Not Beyond Saving

CHAPTER 2

     Anna slowly woke up, her eyes focusing. Sitting up, she slowly looked around. She was confused when she realized that she was lying in a field of vivid wild flowers. A soft rustle from behind her had Anna leaping to her feet, spinning around. A growl rumbling from her lips as she tried to find the source of the sound. "Show yourself!" Anna demanded, slipping into a defense stance.

    "Easy my child," a woman's soft voice spoke, instantly calming Anna. "I did not mean to startle you." Anna watched as a beautiful woman stepped into view. Her eyes were the color of the deepest sapphires; her hair was silver, and her skin as pale as a full moon.

    Anna watched the woman as she slowly walked closer to her, a feeling of love and peace flooding her. "Who are you?" Anna asked softly, her eyes not leaving the woman's face. "You know me as Juna," she said softly as she came to a stop before Anna. Almost instantly, Anna kneeled before the Moon Goddess, her forehead almost touching the ground.

   "Don't kneel child." Juna reached down and helped Anna to her feet, giving the young woman a kind smile. "Why am I here?"

   "I needed to talk to you."

    "Why?" Anna gave Juna a puzzled look. "I want to apologize for everything that you've had to endure because Thaddeus Black." Anna's pale face slowly became blank. "What about him?" The Moon Goddess opened her mouth to speak but a flash of lightening pulled Anna's eyes away from her.

    A powerful shock ran through Anna's body as she screamed, falling to her knees. There was a loud ringing in her ears, blocking out Juna's voice. "Don't stop fighting Anna." Her father's voice rumbled through the clearing as another shock shot hit her. "Please Anna, stay here with us. We love you." Her mother's tearful voice echoed behind her father's and Anna felt like she was being pulled in half.

    "We're losing her Mr. McCallum." A deep voice that Anna didn't recognize spoke as Juna started to turn translucent. The ghost feeling of a hand pressing into her right shoulder passed over Anna. "Cousin, don't you dare die on me." Anthony's voice filled her mind, calming her somewhat.

    "I won't allow you to die. I've come too far to see you for you to die now." Anna wanted to answer him, to tell him that she didn't want to die. Juna was finally gone and the meadow was quickly vanishing. Anna blinked and the next thing she knew, she was standing in a hospital room with her parents, Anthony and his father standing around a bed. Peering over Anthony's shoulder, she cried out when she realized that she was staring at her own body.

    The door to the room opened and Anna bristled when Thaddeus and Mary slowly entered the room. "Get out!" she screamed, but no one heard. She watched as the man she had grown to despise came to a stop beside her bed, his fingers softly brushing against the back of her hand. The heart monitor attached to her body beeped a little faster and her mother gasped, her eyes darting between her daughter's body and her alpha.

    Anthony growled softly, causing both her father and his to look at him in surprise. "What's wrong son?" King Sparks asked, confused. "Nothing Father," Anthony grounded out, forcing his wolf down. It wouldn't do to cause a scene here.

    "What happened to her Greg?" Anna's father slowly glanced up at Alpha Black before letting his blood shot eyes return to his daughter. "She was on patrol. According to Gamma Alden, Anna ran into a couple of rogues. They fought and she killed them, but they did some serious damage to her as well.

    "The doctor thinks that when she passed out from blood loss, she hit her head pretty hard on something. But he has no clue as to why she's not coming out of the coma." The retired beta stopped talking, tears falling from his eyes. His wife slowly took his hand in hers, giving it a little squeeze. "He told us that her wolf isn't healing her like she should. He thinks that she's gone through some kind of trauma."

     The room fell silent again. One by one, the people gathered around her began to slip from the room until the only person left was Anthony. He sat in a chair that he pulled up beside her, taking Anna's hand gently in his. "I know that you've been through hell, cousin." He started to speak softly, letting tears run free.

     "You don't deserve the pain that you've had to deal with because of that mutt. This is his fault, I'm sure." A dry laugh left him as Anthony stared at his cousin. It almost killed him when they told him that she was in a coma, expected not to make it. "I'll make you a promise Anna," he whispered as he leaned closer to her. "If you wake up, I'll take you away from here. I promise that you'll never have to see him again.

     "I'd give anything to you if you just wake up Anna." Anthony pled with her as the tears kept falling. Anna's heart ached for the pain that she was causing her cousin. Revertere ad corpus. The voice was barely whispered but Anna heard it. The room turned black and Anna knew nothing else.

     Anna's eyes felt heavy but she slowly forced them open. A soft steady beep was the only sound besides her breathing in the room. Slowly, she looked around, her eyes landing on her cousin. "An... Anthony." Her voice was barely a whisper, but it was enough to wake him up. Her cousin shot up in his chair, his eyes scanning the room for any sign of a threat.

     "Anna? You're awake?" Anthony's voice was filled with awe, as he rushed towards the bed, smiling at her. "How do you feel?"

      "Thirsty." Anna whispered her throat dry. Anthony quickly handed her a glass of water, helping her to slowly drink it. "Thank you." She said softly as she leaned back, meeting her cousin's gaze. "Any time Anna."

    Anthony sat the glass down, taking a seat on the edge of the bed. "Did you mean it?" Anna asked softly. Anthony looked at her a little confused. "Did I mean what cousin?"

     "Did you mean it when you said that you would take me away from here, from him?" She watched as he nodded slowly. "I did. I meant every word of what I said Anna. If you want to go with me when I leave, I'll take you. I'm sure that my father won't mind letting you into the pack." Anna sighed in relief, leaning back against the pillow.

     "I won't be able to shift much longer Anthony. He's taken everything from me and now he's taken my wolf, my freedom." Tears threatened to spill from her eyes but she just wiped them away. "I hate him."

      He pulled Anna in for a hug and for some reason, it triggered her tears. She sat curled up into her cousin's chest, sobbing her heart out. Anthony held her tightly, neither seeing Alpha Black quickly slipping out of the room, closing the door behind him. "We'll leave the moment that the doctor says you can." Anthony promised and Anna slowly drifted to sleep in his arms.