Maybe Kaden’s horrified expression told him the answer. But not the real answer, that Kaden couldn’t remember the last time he ate anything or what he ate.
“Hopefully there’s no permanent damage to your larynx. Your blood work raises questions, there are a few abnormalities, but we’ll check it again later.”
Kaden grabbed the pad and showed the doctor what he’d written.
“No home for you today.”
He pulled back the curtain and left.
His dad came back, took hold of Kaden’s hand and squeezed his fingers. “The doctor said maybe you can go home tomorrow. I’ll call in the morning. You need to try harder with your writing. Something is wrong and I want to know what. I’ve told the nursing staff Harris is not allowed to see you, that he’s no longer your boyfriend.”
Kaden nodded. He might not remember telling his dad that, or Harris, but he was glad.
“You swear to me that this had nothing to do with Jalis?”
So it hadn’t been a slip. His dad had meant to say Jalis. Kaden shook his head. Though he didn’t know that it hadn’t.
“Get some sleep, son.” His dad bent and kissed his forehead.
Kaden had never felt so confused in his life. His thoughts skidded uselessly, refusing to line up. He tried to work backwards. When had he last seen Harris?
Then he clapped his hand to his mouth and bit into the side of his finger.Oh fuck.Harris had taken him to Lixian to get material for the day-in-the-life article. And Kaden had… What had he done?
Something… But he didn’t remember what.
~~~
Joe had been wheeled into the ward as Harris walked out, clutching his stomach. His face was still bruised from where Joe had used Kaden’s fist to hit him. What was that monster doing here? Kaden lay pale against white sheets, his long lashes dark against his cheeks, a bag of fluid hanging next to his bed. Like the one feeding Joe.
The relief in seeing Kaden alive hit Joe as fiercely as physical pain. He listened intently as Kaden’s dad spoke to the nurse and he could still hear when the doctor drew the curtains around the bed. Knowing how badly he’d damaged Kaden’s throat made him feel terrible. He might be able to fix it by compelling the fragment of himself still inside Kaden to move to his throat. Butmightwas the problem. What if he couldn’t return it to support Kaden’s heart? He decided to wait and see if Kaden’s throat got better without help.
Joe couldn’t tell whether Kaden was pretending he couldn’t remember in order to avoid questions or whether he genuinely couldn’t. The only way to find out was to talk to him, and desperate as Joe was, he couldn’t. Not only could he not walk, his brain wasn’t yet enabling the necessary parts of his body to form words that made sense. Even more worrying, if Joe had not positioned his larynx in exactly the right place, the number of sounds available to him would be limited.
Unsurprisingly, the doctors had no idea what was wrong with him.
And then there was the other issue. Maybe there was suspicion already but if not, there soon would be. Two new patients in this medical assessment unit. Both male and of a similar age. Both found on the same floor of the hospital. Neither able to speak. One with a damaged throat, the other without motor skills and unable to do much of anything except lie there and worry. Not that anyone knew about the worry.
Joe could feel the echo of his exit from Kaden, the burn of it still lingering like a phantom ache. He assumed it was his new body knitting itself together. He had no idea how long it would take and how successful he’d been at making himself human. It was a miracle he’d managed this much.
There was also another problem. Gash and Lanu were still inside Harris. And probably the reason Harris was holding his stomach. Joe was pretty sure they couldn’t do what he’d done and emerge as human. Did they even know what he’d done? Although they didn’t have the capability to shapeshift, they might find some way to control Harris. Get to his brain… Then what would they do? Joe wanted to talk to Kaden, wanted to ask him what to do.
Questions were coming. Questions he couldn’t answer, even if he had a voice. And if Kaden didn’t remember, Joe pretending not to remember might only delay the inevitable. Hehadto talk to him.
There was a dull ache in his stomach and he wondered if it meant he needed to pee.Thatwas going to be an adventure. Even trying to explain what he needed was tricky but he managed it. He was given a container and left alone. It took a while, but the relief in being able to empty his bladder was huge.
Joe waited until the middle of the night.
All patients apart from him were sleeping. The nurses had just done their checks. Joe slid out of bed, dragged himselfacross the floor, and hauled himself up beside Kaden’s bed. Exhausting, but he managed it. He waited until his heart steadied before tugging gently at Kaden’s arm.
His eyes fluttered open and he looked straight at Joe.
“Do…y-y-you…mem…?” Joe whispered, upset that the words still sounded wrong. But all he needed was for Kaden to recognise him. Except how could he? He’d never seen Joe before.I’m an idiot.Would he remember his name? “J…Joe…Joe,” he repeated, thrilled he’d got the word out.
Kaden blinked in confusion and his eyes closed again.
Joe slid back to the floor and slithered to his bed. Getting into it further exhausted him. Kaden didn’t remember, so Joe had no choice. He’d claim asylum and not mention Kaden. Destroy the papers Kaden had hidden. He tried to tell himself it was safer and better that Kaden didn’t remember. But it wasn’t what Joe wanted. And it wasn’t what Kaden had wanted either.
He lay awake, watching over him.Please remember. I need you.
