“There she is,” I murmured, grazing my thumb over her lip.
Her eyes fluttered shut, and she inhaled deeply.
“What were you saying, Sam?”
“The dosage for his mood stabilizer was too strong,” he explained,gazing at me pointedly as the lie fell easily off his tongue. “It burned his lungs.”
“Sounds like you need to adjust your draught, Sam,” I said.
His poker face impressed me.
“Seems so. In the meantime, Aspen can go, and Lucille, if you’d come to my lab, please.”
Her face paled, but she nodded.
Did Sam already tell her what he needed?
She trailed after him, and I followed close behind. The moment we stepped through his lab door, saw the needle in his hand, and the countless vials, her body started to shake.
“How much blood do you need, Sam?”
She backed into the door, leaning heavily against it.
Out of all the things she could have an irrational fear of, I never would’ve guessed a little needle.
But this was no simple fear. Something haunted her. Another scar marked her soul, making her lungs work overtime.
What I wanted to know was who had marked it and whether they still lived.
A conversation for another time.
“Enough to see if your blood is the binder for the new strain and to experiment with,” Sam answered.
She shook out her hands and nodded, psyching herself up.
“Heavenly Shit. I know we need this for the infection. I know.”
“I’ll be fast,” Sam assured, approaching.
The hellion tensed, and my shadows shot out, nicking Sam’s neck and taking his blood. He stopped in his tracks, fully aware of what I’d do if he came any closer.
“Can we do it with a knife?” she asked.
Sam lifted a brow, appearing highly insulted that she’d even ask.
I understood her, but I had a better solution.
I stepped closer. “Would you like me to knock you out?”
“Yes,” she said on a relieved sigh.
Eagerly, my shadows dove into her body, and she slumped into my arms. I hefted her up, cradling her as I took a seat at one of Sam’s tables.
He gestured toward her arm. “May I?”
I gave him a curt nod.
He inserted the needle, and her face tightened. But as the feeling of my awe for her grew, her tension eased, and she burrowed into me.
