Page 86 of Assisting the Alpha
“I’ve never seen a white aura before.”
“That doesn’t surprise me.” Doc P cleans up the gouges before taking some sort of ointment out of his bag, which alsohas a white aura to it. Instead of the stitches I expected for wounds this deep, he dabs the ointment onto the long scratches, apparently used to avoiding questions about what species he is.
Ethan deftly changes the subject. “Will Ayo be okay?”
“Physically, yes.” Doc P looks at me with kindness in his eyes. “Time to disconnect, Ayo.”
“Not yet.” My ley line voice is epic. I should keep it.
Doc P continues to work on my chest. “Your core must be burning by now.”
“Wait,what?”Ethan yells. “Burning? Why the hell would his core beburning?”
“Overexposure,” Doc P unhelpfully tells my mate.
Great. Now that Ethan knows everything, he’ll never let me connect again. I knew I was right not to tell Ethan that particular risk of ley line connections.
Although, now that Doc P mentions it, the scorching sensation in my core is getting kind of intense. Even so…
“There’s work to do,” I rumble.
Doc P looks around us thoughtfully, then nods. “Yes, there are rather a lot of spells still active, but a sorcerer of your calibre can handle those without the extra juice, don’t you think?”
Ethan cups my cheeks in his strong hands. “Come back to me, Ayo. Let go.”
I look into the eyes of the man I love, my mate, and reluctantly disconnect.
Whoa.
Ethan steadies me when I sway. I blink as all the auras disappear and the world returns to its normal self.
I lean heavily against my mate. I can’t sleep yet, although I wish I could. “I’m so tired.”
Doc P smiles gently. “Channelling that much magic? I’m impressed you’re still awake.”
Doc P finishes with the ointment, the pain from the gouges already completely gone. Then he puts a hand right over the centre of my chest, avoiding both my focus and my injuries. Seconds later, the intense burning that’s been searing my core vanishes completely.
Our eyes meet in understanding. Whatever this man is, he has magic. Different from mine, definitely. Powerful? Absolutely. No one can heal a magic-user’s core. The only solution is time.
Unless you’re Doc P.
Chapter Twenty-Five
ETHAN
I gently trail my fingers down Ayo’s arm as I read Raj’s email. It’s an update on the work the team are doing regarding charging the people arrested last night, informing the victims’ families of the outcome of our investigation, and arresting a couple of others, including Lola. A small part of me feels guilty for not being out there with my pack, but as Ayo’s breath puffs against my chest, the much larger part of me knows I’m exactly where I need to be.
I put my phone back on the bedside table and hold Ayo tighter as the late afternoon sun filters through our bedroom window. It was almost dawn by the time we got home, what with all the people who wanted to hug Ayo and the sheer number of arrests to process, as well as needing to deal with the bodies of a few of Nyoka’s minions who didn’t survive. The mayor herself actually came out to confirm we’d won the contract and make sure we had all the logistical support we needed.
I haven’t been able to sleep much, though. Every time I did manage a few minutes, I woke up panicking that Ayo had beentaken from me again. Holding him in my arms is the only thing keeping my wolf calm and my heart rate vaguely near normal.
Ayo stirs, his breathing changing as he stretches before opening his eyes with a groan. He blinks up at me, then returns his arm to my waist and snuggles in again. “Tell me it was just a horrible nightmare.”
My heart aches for him. “I wish I could.”
Ayo and I talked last night about how not only was Nyoka after Ayo’s inheritance to pay off the coven’s debts, but he was also conducting experiments on the murder victims before they died. Ayo also told me what he’d found out about how his parents really died.
I hold Ayo tighter, needing the reassurance that he’s here and whole. Thank goodness Doc P is an amazing healer and Ayo isn’t in any physical or magical pain, the new scars on his chest almost entirely faded.
