Page 35 of Escaped
“How are you feeling, Eli?”Owen spoke to him calmly.
“Better since the whiskey.”
I heard the grin in Eli’s voice as I placed the jug down beside the crystal tumblers.Sitting there, topless, Eli’s face was still pale, but the alcohol had pooled small red patches at his cheeks.His body, though, was covered in bruises from the beating Hawkins’ hospitality had gifted him, and inwardly, I cringed at the sight of his suffering.He’d been through so much—largely as a result of trying to protect me—and somehow, I’d remained essentially unscathed.
Moving closer, I saw that Owen had draped a number of towels around him.One over Eli’s lap, one behind his back covering his leather sofa, and another propped up under the affected arm.
“Can I have another, Doc?”Eli winked at me as I wandered toward him.
“Another sip, maybe.”Owen reached for one of the tumblers and passed it to him with one glove-covered hand.“I don’t want you to be inebriated, but I understand it’s the only pain relief we have.”
Owen glanced my way fleetingly while Eli slugged at the drink, his focus reverting to his impromptu patient as he took the glass from him.
“Erin, you’ll need a pair of gloves.”Owen signaled to the box beside the jug of boiling water.“This could get messy.”
Wandering to the box, I pulled out a pair of the cream, latex gloves, trying not to dwell on how Owen had expressed the thought.
“I need you to hold the towel under Eli’s arm.”Owen went on, motioning to Eli’s injured shoulder.“And try and keep him still.”
“Don’t think I can handle the pain?”Eli’s tone was wry.
Owen chuckled at Eli’s sardonic comment.“You’ve coped with the gunshot, I suppose, but I’m not going to lie; this is going to hurt like hell.”
Eli leaned back against the headrest and blew out a breath.“Now, there’s a switch.”
“You can do it.”Walking back to Eli’s side, I took his hand and squeezed his fingers.“You’re one of the strongest men I’ve ever met.”
“Present company excepted, I assume.”It was Owen’s turn to smirk.
“Of course.”I met my brother’s gaze.“We’re so grateful for this.”
“I’m thankful now,” Eli added.“Maybe don’t ask me again in five minutes.”
“Okay.”Owen chuckled.“I’ve assessed the wound and confirmed the bullet is lodged in there.Fortunately, it doesn’t look as though it’s too deep into your tissue, so let’s give this a go.”
“Do it.”Eli’s jaw tightened as I settled into position beside him.
Grabbing the towel, I held it under his arm and moved away to give Owen space.I watched as he used the antibacterial gel to clean the tweezers and the blades I’d selected, choosing the thinnest knife before he straddled Eli’s body.
“No offense, but I prefer it when your sister does this to me.”Eli’s laughter was hollow.
“Yeah, this is not how I saw my day going, either.”Owen shook his head.“But here we are.Are you ready?”
There was a pause as the two men exchanged a look.
“I’m ready.”Eli turned his head to look at me, his body braced for what I could only imagine was going to be excruciating pain.
A part of me wanted to look away as Owen hovered the blade over Eli’s shoulder, but a larger facet sought to console the man who’d shifted so much in me.
“It’s okay.”Tension echoed in my voice as I attempted to soothe him.“It’ll be okay.”
Eli’s gray eyes met mine as Owen shifted, his lips twitching as I gripped his fingers.In that second, I wondered what he was thinking.Was he worrying about the imminent pain, or, staring into my eyes, was he thinking about the chemistry between us?I hoped the latter thought would offer limited solace in the moments to come.
“Fuck!”Eli muttered the word as the blade sliced into his skin.
“Towel, Erin,” Owen barked, gesturing to the initial blood flow rolling down his midriff.
“Okay.”Dropping Eli’s hand, I dodged behind Owen to press the towel against Eli’s washboard stomach.“Better?”
