Magnus sighed. "Yes. There is not much we can do about it at the moment anyway. Our own city is still being ravaged by that damn virus."
Ellie turned to Vivi as the squires continued to serve. "Did you make any progress toward a cure?"
Vivi sniffled loudly, tears in her eyes. "Backwards engineering a cure takes time."
"We are out of time," Ellie whispered.
Colton leaned forward so he could see Vivi. "Why can't we just use older vampire blood like we planned. We know the problem with Magnus was due to the transition elements in Gavriel's blood."
Vivi shook her head. "I hadn't factored any transition markers into the cure. I normally work with younger vampire blood, so this issue has never come up before. But the older the vampire, the more markers their blood carries, the more aggression is triggered. It was a blessing in disguise that Magnus had an adverse reaction. As a vampire the markers simply triggered a transition in his body. But shifters don't go through transition, they don't have a way to process the markers. They would stay feral."
Ellie turned to Serenity. "How much time do they have?"
Serenity shook her head. "Tomorrow evening at the very latest. Their little bodies are worn out. They don't have any fight left in them."
Ellie covered her face with both hands and wept. Grant pulled her close to his body and kissed the top of her head. Around the table her words triggered many to tears.
Serenity wrung her hands. "I wish we could do more."
Micah placed his hand over hers. "This fight started long before you got here. Don't take this on yourself."
Laelia and Radclyffe stood. "Kendrick if you could remove the barrier, we'd like to make sure the children are as comfortable as possible. We'd also like to start strengthening the parents."
Kendrick closed his eyes and the air flexed. They were still covered by the soundproof spell, but the barrier was gone. "Don't hesitate to call if you need anything."
Sebastian laid a hand on Laelia's shoulder. "I'll send up sandwiches, soup and coffee in a bit."
"Thank you," Radclyffe said looking relieved. Serenity could tell he was worried about his mate. They waved goodbye and headed out.
Eva looked up at her mate. "We need to meet with Stefan, the parents will need the support of the pack."
Magnus slammed his hands on the table as he stood. Without saying a word, he walked out of the dining room. Beth buried her face in Gavriel's shoulder.
Caspian took a deep breath. "This will scar him. I know my brother. For him to live as the children die, it will change him."
"I'm doing all I can!" Vivi cried. Etain scooted back and lifted her up into his lap.
Hal hurried to their side to run a hand over her hair. "You have to calm down baby girl, for your daughter's sake."
When Ellie went to stand Grant pulled her back down. "No. You need to eat and get some rest. Especially if tomorrow..." he couldn't finish the sentence.
"We've come all this way, come so far. It can't end like this," Rheia said bitterly.
Serenity watched as Gavriel and Kendrick exchanged a sad look. It shook her when she realized what that look meant. Both were thousands of years old, how many good people had they watch die needlessly? It was a look of commiseration, as they mentally added the children to a running tally of grief they bore witness to.
Magnus walked back into the room and sat down looking calmer. He turned to look at her. "Is there nothing you can do?" he asked.
Serenity shook her head. "I am so sorry. But there's no magic in the world that can simply cure a disease or sickness. Our bodies are constantly creating cells and metabolizing energy. The processes are extremely intricate. My magic acts as a tool, I use it the same way a doctor would use medicine or surgery. I focus on altering a certain chemical to get the reaction I need like putting someone to sleep, easing their anxiety or reducing a fever. I can encourage bone growth or keep a wound open, but if I were to pour my magic into trying to cure a virus its ever-changing nature would deplete me of my life-force." She looked around the room and wanted to ease everyone's pain and worry. These people had been through enough.
Magnus rubbed both hands over his face. "Forgive me, I knew the answer but asked anyway. They are just babies. They have barely experienced anything this world has to offer. If I could take my remaining years and spread it amongst them I would, in a heartbeat." His head hung low. "I feel like this is all my fault. Those children should have been safe here."
Kari lay a hand on his shoulder. "Place the blame where it belongs, with DeLaFontaine and the evil men he was conspiring with."
Magnus lifted his face and the grief there was soul shattering. "There are so few children being born, for us to lose so many, all at once, is a tragedy we may not recover from."
Serenity thought of Laelia and Radclyffe and their desperate attempts to have a child. She couldn't imagine finally conceiving, giving birth raising them for years only to lose them. She knew that some parents in that hospital had more than one child ill, what would happen to them if they lost all their children? There had to be something she could do.
Meryn tapped at the table absently. "I feel like I'm missing something."