Page 80 of Heart of the High King
“No doubt. So, I did get some good news today. Rafe only gets a mild tummy ache when I teleport him versus using Dérive,” Dra’Kaedan told him. “It may be something specific to druidic that gives him such a drastic intolerance. That’s good news for moving forward with some plan to heal him. The real obstacle is knowing what we’re working with. How bad is he?”
“End-stage cancer,” Worth stated. “That’s your priority.”
“I doubt we’ll be able to start there,” Dra’Kaedan answered, his eyes narrowing. “We’re going to need something superficial because the reality is, simulations aren’t going to help us much. He’s one-of-a-kind stuck between human and dragon. With only a single living example, there won’t be enough data to compile shit. The last thing we want to do is hurt him more. I’ve got some other ideas floating around, and I’m sure the others do as well, but I want to know the entire situation before we put together a plan of attack.”
“If we were mated, wouldn’t that fix the mortality issue?” Aleksander asked.
“I would think so, but as far as eradicating the damage or fixing what has been lost to the cancer already? I can’t say…not with his unique situation. It might not even cure the disease, simply extend his lifeline.”
“An eternity of pain and suffering?” Worth asked. “That’s horrid.”
“Please, we wouldn’t ever allow that to happen. I just don’t want anyone to think all you need to do is swap blood and dragon spit to fix this especially since, technically, it wouldn’t be a complete bonding without his beast. Full healing is not a likely scenario, but mating would buy us the time we needed to come up with a viable situation to bring him to a healthy place.”
“That’s what I’m counting on, Squirt,” Aleksander replied.
“He was very close to you once. Get there again, Lankenstein. Be there for your other half,” Dra’Kaedan said. “Rafe needs you.”
“I know. I owe him another apology for my disappearing act. It wasn’t fair. I was overwhelmed, I guess.”
“The important thing is that you aren’t anymore. Which is good. I’ve had to talk to Somerly during meals. If he calls me cheap again, I’m going to punch him, whether he’s sitting with Dre’Kariston or not,” Worth vowed.
“When we put a plaque out in the memorial garden for you, I’ll put something nice on it. Like ‘He was courageous and stupid to take on a dark warlock,’ ” Brogan mused.
“Don’t forget handsome,” Worth responded.
Aleksander leaned back in his chair as life returned to normal at D’Vaire with the crazy banter that was a normal part of his day. Rafe had sought the peace of D’Vaire, and Aleksander was going to make sure he not only got that so he could deal mentally with whatever had happened to him, but he was going to bind them so the sorcerers he loved could cure his pain.
∞∞∞
Not only had Rafe slept through dinner but he didn’t budge until morning. When he lifted his lashes, he was groggy and there was a nasty film on his front teeth. His bladder was ready to burst, and he silently thanked it for surviving so many hours. Pulling himself into a seated position, he smiled as Mortis trotted to him.
“Sorry, those pills knocked me out. Give me a minute to get in my chair, and I’ll make sure you get food and go outside.”
“Tummy full. Went outside.”
Rafe dragged himself into his chair, and though he would’ve liked to use his walker instead, he was woozy enough that he figured it was a bad idea. The last thing he wanted to do was fall. “Oh, yeah, good for you. I’m glad you didn’t lay in here all night.”
“Aleksander take Mortis out two times.”
“He did? Wow.” Rafe went to the bathroom to take a piss, washed his hands, brushed his teeth, and grabbed his phone off the nightstand. There were a few messages from Conley and even a voice mail.
“Noir goddess make me food.”
“Goddess?”
“She make tummy happy.”
“She used to make mine happy too, but now I gotta eat shit again,” Rafe murmured. The texts from Conley were full of weird emojis like crowns, excited faces, and hearts, which he didn’t understand until he heard the voice mail congratulating him on being with Aleksander. Rafe had no idea how Conley had learned about his relationship with Aleksander and wheeled out of his bedroom, the possibilities boggling his mind.
“I’ve got a plate for you, and I promise it’s not going to taste awful,” Noirin said the moment she spotted him.
“Okay,” Rafe responded. Rolling over to a table, he picked up his fork once Noirin set his food in front of him. “Thanks.”
“Good morning,” Aleksander offered quietly, placing his coffee mug next to Rafe.
Swallowing his bite of surprisingly good breakfast, Rafe was stunned as all around him Aleksander’s usual tablemates set down plates or cups, then went to the buffet laid out on the long island. “Thanks for taking care of Mortis,” Rafe remarked to Aleksander when the High King returned and chose the chair next to him.
“My pleasure. I apologize for the delay, but you and Mortis are both official D’Vaires. I don’t know if Conley mentioned anything to you, but he’s been filling up my phone with happy gifs and emojis,” Aleksander responded.
