Bonded to the Rakian Berserker (Rakian Warrior Mates #3) - Elin Wyn Page 0,1

different.

When she forced her eyes open he wasn’t there.

A woman with dark masses of curly black hair and olive skin sat at her side.

The room was unfamiliar, clean and bright, but strangely sterile smelling.

The door slid open and another woman bustled into the room, brown hair pulled into a thick braid over her shoulder, a bundle of fabric in her hands.

“I know you,” Esme whispered.

The second woman nodded. “We met by the river two, no, three weeks ago,” she answered. “I’m Rhela, and this is Adena. She patched you up while you were sleeping.”

Esme’s hands fluttered at her side, finally realizing that the pain, the tearing screaming pain that had wracked through her, breaking every shred of concentration was gone.

No bandages were underneath the thin shift she wore. She couldn’t even feel any tenderness where the wound had been.

Astounding.

“Thank you,” she said. “I’m Esme. I’m not sure how I’ll ever be able to repay your skill.”

And there it was again, that familiar, red-tinged presence.

“Why doesn’t he come in?” she asked the two women.

They glanced at each other, and the darker haired one, Adena, smiled. “Because I sent him out. Gavin’s gotten bossy all of a sudden.” She tilted her head to the side. “But if you want him…” she trailed off and Esme nodded.

The pain was gone, but her body ached, and in the back of her mind she knew there was more to come, an injury not to the body, but to the heart.

She just couldn’t imagine what it was, not yet.

Before anyone could say anything else, the door slid back again, only to be filled by the huge bulk of a man, broad shouldered, taller than anyone Esme had ever seen.

He stepped in, brow wrinkled in worry that she could feel shedding off of him like rain.

“How are you feeling?” he asked gruffly, his eyes fixed on hers and for a moment her chest tightened. If only she had more than glimpses, more than fragments to work from.

“Terrible,” she answered, “but better than dead.”

“Do you think you’re up to telling us what happened?” Adena asked.

The giant spun to move between the healer and the bed, snarling. “No! She’s tired, let her rest.”

Esme studied the two women. Surprised, but not afraid, even at this show of temper.

Interesting.

She reached out for the giant’s hand, and at her touch he refocused on her.

“I’m sorry, I’ll leave.”

“No,’’ she said. “But there’s no reason for you to be so angry all the time. It’s going to give me a headache.”

She smiled as he ran his free hand through his hair. “That’s going to take some work,” he admitted.

But it wasn’t the constant tinge of his anger that pressed so sharply in her skull.

There was something else.

Something she needed to know.

Even if she didn’t want to, even if she was certain the knowledge might break her.

“How many of us are here?” she finally asked, shoulders set for the blow.

“Only you,” he rumbled, fingers squeezing hers. “We were hoping you could tell us what happened,” he continued. “Who attacked you? What did they want?”

“I… I don’t know. I don’t remember.”

Again.

She ran her fingers through her braids, down the old scar hidden by her hair just behind her left temple, then struggled to push herself up from the absurdly soft mattress,

Adena rested a slim hand on Esme’s shoulder and a warm glow flowed through her chest. “I’d rather you didn’t get up so soon.” she said. “But I understand needing answers. Come on, let’s get you dressed.”

The healer turned to the giant. “Gavin, that’s your cue to leave.”

His eyes suddenly widened in comprehension and a dark flush colored his cheeks. “Right, of course.”

And with a grace that his size made surprising, he fled the room.

Rhela stepped forward, a wry smile on her face. “Before you leave this room, let me try to explain where we are. Just the important bits. The details don’t really matter.”

Esme eased her legs over the side of the bed, paused to catch her breath. “That doesn’t sound encouraging, but go on.”

“You’re on a building that’s really a ship that travels between different worlds. The men here are from another place. Another planet, really. But they’re nice, despite how strange they may seem at first.”

Rhela paused, and Esme nodded slowly.

“All right. Our clan heard talk about star men coming. It makes sense that they’d need something like their own caravan to arrive in.”

“That’s more than I knew in the beginning,” Rhela admitted. “The other thing to know is that everything in this