He served Celena her breakfast, watching her eat while trying to maintain a facade of normalcy. Halfway through her meal, the observant little girl noticed something amiss.
"Daddy, why aren't you eating?"
Blake's smile softened as he ruffled her hair. "I'm not hungry right now, princess. You finish up, okay? Then we need to get you cleaned up - you're looking less than royal at the moment."
Celena giggled around a mouthful of pancake, her worries momentarily forgotten.
As she finished eating, Blake headed upstairs to prepare her bath. He gathered her favorite bubble bath solution, arranging her collection of bath toys - rubber ducks, colorful boats, and a squad of action figures - around the tub's edge. He tested the water temperature carefully, making sure it was comfortably warm but not too hot for her sensitive skin.
Just as he was about to call Celena up, a noise from downstairs caught his attention. Blake rushed down the stairs, only to find Celena bouncing excitedly around a familiar figure - Uncle Reggie.
Reggie scooped up the giggling toddler, making his way over to Blake. His expression grew serious as he asked, "How's Rose doing?"
Blake could only shake his head, words failing him. "Martina's upstairs with her now. We're... we're just waiting."
"Where's Nana?" Blake asked, noticing her absence.
"She went to fetch the results from yesterday's blood sample," Reggie explained. "Thought it might help Martina's diagnosis."
Blake nodded, grateful for their support but still overwhelmed with worry. As Celena chattered happily in Reggie's arms, oblivious to the adults' concern, Blake found himself caught between the need to maintain normalcy for his daughter and the desperate desire to rush back upstairs to Rose's side.
Blake took Celena upstairs for her bath, going through the motions of their usual routine while his mind remained preoccupied with Rose. When they returned downstairs, he was surprised to find Gunther and Randal had joined Reggie in the living room.
A wave of guilt washed over Blake as he realized how much his friends had put their own lives on hold to be here for him and Rose. Over the past day, they'd been constantly shuttling between their own responsibilities and his cabin, all because of the crisis unfolding in his family.
Blake's brow furrowed in frustration. "If nothing's wrong, why does she keep passing out?"
Martina hesitated before continuing, "There is one anomaly I noticed. A dark grey mark on Rose's right index finger. It's not something that should naturally be there, and I can't determine from a surface examination whether it's benign or... something else."
Reggie stepped forward to examine Rose's hand himself. After a moment, he turned back to the group, his face grave. "No... This might be beyond all of us. The mark looks ordinary, but something about it feels... off."
The other former knights nodded in agreement after their own inspection, confirming Reggie's suspicions.
Throughout this exchange, Blake stood frozen, a mix of confusion and guilt washing over him. How had he missed this mark on Rose's hand? He prided himself on knowing every inch of her, yet this potentially crucial detail had escaped his notice.
"I... I don't understand," Blake finally managed, his voice barely above a whisper. "What does this mean? What's happening to Rose?"
The room fell into an uneasy silence as the gravity of the situation settled over them. Despite their collective centuries of supernatural experience, they found themselves facing an unknown threat - one that had managed to strike at the heart of their tight-knit group.
As they stood there, surrounded by state-of-the-art medical equipment and ancient mystical knowledge, the true extent of their helplessness in the face of this mysterious ailment became painfully clear.
**********
**Author's note**
Wow... 200 plus golden tickets this month. We keep improving and have never plateaued.
Thank you immensely!!
Thank you!!!