“You don’t remember?” I asked
cautiously. “No, no, don’t sit up.” I gently pushed on his shoulders.
“What am I supposed to
remember?" Kraig asked as he looked around. “Wait, how did I get back
here? I fell asleep at my parents’ house.” Kraig frowned and worked his jaw. He
reached up and pressed against the bruise on the side of his face. “Ow. What’s
going on?"
“I brought you back here. You
were unconscious because I knocked you out." Just saying the words was
hard enough. The look on Kraig’s face as he stared at me in shock was even
worse. “I’m sorry, but I had to do it. Something was wrong, and you are acting
like you were feral."
Kraig’s eyes widened. “Did I
do that your face?”
Reluctantly, I nodded. “But I
know you didn’t do it on purpose. Whatever was going on, whatever happened
while you were asleep, was not your fault.”
He pushed my hands away and
started to sit up. I didn’t want to force him to stay down when he clearly didn’t
want to be prone anymore, so instead I helped him find his balance on the edge
of the bed facing me.
“Why are you still down there?”
Kraig fisted his hands and pushed him against his thighs. He held himself
stiffly leaning away from me. “Maybe you shouldn’t be so close to me.”
“Don’t worry about me; I can
take care of myself. I’m just sorry that I had to hurt you. That’s the last
thing I ever wanted to do, you have to believe that.” It stung that he didn’t
want me to touch him, but I didn’t move. I stared up at him from my position on
the floor. “I promise that we’ll find out what that bastard did do you.”
Kraig shook his head. “How?
How are you going to do that? You have a business, the streak, and now this…?
You’re only one man, Deke. As your mate I should be helping you, but I’m making
things worse.”
“Nothing else matters more
than you right now. And I’m not doing this by myself. Park is taking care of
Ritch, I sent the doctor’s files to my uncle, and he’ll be coming here on
Friday to go over them with us. While you were unconscious I also called for
the medic from the lion pride. He didn’t know what was going on with you either,
but he took some blood samples.”
“How long have I been out?” Kraig
glanced at the clock. “I just wanted to rest for a little while before lunch.”
“Looks like we missed another
meal.”
“Not like I’m not used to it.”
Kraig shrugged.
“Well you’re not gonna be used
to it here. Let’s go get a snack, something light, and then we can watch some
TV and relax on the couch.” We needed some downtime without any drama.
Kraig clearly took the attack
on me far more seriously than I did. When he got the chance he sat on the other
end of the couch. At night he lay on his side facing away from me. But as soon
as he relaxed, the mating bond kicked in and he was reaching for me. I wasn’t
afraid of him, but he already had so many things on his mind. Just the shock of
being freed from captivity for more than two years, combined with his change
status in the streak, was enough to overwhelm him.
I tried to keep us stress free
for a few days. We ate meals and frequent snacks together, watched TV, and
soaked in the tub as much as possible. Whenever Kraig fell asleep, I caught up
on work and made phone calls. Before I knew it Friday had arrived, and Uncle Radford
was due to show up after dinner.
Lydia came by with a dish of baked
ziti, with lots of Italian sausage, and some homemade garlic bread. She was
still spoiling us making as many of Kraig’s favorite dishes as possible. Henry
had not come back to law over which was probably a good thing. I was still
angry at his interference.
The last dish was in the
dishwasher, and I was just about to start it, when the sound of tires in the
driveway caught my attention. I shut the door and press the start button then
wiped my hands on a towel. I saw Uncle Radford step out of his car clutching
his briefcase.
“Hello,” I said. I had to
wonder what mood he was going to show. Aggrieved professional? Annoyed uncle?
Respectful streak member speaking to his alpha?
Uncle Radford scurried up the
steps and onto the porch. He looked around. “Are you alone?” he whispered.
It was like he was afraid. He
certainly wasn’t acting like he normally did. “Kraig’s dozing by the fireplace,
but no one else is here.”
He let out a relieved sigh and
stepped inside the house. “Good. There’s something you need to know immediately,
but you need to stay calm.”
“Tell me,” I growled.
“I’m not a medical doctor,” Uncle
Radford said. “But that lion medic you told to get in touch with me provided
some very disturbing information when we discussed Kraig’s bloodwork. You don’t
know half as much as you think you do.”
“Is there something wrong with
Kraig? Is he… sick?” That was my greatest fear.
“No.” Uncle Radford shook his
head rapidly back and forth. “He was given something.”
“What do you mean given something?”
“The lab reports I found
showed a cyclical pattern. Kraig’s bloodwork changed after he changed.
Something about the animal souls actually makes us different down to a cellular
level. Kraig’s DNA is unlike anything I’ve ever seen; it fluctuates wildly. I
think, and this is just a theory, that something he was given suppressed his
tiger soul so that his cheetah soul became dominant. That’s why he attacked you,
because he didn’t recognize you. His cheetah is not your mate.”
*gasps* What could that mean to the story?!! Muahahahahaha!
How about some more flash from other Briefers?
Briefers Website
*gasp* exactly :D good thing i stopped guessing 'what will come next' ages ago - you get it right and spoil the fun or you get it wrong and then, well, you are wrong. I just patiently wait, hence i appreciate greatly that you post regularly and i know when i'll get the next fix! Thank you for sharing the story, it's cool!
ReplyDeleteAnja
Thank you, Anja! I'm good (which is bad)at guessing what comes next too and know that feeling of disappointment--it's why I rarely watch movies anymore, lol. I'm so glad you're enjoying the story. :D
DeleteDo we trust this Uncle? I need to go back and read some earlier installments, but I think I was on the fence about whether he was going to be a good guy or a bad guy. Unless I am confusing him with a different uncle.
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