Page 112 of House of Malice
Alecto helped him onto the bed. It hurt to sit, so he lay on his back. She turned on the light.
He was disheveled, his hair messy. The bruises on his face and neck looked even worse in the light.
“I’m okay,” he croaked, his voice hoarse. He coughed and then gripped his side, frowning from pain. “I’m alright, baby. Don’t worry.”
“Stay here, I’ll be back in a moment,” she said.
Alecto left his room and went to the second floor, looking for Jolene. She found her in her room, lying in the bed with Leigh. They both sat up when Alecto entered without knocking.
“I’m sorry,” Alecto said, rubbing her face. “I should have knocked. I’m sorry.”
“You’re fine, don’t worry,” Jolene said. “What happened? Are the police here? The Dean—?”
Alecto shook her head. “No. No police or the Dean. It’s— Do you still have that salve you make for healing bruises?”
Jolene nodded and got to her feet. From the chest of drawers next to her bed, she pulled out a small amber jar and handed it to Alecto. “Who is this for?” Jolene asked. “What happened?”
Alecto hesitated, unsure if Blaze wanted everyone to know. She decided against telling the truth. At least, for now. “I will tell you later,” Alecto said. “Thank you. Everything is okay, so don’t worry. But thank you.”
Jolene nodded, clearly worried. But she didn’t question Alecto, who left to get back to Blaze.
She found him where she’d left him.
“Here, I got the salve,” she said, crawling onto the bed next to him. “Are there bruises anywhere else?”
Blaze sighed. “I think he broke my rib.”
Gods. Alecto wanted to kill that man.
Blaze sat down, and Alecto helped him take off his jacket, and then she helped him out of his shirt. There were more bruises on the side of his torso.
“Ah, Blaze,” Alecto said, taking in the damage Galliermo had done.
“I tried to fight back this time,” Blaze said with a smirk. “But he used magic. Can you believe it? He had never used magic when punishing me before.”
Alecto looked at Blaze for a long moment, unsure what to even say. What was there to say really? Galliermo was sick, and there was nothing they could do about it.
“Alright, let me put the salve on so the bruises start healing,” she finally said, unscrewing the jar. “Do you want me to call Jill? Or even Jolene? To check your rib.”
Blaze shook his head. “Not right now. I’ll get it sorted later.”
Alecto nodded. She applied the cooling salve that smelled like mint over his bruises on his side and over his ribs. Then she did the same around his neck and under his eye.
She tried to be as gentle as possible. Blaze watched her intently while she worked.
“Thank you,” he said softly once she was done.
“Of course.”
Alecto put the salve away and went to the bathroom to wash her hands. When she came back, she found Blaze pulling cigarettes out of his jacket pocket.
He lit one, took a long drag, and offered it to Alecto. She opened the window and then sat down next to him. She accepted the cigarette.
“I loved coming back and finding you here,” he said, placing a hand on her knee. “It felt really, really good to find you here.”
Alecto placed her hand over his. “What are we going to do, Blaze?” she asked quietly. “Next time he might kill you.”
Blaze chuckled. “He won’t kill me. But he will send me to Grimswater.”
