Chasing His Scentless Mate (Caroline) novel Chapter 219

Chapter 219: Chapter 219 Fight For Survival

Draven’s POV

The hospital waiting room smelled of antiseptic. We’d been there for nearly four hours when the surgeon finally emerged, still in blood-stained scrubs. Eleanor stood immediately, her face pale but composed.

"How is he?" she asked, voice barely steady. 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

The doctor’s expression was guarded. "Alpha Nathaniel is stable but in critical condition. The attackers clearly meant to do permanent damage. There are multiple fractures to his ribs, a punctured lung, severe head trauma, and most concerning... potential spinal injury."

"Spinal injury?" Eleanor’s voice cracked. "What does that mean?"

"There’s swelling around his upper spine. Until it goes down, we won’t know how bad the damage is, but he might be partially paralyzed."

I felt sick. Werewolves could heal from many things, including cuts, bruises, even broken bones, but spinal injuries affecting the nervous system were different.

Eleanor swayed, and I caught her arm to steady her.

"Can I see him?" she whispered.

"He’s in recovery now. Once we move him to ICU, immediate family can visit briefly."

As the doctor left, Eleanor’s composure shattered. She collapsed against my chest, sobbing. "They tried to paralyze him," she cried. "Howard wanted to take away everything that makes Nate who he is."

"We don’t know that for certain," I said. "The doctors are doing everything possible."

"If he’s paralyzed..." She couldn’t finish the sentence.

Ryan knelt beside us. "Nate is one of the strongest wolves I know. If anyone can recover from this, it’s him."

Eleanor wiped her tears with shaking hands. "He loves running more than anything. The freedom of the shift, the forest... it would destroy him to lose that."

Alaric growled in my mind. "Howard will pay for this with blood."

I couldn’t disagree. The waiting room door opened as Alpha Gerald and Marla, Eleanor’s parents, rushed in, followed by Teresa and Michael, Nate’s parents.

Teresa’s eyes were red but determined. "Where is my son?" she asked.

"Still in recovery," I explained, standing to greet them. "The doctor said immediate family can see him once he’s moved to ICU."

Teresa nodded stiffly. She was a formidable she-wolf, the one who had risked everything to help us rescue Liam. Now her own son was paying the price for her courage.

"This is Howard’s doing," she stated flatly. "Because I helped with your son."

"Yes," I admitted. "And I take full responsibility—"

"Don’t," she interrupted. "I made my choice knowing the risks. My only regret is not killing that monster when I had the chance."

Alpha Gerald placed a hand on my shoulder. "What’s being done to find him?"

"Everything possible. The Alpha Council has investigators working around the clock, and I’ve doubled security for everyone connected to me."

Teresa nodded. "Good. Because when my son recovers, and he will recover, I want Howard in chains."

A nurse approached to inform us that Nate had been moved to ICU. The parents went in first, while Eleanor paced anxiously. When her turn came, she squared her shoulders and walked in .

She returned ten minutes later, eyes haunted. "He’s so pale," she whispered. "There are tubes everywhere. He doesn’t even look like himself."

I embraced her tightly. "He’ll come back to us."

My phone vibrated with a text from Mabel, "Caroline knows something’s wrong. She’s upset."

"I need to go home and tell Caroline," I said to Eleanor. "Dr. Molina should come with me to monitor her condition."

"Go," Eleanor insisted. "I’ll stay here."

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