Chapter 37

Somebody thrust a sewing kit in Jesse’s face, and he tore his gaze away from Mary. The smell of blood was thick enough to make his eyes water, and Gideon’s leg swam out of focus. Blinking rapidly, he cleared his vision and threaded the needle.

“I don’t know how much this’ll hurt him,” Jesse murmured. “Try to keep him still.”

The first stitch drew a hiss from Gideon, but it was followed almost immediately by the soft cadences of Mary’s voice, her words unintelligible as she soothed him. Jesse didn’t want to know what she said anyway. He had known it would be hard seeing them together, but seeing Mary usurping what had always been his position stung even more.

He worked on autopilot, trying to keep his stitches even to minimize scarring. More than once, the irony that this Gideon just might bear as many scars as Jesse did flitted through his thoughts, but he ignored the ache it left in its wake. He had a job to do. He wouldn’t let Gideon down, even if he wasn’t his.