Doctor's Orders

By the time Jensen got us back to my room, Laklan was already there with the necessary items to clean and bandage my wounds.

“Your hand looks pretty nasty,” he commented before pouring some form of antiseptic over my hand.

I hissed and seethed in pain as it burned the wound from the inside out. The scent of it crept to my nostrils, smelling like a high-proof grain alcohol that some of our more rowdy group members liked to imbibe on when they could get their hands on it. It was rare they were able to find any. For the most part, that stuff was as precious as gold and was used for far more important things than getting inebriated. Although, at the moment, I almost wished I could take a few swigs of the precious liquid to calm my nerves.

Jensen remained with me the entire time, pacing the room with a mask of concern covering his features. I watched his graceful movements as he strode to and fro across my bedroom floor, ignoring the man that was using forceps to remove any bits of remaining glass from my hand. Jensen was far more agitated than an explanation could alleviate.

“So,” I started, turning my focus back to the man doctoring my hand. “How did you know to come here?” Every part of me screamed to speak with Jensen about what just happened, but I wasn’t sure I could bring myself to do it. Not to mention that searing pain that came along with the good ole doctor while he patched me up was enough to keep me from being focused on much else.

Laklan tapped his temple with his free hand while grabbing gauze bandages with the other. “Being part of the pack has its privileges.” He tamped a thick piece of gauze down on the wound on my hand, and it nearly made me want to howl when he pressed it into my palm. Laklan smirked a fraction, sensing my discomfort as he continued to dress my wound. “Exactly how did this happen,” he asked, turning from me to glance at Jensen.

Jensen stopped pacing for a moment as he sent an assessing glance at me, his pale eyes buried beneath a furrowed brow. That small gesture made him appear older than his years, or maybe it was exactly his years. They lived long lives, as far as I had been told.

As I opened my mouth to start to explain things, Jensen lifted a hand to silence me. “With the arrival of all our esteemed guests, it seems that chef was not able to keep up fully with all the demands,” he explained. “As a result, I allowed her to venture out of her room to find sustenance.” He shrugged as the doctor looked between us. “Seems logical enough that she find her own. The girl has to eat, you know.”

My mouth gaped open at Jensen, nearly as wide as my eyes. Why was he telling Laklan that he gave me permission to leave my room? Was he actually trying to protect me? If so, from what?

Laklan smirked, lifting a brow before turning back to tie off the bandage. “So, this is a kitchen accident then?” He chuckled at his own joke, humor brimming in his eyes. “The kitchen knife went ballistic after she dipped it into a jar of Martha’s homemade tomato chutney?”

Jensen scoffed. “Of course not,” he responded, irritation lacing his words. “Hunt is what happened to her! That beast cannot respect boundaries if they were spelled out to him!”

I couldn’t suppress the smile that smoothed over my mouth. The man was more indignant than even I was. The smile didn’t last long as Hunt’s last words echoed in my head. Could he really mean to refuse to help Kallan when it could mean the deaths of many of his own kind?

Laklan’s hands stopped where they were, only compounding my own anxiety over the situation. “Hunt?” His voice was barely a whisper before he swung his head around to focus on Jensen. “King Hunt Hoylan?” Jensen gave an abrupt nod of his head, causing Laklan to release a low whistle. “Well, ain’t that some shit,” he remarked.

When the doctor motioned to my jeans, I shook my head and pressed him for more information instead. “What does that mean?”

I looked to Laklan to answer, but it was Jensen that responded. “The two kings have not seen eye-to-eye in some time. They each run their empires quite differently from one another, and they both try to stay out of one another’s way, when possible.”

He bent his head and pinched the bridge of his nose and it was then that I noticed how haggard he looked at the moment. His hair was not nearly as tidy as it normally was, little sprigs of his hair sticking out this way and that. Those pale blue eyes of his looked tired, and it almost appeared as though bags were starting to form beneath them. However, none of that took away from his sharp, keen mind. It always seemed to be whirring away behind those eyes.

For a few moments, I simply watched him while his body remained in a similar pose to that of the thinking man. Though, I didn’t wait too long. I needed to know what implications of what had just transpired would have…for him, his people, and me.

“Kallan asked him to come to help fight against the attacks on his people,” I said. It was a comment, but Jensen gave a quick nod. “That must have been difficult for him to put aside his pride and ask Hunt for help.”

Again, it was a comment, but Jensen felt the need to elaborate. “I warned him that he should remove all humans to a different location while he was here, but he insisted that the humans in his kingdom had as much right to move about freely as any of us. Now, look what has happened! And to his own mate!”

That word ruffled my feathers, but I let it go. There was still more than what was being said. “You wanted to move all humans out of the kingdom?”

Jensen jerked his head to look at me, and I realized that would have been the same expression I might have expected from someone had I grown a second head.

“Sedona,” Laklan gently touched my arm as he said my name. “Hunt has no love for mankind. None!”

Grimacing, I tried to process his words as dread seeped over me at what Hunt wanted with me. However, I had no doubt that he saw me as little more than property. Something to be owned. My whole body shuddered at the thought of that man touching me, and a chill ran over my spine in the wake of what happened in that room.

“Will Kallan make the deal?” The words sounded feeble, even to my own ears.

Jensen continued to look at me oddly, a sympathetic expression on his face. “No, Sedona. Have no fear.”

“What deal,” Laklan asked. His head bounced between us as Jensen and I exchanged glances. When we didn’t answer immediately, he asked again. “What deal, Jensen?”

Jensen sighed and looked at the ground. “Hunt wants the girl in exchange for his military forces.”

Laklan, who still sat on a chair beside my bed, sucked in a lung full of air between his teeth. “That’s heavy.” For a moment, he stared at the bed where I sat in thought, then added, “Does Hunt know who she is?”

Jensen shook his head and strode across the floor in his thoughtful pacing once more. “No, at least I don’t think he does. When Kallan did not claim her the night of the choosing, most believed he had been mistaken in his choice. It was fortunate that we got wind of the circumstances before he did claim her. She would not have had time to complete the transformation before we went to war.”

“Wait a minute! What?” Puzzle pieces were starting to click into place, even if the image was still a little blurry.

The two men ignored me. “You need to get her out of here,” Laklan practically commanded. “Kallan would kill the lycan rather than give her to him. But, if she ran…if they couldn’t find her…maybe…”

“I can’t just leave. What about Tala? Her wedding? She-”

Jensen waved a hand, a plan already formulating in his head. “We can postpone the wedding. Have her and Ramuel moved to a cabin on the outskirts of the kingdom.”

“Ramuel,” I whispered. How stupid of me! Of course she would marry him! “She’s marrying Ramuel!” The thought was like a weight lifting off my shoulders, and I didn’t want to admit to the reason why.

Jensen gave a huff. “Of course, she is marrying Ramuel. Who else?” As soon as he asked the question, his eyes widened a fraction. Though I tried to prevent the slight upturn of my lips, he must have noticed it. He smiled brightly before adding, “Not so immune to him, are you?”

I scoffed and grumbled at Jensen, trying my best to dismiss his conclusions. He merely smiled knowingly at me, making me only too aware of how little I was able to hide my emotions.

Laklan sat back in his chair and glanced out the window. The moon was still full in the sky but was slowly making its trek across the midnight sky. “Hunt will only give him until morning to make his decision. With the moon still out in full bloom, it won’t be easy.”

“He’s not going to give her to him,” Jensen stated firmly. “We both know that. To give her to him would mean him renouncing her, and that won’t happen.”

“Maybe he doesn’t have to actually give her to him,” Laklan smirked.

“Hey! I’m right here, you know!” Them talking about me as if I was property was getting really old really fast.

Laklan gave me an apologetic smile, but Jensen had no such inclination. “Sounds like you have a plan,” he commented. His fingers smoothed against his bottom lip. “We will have to go off the radar. Cut ties so that even Lord Kolbeck can’t find her. It will be better that way,” he said, ceasing his pacing as he turned on Laklan.

“Cut ties? Are you sure about that?” Laklan looked worried.

Jensen nodded slowly. “It is the only way to force him to focus on the situation at hand, and to keep her safe.”

Laklan clucked his tongue, his features wary. “He will know it was you.”

“Yeah, but he will understand why,” he whispered. “At least, I hope so.”

“And Nanette?”

“She will stay behind. She will be safe here.” He glanced over at me, smiling sadly before finishing his thought. “She will be the one to keep me updated on the pack since I will no longer be connected. It has to be this way…for our people.”

Laklan turned his face to me and suddenly I was under the scrutiny of both men, feeling more than a little uncomfortable. “And hers,” he commented. “I know better than to ask where you are going.”

Jensen shook his head. “I wouldn’t tell you, even if you did,” he responded.

“All for the better.”

“You will take care of Nanette,” Jensen asked, moving closer to where Laklan and I remained. Whoever this Nanette was, she was special to him. There was a tenderness there when he spoke of her.

“Yes, and you take care of her,” he returned, nodding his head in my direction. Laklan stood slowly, and the two grasped one another’s arms before clapping each other on the back in a brotherly hug. “Take care, Jensen.”

“You, too,” he returned.

Laklan moved slowly to the stand before me, looking over Jensen and me before giving me his attention. “Listen to him, Sedona. Not because you have to, but because you wish to survive. You’ve always struck me as a survivor.” He chucked me under the chin, turned, and left the room.

After a moment, Jensen seemed to shake himself out of his reverie. “Well, what are you waiting for?” He gave me a quirky smile that reminded me that there may have still been some semblance of a truce left between us. “The moonlight won’t last forever and I sure as hell won’t carry you the whole way.”

“So, we are really leaving?”

I don’t know why the thought brought two warring emotions within me. Moving from place to place had become such a huge part of my life for so long that I was looking forward to the journey. But leaving this place also caused a pang in my heart. Leaving Tala was bound to have that effect. She was the other constant in my life.

“Yes,” he said, holding out a hand to me. “But, if we are going to do this, we need to leave now.” I stood with his help, wobbling a little from the injuries my legs sustained. Jensen watched me move slowly across the floor on aching legs before grumbling. “Maybe I will carry you a little way. There is a place we can stop just before we leave the grounds entirely. I may have a little surprise for you there.”

He smirked at me as he wrapped an arm under my arms, ready to lift me up. “Oh really?” He was helping me, and I was grateful to get out of the clutches of Hunt. I still had to wonder why he was risking himself for this.

“Yeah,” he smiled like a kid in a candy store. I still vaguely remember the scent of pralines cooking, chocolate melting, and the taste of those sugary sweets on my tongue. We still had them, though they were not as frequent or easy access as they once were. “Ever rode a motorcycle?”

Now he had my attention. It didn’t matter why he was doing it at this moment in time. It only mattered that I was going to experience something few have. I was going to get to ride on a motorcycle!