Book One: A Wolf Among Beasts

Chapter Twenty Five

Eli lingers at the perimeter Ross has set up around the apartment, sunglasses on, baseball cap down, they're still there 2 days later an there is no sign of Ricky either. She feels bad leaving him behind but it's not like she could have carried him with them. She takes a deep breath and turns walking away. She'll try again tomorrow. This is all a mess. She should have listened to the part of her that told her to leave Bruce alone, all those months ago she should have disappeared into the wild and never looked back. Eli stumbles slightly in her steps and shakes her head to clear the dizziness from her mind. She takes a few deep breath and swallows the nausea, the last few days it's been getting worse. Little things, nausea, tiredness, dizziness. She's trying not to freak out about it. Because she knows freaking out always makes things worse. She puts it down to emotional trauma. She's more upset now then ever before and as such her body is responding in turn; throwing everything it has at her. She manages to pick herself up as she strides away, all trace of her 'moment' gone.

................

Eli smells him first, a familiar and welcoming scent. Ricky. She starts to walk faster, approaching her shack. He's sat on her porch, tail wagging. She smiles and relaxes, at least some weight off of her shoulders.

"Ricky" she states moving towards the dog who barks and wiggles where he stands. She crouches and scruffs up his head smiling softly forcing herself not to cry knowing he's okay. "Just you and me now, Bub" she tells him sadly as she stands up. Ricky barks back at her and jumps about. "Yeah" she whispers. "Come on, let's go home" she walks away and he follows after her.

...............

Eli grabs half her sandwich from the plate in front of her and throws it to Ricky who wolfs it down, Eli shakes her head and grabs her own half before taking a bite. She looks around the shack. Just as she left it. Nothing special. Empty. It just reminds her that she is now alone. So very alone. She was used to it before, revelled in being alone, loved it. Now she despises it. Makes her skin crawl. Her wolf calling out for her pack, for Bruce and Hulk. She sets down her sandwich and touches the necklace around her neck as she closes her eyes. Opening them she decides against her food, no longer hungry, she throws what is left to Ricky. Standing she grabs the plate and walks to set it on the side before taking a deep breath trying to push away her feelings. Eli blinks and presses her hand to the wall next to her, suddenly dizzy. This shouldn't be happening to her, she doesn't get dizzy, she doesn't get anything. She takes a few breaths.....tries to walk steady again but instead she collapses to the floor of her shack, she lays there, too tired, too weak to move and she doesn't see the veins under her skin start to turn green. Her eyes flicker to yellow, her wolf eyes, but the yellow starts to swirl with green. It feels like hours that she lays there unable to bring herself to move. Then it's like a rush of energy, seeping back into her body and a weight is lifted. Eli pushes herself up and pulls her cell phone from her pocket, fumbling with it she manages to scroll through her contacts, running another hand through her hair. Finding Logan's number she presses dial as she pulls her hand from her hair. She looks down to find strands of her hair have fallen out in her fingers. Her eyes widen just as the line picks up.

"Eli?" Logan's voice calls down the line but she can't talk, she just stares at her hair. "Eli" Logan tries again. "Elizabeth" he snaps drawing her out, she blinks and takes a breath.

"Logan" she whispers into her phone. "I need your help"

"What's wrong?" he asks her and she can hear him standing.

"Something....something is wrong with me" she look down at her hand, her fingers brushing over her hair.

"Where are you?" Logan asks her.

"Rio" she answers. "Bruce is gone..." she admits. "It's just me now"

"I'm coming to get you, okay?" Logan asks her. "I'll be there" he promises.

"Jimmy" she whispers.

"I know, Lizzie" he whispers back, knowing how scared she sounds right now, he knows her better then anyone and he can hear it on her voice. "I'm leaving right now" he assures her, she sniffles.

"'Kay" she counters and then hangs up, presses her phone to her forehead and takes a deep breath before bolting for her bathroom where she throws up. Retching the contents of her stomach up. Once she can no longer bring anything up she leans back against the wall and groans. Ricky whines and presses himself up against her side, she presses her hand to his head and smiles softly. "Good boy" she whispers.

.............

Eli doesn't move from that spot until she hears heavy footsteps entering her home, Ricky lifts his head and growls warning, protectively standing in front of Eli. She sniffs and then calms the dog with a touch before standing and shuffling to the doorway.

"You look like shit" Logan comments as he appears, Eli leans in the doorway and shoots him a look.

"Thanks" she grumbles. He moves to her and touches her face, brushing her hair back.

"Seriously, you look like shit" he repeats. "What's going on?"

"I don't know" she admits. "I just feel....like there is something very wrong with me" he looks back at Storm as she enters the shack.

"Let's get her home" Storm tells him.

"Ricky" Eli mumbles.

"Yeah, he's coming too" Logan assures her.

"My things are still at Bruce's" she admits. "They were crawling all over it, I couldn't get my stuff"

"I'll get it" Logan tells her passing her off to Storm. "I'll meet you on the jet" Logan tells Storm. "Look after her"

"I will" Storm promises him, Logan strokes Eli's hair before leaving. Storm wraps her arm around Eli to help her walk as they leave together, Ricky following close behind them.