“Were a king, LeBlanc. Past tense,” Daniel said before placing both hands on either side of LeBlanc’s head and twisting, quickly breaking LeBlanc’s neck. “Let’s get Amaya inside.”
I just nodded and turned back toward the house. Kachina came in almost as soon as I got Amaya settled, “She still isn’t awake?” I shook my head, “Let’s see what we can do about that.”
Kachina worked on Amaya for over an hour, “Well?”
Kachina shook her head, “She’s fine, but for some reason she won’t wake up.” She stood up, “Now all we can do is wait.”
“Nicholas,” I turned toward my mom’s voice, “You need to eat. Come on, you haven’t eaten properly since she was taken two weeks ago.”
“I can’t. Not until Amaya wakes up,” I responded, turning back to Amaya.
“Nicky when she wakes up, she’ll kick your ass for not taking care of yourself,” Sutton said from the doorway. When I shook my head, he sighed and went back downstairs.
“Bring him in. Set him down on the table,” I heard someone say downstairs. I looked down at Amaya and gave her a kiss on the forehead before heading downstairs to see what was happening.
“Finley, keep yourself in check,” Daniel said as Finley paced, her eyes rapidly changing from hers to her dragon’s.
Jace was laid out on the table, his side split open. “Daniel, you need to move back. Let us work,” Enid, Riku’s daughter and the healer of Mathias’s clan, said.
Jace cried out as one of the other healers started working on his injury. Finley tried to jump forward, but I held her back. “Let me go Fox. They’re hurting my mate,” she growled in my head.
“They’re trying to help him,” I said, trying to calm her down, “Finley. He’ll be okay if you just let them work.”
She struggled against me, but I held on tight. It didn’t take long for Jace to pass out or for the healers to finish their work. “He’s started healing, but we can’t do anything else today.”
“Can you help me move him, Fox?” Daniel asked, finally looking up from Jace’s sleeping body. I released Finley with a nod. We moved Jace up to his room with Finley following close behind us. “Just link if you need anything, Finley,” Daniel said with a kiss to her forehead and a kiss to Jace’s. I followed Daniel out of the room and started to head back to mine and Amaya’s when Daniel stopped me. “You need to eat. Amaya will have both of our asses if you don’t eat.”
“I’m not hungry,” I responded, pushing past him.
He caught my arm, spinning me back around to face him, “You need to eat regardless.” I shrugged out of his grip, and continued to mine and Amaya’s room, causing him to sigh, “I’ll have someone bring something up for you.”
I settled back in next to Amaya, holding her hand and willing her to wake up, but she never stirred. I only vaguely noticed when people would come in, drop food off, and pick up the untouched plate from the meal or day before.
One day Jace came in, with the help of Finley, “Still no change?” I just shook my head, “How long has it been?”
“I don’t know,” I responded; my voice gruff from lack of use.
“From the smell I would say you’ve gone without a shower for at least a few weeks,” Jace said, earning him a smack from Finley. “Seriously man. Go shower. We’ll sit with Amaya while you do.”
“I’m fine.”
“No you’re not. You stink and you’ve lost weight. Go shower and give me some alone time with my sister.”
“But-”
“No buts Fox. Go, we’ll watch over her,” Finley said through the link.
I growled low before conceding. Standing and stretching my sore body, I showered quickly and ate a little of whatever someone had dropped off at our room. As I walked back into the bedroom, Jace whispered something to Amaya before addressing me, “She might actually wake up now that you smell better,” which earned him another smack from Finley.
“How are you feeling, Jace?” I asked, realizing I didn’t ask when he came into the room.
“I’ll be fine,” he kissed Finley’s temple, causing me to feel a pang of jealousy and sadness, “The wyverns I fought shredded some pretty important things, so my body is working on repairing the damage. It’ll take about another week before I’m fully healed.”
They chatted, trying to engage with me, until finally they headed back to their room.
Daniel’s POV
As Jace and Finley came down the stairs, I looked up at them, hopeful. Jace’s eyes met mine and he shook his head. “We got him to shower and eat a little, but nothing else,” Finley mind linked.
I sighed, “At least he ate something.”
“It’s been two weeks. Why hasn’t she woken up yet?” Jace asked, looking over at Lavi.
Lavi shrugged, “I don’t know. She’s fine physically and her magic has stabilized. She has no reason to still be asleep.”
I punched Liza’s number into my phone and waited for her to pick up, “Daniel? How is she?”
“No change. I was wondering if you could ask Georgie if he’s had any contact with the goddess. Maybe she can offer insight into why Amaya isn’t waking up.”
“Of course. Give me a minute,” she responded. I could hear her speaking in the background before finally coming back to the phone, “He said he’s only spoken with her once but it was before Amaya was found.”
“Okay. Thanks Liza. Tell Georgie I said thank you.”
“It’s no problem, my king. Let us know if we can help. I’ll call if Georgie speaks with the goddess,” she responded before disconnecting.
I sighed again as I put my phone back in my pocket. “Anything?” Jace asked; the hopefulness in his voice sent a pang of sadness to my heart.
I shook my head before heading upstairs.
Author: Kailan Counahan 