Even though the time had seemed so long to them, I really hadn't felt like it was more than just one night.

Lecia and I ate the food her brothers brought over. Her mom had made some soup and hot sandwiches and sent over fruit and homemade jello. I wasn't able to eat much because my stomach couldn't handle what it used to.

We made a plate to send out to Casey and the other nurse on duty and they both thanked me when they had come in to do different things to the machines I was still hooked up to.

Before Nico and Cruz had come over with the food, Lecia had answered all of my questions, but I had hid the disappointment I felt when she said that the wolf from that night hadn't been spotted here again.

In a way I was glad for it. I didn't want him to get caught by Alpha Rogan and something bad to happen to him. But, I was also genuinely disappointed in the fact that he might not know what happened to me.

We talked about all of the things going on at school and she even had notes from my teachers along with packets for me to work on to get caught up. 

School would be over soon and I was glad for it. It meant that I would be able to work full time and maybe even enroll in an online college.

Planning for the future was something that I never used to look forward to, but I somehow had a sight shift in perspective and was oddly looking forward to what might happen after school was over.

Lecia had brought my phone for me and Casey had helped me get out of bed and take a shower when I was done eating. It had been harder than I would have thought.

If hearing how long I had been essentially asleep for from everyone was unbelievable, the way that my body moved, or didn't move, totally convinced me. 

When Casey helped me get undressed, I had glanced in the mirror swiftly before stepping into the shower. My body had lost some mass and I looked thin and a bit gaunt.

It was hard to see the changes in my body, especially since I still had not been able to speak to Rae since I woke up earlier. Having someone see me so vulnerable wasn't easy either, but Casey was a saint.

She talked about all kinds of things from flowers to desserts, and everything in between. By the time I was done and she was helping me into the pajamas that Lecia had brought for me, I was completely comfortable.

I had talked Lecia into laying next to me while we watched a movie and I continued to ask her different kinds of questions.

There was still so much that was coming back to me that I wasn't sure of and things that were popping into my head that didn't fully make sense. Those things I didn't ask about just yet. 

Lecia was fully asleep before the first movie was over and Casey came into the room, she gently helped her into the recliner. We both laughed when Lecia let out the funniest snort before falling back to sleep.

"That girl can sleep, I don't think a thunderstorm would wake her up," Casey had joked when she had gotten Lecia all settled and was helping me up to use the restroom again.

I finished the first movie and was about to start on the second one when I heard a soft noise outside the window. At first I didn't think anything of it, but when the sound got louder, I turned to see a dark figure standing outside.

About to scream for Casey or the other nurse, the curtain moved and I realized that I recognized the figure on the other side of the glass.

Not that knowing who was outside made it any better, but at least I didn't start screaming. When they caught me looking at them they froze for a moment before signaling me with a finger over their lips to keep quiet.

I turned the volume up a bit on the TV and watched as they opened the window easily. Amazed at the lack of sound and the ease at which it opened, I was amazed, but also concerned that it hadn't been locked in the first place.

When he easily slipped into the window, I watched him turn to close it, close the curtains, and walk straight to the light and dim it.

Either he was good at breaking into rooms or he had done this here before. Still unsure what he was doing here and what he had wanted I waited while he moved around the room. 

There was a stood that Dr. Pavel had sat on earlier that he quietly moved across the room. He pointed at the stool, then himself, and nodded. It was funny how he seemed to be asking if it was okay for him to sit on it when he had just broken into my room.

Not once had I stopped watching him and I could feel my heart racing, but I stayed quiet because I knew that he was probably going to tell me why he was here eventually.

Looking at him up and down, I saw that he was dressed in all black from head to toe and that he even had a black beanie covering his head. Yeah, he has definitely done this before.

As he sat down on the stool, which was close enough for us to whisper to each other, it was not as close as it could be. He sat there for a few seconds and just looked at me.

For a moment I remembered how different I had looked to myself and began to feel a little self conscious, but then he finally spoke. 

Honestly, he hasn't spoken to me much so his voice wasn't one that I was really familiar with, but I was shocked by the first things that came out of his mouth.

"I'm sorry to bother you, but I heard that you were awake and I needed to come and see you before he showed up."

Vit's hazel eyes looked darker now than they had on other occasions, but I wasn't sure since he had darkened the room so much that it was hard to tell.

The smell of grass and night lingered on Vit and I inhaled the smell. I loved to be outside at night and I hadn't realized how much I missed it's scent. He was watching me intently and for some reason I wasn't afraid of him.

Wanted to know if the "he" that he was referring to was Alpha Rogan and if he had come here to do something. A shiver ran down my spine and I felt a warm sensation from Rae, but still I couldn't hear her voice.

Quickly reaching out his hand as if he saw my shiver, but then stopping just short of touching my hand with his own, he slowly pulled his back and grasped it with the other one.

Needing to know who he was talking about I asked, "please do not apologize, unless you know what he is coming for. Does he plan to punish me for what happened that night?"

It was hard to hide the fear in my voice, but I thought I did a good job. For as long as I remember, Vit had been one of Alpha Rogan's most trusted guards and while I had thought that he was a kind man, he was loyal above all else.

His eyes watched my every move and every reaction and I knew that he was judging how to tell me whatever it is that he had come here to tell me. In all the questions I had asked Lecia, I had completely forgotten to ask about Noel and Vit.

"There is so much you do. not know, and so little I am free to tell you," he said softly, but his eyes never left mine. He continued, but the long pause he took made me question why he phrased his wording that way.

"Before coming here, I served in another pack and the man you saw the other night was from there as well." He seemed to strain his neck in an odd way that seemed as if he was in some sort of physical discomfort.

"Blood mist is not a safe place for you any longer and you will need to leave soon. Many things are happening that will help you escape, but when the time comes, you will need to leave no matter what happens."

Stunned by his statement, I just sat there looking at him. I didn't know Vit well, but I did recall seeing him with that man. The shock and surprise on both of their faces, their interaction, and the change in Vit's demeanor before I ran into the woods.

While a part of me wanted to believe what he was saying to me, I didn't really know him and I definitely didn't know the man, Tristan. What I did know is that if Vit said that I was no longer safe, he probably did know something about that.

"Are you saying that someone is planning to hurt me if I stay here? And where would I even go, I don't have any family and my only friends live here."

Listening to him say those things was hard to hear, but giving him my responses was even harder. It's all well and good for him to give me a warning, but he knew, probably better than most, that I had no where else to go.

Jumping at the loud snore that Lecia suddenly let out, both Vit and I turned out attention towards her. Realizing that I was holding my breath as I waited to confirm that she was still asleep, I slowly let out a large sigh.

"You are not alone, and when the time comes, you will have a place to go that will be safe," he said quickly as he glanced back and forth between Lecia and me a few times.

Unsure of how much I should trust this man and what he was saying, I to turned to look at Lecia before I asked my next question because I was sure I already knew the answer.

"When you say that I will have to leave no matter what happens, are you telling me that I will have to leave alone, without anyone?"

For a moment he looked amused, but he checked the smirk that had appeared on his face quickly. "I do not know the entire plan yet, but I can tell you that she," he nodded towards Lecia's sleeping form, "will not be able to go with you."

Of course not, Lecia had family here. There was no way that she would be able to walk away from them just to come with me. I had no idea who was planning to help me leave this place and why exactly so I didn't know where I would be going.

The thought of having to leave Lecia behind filled my chest with sorrow and I could feel the tears forming in my eyes. But sorrow wasn't the only thing that filled me in the moment.

Anger, red and hot rose in my throat and I felt the color filling my face. "What makes you think I would belive anything that you say to me right now? What proof can you possibly give me that you are trying to help me?"

I saw the soft shimmer in Vit's eyes and for a moment I was afraid that someone was trying to link with him and that he was truly here to trick me or lead me into some kind of sick trap from Alpha Rogan.

Vit quickly stood from his stool and kneeled down on the ground beside my bed. I was surprised and a bit afraid by his sudden movement, but when he reached out and touched my hand, I heard his voice in my head.

"I will do whatever I can to make sure that you are safe and whatever proof I can provide you I will."

From the moment I heard his voice in my head, I felt my eyes widen as I stared at him in utter confusion. No one had ever been able to link with me and to be honest, it felt way different in this form than it had when I heard their voices through Rae.

For a moment, all I could do was stare at him and I really didn't pay attention to what he had said, but he stayed kneeling there next to me still touching my hand.

His face had started to fall a bit and I was sure that he probably thought that it must not have worked based on my reaction. I didn't really know how this worked, but I thought his name and scrunched my eyes to try to send my words back to him.

"Can you hear me?' 

Almost as soon as I had thought the words, i heard his soft chuckle and response, "yes."

Gods, this was unreal! Popping my eyes open I felt my mouth follow suit in shock and watching the small smile on his face shift into a large grin was both new and exciting.

"How?" I asked out loud this time. When he replied, he did so through the link and I figured that he would prefer to talk like this for the time being.

"It seems that whatever has been keeping you here may be wearing off." Well that was not creepy sounding in the slightest. What the hell did he mean by that? This guy really needs to work on his communication skills.

Focusing again, I closed my eyes and spoke, "I don't know what you're talking about." Waiting for his response, I stayed sitting there with my eyes closed and waiting for his response which came, but it wasn't what I was hoping for.

"You don't have to close your eyes and try so hard to speak to me this way. I could not link with you a moment ago, but the second I touched you I could sense you and share a link with you."

Of course I opened my eyes the moment he had said that, but I still didn't understand what he had said. I now had so many more questions for him and was trying to figure out what to ask first, but he spoke again before I could.

"As I said before, there is much that I can not tell you, but what I can I will. I do not have much time left before they come in for your final vital check and he shows up, but I will be back at the same time tomorrow night if that is okay with you?"

"Of course, I have so many questions," I said through the link and I felt the relief soak through it as well. "Wow, that's so crazy," I said without thinking and he responded instantly, "yes, feelings can sometimes be felt through a link as well, apologies."

I was about to ask him another question when we both heard what sounded like someone walking with a cart on the other side of the door. Before I could say or even think anything Vit had moved to the window, slid it open, and was already halfway out.

The curtains were still shifting softly when the door to my room slowly opened. Casey was surprised when she saw me sitting up in bed watching the movie. "You must really like that movie, I thought you would have fallen back to sleep by now."

Smiling at her I wasn't sure what she was here to do, but Vit had said something about my vitals so I had a feeling that she was here to check me over for the last time until the morning.

After checking my temperature, pulse, taking some blood, and checking my pressure, which was a bit high, she bid me good night and promised she would be by in the morning before she left for the day.

I had felt bad about lying to Casey that the movie had scared me and that was probably why my pressure was a bit high, but glad that she had believed me. There was no way that I was going to be able to sleep anytime soon though.

My mind was racing from my short interaction with Vit, but he had given me so much to think about that I had almost completely forgotten about what he had said when he first showed up.

As I sat there propped up in the bed, the movie ended and I was about the to put on it's sequel when I started to smell a subtle smokey sweet scent. Unsure where it was coming from, I closed my eyes and tried to figure out what it was.

When the scent grew stronger, I inhaled deeper as if I was trying to taste it or absorb it somehow. Whatever it was, it felt familiar and warm and comforting almost. 

Leaning back into the mattress I couldn't pull my focus away from the aroma and I had almost completely forgotten what Vit and I had just talked about when I heard the window open for second time tonight.

The scent filled my room so fast and thick that I felt a little light headed. My nerves and tension seemed to relax and calm as the scent surrounded me and I welcomed the feeling.

Even though I was feeling almost content, I pretended to be asleep since I had no idea who was now sneaking into my room. 

I listened for the soft closure of the window, but it never came. As I laid there with my eyes closed and slowly breathing in the wonderful rich smoky scent, I felt a hand softly caress my cheek.

The person spoke so softly, but I felt his breath against my skin and my body seemed as if it had wanted to answer his command.

"I've missed you. How I wish you would open your beautiful eyes and speak to me right now."

Clenching my fist, I fought the urge to obey and open my eyes because I had no idea what to say to my new visitor, who smelled way too godd, now that I knew it was Eren.