Desire Untamed (Feral Warriors #1)(64)

"Don't give up, healer," Lyon growled. "I will not lose her!"

"I'll call you when I'm through," the Shaman said, and turned to go. "Stay away from the house until I've cleaned it, or you'll just be infected again."

Esmeria blew a strand of dark hair out of her eyes and leaned over the tub. Kara remained unconscious. Dammit, she should have woken by now. He could feel the strength leaking out of her at an alarming rate. Goddess help them, she wouldn't last another hour.

"Stay with me, Kara." His grip on her tightened.

Minutes later, Esmeria sat back, swearing. "Now that I'm treating the spell, I'm getting the flow to stop, but it keeps starting up again."

He had to do something. He would not let her die. Fear for her pounded through his blood.

"Tighe, I need your assistance."

"Anything, Roar."

Lyon leaned forward, sitting up straight. His heart thudded. "Next time Esmeria stops the bleeding, I'm going to try to heal one of those wounds again. I need you to brace Kara's head while I lift her waist to my mouth."

"All right."

Lyon looked to the healer. "Do it."

Esmeria pulled the blankets away, closed her eyes, and pressed her hands to Kara's wounds as she had before. Seconds later, the bleeding stopped.

"Now," Lyon said, and lifted Kara's too-light body to his mouth, closing his lips around the nearest wound. As he'd done before, deep in the dungeons of Feral House, he stroked the gash with his tongue. Working frantically, he felt the flesh knitting beneath his tongue. He was nearly done with the first of the gashes when the blood-bath resumed.

He pulled back and eyed the wound with knee-weakening relief. "It worked." Only a trickle of blood broke through. He wiped his chin and looked at Esmeria. "Whenever you're ready."

Paenther moved to the side of the tub and took the seat the Shaman had vacated. His hand fell heavily on Lyon's shoulder. Their gazes met for an instant, long enough for Lyon to know that the full force of Paenther's will was behind him.

One after another, Lyon healed the gashes ringing Kara's slender waist. He'd just started licking the last of the eight when he felt Kara stir, felt her fingers slide into the hair at the back of his head.

His body sagged with relief. Thank the goddess.

"Lyon…" she breathed.

With shock, he felt the faint stirring of her passion. Relief flowed through him sharp enough to burn his eyes, tightening his chest until he thought it would crack. If he was able to awaken her passion, she was going to be fine.

"Hold on, Warrior," Esmeria said. "I need to take the stitches out of that last one." Stitches that had been useless.

Once the stitches were removed, Lyon lifted Kara's waist to this mouth once more, his arms shaking from the force of his emotions. He took exquisite pleasure healing this last of her wounds, feeling her own pleasure rise with every stroke of his tongue.

He squeezed his eyes closed against the burn of moisture, reveling in the rising strength of her life's energy, feeling the constriction around his heart ease with every tiny gasp that left her throat.

When her fingers fisted in his hair, and her body arched and trembled gently against his mouth, his beast purred with satisfaction. And a drop of moisture leaked from his eye.

Tighe whistled behind him. "Damn, Roar. I wish you'd teach me that trick."

He wiped his cheek and his chin on his bare shoulder as he lowered Kara onto his lap and cradled her precious body against him.

Kara reached for him, curling her arms around his neck, and melted against him, melting his heart.

"I'll take it from here, Warrior," Esmeria said. "I'll get her cleaned up and into bed."

"No," his beast said, before he could think it through. He wasn't letting Kara out of his arms, let alone his sight, anytime soon. "I'll tend her."

Esmeria nodded. "I'll put clothes on the bed for her, then. And for you."

The healer rose and left, but his men remained. Silence blanketed the room. In his arms, Kara slept.

Tighe sat on the edge of the tub, his gaze on Kara. "Damn."

Jag moved behind Tighe. "Guess it's a good thing we didn't vote to kill her off." But his tone lacked its usual rank attitude. In his voice, Lyon heard the same chill he suspected was going through all of them.

Paenther made a sound of pain deep in his throat. "If it had been up to me, she'd be dead."

"Who could have put it in her?" Tighe asked.

Paenther growled. "Whoever did it is dead."

"I'm with you, panther-man," Jag said.

Tighe reached out and put his hand on her head. "She's been through hell. Great bunch of protectors we turned out to be."

"There was no way we could have known," Lyon said. But Kara had told him almost from the start something was wrong, and he hadn't paid enough attention until nearly too late.

Lyon sighed. "You heard the Shaman. Go find yourselves some sex. As soon as the Shaman's found that dark charm, we'll go home."

"You need help?" Tighe asked him.

"No. I've got her."

Tighe nodded. "Yeah, I hate these tough assignments, but I guess I'd better get at it."