Bones smiled. “I guess Journey was right again. Nadia is truly your mate, isn’t she?”
“Mine,” I snarled, holding her closer.
“And I found mine too!” Cyran called from the other room
Bones jumped up from his chair, clapping his hand loudly. “Another found their mate! That’s amazing!”
The quick movements pissed off my grizzly. He took control of my arm, reared back, and went to swipe Bone’s chest. Phineus pushed Quillian away and jumped in front of Bones, catching the brunt of the claws. Fabric and skin ripped, causing blood to drip onto the floor, and my grizzly let out a menacing roar as I pounded the medical bed.
Nadia whimpered under me, my body hovered over hers as I nuzzled my nose into her neck. She calmed, her body warming under my touch.
“That was the most idiotic thing you could do, Bones. You call yourself a doctor?” Quillian hissed from the other side of the room. “Damn you.” Quillian took slow and deliberate movements, showing he had no weapons in his hands.
I watched Quillian as he picked up Phineus, who stared at me with wide eyes. I would not say sorry. He should have let Bones take the hit, the dumb bastard.
Quillian cursed at his friend, ordering him to drink two blood bags, and led Phineus out, but continued to stay by the door. “Now, Bones, do you know about bear shifters or not? Specifically, a grizzly because they are nasty fuckers to deal with.”
I growled again, and Quillian kept his gaze on Bones.
Bones rolled his eyes and raised his hands. “Right, I’m sorry, Bear, Quillian.” Bones gave a curt nod. “Now, I need to check on your mate. She’s malnourished. I don’t know if she’s hydrated, and I need to get some blood samples before I start a feeding tube.”
I weighed my options. I didn’t want to leave her or let anyone touch her, but I knew staying on top of her to protect her would do nothing for her body. I could feel the bones in her arms and wrists. I couldn’t be selfish, and I had to trust.
Bones was trained. He brought the supplies needed to take care of a human in such a condition. I growled once more, gently getting off of my mate.
Quillian watched from the doorway. My eyes stayed on both of them, and I kept at least one hand on my mate.
Bones got to work, taking his time, treating me as if I was the patient, explaining in complete detail what he was doing and why. I was grateful because my grizzly was just bubbling above the surface and to shift on a plane, even in his weakened state, would not fare well.
My animal was still sick, but since finding his mate he would fight anyone, no matter what power they wielded, to keep her safe, especially after what she had been through. Nadia would never leave my sight, and when she woke, that would be a hard pill to swallow for her.
Quillian watched at the end of the medical table, his arms crossed and brow furrowed. “Is it necessary to put a feeding tube in her now?” he asked.
Bones continued to fiddle with the food bag, hanging it up along with the IV bag. “She is severely malnourished; you can see her body. Even though I cannot accurately weigh her, I listened with my stethoscope and found no food in her stomach. Even her lower intestines are empty, barely moving. Her internal organs are shutting down.”
I wrapped my hand around my mate’s torso, pulling her closer to me. “And what does that mean?” I asked.
Bones ran his hand through his hair. “It means if we had waited one more day, she wouldn’t be alive.”
My heart squeezed in my chest. My world is nearly crumbling around me. Nadia had an IV in her arm and a feeding tube down her nose that led to her stomach. Her skin was pale, nearly grey. There was barely life left in her body, but she was still beautiful to me.
“It’s the bond,” Quillian interrupted my thoughts. “You find her stunning even when she is on the brink of death.”
“My mate will not die.” I gritted my teeth. “She is my second chance.”
Quillian chuckled. “I never got to caress the mate that rejected me so lovingly as you are doing, though. No, didn’t give her the chance. I staked her instead.” He gave a rueful smile.
Bones and I both sat in silence, not sure what to say.
“Yeah—but even in her final breath, until her blood ran dry—I thought she was the most beautiful creature.” He paused and looked out the plane window. “But, Bear, your mate will make it. I am sure of it. Nadia is your second chance.”
Quillian left the room, and I was left with Bones, with the quiet and the dripping of the saline bag.
Quillian, vampires in general were strange creatures. Dark, void of most emotion from their faces, the older ones anyway.
I was no doctor; I didn’t understand the human body and how fragile it could be. I was a shifter, and even in my weakened state I was twice as strong as the strongest human male.
“What do I need to do to ensure her health?” A wave of determination settled over me. I would make sure my mate would be healthy. I rested my hand against her forehead and closed my eyes.
