Angela POV
Aspen, Draco, and Tia rush into the bedroom. I am crying but trying to help Deanne. Draco leaps over me onto the bed beside her. Tia leans into Aspen, crying. "I do not know what happened. I handed her juice, and she went limp," I sob.
Deanne's eyes move to Draco. He touches her face. "Come back to me, sister. You cannot leave me," he says.
She slowly stops convulsing."What happened? What is happening to me? I feel hot," she whispers.
"You will be okay. We have to get your fever down, that is all, stay with me," Draco whispers to her.
Tia bolts from the room. She has already watched one hybrid die. I am sure this is too much for her. Aspen stays standing by the bed, stunned by the condition of Deanne. "What is wrong with her?" I ask.
Draco touches her forehead and then the back of her neck. "She is burning up with a fever. We have to get her fever down, " he says.
I realize her hand that I am holding is on fire. "She is sick. We were too late. They have done something to her. I do not understand what is happening," I say.
Draco picks his sister up and lifting her off of the bed. "Follow me," he says to me. He carries her into the bathroom.
I follow him into the bathroom. He lays Deanne in the bathtub carefully. He puts the plug into the tub and turns on the water. Deanne watches him as he turns on the water. "I am so hot, Draco. I feel like I am on fire," Deanne says.
He turns on cold water. Aspen steps into the bathroom. "What do you need me to do?" Aspen asks.
"I need ice and lots of it. There are buckets in the garage. Fill the buckets with ice," Draco says.
I touch the water coming out of the tap. It is ice cold, but Deanne is so hot she is warming the water. "She is pregnant by a wolf," Draco says.
"The Alpha from the work camp. He liked to fuck me. He thought it would be funny if I got pregnant. Think of the money he would have made if I carried him a child, a tribrid to sell," Deanne says.
Draco is furious. "I will kill him. I will fucking kill that bastard," Draco says.
I take Deanne's hand and hold it. Her hand is so hot, and it makes my hand sweat. I try not to cry. Draco leaves to go help Aspen bring ice up from downstairs. I splash the cold water on her. "I love you, Angela. You are my best friend. I love you so much," Deanne says to me.
"I love you too. You will be fine. We just have to get your fever down. Draco knows what to do. Stay with me, okay," I say to her as I continue splashing cold water onto her firey hot body.
"I am sorry I was so mean to you at the work camp. I was so furious that you had gotten yourself in trouble. I am sorry, Angela. I should have known you would come looking for me," she whispers to me slowly.
"It is okay. It is not the first time you were mad at me because I stuck my nose where it did not belong," I say.
Draco and Aspen come in with two buckets of ice. "This is going to suck, sister," Draco says. He pours the ice over her, and her body bucks as she feels the ice-cold cubes spread over her body.
"We need more ice. This is not enough ice," Draco says. Draco and Aspen leave to go get more.
"I am hurting, Angela. It burns and hurts. My body is hurting everywhere," Deanne says.
"I am sorry," I say.
"He loves you, and you do know that, right. Aspen, he is so in love with you. I can see it," Deanne says.
I rub her hand and splash the water over her. "I think he is a keeper, but we can talk about Aspen and me later. Right now, we need to focus on you," I say to her.
"I need you to know that I think he is perfect for you. I know he will take care of you. Poor wolf, he has no idea what he is getting himself into with you. You are so driven. I envy that about you. I wish I had your drive," she says.
I start to cry. She cannot leave me here. I need her to come out of this. "You are going to be okay," I say to her.
"No, I am not. I can feel my body dying. I am dying, Angela. Keep an eye on Draco for me, please. He is going to take this hard. He will need your help to get through it. Promise me you will look out for him," Deanne says.
"You can survive this. My mother survived this, so can you. You cannot leave me," I say to her.
"You were and still are so unique, Angela. Do not take your gifts lightly. Use them, so this does not happen to others," Deanne says.
Draco comes into the bathroom with another bucket of ice. Aspen is right behind him. I spread the ice over Deanne as Draco and Aspen pour it into the tub.
Draco kneels down beside the tub. He touches Deanne's hand. " You will be okay, sister. Just stay with me. We just have to get your fever down. You will live, sister," Draco says.
Deanne smiles at Draco. "I love you, brother. Do not grieve me. I volunteered to go into the camp. This is not your fault. I love you so much," she says. Deanne closes her eyes, and her body goes limp.
"NOOOOOOOO!" Draco screams!
Draco reaches into the tub and pulls Deanne to him. He holds her and sobs into her. I sit beside the tub crying and in shock. I cannot believe she is gone. How could this happen? Why? The Alpha knew he fucking knew she would die if he got her pregnant. He killed her. That bastard killed her.
Aspen picks me up off the floor. "Let's give Draco a moment with Deanne," Aspen says.
I look at Draco, holding Deanne. She is gone. I cannot believe she is gone. I lean my head into Aspen. He carries me out of the bathroom. He takes me back to our room. I try to stay composed. I do not want to overshadow Draco's grief.
Aspen sets me down on the bed. He sits down beside me. "Why? Why did the Alpha do this to her?" I ask.
"He had a thing for her. I never thought he would hurt her. He was a bastard, but he favored her," Aspen says.
"He favored her so much he got her pregnant and then sold her," I say.
Aspen tries to console me. My mind goes to Deanne and me. The first thing I remember is her and Draco building a clubhouse behind their house. I remember the fun we had in that clubhouse. I remember the way they made me feel like family. Her death is going to kill their parents.
We shared meals at the kitchen table that Draco tried to cook for Deanne and me. He always fancied him a chef, but he was a horrible cook, still is. Deanne would eat his food and tell him it was perfect. She was always kind to him: her brother, her hero, and her best friend.
Losing Deanne is going to rock him to the core of his being. I have to be here for him. I cannot leave here just yet. I want a life with Aspen, but first, I have to take care of Draco. I have to be his friend.
"Aspen, do you still want to leave here and start a life with me?" I ask.
"Yes, more than anything," Aspen says.
"Before we do, we have to make sure Draco is okay. If I wanted us to stay here a while and help him, would you be okay with that?" I ask Aspen.
Aspen pulls me tighter to him. "I will stay here with you as long as you want. We have a lifetime to start our lives," Aspen says.
"Thank you," I whisper.