Lover Awakened (Black Dagger Brotherhood #3)(23)

“Take the stitches out,” Z demanded, looming over the physician.

“First the exam. I have to see if there are more serious injuries.”

Havers opened up his case and pulled out a stethoscope, a blood-pressure cuff, and a penlight. He checked her heart rate and breathing, looked into her ears and nose, took her BP. When he opened her mouth she winced a little, but then he lifted her head and she began to struggle in earnest.

Just as Zsadist lunged at the doctor, Phury’s heavy arm clamped around Z’s chest and jerked him back. “He’s not hurting her and you know it.”

Z fought the hold, hating the sensation of Phury’s body against him. But when his twin didn’t let up, he knew it was for the best. He was on a hair trigger, and taking out the doctor would be a stupid move. Hell, he probably shouldn’t be armed right now.

Phury was obviously thinking along similar lines. He removed Z’s daggers from their chest holster and handed them to Wrath. The guns were taken as well.

Havers looked up and seemed greatly relieved that weapons were gone. “I…ah, I’m going to give her some light pain medication. Her respiration and pulse rate are strong enough so she’ll handle it fine, and it will make the rest of the examination and what follows easier for her to tolerate. Okay?”

It wasn’t until Z nodded that the doctor administered a shot. When the tension in Bella’s body eased, the doctor took out a pair of scissors and went to the bottom of the bloodied nightgown she had on.

As he lifted up the hem, Z felt a red rage. “Stop!”

The doctor braced himself for a blow to the head, but all Z did was meet Phury’s stare and then Wrath’s. “Neither of you is to look at her naked. Close your eyes or turn around.”

Both stared at him for a moment. Then Wrath offered his back and Phury lowered his lids, though he kept his hold on Z’s chest strong.

Zsadist stared hard at the doctor. “If you’re going to remove her clothing, you cover her with something.”

“What shall I use?”

“A towel from the bathroom.”

“I’ll get it,” Wrath said. After he handed one over, he resumed his post facing the door.

Havers spread the towel over Bella’s body and then cut the nightgown along one side. He glanced up before lifting anything. “I’m going to need to see all of her. And I’m going to have to touch her belly.”

“What for?”

“I have to palpate her internal organs to determine whether any are swollen from trauma or infection.”

“Make it quick.”

Havers pulled the towel aside—

Z swayed against his twin’s hard body. “Oh…nalla.” His voice cracked. “Oh, sweet Jesus…nalla.”

Something was scratched into the skin on her stomach in what looked like three-inch block letters in English. As he was illiterate, he didn’t know what it said, but he had a horrible feeling….

“What does it read?” he hissed.

Havers cleared his throat. “It is a name. David. It says ‘David.’”

Wrath growled. “In her skin? That animal—”

Z cut his king off. “I will kill that lesser. So help me God, I will chew on his bones.”

Havers inspected the cuts, his hands light and careful. “You must see that no salt gets anywhere near these. Otherwise the scars will heal as is.”

“No shit.” As if he didn’t have experience with how wounds became permanent.

Havers covered her up and went to her feet, inspecting them and then her calves. He pushed the nightgown out of the way as he went to her knees. Then he moved one of her legs out to the side, parting her thighs.

Z surged forward, dragging Phury with him. “What the f*ck are you doing!”

Havers whipped back his hands, holding them up over his head. “I need to perform an internal exam. In the event she has been…violated.”

With a quick move, Wrath stepped in front of Z and clamped his arms around Z’s waist. Through the sunglasses, the king’s stare burned. “Let him do it, Z. It’s better for her if he does.”

Zsadist couldn’t watch. He dropped his head down into Wrath’s neck, getting lost in the male’s long black hair. The hard bodies of his brothers were sandwiching him, but he was too horrified to panic at the contact. He squeezed his eyes shut and breathed deeply, the scents of Phury and Wrath invading his nose.

He heard a rustling noise, as if the doctor were searching around in that suitcase of his. Then there were two snapping sounds, as though the male were pulling on gloves. A shifting of metal against metal. Some whispering noises. Then…silence. No, not really. Little noises. Then a couple of clicks.

Z reminded himself that all lessers were impotent. But he could just imagine how they made up for the deficiency.

He trembled for her until his teeth chattered.





Chapter Eight


John Matthew looked across the Range Rover’s front seat. Tohr was preoccupied as they went deep into the rural part of Caldwell, and though John was scared to meet Wrath, the king, he was more worried about all this quiet. He couldn’t understand what was wrong. Bella had been saved. She was safe now. So everyone should be happy, right? Except when Tohr had come home to pick John up, he’d wrapped his arms around Wellsie in the kitchen and stayed there a long time. His words, low and in the Old Language, had come out of what sounded like a choked throat.