Loved by a Beast - Miranda Bridges Page 0,6
hadn’t.
Vivian lies there, her skin so pale that the dark circles under her eyes make it look as if she’s been punched. Her parted lips have a strange blue tinge to them, and her chest doesn’t move. It’s as if her breaths are too shallow to cause it to rise.
Or she’s dead.
I pull my gaze away from my friend’s body and focus it on the healers as their hands flutter about Vivian’s torso. Brannick and Anwa stand on opposite ends of the large incision on Vivian’s stomach, hurriedly sewing it closed, only stopping to wipe excess blood away. It’s hard for me to believe Vivian has any left, considering how much of it has drained from her.
I huddle close to Scarlett, who has kept her attention on the baby the entire time after seeing Vivian in her current state. Scarlett strokes the fluff of raven hair on the infant’s head, the softness in her gaze warming my heart. The baby lies quietly in her arms and stares up at Scarlett with an inquisitive expression, the gold in her eyes swirling as though the infant is concentrating. As I take in the tender exchange between Scarlett and the baby, I’m pulled from the shroud of despair that’s draped over my shoulders, weighing me down.
For a brief moment anyway.
“Ecknar zat!” Jaxar roars. “Why are you defiling the female’s body in such a manner?”
I catch the expressions of the healers as they glance at the Masse, but instead of answering him, they go back to their frenzied sewing. Jaxar takes a step forward, and I intercept him, placing a hand on his chest.
“They are performing surgery on Vivian to save her life,” I say. “It’s a common practice on Earth.”
The look of horror does not leave Jaxar’s face. If anything, it deepens as the muscles along his jaw flicker and his dark brows draw closer together, almost touching at this point.
“They are butchering her.” He shakes his head as if to rid himself of the image. “I cannot allow this, Massela, even for you.”
“It’s not for me,” I say, bringing my free hand to cup his cheek. He jerks back as if my touch burns him. I try not to let the hurt from that minor rejection show on my face, but my heart squeezes painfully in my chest. “Jaxar, I need you to trust me in this. Please.”
I’m not sure if it’s the pleading in my voice or the fact that he realizes he can’t undo what’s already happened, but he gives me a curt nod.
“Thank you,” I whisper. “Who is with Tika?”
“Yania is watching over her.”
After letting my hands fall away from Jaxar, I turn to find Anwa and Brannick wiping their hands and arms, clearing the red hue from their skin. Then Anwa walks over to place her hand on Vivian’s neck, followed by her forehead.
“The female still lives, Masse.”
Brannick approaches Jaxar and bows his head before speaking. “We’ve done all we can to save the female, so now we wait.”
“Let me examine the youngling,” Anwa says, approaching Scarlett. “There wasn’t time earlier.”
“The youngling…” Jaxar’s voice holds a note of disbelief, laced with awe. “It survived? How?”
Brannick points a claw in my direction. “The Massela told us that when a youngling is stuck in the mother’s womb, the healer overseeing the birth will remove the infant by cutting into the mother’s stomach. I also felt the way you do in this moment, Masse, but the logic of it was hard to argue with.”
The healer’s copper eyes gleam with an intense emotion I’m not able to decipher. “The female would have died,” he says. “That is a fact given what I witnessed, in addition to what Anwa says occurred with the last set of human females in the past. So Anwa and I thought we would at least attempt to save the youngling.” Brannick’s chest swells with pride when he says, “And we have. If we had not attempted the procedure, she would’ve perished along with the mother. But now there’s a chance they will both live.”
We all turn as the tent flap is pulled aside. Draal enters, his golden gaze zeroing on his mate. With a small cry, Scarlett rushes to him and flings herself into his arms, which he promptly wraps around her. He strokes her hair and whispers something in her ear before looking at Jaxar. “Frixon is detained.”
Jaxar grunts and then turns back to stare at Vivian. Despite the obvious fatigue displayed on their faces, the healers