Page 14 of Marked

Which was a total lie. After what we went through as children in that orphanage, I definitely needed a therapist.

If only I could trust one with my secrets.

The heat in the room increased and I pulled at the neckline of my shirt. I needed to check on Nala and then I needed to get out of here. I pushed off the chair to stand, only to have Orion place his hand on my shoulder.

He gently applied pressure, knocking me back in the seat. “You need to sit. I can’t have you passing out again.”

“How is she?” I leaned to the side to find Nala still on the table. Her chest expanded and deflated at a regular rate, and her paws twitched as if she dreamed of chasing rabbits. A bandage had been wrapped around her torso, the padding over the wound already stained red.

How long had I been out?

“She’s going to be fine,” Orion said. “I told you. Galeon familiars are tough.”

I let out a long pent-up breath. “Really?”

He nodded. “Really. She has a little nerve damage to her hind leg that will take some time to heal. She’s not mending as quickly as she usually does, so I don’t have a time frame for you. And I don’t know why this injury has affected her differently. You’re lucky you got her here as quickly as you did, any further delay would’ve been catastrophic to her recovery time and may have led to more nerve damage.”

He hesitated, and I tore my gaze away from Nala to study my former hunting partner. “But?”

“But I fear the injury may have strained the bond that exists between the two of you. You passed out from her pain and when I used my magic to assess you for injuries, the bond didn’t feel as strong as it used to.”

“What does that mean?”

“You’re vulnerable.”

“I’ve never been vulnerable.” I bit my lip. That was also a lie. I had been vulnerable as a child, and I’d paid for that with pain.

“Yet, you just passed out. Death isn’t always the worst fate, Emi. You might be immortal, you might not be killable, but you can still be hurt. Damaged. You need to rest. Nala needs to heal.”

Unease swirled in my gut. Orion assumed like everyone else my immortality was tied to Nala, and maybe it was now. But it hadn’t always been that way. I’d had enough run-ins with death before meeting my companion to question everything I’d been told about galeon descendants. But how did I question the information without revealing my secrets?

“Let the bond grow strong again.” Orion’s words ripped me away from my thoughts. “You shouldn’t go hunting with her right now and I don’t think you should go hunting without her either. Maybe take it easy. Stay in Perga until she’s healed.”

“Take it easy?” I smiled at Orion’s comment. “I’m not familiar with that term.”

Orion pressed his lips together and took a deep breath. “I’m aware. But for Nala’s sake, you better find a way.”

“She really will be fine?” I whispered.

Orion expression softened. “Yes. I don’t suppose you’d let her stay here for a few days?”

I glanced at Nala, her coat matted with dried blood. “No. I think it’s best I take her home and make her comfortable.”

As if she heard her name, Nala stirred, her body twitching. She thumped her tail on the table. But her eyes stayed shut. She must be exhausted. Normally, she’d bounce awake and bowl me over.

I stood from the uncomfortable chair and staggered past Orion to make my way to her. My vision swam, my head grew light. I fell forward but caught myself on the operating table.

Nala’s eyes popped open, and she whined. She scrambled on the smooth surface to sit up.

Orion groaned somewhere behind me and mumbled something about peas and pods.

A wet tongue slapped my cheek.

My eyes stung, and I reached forward to grab the scruff of her neck.

My familiar.

My heart.

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