JACOB

I am not sure.

After almost half an hour, Skylar was finally rescued by the staff here in Ravenwood, however, he was no longer breathing when they dug his body from the snow. They don't know exactly what that means and how long his body was deprived of oxygen.

Right now they are shocking his heart back into life. But I am not so sure if it'll work under the circumstances. I pray to the Goddess that he recovers and starts breathing again. But I worry that it's not too late. He shouldn't have spent that much time under the snow.

I am desperately waiting for my beloved Skylar to return to life and my arms.

"CLEAR!"

They shocked his heart once again, waiting for him to react, nothing would work. Chest compressions, C.P.R., they tried everything they could think of. I am on pins and needles in anticipation. Desperately praying for him to show any sign of recovery. Anything.

"SKYLAR, PLEASE! COME BACK TO ME!" I cried tears of desperation as his body wouldn't react to the treatment. I cannot lose him! It's too much for me to bear.

Seth is crying next to me, being held by Jayden, as we watch the scene play out in desperation.

"Oh Goddess, please don't take him away from me, I beg you!" I cried out in utter despair, inconsolable that the love of my life was not breathing. They resumed C.P.R. and chest compressions because his body couldn't afford to be without blood pumping from his heart.

I rushed out of the cafeteria and ran toward him, but the Security Officers prevented me from reaching him.

"Let me go! I need to be with him!" I cried out, being held in place just a few feet apart from where they were working on him.

"I am sorry, but we can't let you go near him now." The man told me with a distraught look on his face.

"SKYLAR, please! Don't leave me! I need you in my life!" I cried out to him, completely ravished by the impending loss of my beloved Alpha. My arms wanted to reach out to him, but I was being kept in place while the first responders worked on the heir to the most powerful pack in the country — the ONLY Alpha heir to the Stronghold dynasty.

I cried the rest of the few tears that I had left since this ordeal began, praying and hoping he wouldn't be lost to me. I am beyond desperate at this point...

"I love you, Skylar! Don't you dare leave me this way!" I was in shambles, moments from passing out from the heartache, when the guard's jaw dropped to the floor at something happening in front of us.

"We got sinus rhythm; let's take him inside!" The nurse declared, telling her coworkers to move the gurney to the third tower, which they promptly complied.

"What? What does that mean?" I am unfamiliar with medical jargon, so I don't know what that means.

"It means that his heart started beating again. He's alive!" He informed me and I gaped at him in shock.

Since Skylar was the last student to be rescued, the workers remaining on the patio breathed out a sigh of relief before resuming their task. Now it'll be easier to eliminate all the snow since no more lives are hanging in the balance.

Still, there was a lot to go through before they could get the patio cleared of snow.

Seth and I walked to the third floor through the indoor halls that connected all three towers - which takes longer than going outside, but it is still doable. Unfortunately, no one was allowed to come inside the infirmary at the moment because the medical professionals were still treating the students inside. We had to wait until they were finished with all the treatments.

I get it, no one likes to work under pressure. Let us see what will happen when Alpha Frederick arrives at Ravenwood. I have a distinct feeling that he will put the entire place under scrutiny. Who let his son risk his life under the threat of an avalanche?

Seth still looked apprehensive about Skylar's health and I felt exactly the same. We don't know what is going to happen to him now and the extent of the damage to his body. Goddess knows we don't know how long he was deprived of oxygen and what that means for his recuperation time. Honestly, I am dead worried about the outcome of this tragedy.

I can only pray that he is okay.

SETH

I am devastated.

My brother went outside to play in the snow and I nearly lost him when a secondary avalanche hit him with a mighty force. I could barely breathe from the pain I was feeling from having my brother buried under the snow.

They took so long to retrieve him that by the time they did, he wasn't breathing anymore. How could anybody let this happen? Why the hell was the front door even opened? They should have confined us inside the castle for the duration of the threat of an avalanche.

I had no idea a secondary event was even possible to happen. I am new to all of this. They say the rain we had early this morning caused it. But coming from the part of Texas where we live, we never see snow, and an avalanche is just as common here as seeing an alien riding a unicorn.

I am devastated by this. I am heartbroken to have watched my brother be resuscitated, only an inch away from being dead at 18 years old. My father would be maddened with grief if he lost his son, especially to something like this.

Jayden and I were waiting outside of the third tower to see my brother, but they told me it would be a while until visitation would be permitted. He is still being treated and he will be checked out by a doctor later - when they arrive here from the county hospital.

For now, there was nothing I could do but wait. Jayden was nice enough to invite me to his dorm room to wait for my parents to arrive. There is no way any of us can go to classes right now, so it was a nice idea. I also don't want to have to deal with anybody talking to me for the time being. All I want is to see my twin brother alive and well.

Jake told me he was going to stick around and see if he could see Skylar, so I told him that I was going to rest for a minute while my brother was being treated. As soon as it is possible, I'll be there to visit him. I have a distinct feeling that they will want to move him to a hospital for better assessment. Who knows what will happen once the doctor examines him?

I am extremely worried, but at least for now, I know he is being well cared for.

Jayden makes space in his room for me to lay comfortably next to him. In the mix of all this tragedy, I am glad to be able to count on him by my side. I love Jake and he is an angel in my life, but this is something else entirely. I haven't had that kind of support since Sean was here.

I am hoping and praying that everything will be alright with my brother. He has to survive this because our entire family legacy relies on him. Jayden kept me comfortable next to him on his bed, his sweet scent was so great to breathe in. Everything was so nice and cozy that I didn't even notice my eyes drifting closed.

A FEW HOURS LATER.

My parents arrived with Santos carrying their luggage and two warriors on their escort. My parents always travel with at least two warriors with them at all times, sometimes more, but this was improvised so they didn't have time to make other arrangements.

They arrived in a helicopter that brought them from the Boulder airport. They went straight to the third tower to see my brother, though not without causing havoc on their way there.

"Alpha Stronghold, welcome. I'm sorry about the circumstances..." Professor Roberts greeted him, apologetically.

"You're fired! You have one hour to collect your belongings and leave this property." Dad declared, seething.

"Respectfully, you don't have the authority to dismiss me, but I assure you..."

"The only thing I required was for you to assure me that my son would be kept safe! And now who knows in what condition he is after Goddess knows for how long he was buried underneath an avalanche!" Dad cut him off, aggravated.

"Who do you think you're talking to, Roberts? I am on the board of this school. I have spent the entire flight talking to the Ravenwood Board and the National Council of Alphas. You are done here! Pack your things and go before I remind myself that you were the man in charge of my son's safety!" He was raging at the Beta werewolf, who looked guilty.

"I am sorry, Alpha, but I cannot–" He was insisting before my father interrupted him by yelling:

"Kirchner!"

Somehow, the Head of Security heard my father yelling his name and came in from outside to heed the call of the Alpha. Roberts was still beside my parents as he did that. Santos and the warriors were a step behind them.

"Good afternoon, Alpha. Did you call me?" The man came with furrowed eyebrows.

"By the authority of the Ravenwood School Board, I am dismissing Roberts of his employment. I want a full inquiry on whose decision was to leave the doors of the towers unlocked. And I want that done yesterday, am I making myself clear?" He spewed his orders with a loud commanding voice that would make anyone listen to him.

"Yes, Alpha!" Mr. Kirchner bowed his head.

"You cannot do this, Alpha!" Roberts protested, vehemently.

My father lost his temper and lunged at the senior professor, pulling him in by his collar and having him less than an inch away from his face.

"My son could have been killed! My own flesh and blood! You should count yourself lucky to be left alive, but if you don't get the FUCK out of my sight, I'll be forced to make other arrangements! DO I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR?!" He spat at him, livid.

My father was angry. This wasn't a ski accident. It should have been preventable. He knows because he went here twenty-something years ago. Avalanches in Colorado are not a novelty, but a school like this was built knowing full well where it was located.

The entire structure of the castle is reinforced to sustain harsh climates. The central heating system is modern and efficient. The walls protecting the estate from prying eyes - or enemies - are as high as they come. Everything was built to last and with no expenses spared.

Had we been inside the castle, of any of the three towers, we would've been protected under this construction. Nothing short of a missile could harm us inside of the castle, but outside on the patio is a different matter. It's open sky and outdoors. The only protection is from outsiders, but if an avalanche of snow falls down from steeper parts of The Rocky Mountains, then it is bound to reach here. It is inevitable, but the lives in danger could have been prevented with tighter security precautions.

This isn't their first rodeo. This academy was built thirty years ago.

Mr. Kirchner escorted Professor Roberts to the third tower to collect his personal items on a separate route that my parents were taking. They were on a mission to see their son and nothing would stop them from doing just that.

"Did you rent the car I asked you to?" Dad turned back to ask Santos, walking next to the warriors.

"Yes, Alpha. It will be ready for you when you go into town. All you need is a ride there to collect it, but the academy will be more than happy to escort you when you need to." He replied without missing a beat.

"Thank you, Santos. And thank you for coming here with us, I know you have a child to take care of, so I really appreciate it." Dad acknowledged, content. This is not exactly in his job description. Jorge Santos is our assistant, but he has a son to take care of. He is a single father, but more on that later when my brother's life isn't hanging in the balance.

"Of course, Alpha! I wanted to come here too. Your sons are like family to me." He assured him, honored to be here with them. "This wasn't something that even needed to be asked". Plus, he has friends to call for support to help out with his son.

When my parents arrived at the infirmary in the third tower, they didn't know what they would find. A doctor and the nurse practitioner welcomed them to talk about their son's condition.

The reality is that they don't know how long my brother's brain was deprived of oxygen when he was buried under the snow. He should have been protected under a pocket of air when it happened, but it seems that he wasn't.

They explained to him that he was treated and examined, but he hadn't woken up just yet.

In fact, they were only waiting for my parents to arrive before moving him to the county hospital for additional exams that are impossible to perform here in the academy's infirmary.

"I must prepare you, Alpha. Skylar suffered hypoxia and we don't know the extent of the damage of what that did to his brain." The doctor told my father, who gasped in shock.

"What?!" My mother gaped at him in utter horror.

"There is a chance that your son may never wake up again." He declared and it was like a bomb went off. My mother was devastated to hear this. My father was raging at the incompetent people who let his son be in danger.

But both of them were truly horrified at the perspective of losing their son forever.

https://youtu.be/rUdw7V-FC_Q

A|N: I have no words, but I guess I should start writing a funeral next.

Just kidding!

Or am I?

#BeAfraid

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Next is "Piece by Piece". Prepare for the tears.

Love,

Léo.