Page 21 of Rarely Pure and Never Simple
The scratchy rasp of Blaze's voice barely reached his ears. When he glanced up, Blaze's eyes were open, searching the room. Warm pools of relief spread through Damien's stomach. "Yes."
Blaze snorted and winced.
"How are you?"
"Oh, just perfect." Blaze frowned as his gaze settled on Damien. "What happened to you?"
Damien touched the bandage on his forehead. "Bullet crease. Same bullet that shot you, they tell me."
The frown deepened before Blaze shut his eyes again. "Great. So the guy missed my heart 'cause your hard head got in the way."
"It has its uses." Damien moved his chair closer so he could raise the head of Blaze's hospital bed and share what he had in his reports and the ones from the security forces. If he was going to wait until his pseudo-partner was well before he continued, they might as well have all the same information.
"They didn't find any other kids at the compound?" Blaze asked, the question ending in a wheeze.
"No. Nor any evidence that there had been any. They let me walk around. No other trail ends there." Damien glanced up from the screen to find Blaze watching him, the corners of his eyes pinched in pain.
"So why did you stay?"
Because you went down protecting me. Because I didn't want you waking up alone. Because leaving felt wrong."I—"
"Emerson," a harsh female voice interrupted. "Need a consent signed."
Damien whirled to face the door, nearly knocking his chair over as he surged up and got his back to the corner.
"Hippocrata?"
Three Guild-uniformed figures swept into the room led by a woman so tall, her head brushed the doorframe. Hippocrata's stern expression hardened a fraction when she saw Damien, but she immediately focused back on Blaze.
"Great." Blaze even managed sarcasm in an exhausted wheeze. "You're just in time. I've been waiting for that operation to ram a stick up my butt all day. Then I'll be just like you."
"Shut it, Emerson. I just need consent and we can get on with it."
Damien stepped forward to put himself between the bed and the invading Guild members. "With what? Blaze, what does she mean?"
He flinched when Blaze's hand circled his wrist, but he didn't pull away.
"It's okay, Twitchy. The lovely and compassionate Hippocrata is here to heal me. Aren't you, doll?"
"Not by choice, but yes."
"Oh." That sounded good, but the atmosphere in the room was charged and angry. "Why do you need consent?"
The grip around Damien's wrist tightened. "Because it's gonna hurt like hell. Accelerated healing always does."
This made no sense. They were in a hospital. While he was aware of Hippocrata's gift, he'd never thought about how it worked. Damien took a step forward, risking a direct confrontation. "Then put him under first."
She didn't make the mistake of stepping into his space, but she snarled and pointed to his chair. "Sit down out of the way, Hazelwood! I don't have time for your weirdness. If I could put the asshole under first and not have to listen to his mouth, don't you think I would? It doesn't work that way."
Shivering with reaction, Damien still refused to move. "So let him heal the usual way. Leave him alone."
"Guild business, Hazelwood. You're not to be delayed, and Dr. Parma says you're not to continue the investigation without him. God only knows why."
"But—"
"Damien." For him, Blaze's voice was soft and serious. "It's not my first time. It'll be okay. Let them do their work."
He seemed so sure, Damien could only nod and retreat to his chair, moving it out of the way and back against the wall. One of the broad-shouldered Guild males handed Blaze a screen, which he glanced at, signed, and handed back with a weary sigh.
