19. Shemaiah
SHEMAIAH
Pippa always seems fragile due to her illness, but that’s even more true when she’s asleep.
After carrying her to her room and setting her in bed, I couldn’t bring myself to leave.
I pulled the curtains closed so the light wouldn’t disturb her, lit candles so she wouldn’t wake in the dark, tucked the blankets around her twice, adjusting them when she’d kicked one off.
Now, there’s nothing left to do. I know I should leave, but I stay.
I like taking care of her.
Sitting on the couch near her bed, I pick up the book she left there.
The weight of it rests in my fingers while my eyes drift to the woman on the bed.
She’s on her side, her hands nestled under her cheek.
Her mouth is closed, which makes me wonder how deeply she’s under.
Dark lashes flutter against her lightly freckled cheek.
Her hair is mussed, and I resist the urge to go to her, to smooth it with my palm, to feel the silkiness of it again.
I’m not sure how long I stare before she rolls over and opens her eyes. A sleepy smile graces her lips when she sees me, and something inside me does a little flip in response.
“You’re here,” she murmurs, lazy from sleep.
“I didn’t want to leave.” The truth spills out of me without thought. Pippa always makes me want to share more than I should. I clear my throat. “I wanted to make sure you’re alright. You seemed particularly weak, and after Tobias wasn’t on the boat…”
“I’m glad you’re here.”
Something unfurls in my chest. We stare at each other for a beat longer than necessary.
“I’m okay, though,” she says. “If you need to go…”
“There’s nowhere I need to be.” I set down the book. “But Noah said he wanted to know when you woke. He’d like to take another sample of your blood.” I stand and walk to the window, suddenly needing to move. “If that’s alright with you.”
She chews her lip and carefully sits, giving me an excuse to go to her side and help her adjust the pillows.
“Yes, that’s fine, but…” She fiddles with her blankets. “Would you stay while he does it?”
A warm glow settles between my ribs. “Of course. Let me just go tell Noah. Will you be alright on your own for a few minutes?”
“Yes.” She offers a quiet laugh. “I’m perfectly capable of being left alone. I just… don’t like needles and blood.”
I nod, wondering about that fear. Does she feel repulsed by the way my siblings and I indulge ourselves, or is it just needles that alarm her? After all the poking and prodding she experienced at The Sanatorium, it would be understandable.
“There’s water if you’re thirsty.” I point to a glass on the bedside table. “I won’t be long.”
Not wanting to leave her, especially after she asked me to stay, I race out of the room, anxious to return. The realization grabs hold of my hearts, and their beats trip in my chest with an uncomfortable pinch. Since when am I in a hurry to be anywhere?
I don’t want to ponder that. Pippa needs me.
Noah said he’d be in his laboratory, so I don’t waste time, going straight down to the Gate House and the sterile room where he does his experiments. He and Ruby are bent over a microscope together.
“She’s awake,” I interrupt. “And she’s agreed to another blood draw.”
Noah looks up from his task. I wait long enough for his eyes to meet mine, so I’m certain he’s heard me, then I leave.
“That was fast,” Pippa laughs as I rush back into her room. She sets the half empty glass back on the bedside table.
Noah and Ruby come in just behind me.
“Tell me how you’re feeling.” Noah places his medical bag on the bed and begins rummaging through it. He pulls out a bottle of alcohol and hands it to Ruby, who stands at his side.
“It really isn’t that bad. I’m just a bit more fatigued than yesterday.”
My brother holds a stethoscope to Pippa’s chest, and I fight a strange urge to bat his hand away. Ruby opens the curtains, letting in light so Noah can work.
“Your heartbeat is very fast,” Noah says after a minute of listening.
“Is that bad?” I sit on the side of the bed and take Pippa’s hand, letting out a slow breath to calm myself.
“What does that mean?” Pippa asks.
“Your body is working very hard to circulate your blood.” He pulls out a syringe while Ruby rubs alcohol over the joint of Pippa’s elbow.
Pippa squeezes my hand. There’s a light sheen of sweat on her brow, and her eyes are a little glassy.
“Hey, look at me,” I say. “It’ll be over soon. Just relax and think of something happy.” At her quizzical look, I suggest, “Think of your son.”
Her eyes flutter closed, but her breathing gets quicker.
“One, two,” Noah counts. Before he can say three, Pippa’s body jerks, and her eyes fly open, catching mine.
“Breathe.” I pet her hair back from her face. “It’s alright.”
“All done,” Ruby says, wrapping Pippa’s elbow in gauze.
My nostrils flare from the strong scent of blood.
The coppery tang with the slightly acid scent of verbena hits me like a runaway steam locomotive.
The scent of illness lingers like smoke.
Despite that, my mouth waters, my throat convulsing with desire rather than revulsion. The sensation confuses me.
Noah holds the vial up to the light. The liquid glistens like the crimson waters of Lake Nettor.
I lick my lips. He turns it one direction, then the other, so it coats the glass, thick and delectable.
Thicker than any blood I’ve ever seen. A sinking feeling drags away the temptation. It shouldn’t be that thick.
“Have you been staying hydrated?” Noah asks.
“I’ve made sure of it,” I answer before Pippa can.
She chuckles. “He’s been like an obnoxious mother hen with how often he shoves water at me.”
I want to tease her back, but the worried expression my brother wears robs all the levity from the room. “Is something wrong?”
Ruby’s eyes dart between us. She misses nothing, which unnerves me for some reason.
“I’m not sure yet.” Noah and Ruby share a look I can’t decipher. “I’m going to see if the other women will let me take some samples for comparison.”
With that, he and Ruby leave.
I move toward the door, then step back. Open my mouth, then close it. I don’t want to go, but there really isn’t any reason for me to stay.
“Read to me?” Pippa asks.
Relieved at not having to leave or feign an excuse to stay, I sit in the chair at her bedside. “Nothing would please me more.”