Page 119 of Between Wrath and Mercy

Chapter 38

Thegroundbelowmeshook, and I woke up with a scream on my lips. The pain was immense, and I bellowed when something moved on top of me. A weight was being pulled from on top of me. A body. The movement jarred me, and my legs felt like they were on fire. I didn’t think I’d opened my eyes, yet I could see white dots of light in my vision, the pinpricks of agony which kept me from falling back into unconsciousness.

“Oh gods, Em—”

“Focus. She’s alive, come on.”

I blinked. Everything was blurry and dark, save the light from a torch. For a moment, I was terrified, thinking someone was coming to finish me off. The two blurry figures, both enormous, were familiar, but my mind couldn’t focus. The touch was gentle, and I didn’t think they’d hurt me. I was short of breath, unable to inhale deeply, and when I turned my head, I felt dizzy. The room was spinning. Not caring about the rotten air, I took deep gulps, trying to force my lungs to expand. I was so tired. Tired, confused, and not to mention wet. Where was I? Why was I wet?

“Make the rift. I’ve got her.”

An arm tucked under my knees, and I started screaming again; the torque of gravity on my shin was unbearable. The overwhelming scent of fetid air in my nostrils was replaced by peppery sandalwood and a hint of sage as I was held against someone's chest. Dewalt, I belatedly understood. They had come for me. The ground shook harder.

“Make the gods damn rift.”

My head was tilted back, my hair falling in a curtain over his arm, and I tried to lift my neck. I couldn’t, too weak to do much of anything except moan. Eventually, he shifted me, propping my head against him. I felt Dewalt’s heart beating fast without using my divinity at all. He was scared. Was I that bad off? I heard the sound of a rift, and then it stopped. Again, it repeated. Open and close. Silence. He was struggling. Rain couldn’t focus. My Rain. He was here—my heart, my love, my life.

“Rain,” I whispered, needing him to know I was alright and that I loved him, that I chose him. He needed to see so he could take me home. His hand was on my forehead a second later, pushing my sweaty hair off my face. Why was I sweaty?

“Em, I’m here.” He lowered a kiss to my forehead, and I nearly choked on the sob that tore through me.

“I said yes.” He coughed a bit and let out a soft groan, thick with emotion. “Now, take me home.” He brushed his lips against mine and turned around. I was unconscious before he succeeded.

IwassureDewalttried to be delicate when he laid me down, but the jostle of my limbs on the bed was enough to rouse me. Shrieking, my voice hoarse, I knew where I was this time, slightly more lucid than before. I could smell the sweet alyssum and lilac from the garden, their scents wafting in on a breeze. We were home. But my coherence meant the pain was worse, too. Why was I still in so much pain? Dewalt moved away, and I heard low voices coming from the foot of my bed. I opened my eyes and immediately closed them again, the room too bright. I tried again, squinting and panting, struggling to draw breath.

I shouldn’t still be in this much pain.

I didn’t know how long I slept, but it was daytime, and I thought Keeva came at night. I shouldn’t have been struggling to breathe. Why was I still so weak? Why hadn’t my divinity healed me more?

I pushed up onto my elbows and looked down. My dress—drenched in blood, the pattern of flowers unrecognizable—covered my legs, but I could still tell everything was at the wrong angle. I guessed my divinity wasn’t good at setting bones, the reason for my abundant agony. Maybe I was right in assuming Keeva had nicked an artery, and the only thing my abilities could do was keep me alive, explaining my exhaustion and shortness of breath. And the blood. Gods, there was so much blood. I could feel it, sticky on my body. Rain was at my side a second later, trying to get me to lay back down.

“Healer. Do you have a healer? Where’s Mairin?” Did they have another me? My friend could help set the bones.

“I only have a mortal healer close enough to help, Em. But Mairin is probably—”

“I’m here, I’m here. Divinehell.” My friend was a welcome sight when she burst into the room, harried and wild as she took in my appearance.

I finally collapsed, accidentally stirring my legs, and I had to take a moment to roar through the pain.

"Worse than childbirth," I gritted out through my teeth. Grabbing Rain's hand, I squeezed, and he knelt next to the bed a moment later. "Talk to me."

“The bones need to be set so her divinity can work. Get her ready. I’m going to wash up.” Mairin was pure healer as she charged into the bathroom.

Rain swallowed and moved away to do what Mairin said, and I growled.

"Dewalt, you do that. Rain, I need you."

Rain was back at my side within a breath as Dewalt moved to the foot of the bed, gently pulling up my dress. I hissed, the slight movement still too much. “Cut. It.”

"What do you need from me, dear heart?" Rain held one of my hands tightly in his grip while his other hand gently cupped my face.

I screwed my eyes shut as Dewalt began to slice into the beautiful, ruined dress. "A distraction."

"The last time you asked for a distraction, I ended up lying in your study with aching balls." The sly devil dared to grin, and I snorted as Dewalt finished cutting away my dress.

"Hanwen's ass, Rain. Why would you say that in front—"

"In front of me?” Dewalt scoffed, and I avoided looking down at where his hand pulled my dress taut as the blade ripped through the fabric, glad for the distraction Rain’s comment offered. “As if I didn't already know. I might not prove it often, but I'm not stupid. Nor am I blind. Either that was the best damn water he'd ever drank in his life, or something else got him riled. By the state of your hair, I guessed it was you."

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