The Biker Alpha Who Became My Second Chance Mate Chapter 166

Athena

"You won't lose me. I promise."

He didn't look convinced, but he nodded. "Alright. Derek, make it happen."

Derek was already on his phone, making more calls, his voice taking on that authoritative tone he used when getting things done.

Within minutes, he had it arranged. The transfer. The ambulance. Dr. Ben meeting us at the facility.

The hard part was convincing the hospital to let us take Tristan.

It took another hour of paperwork and arguing and Derek's family hospital name being dropped multiple times.

The doctors were against it, naturally. Kept insisting Tristan needed their ICU, their specialists, their equipment. Kept saying that moving him was dangerous, that we were risking his life.

I wanted to scream at them that leaving him here was risking his life, that they couldn't help him the way I could. But obviously I couldn't say that, so I just stood there and let Derek and Orion handle it while I tried not to fall apart.

Sarah stayed close, her presence a comfort even when she didn't say anything. She understood what was happening, what we were planning. And she didn't judge, didn't try to talk me out of it. Just supported me the way she always did.

Finally, after what felt like forever, we had the signatures. The legal waivers. The agreement that we were taking full responsibility and the hospital bore no liability for anything that happened after Tristan left their care.

They loaded him into the ambulance with the same efficiency as before, hooking him up to portable monitors that beeped steadily.

He looked so pale, so still, so unlike the fierce, confident man I knew. The man who'd raced like a demon just hours ago, who'd won against impossible odds.

Now he couldn't even open his eyes.

I climbed in the back this time, refusing to be separated from him. Derek drove in his truck, following the ambulance. Sarah rode with him. Orion stayed with me, sitting across from where Tristan lay, his eyes never leaving his best friend's face.

The ride to the private facility felt longer than it was.

Every bump in the road made me wince, worried it was hurting Tristan, making his injuries worse. The paramedic monitoring him kept adjusting things, checking vitals, his face professionally neutral but I could see the concern there.

Tristan's condition was deteriorating.

Not dramatically, not in a way that set off alarms, but little things. His blood pressure dropping slightly, his breathing becoming more labored. His body struggling to heal itself fast enough.

"How much longer?" I asked the paramedic.

"Fifteen minutes," he said.

Fifteen minutes felt like an eternity.

I reached out and took Tristan's hand, careful not to disturb the IV line. His skin was cold, clammy. So different from his usual warmth, the heat that always radiated from him.

"Just hold on a little longer," I whispered, not caring that the paramedic could hear me. "We're almost there. Almost somewhere I can help you. Just hold on, baby. Please."

His fingers didn't squeeze back. Didn't move at all. He was too far gone, too deep in whatever unconscious place his mind had retreated to.

Orion's hand landed on my shoulder, squeezing gently. I looked up and saw my own fear reflected in his eyes, he was scared too.

Trying to be strong for me, trying to be the protective older brother, but he was terrified.

"He'll make it," Orion said, but it sounded like he was trying to convince himself as much as me.

"He has to."

The ambulance pulled up to a modern building that looked more like an upscale hotel than a medical facility.

Discrete, expensive, designed not to look like a place where people came when they were dying.

So this was Derek worlds, this was were he belonged to.

Not anymore, but he came back for Tristan. And I'll forever be grateful.

Dr. Ben was waiting at the entrance with two nurses and a gurney. He was an older man, late sixties maybe, with kind eyes and steady hands. The kind of person who'd seen everything and wasn't easily surprised.

"Bring him inside quickly," he said, all business. "We have a private room prepared, fully equipped."

They transferred Tristan from the ambulance gurney to the facility's gurney with practiced efficiency. I tried to follow but Orion held me back.

"Let them get him settled first," he said.

"I need to be with him..."

"You will be. But let the doctor examine him, assess his condition. Five minutes, Athena. That's all."

Five more minutes felt impossible, but I nodded. Watched them wheel Tristan inside, through automatic doors that closed behind them with a soft whoosh.

Derek and Sarah joined us in the lobby. It was nice here. Peaceful. Nothing like the harsh, clinical environment of the regular hospital.

Soft lighting, comfortable furniture, art on the walls. A place designed to make people feel calm.

I didn't feel calm.

I felt like I was crawling out of my skin, every second that passed another second Tristan suffered, another second his life hung in the balance.

"This is the right call," Derek said, noticing my agitation. "Dr. Ben is the best. If anyone can help Tristan, it's him."

"I'm not worried about Dr. Ben," I said. "I'm worried about..."

"I know what you're worried about," Derek interrupted gently. "And it's going to be okay. You're going to be able to help him now. Safely. Without risking exposure."

Sarah took my hand again, that silent support I'd come to rely on.

Dr. Ben emerged from the back hallway, pulling off latex gloves. His expression was serious but not panicked.

"His condition is stable for now," he said. "But he needs immediate intervention. The internal bleeding is more severe than the other hospital realized, and there's significant brain swelling. If we don't act soon..."

"Can I see him?" I interrupted.

Dr. Ben studied me for a moment, then nodded slowly. "Of course. Room 3, down the hall on your right. But please understand, his prognosis is..."

"I understand," I said, already moving. "Thank you, Doctor."

Orion fell into step beside me. "Remember what we talked about. Be careful. Don't push yourself too hard."

"I know."

"I'm serious, Athena. The moment you feel anything wrong..."

"I'll stop. I promise."

But we both knew I was lying. I wasn't stopping until Tristan was healed. Not for anything.

Room 3 was at the end of a quiet hallway. Through the door's window, I could see Tristan on the bed, hooked up to various monitors and machines.

He looked so small in that bed. So vulnerable. Nothing like the strong, confident Alpha who'd held me in his arms just yesterday, who'd laughed and joked and made plans for our future.

I pushed open the door and stepped inside.

The room was spacious, private, with a single bed and medical equipment that looked state-of-the-art. But I barely noticed any of that, my focus was entirely on Tristan.

His face was bruised, swollen on one side where he'd hit the ground. There was a bandage wrapped around his head, covering the gash I knew was underneath.

His left leg was in a temporary splint, bent at an angle that made my stomach turn even with the stabilization.

But he was breathing, his chest rose and fell steadily. He was alive.

That's what mattered.

Orion, Sarah, and Derek filed in behind me, their presence a comfort even though I barely registered it. My entire world had narrowed to Tristan, to the man I loved, to the father of my children.

I approached the bed slowly, carefully, like sudden movement might shatter this fragile moment.

My hand reached out, hovering over his chest, and I could feel it already, that pull, that connection between my life-giving powers and his Alpha energy. They recognized each other, called to each other.

"Athena," Orion's voice was soft but firm. "Are you sure about this?"