Page 56 of Feral

“Look for anythin’ unusual,” he said through gritted teeth, “anythin’ still in there, or that looks strange.”

“What would be strange for you? It looks bruised but I can’t really tell if there’s anything in there. Move closer to the light.”

He moved toward the bedside lamp and took the shade off to cast more light. I carefully spread open the wound so I could look inside, trying not to be affected by the way Fraser’s breathing picked up.

“Nothing inside,” I finally said.

“Okay,” he breathed, his voice strained.

“Sit down, let me bandage this. It’s bleeding more now.”

He just nodded and plopped down onto the bed.

I poured some antiseptic liquid onto a patch of gauze and began to dab the wound with it. He jerked a little and then tensed, holding himself back from reacting to the discomfort that had to be present.

“Tell me something,” I said, “does your clan have any other enemies that would hire goblins?”

“Maybe,” he said, “but none that would dare to…to attack when we might be about to align with the Campbells.”

I nodded and reached for a clean patch of gauze.

“So no one besides the rogue agents would have a reason to sabotage this and then come after me to try and keep me from stopping it?”

“Not that I can think of.”

“That means the attack today isn’t about your clan. It’s about me.”

I motioned for him to stand up and began winding some gauze around his middle.

“About stoppin’ ya from gettin’ the artifact,” he said.

“Right. Which means this little experiment is now compromised and we will have to deal with the rogue agents trying to get their hands on it before I do.”

“I’ll not let anything happen to ya.”

He growled it out, and I got the sense that his intensity was more than just a Werewolf’s sense of honor. There was something else motivating him and I refused to think about it. This other group getting aggressive so quickly was a complication I hadn’t counted on, and I would need all my faculties if I was going to succeedandsurvive to tell about it.

My hands shook a little as I cut the end of the gauze and began taping it.

“Do you think anyone in your clan might be aiding the other agents?” I asked.

“I don’t like to think that anyone would but it is possible. The Campbell marriage wasn’t popular.”

He sat on the bed when I’d finished, huge hand clutching his side. I paced in front of him, mind working on the problem rather than focusing on the sexy Werewolf in front of me.

“Yer turn,” he said.

I frowned, confused at first until I remembered the cut just above my left eye.

“It’s really not—”

He held out his hand for the box of Band Aids and I sighed, handing it to him.

“Sit.”

I plopped down on the bed while Fraser knelt in front of me and began to clean the cut with another piece of gauze. I winced as the disinfectant stung, and his eyes heated.

“It’s not deep,” he whispered.

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