This took me completely by surprise, as did the electric tingle running up my arm. His fingers were long, the short nails neatly trimmed, not bitten like mine. And unlike the doctor, his touch was surprisingly warm.
I looked into his handsome yet worried face. Did blood and needles always freak him out? Maybe he was in a more fragile state than normal because of his father’s recent death. What if his father had died in a car accident and the almost-accident with me had traumatized him further?
I couldn’t tell him no. He…needed me. I owed him that much. “Um…okay.”
“There won’t be any blood, if that’s what you’re worried about.” The doctor pulled an overhead light and shone it on Travis’s swollen knee.
I felt so guilty that George and I were the cause of this. And those stupid dogs. The island ought to have stricter leash laws.
“It should heal quickly on its own,” Travis proclaimed in a low, gruff tone. “I’m not sure what all the damn fuss is about.”
The doctor removed the brace that the EMT had put on and prodded the joint, manipulating it this way and that. “You really wrenched this thing. The full moon was…what? Last week?”
Travis groaned, squeezing my hand tighter. “You bloodsuckers are all the same. Couldn’t care less about the moon or what phase it’s in, but I’ll bet you know exactly what time the sun sets tonight.”
Alexander chuckled without looking up. “Point taken.”
Another monster reference? I gave them a courtesy laugh.
“For your information,” said Travis, “Full moon was two nights ago. A blue moon, to be exact.”
Once in a blue moon. I couldn’t remember what that even meant. A full moon that appeared blue because of atmospheric conditions? A moon that was closer to the earth than normal? All I knew was that they were special enough to have a name. And what was the White Wolf Moon that Travis had mentioned earlier? The opposite of a Harvest Moon? I’d try to remember to add these to my list of things to google when I got to my hotel.
“With your wolf blood,” Alexander said, “you’ll heal fast, but given the extent of the damage, it may not heal correctly on its own. And that would not be good, my friend. Plus, the moon’s strength is waning. It’s a good thing you came in—we’ll need to do x-rays and an MRI. See if anything is broken or torn and get things set and aligned if necessary.”
I gulped and blinked a few times. Did he just say…wolf blood?
“At least give me something for the pain first.”
“I’m not a complete monster, Travis.” Alexander gave me another wink, then stuck his head out of the door and barked some orders.
The back of my neck prickled with heat. What was it about the island and all these monster references? I looked at the two men. They seemed like such normal, intelligent, good-looking guys. It had to be a series of inside jokes among old friends. Although all of this was bordering on weird.Tooweird.
A nurse with salt and pepper hair and a dragon tattoo on her neck entered the exam room. She handed the doctor a small tray with a vial and syringe. I’d have taken a step backward and moved away to give them some room to treat their patient, but Travis was still holding onto my hand pretty tight. I grabbed a nearby folding chair and sat down to face him at the head of the bed. If I had to stay here, I sure as hell didn’t want to see him getting poked.
“You’re going to feel a slight pinch,” the doctor told him.Sure enough, Travis winced. “Shouldn’t take too long for it to kick in. Don’t be surprised if it makes you feel groggy and a bit loopy.” He dropped the used needle into a red receptacle mounted to the wall and held the door open for the nurse with the dragon tattoo. “I’ll be back in a few minutes to give that a chance to work.”
“I really don’t want to be here,” Travis admitted to me after they had left. “And Idetestneedles, so I appreciate you staying.”
“No problemo.” I wanted to ask him about the wolf blood comment, but it sounded so stupid. I had to have misheard the doctor. Travis would no doubt look at me and wonder ifIwere the one on drugs.
However, I couldn’t help but notice that under these bright, overhead lights, his eyes did look a bit more golden yellow than brown.
“Where are you from, Daphne?” he asked in that slight drawl of his. “Where do you hang your hat?”
I smiled at his charming turn of phrase. “In the suburbs outside Atlanta, but I’m originally from Michigan.” I wasn’t about to tell him I didn’t exactly have a safe place to hang my hat at the current moment—that would inevitably lead to a whole host of questions I didn’t want to answer. Orcouldn’t, I thought, remembering that disastrous, vomit-y interview with Mulder and Scully. “What about you?”
He lifted an eyebrow as if he found my question amusing. “Born and raised here, actually. But I split my time between Vancouver and L.A.”
I was confused. “But your accent…”
He chuckled. “That’s what hours of voice coaching will do to you. I have a hard time getting rid of it when I’m not on set.”
Ahhh. Of course. The guy was an actor—that explained a lot. The mob on the ferry. Everyone holding their phones to record the scene after the accident. Whispers of the nursing staff abouttabloid articles. I really wanted to know what show he was on but didn’t want to ask and seem even more clueless.
I was about to ask him if he wanted me to let his fiancée know what had happened—I mean, Ruby should be here, not me—when I heard a commotion outside the exam room. A different nurse, this one with no visible tattoos, rushed in to grab something from the cabinet. And through the open door, I saw two EMTs pushing a gurney down the hallway with what appeared to be a dog strapped to the top.
I blinked a few times.A dog?! As a patient in a human hospital?
