One month later
Ivar opened his eyes, and unlike the last four weeks, the first face he saw was Xanders.
"Weirdo," Xander said as soon as he saw he was awake.
"Xan?" Ivar called, as he dragged his body into a sitting position. "Why are you here?" He asked.
"To bail you out. We're going on a mission."
His heart instantly skipped a beat, and it felt like it was at the brink of a collapse.
Xander noticed his reaction, and quickly opened his mouth to try to soften things.
"I meant—"
"He meant you've been in this hospital for well over a month, and it's time to come back home," Vivian said, appearing from nowhere.
"Bitch! I told you to stay in the car. You have no tact!" Xander reproached her.
"Now is not the time for tact. Ares has been in Italy for one month. In the hands of Markos. For all we know, the bastard has turned him into his slave," she bawled her fist. "The thought of it alone makes me want to go crazy!"
Ivar relaxed enough to form a proper response.
