Red String {EDITING}

The Birth of the Red Devil

"There." Finar pulled the blanket over the seven-year-old redhead, placing the tray of food on her lap as she sat up in bed, propped up with a load of pillows.

"I'm not hungry." Lyra pushed the tray away.

"You need to eat." Finar pulled up a chair, sitting next to her bedside, lifting a spoonful of soup to her lips. "It'll help you get better, so open wide."

"You'd better head back down Ry." Blythe glanced at the Alpha Prince. "Your mother won't be pleased if you catch something."

The black-haired boy scowled. "Whatever." He grumbled, begrudgingly walking out of the room as Lyra ate some of her lunch.

"You should head down too, kid." Blythe glanced over at Thorn. "Alpha King Leopold wants to meet all the kids in this orphanage."

"I stay with Lyra." Thorn folded his arms.

"Sheesh." Blythe ran a hand through his black hair. "Just go downstairs, child. Don't make me ask twice."

"It'll be fine, Thorn." Lyra smiled weakly, holding out her white teddy bear. "You can take care of Lorna downstairs. She'll get ill if she stays with me."

"Blythe." Finar turned to him. "Do me a favour and pop back to Blagmoor and grab my full medical kit. It should be in my office in the large white case."

"You really think it's that serious?"

"Something's off." He said, watching as the black-haired man disappeared into the shadow of the door.

"Is Ly going to be OK?!" Thorn was at her side in an instant, staring at the brunette.

"She'll be fine." Finar rested a hand on his shoulder. "Trust me."

"But you just said it was serious!"

A hand lifted the boy by his collar. "Just do as he says, brat." Blythe sighed, dumping a large white case on the ground at Finar's feet.

"I think she's going to be sick." Thorn's eyes were fixed on Lyra as her face turned green.

Finar grabbed the bucket from the ground, holding it in front of the girl just in time for her lunch to made a sudden reappearance. "I'll need to set her up an IV so we can get some fluids into her. If she's not looking any better by evening, then we'll probably have to drop her off at the hospital." He said, handing the bucket over to Blythe.

Blythe pinched his nose, glancing at the bucket in disgust. "Oy, brat..." His eyes narrowed on the strange purplish gloop mixed in with Lyra's half-digested lunch. "Dispose of this. Now. Then stay downstairs until one of us comes and gets you."

Strangely enough, Thorn obeyed without a single complaint.

He'd felt it after all.

The sudden change in the atmosphere of the room.

Blythe shut the door behind him. "Finar, pull the blanket off her legs."

"What are you thinking?" Brown eyes narrowed as he pulled back the blue blanket.

Blythe pushed up her pyjama bottoms, yanking the socks of her feet, closing his eyes when he spotted the dark purple map of blood vessels weaving their way up her legs. "This isn't an infection." He said, meeting the shocked gaze of the brunette. "She's been poisoned."

***

"We've drained as much of the infected blood as we can..." Blythe said, holding up the bags of thick purple liquid. "Now we just have to hope the antidote we gave her will clear the rest of it up."