“Yeah, I’m going to feel it when he pulls it out.” Sage dragged in a deep breath. “I’m ready.”
Placing my hands on either side of the arrow, I summoned the eather and got down to business. “Now.”
Naill yanked the arrow free with a quickness born of experience. Sage’s entire body spasmed, but she made no sound. Nothing until I heard a sigh of relief and the jagged hole in her thigh stitched itself together, the skin now a bright, raw pink.
“That was”—Sage’s round eyes blinked—“intense.”
“Better, though?”
“Unbelievably so.” She gingerly curled her leg and then straightened it. “I’ve watched you do this, over and over. And still, it’s…intense.”
I smiled faintly, rocking back. “I’m no Healer, so I don’t know how much of the wound heals immediately. I would take it easy for the next couple of days.”
“No running around or dancing…” She trailed off, her eyes widening as her gaze fixed over my shoulder. “What the…？”
Naill and I followed her gaze. My mouth dropped open as the Atlantian made a choked sound.
Walking through the hall was a tall blond wearing what appeared to be a sheet knotted at the hips—barely knotted. With each long-legged step, the sheet appeared mere centimeters from slipping away.
“Reaver,” I whispered, a little rattled by the sight of him.
Naill made that sound again.
“That’s the draken?” Sage asked, and I realized she must not have seen him in his mortal form before.
“Yep.”
“Really?” She eyed him. “Yum.”
Naill looked down at her, his jaw slack. “He can breathe fire.”
“And that’s a bad thing?”
Thankfully, Naill didn’t answer because Reaver had reached us. He nodded at the other two and then bowed slightly in my direction, causing the sheet to slip a little more.
“We need to find some clothing for you,” I said, remembering what I had asked of Kieran. I doubted Reaver would fit into anything the Duke had worn. “Like as soon as possible.” Then I thought of the other draken. “We need to find a lot of clothing.”
“You people and your concerns about nudity is tiresome,” Reaver replied.
“I have absolutely no problem with nudity,” Sage announced. “Just thought I’d share.”
Reaver grinned.
And my heart gave another shaky skip because I hadn’t been wrong when I’d thought the upward curve of his lips took all those interesting features and made them into something stunning.
I gave my head a shake. “Is everything okay?”
“It is.” Reaver faced me. “I wanted to let you know that Aurelia and Nithe returned to Thad,” he said, referencing the remaining draken who had stayed back at the encampment. “They will return to Redrock tonight when it’s less likely they’ll be seen by mortals.”
“Good thinking.” I hadn’t thought of that. “Will you…？” I rose, and a whoosh went through me. The floor stumbled. Or I did. “Whoa.”
Naill was immediately by my side, his hand on my arm. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah. Just a little dizzy.” I blinked the bright, flashing lights from my eyes in time to see that Sage had also stood. “You should still be sitting. I’m fine.”
She watched me, making no move to sit.
“It’s been a long day,” I reminded her. I was tired. We all were.
“Have you eaten?” Reaver asked, drawing my attention to him.
I frowned. “I haven’t had a chance since morning. Been kind of busy.”
“You should make time for that,” he advised. “Now.”
Considering how the world had gone topsy-turvy, I couldn’t really argue, so I ended up in the kitchens with a draken dressed in only a sheet hanging on for dear life, sharing a plate of sliced ham that must’ve been left over from the day before.
Come to find out, draken did eat actual food. Thank the gods.
With Naill feeling confident that between Reaver and I, we were more than capable of handling ourselves, he’d gone off to check in with Hisa. It was quiet. Probably because I was stuffing my face.
And where was Kieran to not witness this and comment on how much I was eating?
I hadn’t felt this hungry since the first time I’d been to Castle Redrock.
But thinking of everything that still needed to be done tamped down my appetite. I needed to talk to the people. The families of the poor children. The imprisoned soldiers. The list went on. It was…a lot.