12. Chapter 12
Chapter 12
Zoric was stunned by the look in Angela's eyes before he caught what Ae-cha had said. Desire burned there along with confusion, a feeling he felt echoed across their bond.
"You removed a trigger?" he asked, turning to look at the other Chelion.
"I did," Ae-cha confirmed. "It was wrapped around an older, softer compulsion. And it was nasty. I've never seen anything quite like it."
"How do you feel?" Dr. Phillips asked Angela, who blinked hard before refocusing her attention on the human psychiatrist.
"My chest hurts when I breathe," she answered after a few moments. "But I can breathe. I feel like I've run a marathon and I want a long, hot shower, and a few shots of whiskey."
Zoric could feel her emotions shifting between terror and elation and he sympathized. Especially when he felt his face begin to reform to its original shape. Everybody in the room stared at him while he changed.
"How did you do that?" Ae-cha demanded.
He shook his head. "I have no idea. I felt Angela start to panic and I knew what she needed. When I bent down to give her my breath, everything was the right shape. There was no thought involved, just instinct and need."
Angela yawned and Dr. Phillips stood.
"I think we should call it for today," the doctor said. "We've made significant progress and everyone is exhausted."
Ae-cha looked like she wanted to protest so Zoric stood and scooped Angela up in his arms. He was done with the cold, semi-sterile room, and the intrusion on his Bond. He could still feel Ae-cha probing for a way back into Angela's mind.
"Agreed," he said. "We've found a way forward and Angela needs to rest. I'll talk to Colonel Schuh about tomorrow's schedule once she's laying down."
"Zoric, you can't just-" Angela started to protest.
"I can and I will," he argued. "And if anybody wants to complain, they can take it up with me later."
Ae-cha shook her head and sighed. "You're right, Dr. Phillips, we're all tired. And I need some time to research what I saw in Private McBride's brain. If you'd like to go with me to report to Colonel Schuh, we can get it over with sooner rather than later."
Something in the way Dr. Phillips stiffened told Zoric she hadn't expected the invitation, and she may not have wanted it. After a moment of deliberation, she nodded.
"Very well," Dr. Phillips agreed. "The Colonel had asked for my observations and this is as good a time as any to give a verbal report."
She walked to the door and knocked, nodding to the soldier who opened the viewing hatch when he asked if they were done.
"Less to clean up today," Dr. Phillips said with a laugh in her voice. "And the room can be left as it is until tomorrow."
Zoric was shocked by the humor Dr. Phillips displayed. It was the most human thing he'd seen from her and he wasn't sure he believed it.
The door opened and he stopped worrying about the human doctor. His only focus was getting Angela to their room so she could take a shower and get something to eat. As much as she might want some alcohol, he wasn't going to allow her to drink before she had something on her stomach. She might not be able to feel how hungry her body was, but it was beating at him.
Without waiting for their escort, he followed his nose through the hallways, retracing his path to his room while Angela cuddled against his chest. Every step increased his urgency to get her away from everybody else and where he could take care of her.
She hadn't protested being carried like this, he thought, and that could only be another sign of just how drained she was. A brief probe at their Bond told him he was right, and that she was fighting to stay awake, now that they were out of the interrogation room.
Zoric didn't care that there were guards following them, and he didn't notice when they took up positions outside just as he closed the door behind him.
"Shower or bed," he asked. When she took too long to answer, he set her on the bed and started with removing her shoes. They were a slip on pair that did not put up any resistance.
"Wait," Angela protested. "Zoric, stop. I can take my own clothes off."
"Yes, but you didn't tell me what you wanted to do and you have conflicting desires when I try and read them."
"Which is why I hadn't answered you yet," she told him. "For now, just stop fussing and let me think."
The irritation that flowed down their Bond felt like a slap. He took a step back from the bed and held his hands out at his side. "Your exhaustion is beating at me, and so is your anger, and your confusion. I can't fix much but I can offer you some comfort and a chance to sleep."
Angela took a deep breath which turned into a yawn. "I want a proper shower but I don't think I can stand up long enough to take one. I'll settle for washing my face and taking a nap but I don't need you to hover over me while I do either of those things."
"We need to talk about some things before you sleep, as well," Zoric said. "And I can feel you flinching from the conversations."
She sighed. "Can they wait? You recognized something during the interrogation and I don't want to take the chance that-"
"Do you object to me sleeping in here?"
It wasn't his first choice of the questions he needed to ask but it was an important one. And it seemed to throw her out of her intended objections.
"Of course I don't," Angela said. "It's your room. I'm only allowed in here because of our Bond. Otherwise, I'd still be in a cell."
"Do you object to sharing the bed?"
She shook her head and blushed. Desire and embarrassment mixed with confusion flowed down their Bond and he took the opportunity to press.
"Do you want me to share the bed?"
"I want to be close to you. I'm not sure what else I want but I know I want that. And I have some questions about how everything…works."
Zoric grinned. "When a boy and girl like each other very much, sometimes they-"
Angela laughed. "No, I know how that works. But, how do you work? Do you even have compatible boy parts?"
"The important parts will fit," he said. "Everything else is going to require some finesse. Including my ability to kiss you."
"You did okay in the interrogation room," she pointed out. "I didn't realize you could shift parts of your body like that."
"I didn't either," he admitted. "I'm learning as much about this as you are. I don't want to hurt you but I can't deny my need to be near you. To touch you. And I don't think that need is going to restrict itself to cuddling."
"So we have to talk about it," Angela agreed. "Because I don't think so, either. We've been distracted by the interrogation but I didn't forget what it felt like when I touched you while I was in my cell. That's not going to get less intense if we're sharing a bed."
"It grows with every moment we're together," Zoric said. "And it has been a struggle to block everything that wasn't strictly necessary today. I don't know that I'll be able to manage it much longer."
Angela closed her eyes and he could feel her probing at their Bond, and the barrier he'd erected to keep both of them safe and sane. Finally, she sighed.
"I'm exhausted and I still just want a hot shower and a nap. Everything about this situation tells me that I should object to sleeping with you but I can't. So, because I haven't completely given up my good sense, I'm going to ask you to not crawl into bed with me while I'm asleep. Because I trust you, but I don't trust what I'll do when I'm unconscious and vulnerable."
Zoric thought about it for a moment then nodded. He understood the conflict she was struggling with and could feel her need for something lighter. "That's fair. Now, can I help you get to the shower?"
With a laugh, Angela shook her head. "You're not going to offer to help me in the shower?"
"First, I have to get you to the shower," he said, with a wink. "One step at a time, right?"
"Fastest way to do anything," she agreed. "And yes, you can help me walk to the shower, but I'm not going to be getting into it just yet. I'm going to see how I manage washing my face."
He finished taking off her shoes, then offered his hand to help her stand up. When she swayed on her feet, he wrapped his arm around her back and pulled her close. Her legs may have been moving but she wasn't putting much weight on them and that was fine as far as he was concerned.
The bathroom was small, barely enough room for the shower, sink, and toilet, but Zoric wasn't going to leave her alone so he squeezed himself into the confined space. Angela leaned heavily against the sink and her head bent forward. Zoric could feel her exhaustion beating at him and had to fight the urge to carry her back to the bed.
Finally, she leaned forward and turned on the water, letting it run over her fingers to test the temperature. He could taste the rising heat in the air and worried it would get too hot. When she leaned forward for the washcloths next to the sink, he handed one to her so she wouldn't lose her balance.
"I don't know why I'm so tired all of a sudden," Angela complained while she ran the washcloth under the water. "I didn't really do anything all day."
Zoric settled his hand on her back, the contact made him feel better than just standing there did, and Angela didn't object. "Didn't you? I would think searching for memories while someone poked around in your head would be considered something. As well as having a trigger hit and removed. Even if you survived without the need for medical intervention, that takes energy."
Angela shrugged and ran the washcloth over her face, removing the layer of soap she'd just applied to her skin. He could smell the scent of the soap, the oil from her skin, and the layer of sweat and dirt that had accumulated during the interrogation. And under all of it, a smell that was only her.
"I guess," she said. "But I think you and Ae-cha did most of the work for that."
"But it was in your brain," he pointed out. "If you have surgery, the surgeon may do most of the work, but you're going to be the one who needs more time to recover."
She dropped the used washcloth in the sink and he handed her a dry one. He didn't know how he knew she would want it but he did. When she'd finished patting her face dry, she turned back to the bedroom and he couldn't restrain himself any longer. He had her in his arms, close to his chest, for the few strides it took to get her back to the bed.
"Take off what you need to be comfortable under the blanket," he instructed and she made a face.
"I still don't need your help," she said.
"Which is why I'm not helping, I'm waiting for you to get comfortable so I can see that you're resting before I go and check in with Colonel Schuh."
"Oh," she said, and blinked. "I forgot you needed to do that. I thought you were going to join me."
"I have no greater desire right now than to do just that," Zoric told her. "But I have other duties to carry out and I do not wish to delay them more than necessary."
She nodded and pulled her shirt off. When she struggled to push her pants past her hips, he could feel her frustration across their Bond. Instead of grabbing the fabric the way he wanted to, he lifted her and let the friction with the bed do the work. With a wry smile, she reached under the back of her undershirt then leaned forward and pulled her bra straps down her arms.
"That's a handy trick," he said, making note of how she'd done it.
"The joy of wearing a bra," she told him. "You get to learn things like that."
Angela laid down on the bed, her breath leaving her in a sigh of surrender, and her eyes closed. Between one breath and the next, he could tell she'd fallen into a deep, healing sleep.
His body ached to join her, to hold her while she slept, and it was with great reluctance that he covered her with a blanket and made his way to the door. The guards were waiting in the hall and they didn't make a move to stop him.