Page 24 of Lesson In Faith

Tamsyn curled her toes, twisting said feet toward each other under the covers. They felt bulky, as though she wore too many thick socks.

“They look sore, but the cream is helping. Twice a day,” he interjected before she could ask her next question. “I cleaned them this morning, lathered and redressed them. No signs of infection.”

“Excellent. Make sure she stays off them until they’re fully healed. I think the IV can go today,” she continued, segueing seamlessly onto the next topic. She was all talk and twice the action, already bending for her bag to retrieve a small roll of tape and a tuft of cotton in bauble form. “I brought the kit, Merrick.”

Something flashed in his eyes before he smothered it. “It won’t be necessary.”

Linnie’s eyes narrowed. She straightened, cocking a hand on her hip. “Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

“Truthfully sure or man sure?”

Merrick snorted a laugh, then shook his head. “I don’t think I want to know whatman sureis. By all means, be thorough and double check for yourself.”

Tamsyn shrank under the heavy weight of Linnie’s stare. The woman possessed similar physic abilities as Merrick, it seemed; she pinned her with those dark eyes, reading every nuance of body language, every facial expression, before the concentration softened.

“I’m not trying to scare you,” she explained in a gentler tone. “Rape is a serious business, Tamsyn, not just psychologically. If abuse has been part of your history, it’s better to know about it now so we can get ahead of any issues.”

Tamsyn shot Merrick a confused look.

“Pregnancy,” he said in an undertone. “Sexually transmitted diseases or infections.”

She felt the color drain from her face. Pregnancy wasn’t new to her—it was the primary goal of the community, to grow the population and expand the gene pool, to keep a supply of women in trade—but no one ever mentioned diseases or infections.

“Judging by your ghostly pallor, we hit a nerve. Were you raped, Tamsyn?”

It was the same answer as before.

“No bodily fluids exchanged, orally or otherwise?”

She shook her head numbly.

“Okay, that’s good. When was the last time you had sex?”

What little color she had left swirled down the drain. She opened her mouth, but her jaw just hung uselessly, unable to even form the shape of words. She dropped her gaze to the big hand holding hers, feeling panic sweat beginning to form along her spine, her temples; there was no way she could make eye contact with anyone.

Thick, smothering silence filled the room.

“You don’t have to answer that, darlin’, if it embarrasses you. Linnie’s not trying to be nosy.” Merrick lifted their joined hands to her chin, nudging it up so she might look at him, but she just couldn’t bring herself to do it.

Linnie cleared her throat. “I don’t think that’s the issue, Merrick. All right, sweetie, we’ll leave it at that. Are the bruises improving?”

“Yeah.” His reply was slow, his tone thoughtful. “The arnica supplements and gel Evander sent over are working wonders. He suggested a full week of treatment, so I’ll heed his advice.”

“Okay then, there’s just this pesky wrist to sort out.” Linnie jerked her head. “Move your tight ass over, Merrick. This won’t take long if Tamsyn’s ready for the cast.”

“The swelling’s gone down a lot.” Giving Tamsyn an apologetic smile, one she caught when she risked peeking at him, he squeezed her fingers and released them. He stood and stepped aside so Linnie could take his place. “Breathe, little owl. I’m right here.”

No. The word resonated in her head as the doctor lifted her arm, studying the ugly mess stretching from her hand to her elbow. The contusions were plentiful but not painful, the skin red and still slightly swollen despite constant cold cloths wrapping the break.

She yanked it away, unable to stand the feel of strange hands on her.

“Careful,” Linnie muttered distractedly, patiently tugging the limb back where she could see it. “I’ll do my best not to hurt you, sweetie, but you need to stay still.” She glanced at Merrick. “We’re good to go. I need some warm water and a towel, Merrick, if you’d be so kind.”

Tamsyn shook her head, pulling her arm back for a second time and cradling it against her chest. She bared her teeth when Linnie reached for her again.

The doctor frowned, then nodded. “All right, we’ll do this a different way. You can reclaim your seat,” she murmured to Merrick, snagging her bag as she rose gracefully to standing. She dumped the bag on the bedside table and started rummaging through it, humming under her breath.

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