No, she truly believed her mate just had a heart of gold and enjoyed seeing those around him happy. So, she decided it was her job as his mate to make sure he was happy.
She eyed him carefully as they walked. It didn't look like making him happy would be that big of a chore. He was currently humming and swinging their hands back and forth between them. He was absolutely adorable and not afraid in the least bit to show his affection for her. His declaration earlier by the vendors stalls that he was mated went a long way to easing her fears. She sent up a small prayer of thanks that her mate wasn't a score obsessed bureaucratic suck up from Storm Keep.
When they walked into the hospital she noticed that Laelia and Radclyffe were off to one side with Ellie and Rheia. As they got closer she realized she couldn't hear anything. She waved her hands to get their attention. Radclyffe held up finger and lowered the soundproof spell. She and Micah stepped closer and Micah raised another one.
"What's going on?" she asked.
Ellie looked close to tears. "The antivirals and pain reducers we've been using are no longer working. Thank the gods you arrived when you did. I don't know what we would have done if the children got irate again." Grant massaged her shoulders lovingly.
"The queen did say that was an early symptom. Did it return?" Serenity asked.
Rheia nodded. "We saw last night that the children had a hard time falling asleep. They kept thrashing about complaining of pain. This afternoon they began lashing out at their parents again."
"We're running out of blood from the second batch and we're scared to try any older blood from the third treatment that turned Magnus violent," Vivi continued.
"Why don't we just get the guys to donate again?" Micah suggested. He knew his fellow unit brothers had no problems donating for the children.
"We're afraid that if we continue giving them what we're calling 'younger generation' blood, the virus will adapt and any chance we have at knocking it out completely with the older blood will disappear," Vivi explained looking pale. She ran a hand through her dark red hair. "We're missing something, I just don't know what it could be. We've talked every problem-solving scenario to death."
Marjoram wrapped an arm around Vivi. "Let's head down to the meeting room and go over things again. I've found that new people bring with them fresh perspectives." She nodded to Laelia, Radclyffe and Serenity. "Besides you need to get off your feet missy." Micah lowered the soundproof spell as Marjoram steered Vivi toward the exit.
"That's actually not a bad idea. I'm going to invite Meryn too. I don't know why she wasn't included from the beginning," Rheia added as they all followed behind Marjoram.
Serenity turned to the human doctor. "Does she have medical training?"
Rheia snorted. "Not a lick of it, but she thinks differently than we do. If anyone can help us figure things out, it would be our menace."
Anne chuckled. "I'll swing by her bat cave and the lab to pick up Meryn, Law and Kendrick. I'll meet you in the meeting room." She waved then jogged toward the tunnel before jumping down.
Serenity nearly stumbled turning to Rheia in a panic. "She's human!" she exclaimed.
Rheia laughed holding up a small stone. "The twins made these for us. Meryn calls them her floaty stones. They allow us to navigate the tunnels without waiting for an escort."
Serenity clutched at her chest. "I think I had a heart attack," she complained.
"Pull on your big girl panties because you're about to experience a brain storming session with someone who creates chaos as naturally as she breathes," Rheia looped her arm through Serenity's.
Serenity looked up at Micah feeling a bit out of her depth. He shrugged. "My delicate little flower is an experience all her own."
"What the hell have we gotten ourselves into," Radclyffe muttered.
"Sounds exciting," Laelia teased.
Serenity followed her colleagues to the tunnel wondering indeed what the afternoon had in store for them.
*****
An hour later Serenity simply stared at the small human who kept spinning in circles in her chair. Everyone around them ignored her and began the meeting, starting at the very beginning for their benefit.
Serenity sat next to her mate around a very impressive looking wooden conference table along with Rheia, Anne, Vivi, Ellie, Marjoram, Kendrick, Law, Laelia, and Radclyffe. Meryn's squire Ryuu stood quietly in the corner watching his charge a soft smile on his lips.
"She'll make herself sick," she warned.
Meryn stopped her spinning. "I do this all the time, it helps me think."
Radclyffe turned to Kendrick. "So, we know that DeLaFontaine is the one who distributed virus?"