Innocent Devil’s Harem Taboo Ch. 21

"Certainly," Tracey agreed. "Just let me know if you need anything."

Glancing over my shoulder, I saw my sister nod, before following after me, with me holding the door open for her, angled away from the nurse's station behind me. However, despite the short conversation we just had, I could see in Serenity's chocolate brown eyes that she was determined now, remembering that we had a plan to execute.

Figuring it would be best to let her pull the curtains, I focused on grabbing a chair and setting it next to the other side of the bed, so I could face the door, relieved when I saw a pile of like five or six syringes sitting on the medical cart, all individually wrapped and unused.

When my sister noticed them too, after we had some privacy, she went right for them.

"Wait," I hissed, prompting her to pause and give me her attention. "Be careful about it, if you can. The nurse can still see your shadow."

She nodded, looking around really fast. She then focused on the other chair in the room, before walking over to the med cart. "I need to check for something in my purse," she said loudly, setting it on the cart and digging through it, while also discreetly grabbing a single syringe from the pile and stashing it inside.

She then shouldered the black leather bag again and walked over to where I was, grabbing the other chair. Once she was seated, she carefully pulled out the needle and handed it to me, keeping it low and out of sight. "Think I should stand between you and the door?" she wondered quietly. "Just in case someone walks in unexpectedly."

I nodded in agreement, prompting her to stand back up and position herself while I opened the package so I could fill the tube with my own blood.

However, once I got the cap off the needle, stuck myself, and started filling it with my dark red blood, I was about three-quarters of the way full when I suddenly realized the nurse had gotten up and was heading to the room.

I looked up at Serenity in alarm as I yanked it out, hoping that my gaze alone would tip her off. At the same time, panicking and having no idea what to do with the syringe, I abruptly lifted my shirt a little and stuck it on my lower stomach above the lip of my jeans, covering it up and then folding my hands over it, trying to look as casual as possible as I leaned back in my chair.

I certainly wasn't worried about poking myself, since getting the needle in my arm was a bit of a struggle as it was.

Even despite my look, my sister still flinched when the door opened and the nurse peeked around the curtain. "Sorry to bother you two," she said, sounding sincere. "But I just realized the doctored ordered some more magnesium for her."

"Oh, umm, of course," Serenity replied, glancing at me again as the nurse proceeded right into the room and walked over to the cart, not seeming to notice a single needle missing from the small pile.

Reaching into my pocket, with one hand still over the hidden syringe, I pulled my phone out and began messing around on it so that I looked a little more natural. After punching in the code to unlock the cart, the nurse then proceeded to grab a few things, including two syringes that both had clear liquid already inside.

Oddly enough, one had the actual needle portion while the second one didn't at all, even though they were both in packages.

Tracey glanced at me as she walked over to my side, which also happened to be the side where Michelle had a whopping three IV's in her arm, one in her forearm, another in the crook of her elbow, and then the last one looked special, being larger and going into the underside of her upper arm. The top one was also the one with all the fluids hooked up, whereas the middle one only had one line and the IV on her forearm wasn't being used at all.

Realizing I was in the way, I pressed down on the floor with my foot to scoot my chair back, trying to otherwise maintain my posture.

"Oh, you're alright," the nurse said politely. "I can work around you."

"It's fine," I replied, my heart suddenly racing when I realized the syringe wrapper I'd just opened had fallen on the floor in plain sight.

The nurse noticed it, before I could even say or do anything.

Fuck!

"Oh," she said, bending down to grab it. "Sorry for the mess," she commented, standing back up and putting it on the bed for now. "We try to keep the rooms clean, but sometimes we accidentally leave stuff behind."

I tried to swallow, attempting to settle my nerves, even as I felt the blood-filled tube against my skin underneath my shirt. "No problem," I replied, my tone a little uneven as I focused blankly at my phone screen.

"You looking up what magnesium is for?" Tracey wondered, her tone a little amused.

I focused up at her in surprise, realizing she truly didn't have a clue that I was hiding something right now.

Fuck. I just needed to relax!

"Umm, no," I replied honestly, coming up with a better lie. "I was looking through my contacts just to make sure I didn't have anyone else's number."

The nurse frowned with a nod, seeming sympathetic again as she focused on the supplies she was laying out on the bed.

"But what is the magnesium for?" I wondered, watching as she tore open an alcohol pad and began rubbing it over the ends of the IV.

Tracey sighed. "Well, for one, her blood levels are a little low." She paused, having opened up the syringe without a needle and screwing the end directly onto the IV. "And it also can help manage seizures, among other things. Though right now, the medically induced coma is doing most of the work."

I nodded simply, even though she couldn't see me, watching as she pushed some of the clear fluid into the IV, before unhooking it and unscrewing the needle right off the second tube, hooking it up in much the same way.

Fuck, could I do that with the syringe I was hiding? Unscrew the needle part like that and just hook it up to her IV? That would at least guarantee it got in her bloodstream.

After the nurse was finished emptying the second syringe, she hooked up the first one again, pushed some more of the watery fluid, and then unhooked it before it was fully empty.

"There," she said as she gathered the trash. "All finished."

My sister cleared her throat, deciding to be the one to respond. "Thanks," she replied simply.

"Of course," Tracey responded, walking over to deposit the metal needle part she never used into a sharp's container on the wall, while she put the rest of the tubes and trash into the regular wastebasket. Once she left, doing us the courtesy of pulling the curtain fully closed behind her, we both visibly relaxed.

Giving my sister a quick glance, I then pulled out the syringe and stabbed it right back into my vein, fully intent on giving Michelle a dose of the full tube. Finished, I quickly stood up and stepped closer to the bed, examining the syringe in my hand, noticing that it did in fact appear as if the needle would screw right off.

Twisting off the piece of medal, I went for the same IV the nursed used, hooking it on just as she had done.

"Wait," my sister said then, getting my attention. She was still standing between me and the door, so that what I was doing hopefully wouldn't be noticeable just from my shadow. "Why don't you try using your compulsion now? Just in case."

I hesitated as I considered that, my thumb on the plunger, ready to push the blood in. "How?" I whispered seriously.

She shrugged. "Hold open her eyes or something. Obviously, make it quick, but if she might be able to hear us, even though she's in this coma, then maybe your ability will work too. Worth a try, at least."

I nodded, knowing we didn't have time to waste, since the nurse might decide to come back any second, having forgotten something. Or possibly even a doctor might show up or something. Carefully letting the vial of blood hang against her arm, I maneuvered around all the tubing on Michelle's mature youthful face and bent over as I shifted fully, using my gray thumb and index fingers to open both of her eyes.

"Michelle," I whispered, hoping I'd see some kind of reaction in her blue irises, since her eyes were rolled back right now.

Instantly, her gaze focused on mine like she was suddenly awake.

"Fuck!" I hissed, jerking back in alarm, seeing my sister flinch too, having also seen the unconscious woman's reaction. However, knowing we didn't have time to waste, I didn't even so much as comment on it, reaching to open her eyes again, seeing they were again rolled back.

However, I didn't say anything as they focused on me a second time.

I tried to think fast, wanting to hit all the basics, but also wanting to explain the situation a little. "Michelle, you're dying from the inflammation on your brain after you got in a car accident. They have you in a medical coma, but the doctors aren't hopeful." I paused. "You're probably going to die if I don't do anything, but if I do help you get better, then your old life is over. You will keep my secret -- now your secret too -- and you will live your life based around my approval. You are not allowed to do anything I forbid. And I forbid you changing anyone else, unless I ever say otherwise." I sighed, knowing I was rambling too much. I needed to get to the point. "I'm going to inject my blood in you, and it's going to change you. It will save your life, but you'll be different from now on. When you wake up, you might look different, and I want you to try to look normal right away. It will feel like you have a new muscle, except all over your body, and you have to relax it to look normal. Also, no attacking anyone. You might be thirsty for blood, but I forbid you -- and I forbid the unconscious you -- from attacking another person. Just try to look normal and then demand to be released from the hospital. Don't let them run any tests on you."

I looked up at my sister then, uncertain if I'd hit all the major points, or forgotten to mention something.

She quickly nodded as confirmation.

Focusing on Michelle again, I let one eye close, keeping the other open as I reached down, feeling for the syringe. Then I began pushing the plunger, curious to see if anything would happen as I did so.

Sure enough, Michelle's blue eye uncontrollably rolled back even though I was still focused on her, making it seem as if the coma my blood was inducing was far more absolute than the medically induced coma that she was already in. However, I was a little surprised when her low heartrate actually climbed a couple of beats, going from fifty-two to fifty-five beats per minute. It was the opposite of what happened to Avery, with the daughter's pulse dropping a little, though ultimately they both ended up at around the same spot.

I let go of her eye then as I finished pushing the rest of the blood into her IV. I then unhooked the syringe and sat back down, recalling that people in the hallway could still see shadows. Looking up at my sister, I grabbed the needle on the bed, found the cap, screwed everything back on the tube, and then held it out at waist-level. She took the hint and walked around to grab it.

"Just put it in your purse for now," I whispered. "They might see you put it in the sharps container."

She nodded again, doing as I asked and then sitting down next to me.

We both took long deep breaths, relaxing now that the hard part was over. After a few seconds, my sister then pulled out her phone. "I'm going to call Gabriella to let her know."

I nodded, just staring at Michelle's thin hand now, my mind beginning to become plagued with all the ways this could end up going wrong. Would she still try to attack someone when she woke up? Would a slap to the face be enough to snap her out of it? And would she struggle to shift back to normal?

Lots of ways this could turn into a huge problem.

But at least I felt confident she'd be okay now. She was going to live, and Avery wouldn't be losing her mom.

"Hey Gabriella," my sister said when she picked up. "We did it. So now we're just waiting. Any news on Avery?"

"No, she's the same," Gabriella replied. "But I mean, Kai did it a little after twelve, right? It's only been about four hours. And it took me like ten hours."

Serenity sighed. "Yeah, and now we just need to figure out what to do if they don't wake up before tonight when they ask most visitors to leave."

I spoke up then, just aiming to make a comment to my sister. "We'll just do what we talked about. Gabriella should probably stay with Michelle, since she's more likely to not be herself when she wakes up. Avery at least got a bag of blood."

"Yeah, I can do that," Gabriella agreed, shocking us both.

"You heard me?" I said seriously, since the phone wasn't on speakerphone.

"Yep, I told you my hearing was getting stronger," she replied, sounding amused. "Anyway though, can I stay with Avery until it gets later in the day?" she wondered.

"Yeah, that's fine," I replied. "I'm here now, so I'm not concerned about it, but if Serenity is going to be the one to stay overnight with either of them, then I'd rather her be with Avery."

"Right," Gabriella agreed, taking a deep breath. "I really love you," she added.

"Love you too," I agreed, watching my sister's face flush for some reason. Granted, she was the one who was holding the phone to her ear, so maybe it felt like my girlfriend's comment was directed toward her, even if it was obvious she was talking to me.

"Oh," Gabriella said in surprise, speaking more urgently. "Someone's coming in. Call you back."

She hung up.

I took a deep breath, focusing on Michelle's limp hand again as my sister rested the phone in her lap. We were both silent for a long minute before she spoke up.

"You know what's weird?" she abruptly said.

"What's that?" I wondered, still staring at the older woman's delicate hand.

"Where is Avery's father?" she asked seriously. "I mean, both his wife and daughter have been in the hospital for practically half the day, and he's nowhere to be seen. I know the nurse said she was having a hard time getting in touch with people, but still. If she left a message, then he should know by now."

I shrugged. "Maybe he's on a business trip?" I suggested. "I mean, if he isn't even in the city right now, then he might not be able to get here quickly, even if he knows. Although..."

I frowned when I recalled that Avery's dad worked in IT, which wasn't exactly the kind of field that usually required a bunch of travel. I then thought back to the past couple of weeks at school, recalling that Avery had been a little less upbeat than usual.

I continued speaking after a pause, simply echoing my thoughts out loud. "Although, he works in IT, so actually he's probably not traveling for business. And now that I think about it, Avery has been a little down recently," I admitted. "But not enough that I would normally be worried about it."

Serenity nodded. "Well, I doubt he's dead, since that would be a really big deal, which makes me wonder if they're having some marital issues right now. Like, they might be separated or something."

I looked at her in surprise. "You think they're getting a divorce?" I asked seriously, sincerely confused as to how she'd jumped to that conclusion.

She shrugged. "I mean, what other reason could there be? Especially if he's not traveling? Seriously, there's no way he isn't aware by now."

I frowned. "I don't know," I admitted. "But even if they are having marital problems, I can't imagine him not coming to at least check on his daughter."

Serenity frowned. "That's assuming that Avery gave them his number in the first place," she said quietly.

My brow furrowed at that, realizing she had a point. "Maybe we should ask if they have his number. But still, even if Avery's mom and dad were having issues, I can't imagine a reason why Avery wouldn't give them her dad's number."

My sister sighed heavily. "Unless he just abandoned the family completely," she replied. "Wouldn't be the first time I've heard of someone doing that, though in most of the cases I know of, it was the woman who did it. Just up and left her husband and children behind, never to see them again."

"Seriously?" I said in disbelief.

She nodded. "Yeah, like a guy I work with, he doesn't even remember his mom. She just left the country to live with some other guy when he was almost two years old, and never came back. My coworker kind of stalks her online, and says she seems to be doing really well, has a new family and everything, including children -- brothers and sisters he's never met. And he has no idea why she just left them, since his dad is a decent guy and makes decent money too. She just decided she was unhappy and abandoned everything, including her two kids, to start over."

I just shook my head in disbelief. "I hope for Avery's sake that it's something else. Because losing our dad was bad enough, but the idea of either of our parents choosing to abandon us seems even more horrible."

Serenity nodded, her expression somber. "Yeah, it really is," she agreed, only to pause. "Maybe we really should ask. Maybe you're right and he just doesn't know yet for some reason. Maybe he's working today and hasn't checked his messages?"

I nodded in agreement about the first part. However, I doubted he was working right now on a Saturday, which only made my sister's suspicion seem more likely. Focusing on Michelle's hand again, I didn't respond, my pessimistic thoughts beginning to take over, trying to think through the various possibilities without having much information to go on.

"I'll go ask," my sister finally said, standing up.

However, before I could reply, her phone abruptly began ringing again. She answered it and held it up to her ear. "Hey Gabriella," she began, only for my girlfriend to cut her off.

"Hey," she said urgently. "Avery just moved a little."

Serenity and I both locked eyes in shock.

"What do you mean by a little?" I asked seriously.

"Like, her fingers twitched a little, and then she kind of groaned like she was going to start waking..." She paused as a low groan appeared again, something that was probably too quiet for my sister to hear, but sounded very much like someone rolling over in bed and groaning at the fact that it was morning already. "There, she did it again," Gabriella said. "She still looks normal, but I think she's coming to."

My sister and I focused on each other again, with me anticipating what she might say. "I should probably stay here with Michelle, just in case," I commented, not wanting to risk the older woman waking up with only my sister around, even if I just did give her my blood. "But it might be good if you're there when Avery wakes up, so you can distract the medical staff if needed."

My sister nodded, prompting me to speak to my girlfriend.

"Gabriella, you'll need to be ready to slap her as hard as you can if she wakes up and isn't herself. Serenity can try to help keep people out of the room, or otherwise occupy their time if she's struggling to learn how to look normal."

"Sounds like a plan," Gabriella agreed. "Serenity, you need to hurry though. She just moved her entire arm a tiny bit."

"I'm on my way," Serenity replied. "Be there in just a couple of minutes."

"Okay, see you soon," Gabriella said. "Bye."

After my sister hung up, she leaned forward to give me a quick hug. "Love you," she whispered.

"Be safe," I said seriously as she pulled away and met my gaze. "And once Avery is awake and everything is under control, make sure Gabriella knows where my car is, and have her get Avery out of the hospital. Then, we can focus on Michelle."

"Right," she agreed. "And if Avery is already waking up, then we might be able to get her mom discharged before this evening too. Especially since you gave her double the dose of your blood."