Mated To My Mate's Worst Enemy Chapter 66

ARIA

Her eyes, which had been open but unseeing, suddenly focused. I watched awareness flood back into them, watched her brain try to process what was happening, where she was, why people were holding her down.

"Wha—" Her voice came out as barely a croak. "What happened?"

"You poisoned yourself," Eliza said bluntly. "Testing toxins in the herb garden. We found you unconscious and unresponsive. I just administered your emergency antidotes, which appear to have worked but also nearly stopped your heart in the process."

Ivory's gaze moved around the room, taking in the faces above her, the clinical setting, the fact that Kael was the one holding her arm. Something flickered in her expression—pain, or maybe embarrassment—and she pulled away from his grip.

"Let me go," she said, her voice stronger now but still rough. "I can sit up."

We released her carefully, ready to catch her if she started to fall. But Ivory managed to push herself to a sitting position, though her arms trembled with the effort. She looked around the clinic more fully now, her healer's instincts clearly kicking in as she noticed the other occupied stations.

"The healers who were attacked this morning," Eliza explained, following her gaze. "Four wounded, two critical. They were gathering herbs when rogues ambushed them."

"Symptoms?" Ivory asked immediately, all business despite her own weakened state.

"Severe lacerations, possible internal injuries, blood loss, shock," Eliza rattled off. "We've stabilized them but the two critical patients are still unconscious. I'm worried about—"

"Give them the antidote," Ivory interrupted. "The same compound you just used on me. But smaller doses—maybe a quarter of what you administered to me. Their bodies are in shock, shutting down to protect vital organs. The antidote will force their systems to wake up, give them the energy to start healing."

Eliza looked uncertain. "Ivory, that antidote nearly stopped your heart. The risk—"

"Is worth it if it saves their lives," Ivory finished. "Trust me. I designed these compounds specifically for situations like this—when the body needs a forced restart. Just keep the dosage low and monitor their cardiac response. If their heart rates spike too high, you can counteract with—" She rattled off the name of some other drug I didn't recognize.

"You're sure about this?" Eliza pressed.

"I tested it on myself for a reason," Ivory said, though her gaze was fixed on the injured healers rather than on Eliza. "Multiple times, actually, building up the data to know exactly how it works. I know the risks and the benefits. Those women need this, Eliza. Give it to them."

Eliza looked at Kael, seeking approval. He nodded, and she immediately set about preparing smaller doses of the antidote compound.

I watched Ivory as Eliza worked. She was still pale, still visibly shaken from her own near-death experience, but her focus was entirely on the injured pack members. Her hands were clenched tight on the edge of the examination table, and through our brief proximity, I could see they were trembling.

"You should rest," I said quietly, moving closer to her. "You just nearly died from self-inflicted poisoning. You need to let your body recover."

"I'm fine," Ivory said dismissively, not looking at me. "The antidote worked. I'm conscious and functional. That's all that matters right now."

"Ivory—" Kael started.

"Don't," Ivory cut him off, finally turning to look at him. Her expression was carefully neutral, professionally polite, completely devoid of the warmth I'd seen in old photos of them together. "I appreciate your concern, Alpha Kael. But I'm perfectly capable of assessing my own condition. I'm needed here, so I'm staying."

The formal address—Alpha Kael instead of just Kael—clearly stung. I felt Kael's hurt through our bond, felt his confusion and frustration at the distance Ivory kept putting between them.

"You weren't responding to the mindlink," he said quietly. "When we were looking for you, when we found you collapsed—I couldn't reach you. Did you block the pack bonds?"

"Yes," Ivory said simply. "I knew the testing might result in temporary incapacitation. I didn't want to disturb anyone or cause unnecessary alarm. So I blocked the connections before beginning."

"You could have died," Kael said, and there was something raw in his voice. "Alone in the herb garden, with no one knowing you were in danger. You could have died, Ivory."

"But I didn't," she said calmly. "I had emergency antidotes prepared. I had contingency plans in place. I knew the risks I was taking and I took appropriate precautions. Everything turned out fine."

"Fine?" Kael's voice rose slightly. "You call being found unconscious and barely breathing fine? You call needing emergency antidotes that nearly stopped your heart fine?"

"I call successfully testing compounds that just saved two pack members' lives fine," Ivory corrected, gesturing toward where Eliza was administering the antidote to the first critical patient. "I call having the data and preparations ready when they were needed fine. The temporary personal risk was worth the long-term benefit to the pack."

Before Kael could respond, the patient Eliza had just treated began to convulse much like Ivory had—though less violently, thanks to the reduced dosage. But within moments, the woman's eyes opened, focused, and her breathing strengthened dramatically.

"It's working," Eliza said, wonder in her voice. "Her vitals are stabilizing. Heart rate is elevated but not dangerously so. Ivory, this is incredible."

"Give it to the other critical patient," Ivory ordered. "Same dosage. Quick, while we know it's effective."

Eliza moved to comply while Ivory slowly slid off the examination table, steadying herself with one hand against the surface. Her legs were clearly weak, but she forced herself to stand, to move toward the other patients to supervise their care.

"Ivory, you need to rest," Nina said, moving to support her cousin. "You just survived poisoning. Let Eliza handle the rest of the treatments."