A Cold Wind Blows (Forgotten series, #3)

Chapter 26: Part 5

"There is no negotiating." Her voice was harsh and she slowly relaxed back into the bed, no longer showing signs of attempting to get up. I removed my hand and dipped the cloth back in the pot of water.

"I was going to wash your hair." I glanced at it, it was matted with blood and dirt. I wanted it to be clean and fresh for her. I didn't want her to have to linger in the smell of blood and pain while she healed.

"Leave me and it alone!" Her agitation was thick in her voice and my hand shook from my instinct to groom her. My wolf whined. It was all he knew what to do to apologize for harm.

"If its not cleaned soon it will have to be cut." It was a half-hearted remark that had a slight pang forming in my chest. I liked her hair long but if the blood stayed in it for too long then it would need to be cut to get most of the tangles out. Even if it wasn't cut, the repeated washes to get the blood out would damage it so severely it would have to be cut. Shifter blood was strange that way.

"Then wash it." She said it slowly, as if weighing each word carefully. "Do not touch me with anything but the cloth." She was still stiff but it was permission to continue. I continued to clean her thigh, it was hard to keep my actions impersonal as I cleaned her but I tried my best. I hesitated after I finished cleaning the outside of her thigh.

"Just do it and stop hesitating." Her voice was tense and I quickly rinsed out the cloth and smoothed the cloth over the healthy curve of her ass. I swallowed hard as I tried hard not to admire the healthy curves she had been given. Her form stiffened further with each stroke I took and I quickly moved up to her back as soon as I was able. We both relaxed a fraction as I did so. I put the cloth down before grabbing the blanket she had folded at the bottom of the bed and carefully slid it over her, resting it where I had cleaned to, covering her from view.

I rinsed the cleaning cloth again and then removed the cloth I had placed on the wounds that had started bleeding. I was thankful to see that there were only a few red marks on it because that meant I hadn't completely torn open the wounds and they had stopped bleeding. I winced as I took in the sheer size of the wounds on her back. There were five claw marks that had been dug into her skin and muscle from her right shoulder, down her back, and then wrapping around her ribcage where they stopped. There was some fresh pink tissue within them but they were still brutal to look at.

"I want to call a healer." They would scar terribly and I could see where the wounds had bisected the one wing on her back, making it nearly unrecognizable in its destruction.

"No." There was a finality to her voice that I didn't particularly like. I didn't like the look of her wounds and I knew that if I brought in a healer it would give me peace of mind and her a quicker start on the road to recovery.

"These are deep wounds, Lace. It will take nearly a full day to heal and they will scar." Badly from the looks of it. She would be laid out until they healed completely. Any type of movement would open them up again with their placement.

"I don't care about scarring." Her breath hitched as she attempted to shrug but stopped the movement short. I winced, that had to have hurt.

"You will be stuck in bed until they heal." I was giving her a warning. She would be unable to provide for the children and unable to do much of anything without help.

"Then I will be stuck in bed." The lazy, non-caring tone in her voice was almost agitating. She didn't understand what I was saying.

"Its just-"

"Let that bear have one living monument to his ferocity. He deserved to have his life have a mark on the living. Besides, I stalked that bear and I want reminder that I took it down." At her words I felt a spike of anger.