The door slammed shut behind and Loren went back, bent over Jasmine’s body.
He cleared the area and looked down on her, his hands already trembling.
"Hand me a pair of scissors," Loren said, voice clipped.
Ned picked one from the equipment bag and handed it over without a word.
Loren neatly, but hastily, cut open her dress, slicing through the fabric with clean precision. Ned helped him peel it off her body until the entire material was gone and discarded to the side.
"Oh, Jasmine..." Nanny Nia whispered from behind, her hand trembling over her lips.
Loren bent down, checked her pulse again, then leaned in to listen for breathing.
His brows furrowed. Her breathing was shallow. Too shallow.
"Is she fine?" Nanny Nia asked, her voice cracking.
"I’ll do my best to keep her stable," Loren said, already moving. "But this is complicated. The child might need an operation."
"Operation?" Nanny Nia blinked rapidly. "But she’s not—"
"She’s bleeding," he snapped gently. "We need to do something drastic, or we might lose either the mother... or the child." He hesitated. "Or both."
Nanny Nia’s face fell. Her knees almost buckled. She held her chest and leaned against the nearby wall as she managed to weep softly.
"I need towels. Lots of towels and hot water," Loren barked.
"I’ll get the maids to bring them." Nanny Nia rushed out of the room.
He heard her voice ring down the hallway, ordering people to hurry, her tone sharp and panicked. Moments later, she returned, breathless.
"What’s the towels and hot water for?" she asked.
Loren walked over and laid a massive healing leaf over Jasmine’s forehead. "She’s going into preterm labor—her body is rejecting the pregnancy. If I don’t help the baby out now, they’ll both die."
"Then do something!" Nanny Nia cried. "Please, Loren..."
"I hate to say this," he said with a heavy breath, "but magic is needed."
His voice was quiet. "Jasmine wasn’t just carrying any baby. She was carrying an Alpha’s child. She’s unshifted... I’ve never done this before."
His hands were visibly shaking now. Sweat formed at his temple.
The door suddenly flung open without warning, creaking eerily on its hinges. No one stood in the entry.
Then Marie entered, her dreadlocks swinging over her shoulders, barefoot and furious.
She looked around quickly, eyes scanning. And then her gaze fell on Jasmine’s bloody, unmoving body.
She didn’t waste time. She moved like wind—swift, focused, deadly.
She rushed over to the bed and placed both hands on Jasmine’s forehead.
"What happened?" she asked in a sharp tone.
"A guard found her this way," Nanny Nia replied, eyes wide. "I left her fine the previous night. Please—do something to save her."
"Where’s Xaden?" Marie asked, frowning.
No one answered.
"Where the fuck is he?" she said louder, jaw tight.
"That’s not relevant right now," Nanny Nia snapped, frustrated. "Jasmine’s life is what matters. Please!"
Marie sighed, dragged her hand from Jasmine’s forehead down to her belly, and held it there.
Silence.
The room tensed. Even Loren stopped breathing.
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