FOUR HOURS LATER, and Sophie found herself pressed against the wall with Eli crouched beside her. Both waited patiently, listening to the sounds of the nurses bustling around behind the closed doors of the infirmary. A door creaked open as one nurse bid the others a kindhearted goodnight. Fabric rustled as she draped her jacket over her left arm. The nurse made it to the hallway before she was ambushed.

Sophie placed a hand over the nurse's trembling lips. "It's okay," she assured the poor woman. "We aren't going to hurt you. We just need some answers about the infirmary."

The woman's ringed eyes narrowed. Sophie hesitantly removed her hand, prepared to smack it back into place the second that the nurse screamed. A shaky breath escaped the woman. "Then just call the front desk like a normal person," the nurse snapped.

Eli grimaced. "We would have... except these aren't normal questions."

The nurse glared back and forth between them. She spat out a quick, "I absolutely will not break patient confidentiality. You'll have to kill me if you're trying to get that kind of information out of me."

"No! Not at all. We don't want to kill anybody, I swear." Sophie said. She made a somewhat horrified expression and then shot a glare toward Eli. "See! I told you this wouldn't work. I knew that she'd get the wrong idea. This is all your fault."

Eli shot her a mild glare back and scratched innocently at the back of his neck. "Well, you were the one who wanted to break into the infirmary after hours! This is the only way that I could think of to do it. Next time, I'll just let you figure it out."

In front of them, the nurse snorted. "You're trying to break into the infirmary after hours?"

Sophie completely released the nurse and stepped backward. Her head dipped in shame, her cheeks flushed a bright cherry color. "I'm sorry about all of this. We just haven't been allowed to see one of our friends in a while. He's been in and out of the hospital with some brain injuries." She jabbed a thumb toward Eli and continued, "His sister won't let any visitors enter the room. We were hoping to break in after hours, so she wouldn't be there to stop us."

An expression of realization and understanding dawned upon the nurse. She nodded and pursed her lips, glancing back behind them at the entrance to the infirmary. "I think I know which patient you are talking about. His guardian is quite...determined."

"She doesn't want him to be stressed out," Eli explained.

The nurse nodded. "When the patient is stressed, his brain reverts back into a younger state. We instantly lose the progress gained already. It's a frustrating process."

Sophie and Eli shared a look. "We just want to see him. It's been several months."

The nurse ran a hand through her hair and sighed. "Visiting hours ended quite a while ago. Your best bet is to either break into the room directly, or to convince the head nurse to let you through. I don't suggest the former as it could greatly stress your friend out to have people randomly breaking into his room. The head nurse will be a tough cookie to crack, however."

"You could always pull the 'Mother' card," Eli said softly to Sophie.

Sophie's nose scrunched up. "I hate having to use that. I feel like people see me as a spoiled brat whenever I remind them that my mother is their boss."

"Good luck with getting inside," the nurse told them. She pressed her body flat against the wall and inched away from them, careful not to get close. Once she was satisfied with the amount of space between them, she turned and walked hastily down the hall.

Sophie and Eli watched her go, sharing pained expressions. A heavy sigh escaped Sophie as she turned toward her boyfriend, frowning. "That was a bust."

Eli nodded in agreement and held up a small card. He flipped it around between two fingers, displaying the largely printed identification card. "I did manage to swipe this when you attacked her. We could use it to get past the mean old lady at the front desk."

"Or maybe I could just pull the 'Mother card'," Sophie said with a frown. She snatched the identification card away from Eli and shoved it into her back pocket. She didn't like the idea of using it. A single swipe could accidently get the poor nurse into even more trouble.

She started toward the entrance to the infirmary. Eli followed her, grumbling incoherently under his breath. The glass double doors slid open in front of them and a gust of icy air immediately kissed their skin. Sophie spied the front desk, watching the elder woman behind it type away furiously. Said woman glanced up as they approached, her ringed-eyes squinted and suspicious.

"What can I help you with?" she asked, her voice rough and throaty.

"We need to see a friend of ours. He's been unavailable for the past several months," Sophie started to explain.

The woman scowled and dropped her head, her attention returning to whatever it was that she was doing earlier. "Then come during the usual visiting hours. Have a great night."

"We can't. We are at work during the normal visiting hours, and it's impossible to break away," Eli said. His annoyance seemed to grow with each breath the older nurse took. "Plus my sister has been refusing to let any other visitors enter his room."

"There might be a good reason for that, too," the older nurse retorted. She gestured toward the door with a flowery pencil. "The exit is that way. You two have a great night."

Sophie clenched her hands into tight fists. "Ma'am, I'll have you know that I am the Headmaster's daughter. A single word and you will be thrown out onto the streets. We aren't asking for much, just to see our friend and make sure that he is doing okay. Please. Your cooperation would be greatly appreciated."

The older nurse did look up this time, her ringed-eyes piercing through Sophie, sharper than a blade. "I wouldn't care if you were the Queen of England. You are asking for a lot. This hospital has strict rules, all to keep our patients safe and healthy. A single disruption to their routine could devastate them. While it may not harm your friend, it could very well harm another patient. Now, kindly take your leave before I call security to help you out the door."

Irritation flooded through Sophie. She took a step backwards, her hands clenched into tight fists. She turned toward the door and started to walk. Eli followed, a sour expression on his face. When they reached the door, a strange sensation overwhelmed Sophie. Dull pain prickled at the hollow of her throat. She turned to glance back over her shoulder just as the nurse called out, "Wait."

A hesitant expression marred the older woman's face. She glanced back over her shoulder and then stared intently at Sophie. Her gaze was clouded over with an unnamable emotion. "I understand what it's like to not get to see a loved one," she explained in hushed words. "If you'll just give me a moment..."

She typed furiously at her computer. The sound of a latch switching, and the tiny gate that separated the hospital from the rest of the world unlocked. The nurse stood and opened it, gesturing for them to hurry on through. Sophie frowned and quickly moved forward. Eli lingered behind, suspiciously watching the nurse with his mismatched eyes. "I thought you weren't going to break the rules?"

"Hurry up before I change my mind," the nurse snapped.

Sophie reached out and snagged Eli by the wrist. He put up no resistance as she dragged him through the gate. The nurse grumbled and closed the gate, returning to her seat. Sophie thanked the elder nurse graciously. Eli muttered under his breath, his eyebrows wrinkled.

The nurse waved a hand at them. "Room eighteen is the one that you two are looking for."

Sophie nodded and intertwined her fingers with Eli's. As they walked, the hospital seemed to grow colder and more ominous. "That was sketchy," Eli told her once they were out of the elder nurse's earshot. "She was so adamant at first about us not going in."

"I have no idea why she changed her mind," Sophie said with a shrug. "Maybe she just saw how unreasonable she was being and felt sorry about it. Either way, I'm glad we managed to make it through."

Eli harrumphed. They followed the signs through the hallways until at last they stood in front of a caramel colored door. A plaque with the number '18' sat right atop it. Sophie hesitated. She stared at the door handle and sucked in a sharp breath. This was the first time she'd really seen Wolfe since the imprint had broken. The thought made her stomach twist. He wouldn't recognize her either, she had to remind herself. The only person that he trusted was Aubrey.

This was it.

She reached out and opened the door. It creaked as it opened, and revealed a room filled with darkness behind it. A window was situated on one side of the room, covered with a set of dark curtains. Beside it, Sophie could just make out the shape of a bed. A lump appeared on top of said bed, shielded by blankets and pillows. Sophie entered the room with Eli at her side. She released Eli's hand and stepped closer to the bed, searching for a face within the mound of covers. Her chest ached as she located the familiar face, his baby blues closed off from the world.

Conscious of Eli's wary gaze on her back, Sophie reached out and gently stroked Wolfe's forehead. His eyes snapped open and widened. Several emotions flickered through them. Surprise, fear, and then recognition.

Wolfe's brows puckered. "Sophie?" he whispered.