Bruises in all shapes and colors covered my skin, like someone had dropped paint blobs onto paper, and they ranged in color from angry black all the way to livid green. Not my best look, to be sure, and it galled me that this was the first time Luch was seeing me almost fully naked and I was covered in injuries.
“No, it’s?—”
“I think we need to take you into the hospital. There’s extensive trauma here. I want to get you on fluids, we’ll need some pain care. We need to get some X-rays. What the hell were you doing riding alone?”
I reached out with what strength I had and grabbed Luch’s wrist before he stormed from the room.
“Luch, stop.”
“I will not. You’re seriously injured, Faelan. You don’t get a say anymore, I’m in charge.”
Two paws hit the side of the bed, and I rolled slightly to look down at Oban’s sweet face.
“Oban. Help me, please. Stop him.” I knew Oban knew what I was. But Luch wasn’t about to listen to me. He was already pulling out his phone and I knew if he called for help, an ambulance, I’d never get the real help I needed.
Oban turned and growled at Luch.
Shock caused Luch to stop and look up from his phone. Oban stepped forward, hackles raised, and growled again, long and low for good measure.
“Oban?” Luch looked confused and then cocked his ear as though he was listening.
Could he hear him?
Unsure if what I was seeing was correct, or just my imagination, I took a deep breath.
“You can’t help me, Luch. At least not traditionally.”
The words rasped, burning my throat, but I held up a hand when Luch started to protest.
“I’m a healer, Luch. A witch. A charm witch to be exact. It’s an unfinished spell, working its way through my body. Traditional medicine will do nothing.”
Luch froze and I tore my eyes away from his face and blinked up at the ceiling, fighting the tears that threatened.
This was when he would leave.
Everyone.
Always.
Left.
Me.
A soft sound, and then the bed dipped, and Luch sat. Reaching out, he squeezed my hand, and I couldn’t bring myself to look at him.
“Tell me how to help you then, darling.”
The unbearable sweetness of his words almost broke me, and a tear slipped down the side of my cheek and fell into the crook of my neck.
“I need a special tea. It’s at my flat. And then I need to go outside. The … I didn’t get a chance to remove the pain I took inside me. It will fester unless I rid myself of it. I need to clear it from me.”
“Can I make this special tea here? You might be surprised at the ingredients I have lying around.”
“Unless you’ve harvested thistle under a full moon, I don’t think so.”
“It’s in your kitchen cupboard?”
“You can just take me home. I can do this on my own.”
