“Yeah, probably.”
“I’m exempt from pack duties at the minute.” She gestured to her belly. “So he went, and I stayed in case you two showed up.”
“But he’s coming back, right?” Capable or not, Logan didn’t like the idea of her being here on her own. And she looked really pregnant.
“Why, you worried I might give birth any moment?” She smirked at him and he blushed.
“No.”
“Mhmm. Don’t stress, I’m not due for another seven weeks. But yes, to answer your question, he should be back in a few hours. Then when it’s dark again, we’ll take you where you need to go.” When Logan frowned, she narrowed her eyes. “Unless you plan on going back to London?”
“I don’t know.”
“Don’t know what?” Cole asked, walking over to them.
Logan cursed at being too distracted to notice him approach. He needed to be more aware than that. “Hey, everything all right?”
“Yeah.” Cole seemed a little off, but Logan expected as much after getting that letter. “What you got there?” He pointed to the stuff Logan had put on the table.
“Take a seat, and let Max have a look at your injuries.” Logan pointed at one of the chairs and Cole sat.
Moving out of the way, Logan watched as Max removed the crude bandages they’d used to patch Cole up, tutting as she went. He had the urge to protest that they’d had little to work with but held his tongue. After she’d cleaned and dressed the wound on his shoulder, she got Cole to put his leg on one of the other chairs so she could examine it.
When she rolled up his jeans, both she and Logan flinched. The scent of infection filled the air, and the slash marks looked red and angry.
“I thought you said it was just a scratch?” Logan wanted to shake him.
Cole grimaced as he looked at his leg. “I didn’t think it was that bad. His claws were only on me for a moment.”
Motherfucker. Logan wanted to kill that bastard all over again. A growl escaped him, the sound rumbling around the cavern.
Max kicked him. “That’s not helping.” She nodded at Cole who’d gone a little pale.
“Sorry.” Logan rolled his shoulders, trying to let go of some of his anger.
“’S okay.” Cole shrugged his uninjured shoulder, eyes fixed on his leg. “It’s infected.”
“Yep.” Max set about cleaning it, frowning. “Wolf claws are incredibly sharp and can be covered in bacteria.” She sat back after dressing it. “You’re going to need antibiotics to prevent this getting worse.”
“Have you got any?” Logan asked, worry kicking in. “And how bad could it get?”
“Left untreated, it’s possible he could die from it. Septicaemia can be deadly,” she said, meeting his gaze. “And I’ve got some, but not enough. I used them earlier on one of the others, sent them off with a week’s course.”
“Fuck,” he whispered, annoyed at himself for not checking it sooner.
“If we get you out of here tonight, it should be fine. It’s pretty well stocked, medicine-wise, where you’re headed.”
“Okay.” Logan relaxed a little, but not much. He still needed to decide what he was going to do. After.
She gave Cole a dose of antibiotics and a small shot of morphine to take the edge off. “I have some food for you, but you need to wait an hour before eating, so if it’s okay with you two, I’m gonna go lie down for a bit.” She pointed to a camp bed over on the other side of the cave. “Wake me if anything happens, and feel free to look around down here. Just don’t go back into the rum store.” She didn’t wait for them to answer, and both Logan and Cole watched her pick her way across the cavern floor, only relaxing when she made it to the camp bed.
“You’re worse than my bloody husband,” she called without turning round. “I can feel you watching me.”
Chastised, they both turned away, and soon Max’s soft snores drifted across the cave, leaving Logan and Cole facing each other.
“How’re you feeling?” Logan asked, wanting to touch Cole in some way, but not sure he was allowed.
They’d shared two kisses, both of which Logan had felt all the way down to his bones. But where did they stand with each other? Their lives weren’t meant to intersect again, Cole knew that. Was that why he’d kissed him? Because there was no chance of it going further? Cole’s scent was something Logan would recognise anywhere now, deeply ingrained inside him. Letting him go and never encountering it again was going to hurt.
