Page 3 of Expose Me

Maybe the bruises just weren’t showing yet. There was no denying she was hurt. Her body trembled slightly under my touch, and her face was screwed up in pain.

“You’re safe now,” I told her in a gentle tone. “I’m going to call the House guards, OK?”

She shook her head. “No. No authori ... ty.”

“A healer then.” I reached for my phone in my back pocket, but her hand shot out with surprising speed and gripped my wrist. Her grip was weak, but her intentions were clear.

“No.” She fixed me with a firm look before her face screwed up in pain again. “Water.”

I sighed and took my coat off, draping the fabric over her shoulders and helping her maneuver her arms into it.

“Water,” she said again, looking like she might collapse onto the ground at any moment.

It was fucking freezing out here, and she didn’t even have shoes on. Even if I ignored her request, I couldn’t make her stand out in the cold and wait for the authorities.

“OK, come on, let’s get you warm.” I wrapped an arm around her waist and lifted her arm around my neck. She leaned against me heavily and stumbled along as I slowly walked us to the brightly lit lobby.

“Water,” she murmured again.

“Yes, I’ll get you some water,” I reassured her. “We have to go in here to get it. I’ll take you to my apartment, and you can have all the water you want.”

There was no response, and she slumped further against me. I was taking most of her weight as we crossed the shiny tiled floor to the elevators. I pressed the button and readjusted my grip on the woman.

It took a bit of maneuvering to get my keycard out of my pocket without dropping the injured woman, but I managed it, and we reached the eighteenth floor without any stops. It was late—no one else was around.

By the time we made it up the hall and to my door, her feet were dragging on the carpet. I swiped my card, kicked the door open, and leaned down to pick her up. I was practically carrying her anyway, and she was so slight, she barely weighed anything.

I deposited her on the couch and poured a big glass of water. She was so weak she needed me to help her hold it, but once the water hit her lips, she tipped the glass up and chugged it all in about four gulps.

“Water,” she said, licking the drops off her lips.

“You want more?” I raised my brows.

“More water. Please.”

“OK.” I shrugged and filled up a jug instead, bringing that over with a full glass.

She chugged the second one down just as fast and reached for the jug. Her hands were shaky, but she was strong enough to lift it and pour.

“I’m going to get you something to wear and then we can talk about calling a healer to check you over,” I said, heading for the bedroom. There was no response, so I prepared myself for an argument as I grabbed a pair of sweats and a T-shirt.

I was only gone for the few minutes it took me to put on something warmer and grab clothes for the naked woman, but I came back to the living room to find her collapsed awkwardly against the back of the couch.

“Shit.” I rushed to her side and checked her pulse, releasing a relieved breath when I found it was normal. Her mouth was open, and she was snoring softly on every other breath, so at least she wasn’t dying. My prodding hadn’t roused her, so I put what first aid I knew to use and checked for broken bones or bleeding, or anything that would be life-threatening.

There wasn’t a thing wrong with her. I sat back on my heels and frowned. Was this some kind of overdose? It didn’t look like the result of any human-made substances, but the fae and the witches were constantly coming up with new ways for people to get high.

I considered calling a healer anyway, but she seemed fine, and she really didn’t want the authorities involved. Maybe this was a domestic violence situation? In the end, I decided to let her sleep it off. If she was faking it and waiting for me to fall asleep so she could rob me, she’d be sorely disappointed. I kept my most prized possessions in a place no one but me could reach, and I slept with a blade under my pillow. No one had gotten the jump on me in a very long time.

I gently lowered her head to a cushion and lifted her feet off the ground before covering her with a blanket. When I placed the spare clothes on the coffee table, I spotted the jug and glass. Both were drained.

This small woman got more and more curious. How the hell did she drink that much water in a few minutes, and where did it go? Her stomach was tiny.

Whatever. I was too tired to deal with this. I filled the jug again and left it next to her before heading to bed. If she was still there in the morning, I’d try to speak to her, get her some help if I could.

What I found on my couch the next morning made me wish I’d kept walking past that alleyway.

Chapter2

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