Love Alarm
The air was thick with tension as the dull hum of fluorescent lights flickered in the sterile hallway. It was a far cry from the eerie darkness of Alec's hideout, but no less unsettling. Edward sat in a hard plastic chair, his fingers tapping nervously on his thigh. He glanced at the wall clock. It had been hours since Mabel went inside, and he hadn't heard a word from her or the nurse who had whisked her away.
This wasn't part of the plan.
They had been on their way to meet Alec again when Mabel suddenly collapsed in the middle of the street, clutching her stomach and gasping for air. The nearby pedestrians had rushed to help, and before Edward could stop them, they were in an ambulance, racing toward the nearest hospital. Now, Edward was stuck waiting, helpless as doctors assessed Mabel's condition.
Every second felt like an eternity.
The soft click of the door broke the silence, and a tall man in a white coat stepped out. He approached Edward with a grave expression, clipboard in hand.
"You're here for Mabel Crestyl?"
Edward shot to his feet. "Yeah, is she okay? What's going on?"
The doctor glanced at his clipboard before meeting Edward's eyes. "She's stable for now, but we've found something... unusual."
Edward's heart skipped a beat. "Unusual? What do you mean?"
The doctor hesitated, as if weighing how much to reveal. "I don't know how to explain this, but her blood tests-there's something abnormal about them. It's as if her body is rejecting... something. Her immune system is in overdrive, attacking itself."
Edward's mind raced. He knew what Mabel was-her powers weren't natural. But this? He hadn't expected something like this to happen.
"What does that mean for her? Is she going to be okay?"
The doctor sighed. "We're running more tests, but I've never seen anything like this before. She's lucky she got here when she did. We'll monitor her closely, but I suggest you prepare yourself for the possibility that her condition could worsen."
Edward's stomach churned. He thanked the doctor, who gave him a sympathetic nod before leaving him alone in the hallway once more. As he stood there, the sterile smell of disinfectant stinging his nose, Edward's phone buzzed in his pocket.
He glanced at the screen: Unknown Number.
With a knot of dread tightening in his chest, he answered. "Hello?"
A low, distorted voice crackled through the line. "You're running out of time, Edward Collins."
Edward's blood ran cold. "Who is this?"
The voice chuckled darkly. "You think you can hide? You think you can protect her? You don't know who you're dealing with."
Edward clenched his fist, his knuckles turning white. "If you hurt her, I swear-"
"You're already too late," the voice interrupted. "This is bigger than you. Bigger than her. You can't stop what's coming."
The line went dead, leaving Edward standing in stunned silence, the phone still pressed to his ear. His heart pounded in his chest, his mind racing as he tried to piece together what was happening. Was this the Order? How had they tracked them here so quickly?
His phone buzzed again-this time, a text message.
Room 304. No more mistakes.
Edward's breath caught. Room 304 was the number of Mabel's room. His eyes darted to the door at the end of the hall. Panic surged through him as he bolted toward it, ignoring the protests of nurses and patients as he sprinted past them.
--
Edward burst into Mabel's room, heart racing. The sight before him sent a jolt of fear down his spine.
A man stood at the foot of Mabel's bed, dressed in all black with a hood obscuring his face. He was tall, muscular, and calm-too calm, like someone who knew they were in control.
Mabel lay unconscious, her chest rising and falling steadily, but her face was pale, far too pale. Edward's eyes darted from her to the man, who turned slowly, his presence commanding the small, dimly lit room.
"I wouldn't take another step if I were you," the man said, his voice low and even. "You've made quite a mess of things."
Edward's hands shook with rage, but he stayed where he was, frozen by the man's quiet threat. "What do you want?"
The man smirked. "What do you think? The Order is growing impatient. Mabel is becoming a liability, and you're not making it any easier for us."
"Liability?" Edward's voice rose, anger flaring in his chest. "She's not a liability-she's a person!"
The man waved a dismissive hand. "That's where you're wrong. To us, she's a means to an end. And that end is quickly approaching."
Edward took a step forward, his fists clenched. "I'm not letting you take her."
The man's smirk faded, replaced by a look of cold indifference. "You don't have a choice, Edward. She belongs to us. She always has."
Before Edward could react, the man pulled a small device from his pocket. With the press of a button, the machines hooked up to Mabel began to beep erratically. Edward's heart skipped a beat as he saw Mabel's body jerk violently, her face contorting in pain.
"No!" Edward lunged forward, but the man moved with lightning speed, grabbing Edward by the throat and slamming him against the wall with inhuman strength.
"You can't protect her," the man hissed, his grip tightening. "You never could."
Edward's vision blurred as he struggled to breathe. The world around him started to fade, but just as he felt himself slipping away, the door to the room flew open with a deafening crash.
Alec stood in the doorway, his eyes blazing with fury. "Let him go," he growled, his voice thick with power.
The man sneered but released Edward, who collapsed to the floor, gasping for air. Alec didn't waste a second. He raised his hand, and a surge of energy crackled through the room, slamming into the man in black with a force that sent him flying across the room.
The man hit the wall hard, but instead of falling, he vanished-dissolving into the shadows like smoke.
Alec's breathing was heavy as he turned to Edward, pulling him to his feet. "We need to get out of here. Now."
Edward coughed, his throat burning, but he managed to nod. "Mabel... is she...?"
"She's alive, but barely. We don't have much time."
Alec moved swiftly to Mabel's side, carefully disconnecting the machines from her frail body. As he worked, Edward caught his breath, his mind racing. Who was that man? How had Alec known they were in danger?
And most importantly-how were they going to get out of this alive?
---
With Mabel secured in Alec's arms, the three of them slipped out of the hospital, ducking through side exits and alleys to avoid any prying eyes. Edward's heart pounded in his chest, every shadow seeming like a threat, every sound amplified by his paranoia.
They reached Alec's car, a sleek black sedan parked discreetly in a nearby alley. Alec carefully placed Mabel in the backseat before turning to Edward.
"They're not going to stop coming after her," Alec said, his voice grim. "You have no idea how deep this goes."
Edward clenched his jaw. "Then tell me. I need to know everything."
Alec's eyes darkened, the weight of his knowledge hanging heavily in the air. "There's a reason Mabel's power is so dangerous. And there's more at stake here than just her life."
Edward felt a chill run down his spine. "What do you mean?"
Alec glanced back at Mabel, unconscious and fragile in the backseat. "She's the key to something much bigger. Something the Order has been planning for years. And if they succeed..."
He trailed off, his face shadowed by uncertainty.
Edward swallowed hard, the gravity of the situation sinking in. "If they succeed... what happens?"
Alec met his gaze, his eyes full of a truth Edward wasn't ready to hear. "If they succeed, the world as you know it will end."
---
To be continued....