Forever in the Past and Forever in the Future

| look around and see the orange glow of fire in the living room. | run to the bedroom door and look around to find the room is engulfed in flames. The fake tree Ashley had set up for Winter Solstice looks like it's melting, causing noxious fumes amid the rest of the smoke. Some of the branches are starting to catch fire. | can hear people in the hallway screaming.

Oh my Goddess. We have to get out of here! | run back into the room yelling and coughing, "Bronx! Wake up! We have to get out!"

| shake him as hard as | can but he doesn't budge. His skin is cold and he looks pale, even though the room is getting hotter by the second. | focus past the smell of fire. He smells like whiskey and wolfsbane. He's been poisoned! :

“Oh shit, oh shit. What should | do?”

"Don't panic, Kas. You're a healer, you can save him. We learned about this. Come on!" | hear Lex call out.

“Lex, are you strong enough? Can you help me?”

“| can try Kas. Go ahead. Let's save our mate. But hurry, we have to get out of here!" she sounds confident. | wonder if it is for my benefit or if she really feels that way.

| fight back tears of panic as | strain to roll Bronx over on his back. Once he is prone, | do my best to take a breath. Then | place one hand on Bronx's chest and one on his forehead and let the breath out. The familiar healing warmth fills my hands as energy flows through me. | feel the poison releasing from his body, being absorbed into mine, and starting to dissipate but not faster thatn I'm absorbing it. | feel the numbing tingles of the poison in my fingertips but he still isn't waking up. Am | too late? Please Moon Goddess, don't let me be too late. :

| put my hands on him again, trying to hold back tears. Now is not the time to break down, Kas. Keep your shit together! "BRONX! Wake UP!”

| send a surge of energy through his body. His skin is still cold and pale, | lean my face against his chest. He's not breathing.

“No no nono no- this is not happening! Not today! No! Lex, | need you to give me every ounce you can. See if you can connect with Saint. We need everything right now!” “Alright, Kas. Try again. I'm concentrating all my energy.”

| put my hands on him one more time. The fire is burning my lungs now. | feel the healing warmth but also the glow of my spirit opening up further than | think it should. | can feel the heat of the fire getting closer, making me start to sweat. The momentary lapse of concentration makes me release too much energy at once and accidentally burn his chest slightly.

Suddenly, Bronx sits up with a gasp, gulping the tainted air and coughing as if he had been underwater too long.

but Milo and James were also drinking from the bottle, |

have to get to Milo and James, Bronx. That whiskey was poisoned. They're going to

arms and puts my blanket over my head. He sprints out of the apartment. | can hear people running and smoke alarms going off. In the distance, |

"He won't wake

finally lifts the blanket off of me. Milo is laying on a sofa. Just

put one hand on Milo's chest and one on

as Bronx did. | feel it spreading through my body, building up inside

help Bronx carry Milo and they pick me up, rushing

outside, Bronx wraps his arms around me. | can still feel the poison in my system, but it is fading from the

find James! He and Delilah were drinking that whiskey

house is over a mile away. Can you shift? Lex can get there

already. | can give you my energy if you get to him ontime, but not if | shift first. That will just

strong enough, Bronx, I've absorbed all that wolfsbane from you and

us, "Alpha Regent Bronx, please take my truck." He tosses

coming from an upstairs window, "Up there, it looks like Delilah is casting a spell, let's go! Let's go!” Bronx kicks in

a panic, "He's been

we see the light coming from. Delilah is there, crying, with her hands over James, trying to pull the poison from his

at full strength right now. | can't do it myself, okay," | look her in the eye,

nods as she sniffles, tears

He takes my hand and | put my other on James’ forehead. | close my eyes and start to feel the poison dissipating from his body absorbing into mine. James slowly opens his eyes, but he doesn't sit up and suck in the air as

the side of the bed and start vomiting black, tarry goop onto the floor. It bubbles sickly and smells like concentrated wolfsbane and bile. | instantly start feeling

we have to finish this!” | start to set my hand back

okay Kas, | can handle it from here. Go back to the packhouse. | saw the fire from the

passenger side of the truck and makes our way back to the packhouse. The firefighters almost have the fire extinguished, but we