Mythical Link ▸ Link Neal {Book One}

Eighty Nine

     Baker hung the phone up and slipped it back into his belt, drawing up a pocket knife. He flicked it open and locked eyes with Rhett. "I need to make a little incision to keep the toxin from spreading even further, if it hasn't already." 

     Christy's eyes widened and she gripped Link's arm. "What?! Are you crazy?! I'm not letting you cut my husband!" 

     Rhett looked between the two of them before his gaze fell on Christy. He trusted Baker wholeheartedly after spending the day with him.

     "Christy, let him do it."

     "No!"

     "Yes. Please let him do it," Rhett begged, his eyes watering. "You just don't understand. Every little thing that could help keep my best friend alive just a little bit longer needs to be done, and you can't stop it." 

     Christy made a face like she was going to argue and then her shoulders slumped. Baker took that as a sign that she wasn't going to fight anymore and he stepped closer to the bed. He gave Rhett a look and Rhett took Link by the arm, offering a patch of open skin by rolling his sleeve up. Christy must have helped dressed him earlier in the day.

     Baker didn't hesitate for another moment to bring the blade to his skin, and he applied the sharpness into the flesh, blood pooling around the open wound. The blood was discolored, resembling the tarry stuff he had thrown up and coughed up recently. Rhett's eyes widened as he looked at Baker with alarm, Christy covering her mouth with her hands as she looked away.

     "We need to keep this bleeding until we can get to my friend Paul. It just may keep him alive long enough to do this. Come on, we're taking a ride." He closed the blade and began heading toward the door, and Rhett didn't waste another moment to scoop Link up into his arms. 

     He was so out of it that he didn't fight when the blade pierced through his skin, which was alarming in of itself. Christy rose also, making it known that she was going to be going with them to whatever it was that they were doing.

     Rhett held Link's sleeping body in his arms as he trampled down the stairs, causing a huge ruckus. Baker and Christy followed after him, Christy's face sickly pale. They stopped at the bottom of the stairs and Jessie barreled toward them, her eyes wide with concern. "Are y'all bringing him to the hospital?" 

     Baker shook his head, motioning for the adults to follow him into the kitchen where the kids couldn't hear them talking. "We need to take Link to my buddy Paul's. We have to do what we call the TEST, also known as Toxic Electric Shock Therapy. We use it mainly on the beasts that we capture that have been causing trouble, and it essentially electrocutes them to their death." 

     Christy's eyes widened and she squeaked, shaking her head adamantly. "You are a crazy man! There's no way I can agree to letting you electrocute my husband! There's got to be another way! There just has to be!" 

     Baker took a step toward her, all seriousness etched in his features. Rhett looked down at Link's face and his head was lolling from side to side. His mouth was working but no words were coming out, his eyes partially open.

     "Ma'am, what if I told you that this is the only thing that could possibly save your husband?" Christy crossed her arms over her chest and she lowered her eyes. 

     It just didn't seem like a logical thing to do to her. None of this seemed very logical to her. "What if I didn't want to believe you?" She finally countered after several moments of silence, and Jessie gave Christy a look of defeat. Jessie could hardly believe it either, but with the way things were happening recently she had no choice but to give the man the credit.

     "I say we go and do it. It doesn't seem like we have much time," Jessie said, folding her arms over her chest. 

     Rhett looked at her and nodded his head, and Christy snapped her head up, glaring at Jessie. "What if this was Rhett that was dying? What if it was your wife that was dying?" She then said accusingly, turning her glare on the sheriff. 

     His shoulders slumped and he looked at Christy, his eyes laden with sadness. "She's already dead. If this had existed when that werewolf attacked her in the hospital, I would have considered this only option in a heartbeat." 

     Christy's lips parted and her chest felt like it had hollowed out. She felt like the worst woman on the planet right now. "I'm sorry," she whispered, her eyes watering again. She brought her hand up to her mouth as she let out a sob. "I don't want Link to die. Please don't let him die," she cried, and Jessie stepped forward to wrap her up in a hug. Rhett watched Baker's face and he reminded Rhett of a sad, lost puppy.

     "I'm going to do the best that I can. That I can promise, but we need to get going now."

     "I'll stay here with the kids," Jessie offered, and she broke away from Christy and stepped over to Rhett. Rhett hadn't spoken a single word since he came downstairs and she felt terrible for him, taking his face into her hands and stepping on her tiptoes to give him a kiss. "Stay strong," she said, and he only nodded again. He began carrying Link out of the kitchen and into the hall, and when he glanced in the living room, he saw all five of the kids piled on the couch, watching him walk by with pale faces. He only wished he could explain to them what was going on, but he didn't think they would understand. The only one who had an idea what was going on was Lily.

     He stopped in front of the door and waited for Baker, who stepped in front of him to open it. It was still pouring outside, and Rhett ducked into the rain, moving toward the cruiser as fast as he could. Baker sprinted outside, followed by Christy, and he wrenched the back door open for Rhett. Rhett set Link in the backseat carefully and he let Christy slip into the seat next to him. She took to buckling him in and making sure he was comfortable while Rhett assumed his spot in the front seat. Once Baker joined them in the car, they were off, heading to Paul's. He had so many questions racing through his mind, the headache that it caused making him feel sick to his stomach.

     He thought about texting Stevie and Alex, letting them know what was going on so they could tell the rest of the crew. Outside of their wives, they were the only ones that knew what was really going on in this town outside of the normal. He pulled his phone out of his pocket, noticing that his hands were trembling again. His eyes widened and he turned in his seat to look at Link, terrified that he was feeling another one of his seizures. 

     It was strange how he felt that coming, being so far away from Link without knowing what was going on. Link had his head on Christy's shoulder and she kept her eyes on him the whole time, running her fingers through his hair. Rhett could tell that she was shaking also, and he quickly peeled his gaze away from her before she caught him so he wouldn't worry her any more. He began texting feverishly to Stevie and Alex in a group message.

     "Hey guys, we've got a big problem. Link was attacked by a werewolf last night and he's very sick. Let everyone else know that it might be a while before we're back in work. I'll keep you up to date on what's going on, but it's looking grim."

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