Page 54 of Thorn

He moved her braid from around her neck. “She’s hot as a furnace,” he said, reaching for the thermometer wand, pointing it, and getting an instant reading. “105.4 Fahrenheit.”

“Any signs of seizure?” Jaffrey asked.

“No vomit. No bruising. No abrasions from the carpet,’ he said as his gaze travelled from head to foot, checking her. “She might have rolled around, she’s got lint and debris from the carpet stuck to her skin. It looks like she passed out.”

“All right. Lift her onto the bed and get her as comfortable as possible. Nutsbe indicates, that shy of a true life or death situation, the client will send in medical help.”

Thorn didn’t like this decision at all. He’d been figuring a way to wrap Juliette in a sheet and run her down to their car and get her to the emergency room. He’d been primed for the dash. He didn’t like getting a thumbs down.

From his kneeling position on the other side of Juliette, Thorn reached out and yanked the bedding out of the way. Her pillow fell to the floor by the stool that she’d been using as a night table.

Gage picked it up and lay it at the top of the bed. He pushed the stool outside the room to make a little more space to maneuver. He came up behind Thorn, turning off the water in the sink as he did.

The sudden silence was broken when Honey asked, “Dr. Jaffrey, you don’t think she’s at high risk? Nutsbe told you about her on going health issues?”

“Affirmative,” Dr. Jaffrey said. “I need to know if she starts having breathing problems or has a seizure. For now, use tepid water to get her cleaned up then tuck her in bed.”

“There isn’t enough room for me to get in there and help you,” Gage said.

“I’ve got her.” Thorn had his head down toward Juliette’s ear. He wasn’t sure she’d be able to hear him. He didn’t know if there was a comfortable distance, or pitch, or even language choice that worked better than others. All the same, he said, “My name is Thorn. I’m here to help you. You’re lying on the floor, and I’m going to move you to the bed.” He shifted so that he was on his left knee and his right boot was planted on the carpeting. He turned his head to check and make sure that his back was going to clear the rim of the sink so that when he had her curled into his arms, he could simply press up from a one-sided squat.

“This is me pulling your arm around my neck.”

She was limp, lifeless, but Thorn felt his words were making their way in. “There you go. I’m going to roll your head against my chest, so it isn’t dangling.” His tone was as warm and encouraging as he could make it. He didn’t want her to become frightened. He didn’t want to do anything that would add to her discomfort. “I’m just sliding my hand under your knees.” He felt Gage’s hand on his shoulder. When Thorn pushed to standing, Gage’s hand helped Thorn keep his equilibrium.

Thorn could feel Juliette was this side of conscious, and she was trying to help him by tightening her arm muscles around his neck.

He held her there against his chest as Gage spread a towel across the length of the mattress.Good idea. That’ll help keep her sheet dry as I get her bathed.Thorn stepped forward and slowly lowered Juliette to the bed.

Naked was a non-issue for Iniquus operatives. In their line of duty, they’d seen all levels of dressed and undressed. In their medical and tactical training, their subject’s level of exposure became a circumstance like a blood pressure reading. But something about Juliette made Thorn want to protect her modesty. He reached out and grabbed a hand towel to drape over her torso.

“Ready for vitals?” Thorn half-hoped they’d be on the cusp of danger just so he could get her transported to a medical facility that could help her. But as he called the numbers out, he knew she was stable enough that Jaffrey wouldn’t budge.

Thorn thought it was foolhardy not to have her in a hospital with an IV of fluids at a minimum. High fevers could have serious ramifications on the brain, and Juliette was already living with her brain disabilities. The thought that these decisions − decisions made by their contractor, which may or may not have Juliette’s best interest at heart − might just make Juliette’s life even more difficult was untenable.

Dr. Jaffrey signed off on the comms, letting them know that once the med-tech arrived from the contractor, Jaffrey would no longer be in the loop.

Honey held out the phone so Nutsbe could see the situation. “Nutsbe, I’m not liking this. If you could see her in person, you’d know she’s in dire straits. Don’t you think you could convince them?”

“Negative,” Nutsbe said as Thorn pushed the stopper into the sink and filled it with lukewarm water. “The client had a strategy in place if we found her ill,” Nutsbe explained. “They believe a hospital in a foreign country would make security difficult. They would contact the Red Cross and Dr. DuBois, who apparently has power of attorney, to make all legal and medical decisions concerning Juliette.”

That didn’t rest easy with Thorn. Even if Iniquus had been sitting on Dubois, Thorn had no idea what had happened after that plane landed in DC. DuBois could have headed back to that chichi mansion in center city to call his lawyers and bring on the headaches.

With any luck, Zoe would be getting back in touch soon with some idea about genetics. Of course, Juliette could have been adopted, and they’d be no closer to an answer.

Honey watched the hall.

Gage had moved to the window and had his eye on the front street.

Thorn rolled Juliette into recovery position on her left side. “You’re going to feel some soap and water on a washcloth now, ma’am. I think you’ll rest more comfortably if you were cleaned up a bit.”

Juliette’s eye lashes fluttered but didn’t open.

Thorn gently lifted her braid out of the way then started at her neck, rubbing the French-styled washing glove over her arm and back. After rinsing the suds from the cloth, he used long careful strokes to wipe away the soap. He patted that portion dry and moved the hand towel to cover her from hip to thigh, then he turned to her legs. Long and shapely, he was surprised after the talks of her disability that she was this fit.

Thorn consciously shifted away from those thoughts. Except for their tactical use, he wasn’t about to contemplate a female as awomanwhen she was vulnerable. That was a moral and ethical line.

When he got to her feet he stalled. His mouth went dry and his nostril curled.

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