Chapter 145

"Drop that dog and let them take care of you!"

The castle had been shut down, all doors were locked. No one could come and and no one could go out.

There were many a few injured guests, and many dying ones.

The King had disappeared right after killing the last of Volaky, his mate disappearing long before. The bodies of the dead Volakys still stunk up the big hall, but everyone was too busy trying to survive that they paid it no mind. They were all trying to get the attention of the limited Physicians so they could survive. The tables were no longer filled up with bottles and glasses of wine, cake or decorations but vampires that had received the worst hits of tonight's event.

The blood that was meant for refreshments during the ceremony, was now a necessity in the first aid kit.

The Physicians shouted their need for more, and the lucky ones who had been too busy with one thing or the other outside the hall at the time of the attack, were sent to the reservoir for more.

Gwen was one of those lucky ones. She was even luckier because her family had left the vicinity of the castle by the time of the attack.

Mira wasn't that lucky though. The little pup was dying, just as the one holding her to her chest was. The Volaky's venom was spreading through Delice's arm fast, she needed attention but Nicholas could only attend to one of them. The care of any one of them, would lead to uncertainty for the survival of the other.

Aunt Alice was somewhere among the choas, screaming for someone to look for her grandchild without the knowledge of what had happened to her, while desperately trying to revive who was unconsciously bleeding out in his wolf's form. She was making use of a syrup someone had hurriedly thrown to her direction.

It was probably meant for the dying vampire behind her, because who want to care for a disgusting fur creature, when they could use the antidote for their own.

Well, too bad for the dying vampire. For to each, their own.

"I said, drop that fur creature!" Laura screamed at Delice, who was trembling as blood slipped down her arm that should have healed up by now if not for the Volakys's venom.

"She is dying, Laura!" Delice snapped, pushing Mira into Nicholas busy arms. He received the pup without questions, inspecting the gaping wound that lined the child's stomach.

"She is not even yours." Laura shouted, trying to make herself audible over the commands that flew in the air.

"More water!"

"Needles here!"

"On it!"

"We need to stitch."

"Blood!"

"Here!"

"More blood!"

"On it!"

"Hurry!"

Dizziness swayed Delice's step and Laura rushed to her side so she wouldn't slump. Her infected hand dangled lifelessly by her side. She was turning green, looking even more lifeless than a vampire should.

"You are dying." Laura's voice trembled. She was the less injured one in this situation and at that moment, she wished she had been the one taking Delice's place instead.

She ripped out a part of her gown and tied it some distance above the wound, further up than she had tied it just a few minutes ago to slow down the spread of the venom.

"Don't you dare leave me!" Laura gritted, her teary eyes searching the crowd for any free physician. She didn't find any but she found Lord Rosil attending to ex-general Basit, while Riza was running off to get them something Lord Rosil must have sent her to fetch.

Without hesitation, Laura pulled Delice along with her, tossed the dying ex-general Basit off the table, and laid Delice in his place.

"Take care of her."

"The vampire has little time." Lord Rosil said, concern in her eyes.

Laura's gaze snapped to Basit, his eyes pleading because his mouth couldn't. She looked away, her grip around Delice ensuring she wouldn't leave the table. It was a good thing her foggy mind was distracted by the fur creature's wellbeing, or else she would have fought for General Basit to be attended to.

"He can die if he wants to. Bring my Delice to good health." Her red eyes blazed with a threat at Lord Rosil's hesitation. "That is an order."

She kicked into action after that, Basit long forgotten, as she unwrapped the cloth that had been tied around Delice's arm. Screams of agony ranged from the depth of her throat, and Delice fought against Laura's grip to get off the table as Lord Rosil tried her best to get the venom out.

Her fight was futile, Laura was stronger.

"Use your magic, witch!"

"It is---"

"USE. IT!"

"I haven't used it in a long time, I don't know---" her voice didn't tremble, but the power dynamic between them kept her in check.

"Use it, it is better than whatever this is." Laura snapped and Lord Rosil kicked into action again. "You dare not leave me." That was Delice.

A sigh slipped out of Delice's lips at the slight relief, she could feel the venom slowly vanishing from her veins, easing away from her.

Volaky's venom was very deadly. First, it killed their special abilities in seconds, zeroed them into something without their powers. After that, it would just kill them.

For as the vampires were to the werewolves, so were the Volakys to the vampires.

Each unkillable terror to the other.

"I can't hear her breathing." Delice whispered, her eyes searching through the busy crowd of patients, physicians and wailing vampires that their loved ones had already been confirmed gone - straight to Nicholas who had that look that she recognized all too well, in his eyes.

Panic set in her veins.

"She is not going to survive."

"Focus on yourself." Laura silenced her.

A poor attempt.

"It will kill Zezi if her daughter is gone."

"Focus on your recovery. I don't even know if you will make it." Their gazes clashed as Laura hovered over her. Anger, desperation and tears of am uncertain loss.

"I don't want her to feel what I felt, you know. I don't want her to have to build a home in a graveyard for her Medallion."

Laura blinked the tears welling up in her eyes away, trying to understand this madness and misplaced priority, ready to fight it off with logicality.

Delice didn't give her the luxury of two seconds, in a flash, she fought off Laura's hold with strength she didn't command before, ignoring Lord Rosil's warning of her need to stay put because she was now in the dangerous state for the venom removal.

"You will die if you don't complete it, Lady Delice."

Lord Rosil wasn't lying, Delice could already feel it. The venom was gone now but she was losing too much blood. Her body was weak and it would take time for her powers to return. Time that she didn't have. Right now, she was no longer a vampire. The venom had paralyzed that ability.

Right now, she was what she used to be. A weak werewolf without a wolf.

A nothing.

She ignored all that, driven by her need to save this girl from falling into the hands of death. There was nothing connecting the two experiences together, but in her mind they were connected. For her son, she didn't have a chance to save him, but for this one, a chance presented itself.

It felt like an opportunity to finally get rid of her guilt.

A second chance.

"What does she need Nicholas?"

"The venom isn't in her veins but that cut might just kill her. She has been starved for too many years, she is practically dying before now." The words slipped out of his mouth with anger, as a maid rushed towards him.

"We have no blood."

"In the supply?"

"There is no blood, sir!"

"Blood?" The word slipped out of Delice mouth, her gaze shifted to both of them. "But she is werewolf."

"That is what I thought too, but she isn't. I know a vampire when I treat one, and this one needs blood."