“Stop it, Mari,” Camellia said decisively. “Whitney is responsible for what happened to Ivy. Not you. Not me. Whitney.”
Jonas knew that long fall just got longer. He loved her. There was no getting around it. Loving someone was grounded in who they were. Their character. The traits that made them who they were. He admired and respected Camellia Mist the more he spent time with her, not just in her mind, where he could see how she thought, but in the way she conducted herself and the way she dealt with other people.
“They’ve tried all the therapies available for von Willebrand disease,” Ken volunteered. “None of them have worked. They diagnosed her with VWD type 3, said it was rare and they couldn’t cure it.” He pushed a hand through his hair. “Lily has stuck with us, doing everything she could. She was the one who sent word to the other teams, asking them to send us one of their healers. When Tansy called Briony and said there was a chance you might be able to help, we grabbed at it with both hands.”
Camellia nodded as if she understood. “I won’t know until I see what’s going on. Please don’t think I’m a miracle worker, because I’m not. Jonas, you’ll need to stand on the other side of the bed. Kyle? I’ll need a bottle of water and a cloth of some kind. Jeff, you might need the same for Jonas. The rest of you, this might take some time if I can help. If I can’t, I should know fairly quickly.”
Jack gathered the things she requested and gave them to Kyle and Jeff. Camellia took a deep breath and looked across the bed at Jonas. For the first time, he realized she hadn’t once really met Marigold’s eyes.
Are you all right, baby?
Don’t be nice to me. I can’t fall apart. This is much more difficult than I expected. She looks as if she’s at death’s door. It’s bad, Jonas. Whatever is happening inside her body, it’s bad. All this time, I’ve been just miles away, holding a grudge, and she’s been dying slowly, inch by inch.
He clenched his teeth. She was ashamed and feeling guilty, not hurt and angry at Marigold. He should have known that would be her reaction when Mari was so ill. Camellia had that enormous soft spot he needed to protect.
I’m looking at death, we both are. I had so much to say to her. If I had just let go of the hurt and come down the mountain, I would have been able to talk to her. Say things. Tell her I love her. That nothing else really matters.
She made his heart hurt. She also made him so damn proud.
All right, honey, let’s get this done. She isn’t going to die. Take a breath and let’s go see what Whitney did with his crap drug. Deliberately, he brought up their nemesis to steady her.
Camellia squared her shoulders and nodded at him. “All right, Mari, why don’t you lie down and get comfortable. We’ll both just rest our hands very gently on your arms. Hopefully that won’t hurt you.”
Ken stood up to help his wife lie back down. He was very gentle, but it was obvious, even with his hands touching her around her waist, shifting her down along the mattress with care, it still hurt her. She was stoic, looking up into Ken’s eyes and doing her best to smile at him, but there was pain etched on her face, whether she knew it or not. Stark love was on Ken’s scarred face, so much love that just seeing it made Jonas feel like he’d intruded on something profoundly intimate. He quickly glanced away and fixed his gaze on Camellia.
He hoped to God Camellia would be able to help Marigold. Because if she couldn’t, there was no doubt in his mind that Mari was going to die. Ken was well aware of it. Jack and Briony knew it too. As did Logan and probably all of Team Two. It was no wonder Briony had made her impassioned plea. Camellia was their last-ditch effort. Tansy had called Briony in spite of Kaden’s directive not to because she knew Marigold was dying.
Jonas wasn’t certain anymore that things were all black or white. Lines were blurred. Each of the women had done things none of them would have chosen to do because it went against what the men considered right. The women made their decisions partially based on compassion. Hell, maybe wholly based on compassion.
Jonas. I need you with me.
Camellia’s soft call yanked his full attention back to her. She was afraid of what she was going to find. He nodded his head, and Camellia placed her palms very lightly on Marigold’s skin. Jonas didn’t need to put his hands on the woman. Camellia’s body’s reaction was so strong he felt the explosion of chemicals bursting through her. A million neurons reacted to what felt like an archenemy as she connected Mari’s body to hers through the pads of her fingers and the pores of her skin. The jolt was so strong, she staggered, her body unable to stand with the amount of adrenaline and weapons it was marshaling to fight off the molecular warfare taking place in Mari’s body. Already Camellia’s body was forming the necessary antioxidants and proteins Marigold lacked in her cells in order to provide normal clotting.