Page 52 of Veil of Shadows

“Says who,” she grumbled.

I rolled my eyes. “I’m fine. Really.”

“You’re not fine. Your shoulder gives you constant pain. That’s what you told me.”

“And?”

She stopped walking and yanked my arm a bit, turning me to face her. “You don’t have to be in pain. Not here. Not around us, at least.”

I tilted my head. “Merida.”

She pinned me with a look. “Bexley.”

I took her hands in mine and pulled her close. “Merida, you’ve become a very good friend to me since I’ve been here.”

She grasped my hands just as tightly. “You’ve become a good friend to me, too.”

“Which is why I can’t have you stressing out over me like this.”

“As long as you’re in pain?—”

I cut her off. “I know you’re a healer. I know that’s your job. And I know you’re worried. But you’ve gotta understand that I’ve withstood a lot over the course of my career. I’ve been tortured. Raped. Beaten for information. I have aches and pains everywhere that’ll never go away. It just… comes with being the kind of CIA agent that I am.”

Merida’s face filled with horror as I spoke. “And you’re just… okay with all of this? With everything that’s been done to you?”

I shake my head softly. “No, I’m not. But I believed in its greater good, so I withstood it.”

She stepped even closer as her powerful blue eyes focused on me. The wind kicked up, blowing her wild red hair around her face. The freckles that donned her entire body seemed to come into focus the darker it grew around us, and the determination behind her eyes told me I needed to shut up while she spoke.

I swear, I’d never met a woman that could get me to shut up the way she could.

“I don’t care what kind of greater good you fought for,” Merida said as she shook her head. “I don’t care what you withstood, or what you thought you had to do. When you’re here? With us? You’re not in pain. So,” she said as she stuck her hand into her healer’s robe and pulled out a vial. “Drink.”

“Merida.”

She shook it in front of me. “You’re going to take one every three days. That seems to be about how long it gets you. I’ll keep a stash on me and come find you whenever you need to take it.”

“Merida…”

She took my hand, forced it open, and settled the vial against my palm. “I added a bit of lavender and honey so it won’t taste like shit this time.”

I giggled softly. “Thanks.”

She stared me down. “So?”

“So, what?”

She motioned to it. “So drink it up. You don’t want to be in pain for the celebration.”

“It’s just a dull?—”

Her blue gaze froze on me. “Drink.”

I held up my free hand in mock surrender. “Fine, fine. Okay. I just… I don’t want you to go through so much trouble.”

“You’re not trouble, Bexley.”

I grinned at her before I popped open the vial. I drew in a deep breath before I tipped it up to my lips, and the lavender and honey only served to make that shit taste, well, like shit wrapped in lavender and honey. Still, I appreciated the gesture as I forced the thick liquid down, damn near chewing on it just to get it past my gag reflex.

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