Page 65 of Curses & Kitsune

Jinta’s bond flares in my chest. I’m finally close enough to feel him. Pain stabs into my chest, so sudden and fierce I almost lose control of the vehicle. My lungs tighten, and breathing around the pain is impossible. Something’s wrong. Jinta is hurt. Damn it! I’m too late!

“Raiden? Can you hear me?”

Jinta’s voice echoes through our bond, his voice weakened and full of pain.

“I’m sorry…”

“Jinta?” I call back to him through our bond. “Hang on, okay? I’m almost there!”

But he doesn’t reply. The thread around my pinky finger begins to unravel. Despair grips my heart. I’m losing him. My mate is dying. I slam on the gas and race to the hotel.

The moment the hotel comes into view, I brake and scramble from my car, not even bothering to close the door. My feet pound the pavement. I can’t lose him. I can’t. I haven’t told him I love him. Haven’t said how damn sorry I am for being so stupid and scared. There’s so much we still have to do together.

I crash through the doors and run, the lobby blurring around me. The elevator takes years to come, stopping on what feels like every damn floor. My wolf snarls beneath my skin, ready to tear the building down until I find Jinta. I give up waiting and run to the nearest staircase, jumping the stairs two at a time. My lungs are on fire, legs screaming when I arrive at our floor. I swipe the card at our door and stumble into the room.

Immediately, blood hits my nose, so thick and pungent it makes me choke.

“Jinta?”

Nobody answers my hoarse cry. I hurtle around the corner and the carpet squelches beneath my shoes. Jinta lies on his side, skin as pale as snow. His shirt is soaked in blood below his chest, drenching the carpet. My entire world stops turning, and my hopes for a future shatter like glass.

My knees hit the floor. A scream lodges in my throat and gets trapped inside. The anguish, fear, and despair is simply too big for any human sounds to express. I crawl to him. His blood soaks into my knees and stains my hands. I lift him off the floor and haul him to my chest. “I’m sorry,” I say. “I’m so sorry. Open your eyes. Please. Please don’t leave. I’ll be better for you, I promise. I’ll be the man you deserve.”

He's not healing. Why isn’t he healing? Fuck. I’ve got to get him out of here, get him help now, or I’ll lose him. What do I do? Fuck! What can I do? The breath escapes me in ragged pants. My ears ring. I can’t breathe. Call Ren. My fingers smear blood on the screen as I call, putting her on speaker phone. I lay Jinta down and grip my hair, tugging. Need to stop the bleeding.

My legs nearly give out as I sprint to the bathroom. I find a first aid kit and rush back to Jinta.

“Raiden? Hello? Hello?”

“Ren!” I yank up Jinta’s shirt and flinch. Blood weeps over Jinta’s pale skin, and there’s so much of it, I can’t tell where the wounds are. The stink of silver and aconite makes my throat prickle. “Fuck. Ren. Jinta’s hurt. He’s really hurt. He’s not healing. I… I think he’s been poisoned, or—”

“Take a deep breath. If he’s been poisoned, he needs a doctor who can treat it, and fast. Hang on.” Frantic typing comes from her side of the phone.

I wind bandages tight over Jinta’s middle. “Hurry, Ren!” The blood soaks through before I can bandage him.

“Okay, okay! I’m checking our contacts. And… all right! There’s a doctor in Osaka.” She rattles off the address while I wind an entire roll of bandages around Jinta’s stomach. Blood seeps through. I gather him into my arms. This isn’t over. I’ve got to keep my head. Jinta can still be saved. He’s going to be okay, and when he recovers, I’m going to kiss him and tell him how much I love him.

We’re going to be together, and we’re going to be happy for the rest of our lives.

Hoisting Jinta into my arms, I run from the room and take the stairs back down. My heart thunders in my ears, eclipsing every other sound. Heads turn as I hurtle through the lobby. People scream in shock and fright, hurrying out of my path. Back at the car, I carefully set Jinta into the front seat and buckle him in.

Once I’m behind the wheel, I tap in the doctor’s address. Blood smears my screen. The tires squeal as I spin the wheel violently and take off down the street. “Jinta, you’re going to be okay. I promise. I’m going to get you help, and if you ever do this to me again, I’ll—”

A sob chokes me, but I swallow it down. I can’t fall apart, not until he’s safe. The city lights blur outside the windows. Every time I stop for the light, I check on him. Jinta’s head flops to the side, eyes closed, and blood-stained lips parted.

Once we’re at the doctor’s, I carry Jinta from the car toward the clinic. She meets me at the door, and she and her team take him from me and strap him into a stretcher. They roll him away, and the fate of the man I love is out of my hands. My knees give out, and I collapse into a chair. His blood is drying on my hands, shaking violently in my lap. My head falls back, bumping into the wall.

The nurse asks me questions about Jinta to relay to the doctor. She asks me who he is to me. “My mate,” I croak. Hot tears sting my eyes, and I make my teeth ache trying to hold them back. “He’s my mate.”

I can’t give up, not yet. I won’t despair, not while there’s the slightest chance Jinta can be saved. My mate is a fighter, and he needs me to be strong.

I hang my head between my knees and start to wait.

“…boru? Noboru?”

My eyes fly open. The doctor stands before me in her scrubs. Did I fall asleep? No. I’m exhausted, every bone in my body aching. I must have just zoned out. My throat is bone dry, and my heart is stuck somewhere up there and beating fast.

I scramble to stand. “How is he?” My voice shakes.

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