[[OLD]] A Handful of Daffodils (Forgotten Series, #7)

Chapter Thirty-Three: Part Two

I woke up slowly, awareness slowly flooding in but it wasn't like the first time. Bits and things from the first time I woke up filtered in and that same heavy relief filled my body at the knowledge that Maeve was safe and she was okay. That was all I truly cred about, that the little female was okay and she was being taken care of. I still felt like such a failure, getting lost like I had, not protecting her properly, letting her get sick. I felt responsible for that, I gave her the river water, I made her sick with it. I felt so horrible. I just wanted to go home, just wanted to get back to where I felt safe, where I knew Maeve would be protected better than I had protected her.

"Are you awake?" It was a hushed whisper and I cracked my eyes open as memories fluttered in. It was the female, Lilith, who was asking. I tried to move my arms but still felt so incredibly weak. I could barely move them but I managed to open my eyes fully. Lilith was looking down at me intently before she reached out and touched my hair. "I want to wash your hair." She was staring at a dirty feeling curl, twirling it around her finger. "You have such beautiful hair. I love working with textured hair. You have a mix of 3b and 3c hair, right?" Lilith glanced at me before smiling.

"I bet more of a 3b curl pattern but it's still a bit of a mix." She gave a happy sounding sigh before she tugged gently on the curl and brushed it back. "The baby is with DB right now. They are having a play date. I hope you don't mind, babies need to be socialized." She carefully tucked me in a bit more, adjusting the blanket around me. "My baby is going to be so loved." She rubbed her belly before beaming at me. The expression lasted for a moment before she glanced at something above me and then flicked her gaze back to me and leaned closer. "The spirits linger close to you, you know."

The words were confusing and I frowned. "What?" My voice was raspy but no longer the dry and cracked croak it had been prior. She gave a small shrug before moving around the bed, holding that big belly of hers.

"The illegal rogue was really close to killing you. You nearly died quite a few times." She tilted her head, adjusting the blanket carefully over the gauze cloth that was over the ugly wounds on my side.

At that my frown deepened. "How did you know it was a rogue?" I hadn't said anything about it, I had barely been awake the first time I woke up.

She gave another shrug. "The veil between life and death, between Mene and us, is thinner for me than everyone else. Things get through. Whispers, spirits, words of Mene. Sometimes, when she is feeling really intent, Mene pulls me across for a few seconds here or there." She gave another shrug, as if she didn't just say she could speak to the dead and speak with Mene.

"Can you..." Tears burned at my eyes and she looked at me expectantly. "Can you speak to my mum?" My voice cracked and she tilted her head further.

"She had a choice of places to go. She chose the one where she would see you again but where she ends up, I do not know. I cannot speak to her like I speak with the others but I know she loves you." The words contained enough to make me sniffle and I wanted to wipe at my eyes and she shushed me softy. "No crying. No crying!" She wiped at the tears that slipped out of my eyes, looking slightly distressed. "I don't like making people cry." She whispered it and I shook my head. Hearing that my mum loved me was enough and it was nice to hear, so very nice.

The doctor walked through the door before glancing at me and smiling. "Ah, you are awake." He leaned out of the door, "Alphas, she's awake again." The words had a bolt of fear surging through me and my heart thumped hard in my chest. I didn't do well with dominance, I didn't do well with ranked members.

A black haired female walked in, the dominance radiating off of her shoved into the room like an oppressive wave and the male that followed her had a fainter, but similar cloud hanging around him. The female looked at me and drew closer. I cringed into the bed, looking away and closing my eyes. I didn't like the dominance. "Hello, I'm Alpha Shey." The female's voice was sharp but if felt like less of she was upset and more that it always was, that she wasn't one to mince her words to make them more palatable.