Page 21 of Jager's Prey
“You okay?”
“Yeah—I’m fine.” She dropped her hand and placed the towel into the water before setting it away. “I just—I wonder if—never mind.”
“Jager?”
“It’s nothing.” Jager stood and offered me a bottle of aspirin. “Will taking one of these help?”
I read the label and nodded. “Ibuprofen. Thank you.”
“I’ll get you some water.”
I caught her arm. “You know you can talk to me, right?”
“Trust me, Mack, the tornado in my head needs to stay there for now.” She assured me. “Take the pill and get some sleep.”
I watched her back as she walked from the room. She held her shoulders like a woman who had the world on them. For the first time since I’d gotten hurt, I wanted to be there for a woman—I wanted to use my body to sooth her.
Then again, I wasn’t complete.
After a soft sigh, I did as she suggested, took two of the pills and stretched out on my back, feeling my leg pulse with the soreness of it.
Closing my eyes, I tried thinking back to the men who attacked us. There was something familiar about them. They hadn’t spoken—not one word. Which was strange. Usually, they’d scream something or spoke to each other. It was almost as if they were remaining silent on purpose.
But why?
I tossed and turned for a while then pushed my leg out of bed to sit on the edge. Though I was tempted to put my leg on and go for a wander outside, I remember that overdoing it would slow us down even more. That thought sent me on my back, staring at the ceiling.
“Mack?”
I pushed to my elbow to look toward the door.
“You awake?”
I smiled. “Come in, Jager.”
She was dressed in an oversized t-shirt that dropped around mid-thigh. It was a navy blue, man’s shirt and my heart sank. Somehow that told me she had a man and it hurt me to my very soul.
Still, I managed to push my jealousy to the back of my mind and shifted up to sitting position.
“Something wrong?” I asked.
“Naw.” She replied, sitting on the edge of my bed. “At least, none of the normal stuff. I just couldn’t sleep, that’s all.”
“Want to talk about it?”
She scoffed softly. “Where do I even begin?”
“The beginning.”
Jager sighed. “It’s okay. Just let me sit here with you for a bit.”
I nodded.
“How is your leg feeling?”
I stared at her, silent for a moment then nodded again. “Better. But the true test is tomorrow.”
“I see.”
