Page 34 of Becoming Brandy

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Brandy cried out,falling to her knees beside Wrek. He seemed unconscious, not dead, but there was so much blood. She shook his arm desperately. “Wrek? Oh, God.”

She put her hand to her mouth as tears welled in her eyes. Wrek had saved her by allowing one of his people to slice him into a bloody pulp. He’d fought so bravely, defeating a beast much bigger than himself. And it had all been for her.

She gripped his arm, crying. The wounds were so severe, so numerous. Blood was everywhere.

Unable to wake him, she ran back to the wall and pressed her hand on it, willing it to open. This time, it obeyed. Running blindly, she tore out of the room and down the hall. The first non-beast alien she saw, she grabbed his arm desperately.

“Wrek is hurt. One of the simulation rooms. Please!”

He followed her to where Wrek still lay. Relief filled her when the guard handcuffed the beast who’d attacked them. And reassured when they got Wrek on a floating gurney and began carrying him out of the room.

“Where are you taking him?” Brandy asked one of the medical staff tending to Wrek’s wounds.

“A healing pool,” the medic said, and then went back to ignoring Brandy.

They took Wrek away and locked him in a room, not allowing Brandy to see him. She waited in the hallway for what felt like hours, sitting on the floor, worrying.

Finally, the wall opened, and a medic stepped out. He seemed surprised to see Brandy there.

“Can I go in?” she said, standing up. “Is he okay?”

“His vitals are stable, but I am afraid you cannot go in.” The medic regarded her with something like distaste in his expression.

“Let her in,” a voice called from inside the room. Wrek.

Brandy didn’t wait for the medic to agree. She rushed past him into the dim, damp room.

It felt like stepping into a sauna, one that was lit only by glowing lights that rippled and shimmered, throwing dancing beams around the room. The floor at her feet was rock. Ahead of her, the pool gave off both the light and the moisture. It was about the size of the pool her childhood best friend had, maybe fifteen feet in diameter, though it was hard to tell because the shape was not regular. The light glowed from the bottom of the pool. By it, she could see Wrek bobbing chest deep in the water.

“Hi,” he said with a smile.

“Hi.” She was so glad to see him. She approached the edge and crouched where he was, his elbows resting on the deck’s surface.

“I’m going to live, Brandy. You can stop making that face.”

“What face?” she asked.

“The one where you look at me like I’m on death’s door.” His grin was wry.

She stared at his body, searching for wounds. There were several, but they were all pink and healing, like the skin beneath a scab that had just fallen away. “How did you heal so fast? You were…”

“I was a mess. That hvratha tore me up. But Tork created a healing pool for me, and the medics used the salve. I’ll need to visit here a few more times, but I’ll be fine. Don’t worry.”

She dipped her hand in the water. It was the perfect temperature.

“Want a swim?” he asked, damp curls dripping into his big lavender eyes.

“Can I? Will it do anything to me?”

“Other than make your skin look amazing? No. It’s safe.”

She gazed at the water, wanting to get in so badly. Wrek was naked and she didn’t have a bathing suit, so there was that little problem. She could go in her bra and underwear. She’d done a lot worse in her life.

“Okay, I’m coming in. Turn around.”

He raised an eyebrow, but complied, staring at the back of the cave wall.

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