Chapter 9
Chapter
Nine
Elise didn't know how to fake healing someone. No, not healing. Doctoring. What was she supposed to do?
There was a bit of sweat on Cole's forehead, so she wiped that away. Then she checked his pulse. Yup, still beating. All good. She adjusted his blankets like that might do something and hoped she was looking productive.
The werewolf in the corner wasn't helping.
Javi was watching her with very intense eyes, tracking every move like she might stab Cole if he looked away. He kept tapping his finger against the padded arm of the loveseat he was sitting in, and she sensed a whole lot of restless energy inside of him.
She got the idea that he wanted to talk but was forcing himself to play the stoic jailer role.
A part of her wished it was Nico in that chair instead.
Which was insane.
Nico had kidnapped her. If she was going to develop some kind of Stockholm syndrome crush on anyone, shouldn't it be the guy who seemed uncomfortable with this whole hostage situation? Javi seemed decent. He'd even apologized last night when Reece got aggressive.
But no. Her body had to be all traitorous and get hot for her kidnapper.
She sat down in the uncomfortable folding chair that had been set up for her next to Cole's bed and tried to cage her own restless energy. Her magic was roiling beneath her skin, begging to be let out and be useful. Whatever was wrong with the werewolf alpha, she could heal him.
And get herself killed in the process.
She shoved the healing instinct down deep. She couldn't even risk a magical scan of Cole's body with Javi ten feet away. He'd scent the magic, call in the cavalry, and then she'd be torn to witchy ribbons.
She needed to figure a way out of this mess. Living in a werewolf house, sleeping in Nico's bed—or, well, tossing and turning in Nico's bed—had her anxiety in high gear and she didn't know how long she could last.
Elise wanted to run so bad she was curling her fingers into fists to keep herself from sprinting for the French doors and throwing herself of the balcony, like she could somehow miraculously learn how to fly.
"I have to pee," Javi said suddenly, standing up and looking at her like he needed permission.
Elise looked over at him. "By all means. Don't let me stop you."
He walked toward Cole's en-suite and left the door wide open.
"What the hell are you thinking?" Elise snapped. "Close the damn door."
Javi poked his head back out, looking almost sheepish. "I'm supposed to be watching you this whole time."
She held her hands out to either side, palms up. "We're on the second floor. What do you expect me to do in thirty seconds, learn to fly? Let's have a little privacy, okay?"
"Uh …" He shifted his weight. "It might be more of a number two situation."
Oh god.
"I'm still going to be here. I promise not to smother Cole with a pillow." And she really, really didn't want to smell werewolf farts. Or worse.
Javi hesitated, then nodded and closed the door.
Elise stared at the closed bathroom door for a beat. She hadn't actually been planning to try anything. She'd resigned herself to playing the role of incompetent-but-trying veterinarian until her sisters found her or Nico decided she'd outlived her usefulness.
But, well, now she had an opportunity. And she'd be an idiot not to seize it.
She looked down at Cole, and her powers simmered right beneath her skin. She could send a wave into him and start the healing process; she could figure out what was wrong and fix it.
But the bathroom was so close. Magic had a scent—not a physical smell exactly, but something supernatural creatures could sense if they were close enough. She had no idea how far away a werewolf would need to be to not pick up on it.
The bathroom definitely wasn't far enough.
Her eyes landed on the doors that led to the balcony.
Okay, Elise really wasn't going to try parkouring down the side of the house, but she had to try something. She'd already been stuck here more than a day, and she hadn't heard a peep magically from her sisters. What if there was something inside the house blocking the magic?
She wished she could call them, but her phone was probably still sitting inside her locker at the zoo, useless. And of course there wasn't a convenient landline sitting on the bedside table. No one had landlines anymore.
Elise moved before she could talk herself out of it. She crossed to the doors as quietly as possible and eased one open, wincing at the soft click of the latch. She held her breath, waiting for Javi to come bursting out of the bathroom.
Thankfully, his bathroom needs kept him firmly in the bathroom.
She slipped outside.
Oh, the air was nice. Crisp, just a bit cool, not the stuffy heavy sick-room air she'd been breathing in all day. Below, she could see part of the backyard and the edge of the woods. The balcony was nice and roomy, and if it was hers, she'd camp out on it with a book and have a nice time.
But it wasn't hers, and she didn't have time.
She had to assume her sisters were scanning for her, and this was her shot to make it easier for them. She reached deep into herself and gathered as much as she dared before releasing it straight into the air above her and willing it back towards the city.
Hopefully it would reach the coven and give them a clue about how to find her.
Elise needed to go back inside. Javi would be done in the bathroom soon. Anyone could see her if they stepped into the yard. She had no route of escape, and sticking around would just earn her the ire of her captors.
But she gripped the balcony railing tight and couldn't force herself to back away.
Oh god. She was being held captive by werewolves who would kill her if they sensed even a lick of magic.
The reality of the situation crashed over her.
She was in enemy territory. In their freaking home.
In the alpha's bedroom and surrounded by beasts who could tear her apart if she made one wrong move.
How was she supposed to heal Cole without her magic? She couldn't let herself think about what would happen if he died.
Even as tight as she was holding on, she could feel the tremble in her hands. She wasn't sure she could walk inside on steady feet.
Just breathe. Just breathe. It'll be okay.
"Hey! What are you doing out there?"
Elise's eyes went wide, and she looked down. A werewolf she'd met briefly this morning—Hugh—was staring up at her with suspicion cold written all over his face.
Oh crap.
It turned out she could move on steady feet. She practically ran back into the bedroom and closed the door behind her quickly, wincing when it was louder than she intended. Was this it? Were they going to kill her for getting fresh air?
They were werewolves. They absolutely might.
Already, she heard fast, angry footsteps in the hall outside. The door to Cole's room burst open. Hugh stormed in, and before Elise could even process what was happening, he had her pinned against the wall, his hand around her throat.
"What were you doing out there?" His voice was icily calm.
Elise could barely breathe. His grip wasn't tight enough to cut off her air completely, but it was close. And she didn't know if she was imagining it or not, but she could have sworn she felt the prick of claws against her pulse. Her hands came up instinctively to jerk at his wrist.
Then Hugh was gone, torn away from her with such force he stumbled backward.
Nico.
He was standing between her and Hugh like an angel of vengeance, breathing hard, his whole body vibrating with violence.
"Don't you fucking touch her," Nico snarled.
Hugh recovered his balance and lunged. His fist connected with Nico's face with a sickening crack, and blood sprayed from Nico's nose in an impressive arc. He didn't even flinch.
Nico swung at Hugh, and then they were really fighting, grappling and throwing punches like they were trying to kill each other.
"Stop it!" Elise heard herself shout, but neither of them listened.
Javi, finally coming out of the bathroom, rushed forward, grabbing Hugh from behind. Reece appeared in the doorway and seized Nico, hauling him backward. It took Javi and Reece working together to keep the two betas separated.
Nico had blood streaming from his nose. Hugh’s left eye was already swelling, the skin around it turning purple.
"You don't go outside," Hugh said, breathing hard. "You don't go anywhere without supervision. You got that?"
Elise's throat hurt where he'd grabbed her, and she rubbed at it. "I was just getting some fresh air. Did you think I was going to jump off the balcony?"
"Everyone out," Nico said. His voice was rough and dangerous. "Now."
"Nico—" Javi started.
"Get. Out."
Javi shot Elise an apologetic look before ushering Hugh toward the door. Reece followed, pulling it shut behind them with a soft click. The room was too quiet for how violent it had just been.
Elise pressed herself back against the wall, her heart hammering. She was bracing for Nico to yell at her, to demand answers, to—
He stepped closer.
But he was careful. Like she was the scared animal.
His hand came up and his knuckles brushed against her cheek, so gentle it made her breath catch. Then his fingers traced down, following the line of her jaw to her throat, touching so lightly over the place where Hugh had grabbed her.
It hurt. Not badly, she didn't think it would bruise, but her skin was tender.
"Are you okay?" His voice was softer than she thought it could be.
Nico's eyes were dark and intense. She was caught in his gaze. The heat of his touch seared her, and she could feel her body respond, feel her own heat begin to pull deep inside her. She felt an almost magnetic pull towards him.
No.
She shoved the feeling aside and grabbed onto the one thing that could give her back some control.
"Sit down," she said firmly.
Nico blinked. "What?"
"Sit down and let me deal with your face." He was still bleeding, and there was some puffiness under his eyes as they swelled.
He warded her off. "It'll be fine. I heal fast." That was true. He was a werewolf. But she wasn't supposed to know that.
Elise crossed her arms. "Sit your ass down before I make you sit down."
His mouth twitched. An actual smile, small but real. "Do you normally talk to your patients that way?"
"Only the difficult ones." She pointed at the chair. "Sit."
He sat.
Elise grabbed some of the pilfered supplies that were set up on the other side of the room, grateful for the moment to collect herself. Her hands were shaking. She dug her fingertips into her palms to try and get some semblance of control.
She couldn't think of the intensity in Nico's gaze.
She refused to acknowledge the way her body got all warm and tingly when he was defending her.
She wet a clean cloth and returned to where Nico sat. His nose had stopped bleeding, but blood was smeared across his face and dried on his upper lip.
She stepped between his knees. It was the only way to get close enough to clean his face properly. She tried not to think about the intimacy of the position.
Of course she failed.
"Tilt your head back." She hoped she sounded professional.
He did, watching her with those intense dark eyes as she gently wiped the blood away. His nose wasn't broken. She could tell that much even without her magic. On a human, the bone might have shattered. But werewolves were built of sterner stuff.
"You shouldn't have gone outside," he said quietly. Way to remind her who the prisoner was here.
She couldn't let herself feel guilty. "I needed fresh air."
"Elise." The way he said her name did things to her. And those things weren't just physical. A traitorous voice in her head insisted that she could trust him. A werewolf! A kidnapping werewolf!
But one that was just as bound by circumstances as she was.
She glanced back at Cole’s strangely shaped, still form for a second and then went back to her work. "I just needed a minute. To breathe. I needed to not feel like …" She trailed off.
"A prisoner?"
She met his gaze. "Yeah."
"I'm sorry." He said like he meant it. "I know this is fucked up. But I need you. Cole needs you."
"So when he wakes up, that's it?" She dabbed at a spot of blood near his temple. "You'll let me go?"
"That's the plan."
"What if he doesn't wake up?"
Nico's jaw tightened. "Let's hope he wakes up." He pushed her hand away and stood up. "Thanks for cleaning me up. You should get back to work on Cole."
Elise wished she could have a minute to herself to get all her roiling feelings under control. But Nico sat on the loveseat just like Javi had. And this time, she didn't think her babysitter was going to leave her unattended for even a second.
She needed to find a way to magically heal Cole. Otherwise, she wasn't getting out of the pack house alive.