“Somewhere with high security until the drug wears off,” Ivan said.
The door to the room where they’d put Mikhail wrenched open.“Where is my wife?I want Bridget.”
The surge of hope on hearing his words shrank.This was her mate, and he didn’t want her or recall their hasty marriage in Scotland.
She straightened her shoulders.“Bridget isn’t here.Can I help you with something?”
“Who are you?”He raised one hand to prod his temple, his face paler than usual.
“My name is Edwina,” she said.“We’re friends, although you don’t remember me after your accident.This is Ivan and Gregory.You went to school with them; they’re your closest friends.”She gestured at Roscoe.“Roscoe is also a friend, although a more recent one.Is your head aching?”
“I need my special headache tablets.Bridget says I should take one each day.The doctors told her this was important for my recovery.”He winced.“My head is throbbing so bad.I can scarcely think.”
Roscoe exchanged a glance with Edwina.“I’ll call the healer and get her to meet us at my place.Pack a bag.”
“Gregory and I will stay here,” Ivan said.“We’ll behave normally and keep our eyes peeled for Smirnoff or his thugs.”
“I have spare rooms, one of which is secure and will work for Mikhail.We don’t want him blundering around the countryside in his state,” Roscoe said.
A few minutes later, they departed.
“Are you taking me home?”Mikhail asked, shading his eyes against the sun.
Edwina pulled a pair of sunglasses from her handbag and handed them to him.“Yes,” she said.“Put these on and rest your eyes.It might help your headache.”She’d noticed him pressing his temples with his fingers.A sudden suspicion occurred.“Do you have headache tablets at home?”
“Yes,” Mikhail said.
“How often do you take them?”
“The doctor told me the pills were strong and not to take more than one a day.”
“How many have you been taking?”
“My head hurts,” Mikhail said.
Possibly more tablets than was safe.“When did you take the last tablets?”
“Head hurts,” he muttered.
“All right, you rest.We’ll have you home in no time.”
“I’ll call the healer once we arrive,” Roscoe said.
Mikhail didn’t react, instead sat hunched with his fingers pressed to his temples.
The drive to the isolated property didn’t take long.Mikhail staggered when she helped him from the vehicle’s rear, and Roscoe hurried to her aid.Edwina frowned when Mikhail showed no awareness of his surroundings.
“My guess is they’ve been giving him the tablets to keep his memories at bay, but the pills have side effects.Either that or they have an addictive quality, and we’re seeing the withdrawal symptoms,” Edwina said, almost grinding her teeth together to prevent her furious growl.
“Yeah,” Roscoe said.“I wish we could give the healer more information.It sounds as if Mikhail’s head has caused him problems, and he has taken more tablets than necessary.”
“That would explain his confusion.The first night we saw him, he seemed more with it.This time he’s confused, and his head pain is bothering him.”
“At least they haven’t had their hands on him for long.We’ll have to hope the side effects will pass.”
“I wonder if there’s a way of getting a pill sample.”
“We could ask Mikhail for a description of the bottle, but it might prove difficult to access the estate again,” Roscoe said.“We might source the pills directly from the manufacturer.My men have noted the recent estate visitors.We’ll track those vehicles and go from there.”
