Reaching You

Chapter 20: Paige

My hands feel clammy and my heart thumps as Nurse Wendy looks at me with sadness in her kind eyes. I felt an awful feeling in my chest. My mother was, after all, a ticking bomb. She was fragile. A million thoughts ran through my head as I thought of her. I jump as I felt sparks and I look up to see Ryder. "I'm not going to leave." He says, looking determined. Nurse Wendy gestures for us to follow her. Ryder takes my hand as we follow the nurse to enter my mother's room. My mother lies there with tubes around her face.

The sight of my mother looking so vulnerable throw me off. She looked nothing like my mother. Her usually well-kept hair is a mess and her face is so pale. Ryder lets go of my hand and I run to her side. He stays outside, giving us privacy. "Mom? Mom?" I whispered, reaching out to hold her hand. Her hand is cold and her grip is weak. She slowly turns her head to look at me. "Paige. Paige." Her voice is hoarse and raspy. I rub my hands against hers to warm them up. "Mom, you are going to be fine. It will pass." I said, desperately. I pull up the bedcovers as she shivers.

She rests her hand on my hand to stop me from moving. "Honey, I-I can't." She says, weakly. Tears fill my eyes as I shake my head. "M-mom, we'll get through this together. Please." I pleaded as she reaches out to touch my face. I lean into her touch. She strokes my hair. "My beautiful pup." She mutters to herself, her eyes losing focus briefly. Tears stream down my face as she gives me a hopeful smile.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." She whispers, my heart breaks as I know I cannot deny her desire to join her mate in the afterlife. She had lost her mate two years ago. She had lost a piece of her soul, the one person that made the universe make sense. But she stayed for me. As much as, I wanted her to stay, I couldn't. "Mom, I'm sorry. I-I couldn't" I said my voice breaking. She looks into my eyes, her green eyes full of tears. She pats my hand. "Shh. I love you so much." She says, tenderly. I choke back sobs.

There were so many things that I wanted to tell her. So many things that I still wanted her to be there for. But my throat runs dry. It would be cruel to say these things to her. "I-I love you," I whispered, we sit in this empty room. She smiles and gives me a weak laugh. "I love you more pup." She says, her voice deeper. I knew it was her wolf. I watch as she gets a faraway look in her eyes.

Tears stop running down her cheeks. "Jay?" She whispers, weakly. She frantically calls my father's name multiple times. Her words slur as her hand gets colder and her eyelids lower. The monitors start beeping and her arm goes limp. "Mom?" I whispered as doctors rush in. But she doesn't respond. She was gone. My mother was gone. I zone out I can't hear a thing as I fight to stay by my mother's side. Doctors push me away and strong arms hold me back.

Dr. Louis talks but I feel like I'm underwater. I nod and he passes me a letter. I take it in my hands. It was from my mother. I stare at it blankly as I sink to the floor. I felt numb to the world. My eyes were open but I wasn't seeing anything. I couldn't believe it. There was no way. I look at my mother as she lies with a smile on her lips. My wolf howls in agony as the color leaves my mother's face. Nothing seemed right anymore. I was like I was wandering in the dark. That's when I heard it.

My ears are filled with an awful sound. A screeching noise makes me want to curl up in a ball and hide. I cover my ears and curl up on the cold hard floor. I see the shocked faces of the nurses and doctors. That's when it hits me. The sound was me. It was coming from me. I can barely feel it when Ryder pulls me into his chest. The sparks from his touch offer comfort but it wasn't enough. Nothing would fill the gaping hole that my mother's death left. I rip out of his arms. He lets me go. I walk away from the room, my hand crushing the envelope that I received. I hear calls but I ignore them. I didn't care.

My wolf was screaming at me to return to Ryder. But I couldn't. I had to get away. Away from my dead mother. Away from the pack. Away from him. My legs fill heavy but I push myself. I ignore the startled looks of other patients. "STOP!" Dr. Louis says, from behind but he is too late. I reach the handles of the door. I slam the doors open and The gust of cold wind hits my face, I pause for a second.

Before I could form a proper thought, I take off and I run. My clothes are shredded as I shift into my wolf form. I run into the woods. I stumble and fall. I fall on the wet forest floor. I push myself off the ground. I pick up the envelope. My knees are bleeding but it is nothing compared to the burning inferno in my chest. I run out of my pack territory. "PAIGE!" Screams Giana as she sees me cross the border. The guards separate as they watch me run into their land. I fling myself to her, tears blurring my vision. She holds me up as she calls for her mate.

My vision goes dark and I lose consciousness in Giana's arms.