Alpha's Regret: The Seventh Time was Forever

The second she saw Voren standing there alive, bruised, exhausted, and very much breathing, so much relief crashed into her at once that it almost made her knees give out.

For a second, all she could think about was the terror she had felt while watching that building burn. She thought he was dead.

The fear she had been carrying twisted into relief, then into anger so quickly that she barely had time to stop herself.

She walked straight toward him and punched him hard in the face.

"You know absolutely nothing about teamwork," she snapped before storming past him because if she stayed there any longer, she might have completely fallen apart in front of him.

Corvine stayed behind for a second and looked at Voren, who still seemed too shocked to react.

"You should have told us you survived," Corvine said while shaking his head. "She was trying to run into the fire for you when the building exploded."

Voren froze instantly. For the first time that entire night, something deeper than shock crossed his face. Did she care so much about him? He was so prepared to defend himself when Corvine spoke but after hearing how far Seraphine was willing to go for him, something stirred inside him.

"That must be her," Stanley said while watching Seraphine walk away, his eyes following her retreating figure through the crowded hospital corridor. "I should probably go talk to her. Maybe she would make a great addition to the FBI."

Corvine let out a small laugh, though there was still too much exhaustion sitting inside him for it to sound completely genuine.

"Trust me, she would not," he replied while glancing in Seraphine’s direction. "Besides, she loves being a doctor far too much to leave it behind."

Stanley turned to look at him with clear surprise written across his face because after everything that had happened tonight because of Seraphine, he least expected her inside a hospital saving lives.

"A doctor?" Stanley repeated. "Then how did someone like her end up in Santiago’s world?"

His question lingered in the air for a moment, but when Stanley looked toward Voren, he realized the man was barely paying attention anymore because his focus was fixed entirely on Seraphine.

"I should go check on her," Corvine said after a moment. "She has not rested at all tonight."

Then he left the two men behind and made his way through the crowded hallway until he finally found Seraphine.

By the time he reached her, she had already buried herself completely in work.

She moved from one casualty to another with a focused expression on her face, checking injuries, asking questions, reading reports, and giving instructions to the nurses around her as though the night had not nearly destroyed her.

"Sera, you need to rest," Corvine said as he stepped beside her, concern clear in his voice.

Leon, who had been helping nearby, nodded immediately.

"He’s right," Leon added while crossing his arms. "You need to go home because I can take care of things from here."

Seraphine shook her head without even looking at either of them because she still had too much left to do.

What if somebody made a mistake with the results?

What if somebody overlooked something important?

What if one of the children was hers and she somehow missed it?

She had already spent hours walking through the wards, checking every child who looked close to the age her daughter would be now, but none of them had resembled her enough to make her stop.

None of them carried her mark either. The mark was not even something she could fully explain because she knew it was not a reliable way to identify anyone, but a part of her had still hoped it might help.

"It is supposed to be your day off," Seraphine said while finally looking at Leon. "What are you doing here?"

The question immediately left Leon without a response because if he was allowed to ignore his own exhaustion and work through his day off, then he had no argument left to use against her.

Around them, FBI agents continued speaking with victims, gathering statements, taking names, and collecting evidence from anyone who could still remember what had happened inside the fortress.

When some of the agents eventually approached Seraphine to ask for an interview, she refused immediately because she had no interest in discussing any of this with strangers.

Even without her speaking, the news had already spread everywhere.

The rescue operation, the explosion, Santiago’s arrest, and the destruction of his empire had become the biggest story on every major news channel.

"Sera, you need to come see this," Leon said after returning a little while later.

Seraphine followed him through the emergency ward, and the second she saw who was lying in one of the beds, she stopped walking.

It was Santiago.

Even in his condition, with bruises covering his body and several injuries keeping him nearly motionless, he was still surrounded by handcuffs and restraints on both his wrists and ankles.

For a moment, Seraphine simply stood there looking at him.

A faint smile slowly thinned her lips because for the first time, Santiago looked powerless. Voren had destroyed him. Not just physically, but completely.

The monster who once believed nobody could touch him was now lying in a hospital bed under armed guard.

"Will you treat him?" Leon asked carefully, Seraphine shook her head.

For the first time in her life, she was refusing to help someone who needed medical care because there was not a single part of her that could bring herself to save him.

A yawn escaped her before she could stop it, reminding her just how exhausted she really was. "I’m tired," she said quietly.

Then she turned and walked away without another glance. Later, while she was attending to another patient and reviewing a chart, a familiar voice spoke beside her.

"Coffee?"

Seraphine stiffened before turning toward him. Voren stood there holding out a cup toward her, looking just as exhausted as she felt.

"What did you put in there?" she asked suspiciously, though there was far less anger in her voice now than before.

Voren smiled faintly before lifting the cup slightly higher so she could see the word written across it.

’Sorry.’

The sight of it made the corners of Seraphine’s mouth lift despite herself. "Thank you for making it out alive," she said softly before taking the coffee from him like a peace offering.

Voren nodded once before turning around and leaving her alone. Hours later, Leon finally walked over to her again, this time with a folder in his hand and a more serious expression on his face.

"The test results are ready," he said. "We can start contacting the relevant agencies and helping everyone reconnect with their families."

Seraphine went completely still. Her pulse quickened almost instantly. "Do you mind if I look at them first?" she asked quietly, her heart thumping as she hoped for a lead on her daughter.