Chapter 13
Chapter
Thirteen
Bokkan
I had never felt more helpless in my life.
Watching Leda fight Venna was the worst thing I’d ever experienced. I knew I wasn’t supposed to intervene, but I had no doubt I would have if it looked like Venna was going to kill my human.
She was quickly becoming the center of my world.
How could I have become so attached to this small female so quickly?
I winced when I looked down at her and saw the torn skin of her forearms. Venna had used her claws on my female, and the wounds were still bleeding.
Unsure if humans were prone to infections, I decided my best course of action was to clean and treat the deep cuts.
It was better to be cautious than risk further harm to Leda.
Decision made, I carried her to the couch.
The fire in the grate was smoldering, so I quickly placed a few extra logs on the pile and stoked it until they caught fire, and the flames began to dance in the hearth.
Her pale skin felt so chilled and thin against me.
She needed the heat of the fire to bring the warmth back to her flesh.
I hurried into the bathing room and found the wooden box that held my wound supplies. When I carried the box back into the bedchamber, Leda groaned, her head shifting against the back of the sofa.
I squatted down in front of her. “Leda, you are safe and in my room.”
She groaned again, and her eyelids fluttered. After a few moments, her eyes opened. Blurry golden eyes met my gaze.
“What happened?” she mumbled.
“You fainted.”
She snorted and shifted on the couch. “You mean I passed out,” she retorted, her voice still weak.
Though I hated the faint tremor in her words, it pleased me that her feistiness returned so quickly.
“Very well, you passed out,” I said.
“Hmmm.”
She shifted again, hissing as she lifted her arms to look at the cuts on her skin. The sleeves of the shirt and sweater she wore had been sliced to ribbons, bloody remnants of the fabric dangling from her elbows.
“Damn, these sting,” Leda said.
I worked quickly, removing items from the box of supplies I kept. I realized I needed to clean her wounds, but wanted to keep her close to the fire.
“I will be right back.”
I set everything aside and went into the bathing room, where I unearthed a wide, shallow bowl and a cotton cloth from the cabinet. Once the bowl was half-filled with warm water, I carried it back to the couch.
Leda was sprawled on the couch, her head tilted back to rest on the cushions behind her, eyes closed. When I knelt in front of her, she opened her eyes and sighed.
“How much is this going to hurt?” she asked.
I shrugged. “Less than when it happened.”
She smirked but closed her eyes again. “I’m just going to lie here and pretend I can’t feel it.”
“I will be as gentle as I can,” I murmured.
“I know,” she whispered.
I focused on cleaning her wounds. My clawed fingers looked so large in comparison to hers when I picked up her hand.
A small wince moved over her face, but she didn’t pull away.
She allowed me to cradle her arm over the bowl.
I dipped the cloth in the water and then squeezed it out over her wounds, washing away the blood surrounding the cuts.
Once they were clean, I saw that several needed to be stitched.
“I will have to close a few of these with needle and thread.”
She flinched at my statement.
“I have a tincture that will numb your skin. It won’t stop all the pain, but it will be less painful.”
“Sounds better than nothing,” she replied.
Once the wound was clean, I applied the tincture, using the dropper to release a thin stream of the liquid over the worst of the claw marks. Her body tensed, and she hissed again at the sensation, but she didn’t speak.
“I will prepare the needle and thread while the tincture numbs you,” I explained.
Her only response was a grunt.
“And I apologize, but I will need to sit next to you and rest your arm across my leg in order to work.”
“Do what you have to. No need to apologize,” she murmured.
I moved the bowl out of the way and sat next to her, arranging her forearm across my thigh.
I ignored the way it heated my body, and the way my mating instincts were clamoring to claim her.
It was much easier than usual because she was hurt.
While the urge to mark her and verbally claim her was still there, it was tempered by my worry for her injury and her pain.
“Keep your eyes closed,” I commanded.
She grunted again but did as I said.
“Can you feel this?” I asked, lightly pressing the tip of the curved needle against her arm.
“Not really.”
“I will begin now.”
Leda took a slow breath and released it. Taking that as her acceptance, I made the first stitch.
Sweat broke out on my brow as I closed the four deepest wounds. The rest weren’t as bad and had already stopped bleeding. Leda’s breath caught more than once as I worked, but she remained still and calm.
I hated the sight of the needle piercing her skin. The scent of her blood and sweat. Her sweet, lemony scent was slightly sour from the pain and fear she experienced during the fight and after.
As I finished the final stitches, I knew that, if she had been killed by Venna, I would have struck the daemoness down. I would have been lost to rage and the madness of losing the female my soul wanted to claim as my mate. I would have torn her apart with my bare hands.
“I need to look at your other arm,” I stated, keeping my voice quiet and calm. I hoped she didn’t hear how it shook.
“Okay.”
Her agreement was weaker, but her body was still relaxed.
She remained so as I washed her other arm.
This one was much less damaged. There was only one scratch that went from her shoulder, down the side of her arm, all the way to her elbow.
It wasn’t deep enough for stitches, but it was long and still covered with blood.
“I am sorry, Leda, but we need to remove your shirt. This cut goes all the way up to your shoulder.”
She winced as she tried to sit up, and I couldn’t stop myself from reaching out to help her. Leda looked down at the sweater she wore over her shirt. “I hate to destroy one of my new outfits, but it might be best to cut these off. I’m not sure I can lift my arms over my head.”
“May I?” I asked, lifting my clawed hand.
She released a quiet laugh. “I guess they’re handy for something, huh? Yeah. Just don’t cut me up any more than I already am.”
“Will you give me your back? I think it will be easier to remove the garments that way.”
Leda didn’t answer. She just turned her back toward me, trusting me to care for her. Trusting me when she was weakened and vulnerable. My hands were careful as I used my claw to slice down the back of the sweater she wore. Then, I did the same for the shirt.
The material parted to reveal the straps of the undergarment I purchased for her earlier that day.
Before I could offer her aid, Leda tugged the fabric of her sweater and shirt away from her injured shoulder and freed her arm from the remnants of the sleeve.
Though she flinched and paled, she reached up and did the same with the other arm.
Leda dropped the garments on the floor in front of the sofa, leaving her in the tiny piece of clothing she called a bra. I averted my eyes from the smooth, soft skin she displayed and reached for the blanket on the back of the couch. I tried to drape it over her, but she shook her head.
“I don’t want to get blood on it. Once you clean and dress my wound, I’m going to wash up and change into your shirt.”
“Very well,” I agreed.
My eyes wanted to wander over her body and take in every curve and detail, but I reminded myself that she was hurt, and the urge disappeared. Her safety, her comfort, her healing—those things were more important than my curiosity and desire. Always.
It took much less time to clean and dress the scratch on her upper arm. She finally relaxed after I finished wrapping her arm. I reached into the box and took out another tincture. This one was meant to be dripped beneath the tongue.
“This will help with the pain,” I explained. “When I realized you were staying, I asked Masu to find out if it would be safe for you. She assured me that it is as long as you only take a drop or two.”
Her gaze grew wary. “Do you know how it will affect me?”
“It will stop your pain,” I answered, confused by her question. I thought I had already explained what it was for.
“On Earth, pain medication can often make us sleepy or act silly or drunk. I would prefer not to take anything that will render me unconscious.”
“It has never had that effect on daemons. If it does anything, it makes us calm.”
She nodded. “Calm doesn’t sound too bad.”
I removed the dropper from the bottle. “I need to place a drop or two beneath your tongue.”
She opened her mouth, tilting her head back, and lifted up her tongue. Being careful not to squeeze too hard, I let two small drips fall into her mouth. Leda made a strange face when she closed her lips and lowered her chin.
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
“It tastes like roses,” she answered.
“Roses?”
“They’re flowers in the human realm. They have a strong scent.”
I nodded. “I know what roses are, just not what they taste like.”
“I don’t either, but that tastes like roses smell,” she stated. “It’s not bad. Just unexpected.”
I focused on putting away the unused bandages and the bottles of tinctures, leaving out the needle since it would need to be cleaned and sterilized again. Once I was done, I picked up both the box and her ruined shirts.
“Do you need help to the bathing room?” I asked her.
Leda shook her head. “I think I’m okay. I’m not going to take a bath or shower. Just clean off the sweat, blood, and dirt.”