He moves again, trying to wipe off his face before Taurus pops into the room like a bull in a china shop. The cat doesn’t say a word, but I hear the crystal clink, and I assume she’s pouring scotch into her new, unbroken glass.
Hearing the clink of another bottle on a table and scenting a lot more scotch, I realize Taurus has arrived. It smells like he ate the distillery. This will be interesting. “You got me, so what thebloody buggering hell isgoing on?”
Ah. Now he’s seen me. The quick change from drunk to pissed off and yelling tells me that. The bed dips as he climbs on, snarling under his breath.
“Whathappened to my woman?!”
Growling, my new mate shifts to keep me from sliding. “No, I bloody goddamn love you, but that’s not the point. She tapped into the cat to find me. Blade felt that I left, and she hit the current, mate. I didn’t even know the kitty had that kind of power, and Blade was wielding it like a toddler with a broadsword. She almost took me out. The cat blinked us here, and we passed out. It was too much power, not enough skill, or something.”
He looks to her for help because none of them is talking. No one is addressing the white elephant in the corner, and I’m waiting for someone to bring this back to me.
Finally, the cat gives in to the standoff. “What I need is someone else strong enough to feed her. She’ll be fine, but I can’t keep doing it. You have enough of me in you, and you’re her primary. Are you sober enough to donate? I need to stop soon.” There’s a pause you could drive a truck through before she adds, “If you’re wondering, I didn’t encourage or ask for any of this. She grabbed me and tapped in without asking. I couldn’t get her off me. By the time he came through the portal she had made, he had to pry her off. I barely got us home because it stripped me down.”
“That’s true,” Rafe murmurs.
I feel the tension in his body as my primary snarls low at him. “You and I’ll deal with what you said later, mate. I think it’s love of her that’s causing the problem.” He turns away from him, shifting his position on the bed to look at the cat over by the bar. “I’m sober. Seeing your woman looking as near death as she does and feeling what I feel inside now that I’m here isn’t easy. Fucking hell, she drained herself.”
There’s a spike of anger that echoes from that side of the room and a tiny millisecond flicker of hurt. Fear follows it and pain, then ice again. “I didn’t allow her to do it. I know what she looks like. Talia used me without my permission as a magickal signal booster in her secret shielded place. Don’t blame me for this.”
“She’s toasted all her circuits. Why? Why’d she do this?” Taurus asks, his fingers stroking over my face.
I hear sniffles and feel movement, but they stop as quickly as they start.
“Her shields got fried. Didn’t either of you feel that? She’s sucking in a lot of pain right now. Give her some shielding before we do anything else.” He turns again, looking for her. He mustwonder why she’s so far away. I still am. “I’m sorry, love. I know that none of this is your fault. Knowing Talia like I do, you’re the only reason she’s still here.”
Rafe clears his throat and murmurs, “I’m not used to the empathy yet; I didn’t think. The cat cleaned us up before I woke up. She was already up and about. When Blade wouldn’t wake, I kept her warm and cocooned. She started stirring, and my primary suggested she feed her. It seemed like a good plan, what with the healing factor and all.”
“Let me guess: you got the snake and not much else, right?”
“That’s why I need you to take over. It’s not helping, and I need to replenish.” Deli sighs and muses, “Plus, I want ice cream. Maybe some black olives. Possibly garlic bread, too.”
Why does she sound so far away? Why did it feel like the blood she gave me came from well above me and not from a close appendage? What is going on with her? I can’t see anything, and it’s making me crazy that I can’t tell them what I need.
Rafe growls, frustrated with his questions and her flippancy. “Do you two think we could focus on fixing her? A little help is why I need you two here.”
“What the bleeding hell did I do? I’ve been on my own all sodding day!” Taurus shouts, sounding like he’s ready to explode. Suddenly, he chuckles; he caught the cat’s preggo cravings. I guess it soothes him a bit because he relaxes on his side of the bed.
Rafe’s right, though. They need to focus. I want out of here!
The Blade Is Healed… Maybe
TALIA
“To answer your question, there are only a few flickers of her here and there, but mostly the snake,” Rafe murmurs.
His arms are warm around me, and I like the feeling, but he sounds so tired and worried. I don’t want him hurting. I need to talk to him and get him to understand.
“I could feel you two fighting before you came, and now you’re bickering. You’re both so damned stubborn. I’m too wiped to give anyone a lecture, so I’ll save the stomping for later. First, I need to eat a food truck’s weight in people and all the other stuff I said, then I might be ready to bitch.” The bottle clinks again, and I assume she’s refilling. “Taurus, if you could help with the shield thing, it would be super.”
If she thinks he’ll let that criticism go, she’s got another thing coming. Even if I am hurt, he won’t let her win this round with her attitude.
“Woman, I’m not at all pleased with the stubborn label. I’m also not pleased that my primary got so hurt thinkinghe caredmore for me than for her. Then the idiot tells me he loves me while she’s still out of it. Now might not be a good time for your stomping, until I figure out what the fucking hell is going on with her. She can resolve the bloody issue from there, but don’t forget that she’s my world. I’m from her. What’s not okay with her, isn’t okay with me.”
It’s silent for a moment, and I don’t know what’s happening. Rafe is holding me, and he’s shaking. I don’t know if anyone else can tell because he’s not touching them, but he’s shivering.
Why is he doing that? Why isn’t anyone talking?
The glass clunks on the bar again, and I feel the tension in the room rise, prickling over my skin. Again with the bottle, then silence. I feel like something is going on, but it’s not mind speech. I sense that, and no one is doing it. They’re mute.
