Page 96 of Tiger's Quest
He responded softly, “I’d trade places with you if I could, Kells,” and continued his ablutions carefully, wrapping the thigh and calf in thin strips of cloth and then securing them with ace bandages that Mr. Kadam had included in our first aid kit. Kishan gave me two aspirin tablets and angled my head to help me drink.
“I’ve stopped the bleeding. Only one of the wounds is deep enough to make me worry. We’ll rest tonight and start back tomorrow. I’ll have to carry you, Kells. I don’t think you can walk. Your wounds might break open and begin to bleed again.”
“But, Kishan—”
“Don’t worry about it now. Rest for a while, and we’ll see how you feel in the morning.”
I stretched out a hand and placed it over his. “Kishan?”
He turned his golden eyes to my face and scrutinized it, assessing for pain, “Yes?”
“Thank you for taking care of me.”
He squeezed my hand. “I only wish I could do more. Get some sleep.”
I dozed on and off, waking as Kishan put more wood on the fire. I wasn’t sure how he found wood that was dry enough to burn, but I didn’t care enough to ask. He placed the pan of liquid he’d bathed my wounds with near the flames to keep it warm. I was snug in my sleeping bag lying on my stomach, and through a languid daze, I watched the flames lick the bottom of the pot. The herbal smell of the hot liquid suffused the air, and I drifted in and out.
At some point, I must have slept because I dreamed of Ren. He was lashed to a post with his hands tied over his head. I stood against a wall behind another post where Lokesh couldn’t see me. He spoke in another language and tapped a whip against his hand. Ren opened his eyes and saw me. He didn’t move a limb or twitch a muscle, but his eyes stirred. They brightened, and tiny, crinkly lines appeared on the sides. I smiled at him and took a step toward him. He shook his head slightly. I heard the crack of the whip and froze.
Ren gasped in pain. I burst from my hiding place, screaming, and attacked a surprised Lokesh. I grabbed the whip, but I couldn’t tear it from his grasp. He was extremely strong. It was as futile a gesture as a bird attacking a tree. I thrashed and struggled and saw the unmitigated thrill of delight as he recognized me.
Fevered excitement reached his glittering black eyes. He grabbed my hands and twisted them together above my head, then brought his whip down across the back of my legs three times. I cried out in pain. A roar behind me stole his attention. I grabbed his shirt and raked my fingernails across his throat and chest. He shook me.
“Kelsey. Kelsey! Wake up!”
I woke with a start. “Kishan?”
“You were dreaming again.”
He was zipped into the sleeping bag with me. He gently pried my fingers from his shirt.
I looked at his chest and throat and saw vicious, bloody scratches. I touched one gently. “Oh,Kishan. I’m so sorry. Does it hurt badly?”
“It’s okay. They’re healing as we speak.”
“I didn’t mean to. I was dreaming of Lokesh again. I . . . I don’t want to go back, Kishan. I want to keep moving, keep looking for the spirit gate. Ren is suffering. I know it.”
To my great dismay, I started weeping. I wept partly because of the pain in my legs, partly because of the stress of the journey, but the biggest reason I wept was because I knew that Ren was hurting. Kishan shifted and wrapped his arms around me.
“Shh, Kelsey. It’s going to be alright.”
“You don’t know that. Lokesh may kill him before we find the stupid spirit gate.” I cried while Kishan rubbed my back.
“Remember Durga said she’d watch over him. Don’t forget about that.”
I sobbed. “I know but—”
“Your safety is more important than the quest, and Ren would agree with that.”
I laughed wetly. “He probably would, but—”
“No buts. We need to head back, Kells. Once you heal, we can come back and try again. Agreed?”
“I guess so.”
“Good. Ren is . . . lucky to hold the heart of a woman such as you, Kelsey.”
I turned on my side to look at him. The fire was still going, and I watched the flames dance in his troubled, golden eyes.
