AllFreeNovel
Share Us
As far as monsters go, I’m the grumpiest fucker I know, and for good reason. The bitchier I am, the more people leave me alone, and me? I like to be left alone. Now I’m not being left alone, though. For the first time ever, there’s a human in my cave, and I’m not quite sure what to do about it.
I could bark at her and tell her to leave. I could kill her. I could simply shift and then nudge her out of the cave and she’d leave. She’d be too scared to fight me and to try to stay. Nope. Saving a human isn’t on the menu for today, even if she does smell delicious.
Even if she does smell like fucking perfection.
I approach her quietly, cautiously, in my human form. This part of the cave is lower than the rest of it, and while I can fit in this area in my dragon form, there’s no way I can get through the exit without shifting. It’s one reason I like this place. It’s kind of off the beaten path and away from prying eyes. No one is going to see the entrance and go, “Oh, my. A dragon definitely lives there!”
Nope, unless someone is looking for this place, there’s no way they’re going to find it. Not this cave. Not with me in it. Still, my defenses weren’t as strong as I might have liked, apparently. Someone got through, anyway, and now it’s time for her to leave.
As I approach the woman sleeping in my cave, I look at her. She smells…familiar, somehow. Comfortable. She reminds me of a time long ago when everything seemed all right in the world.
She reminds me of who I used to be, and somehow, that makes my stomach feel tight.
I left Fablestone a long time ago.
This woman isn’t a dragon.
So why does she smell good to me?
I near her, looking at her long dark hair. She’s sitting with her back to the cave wall and her arms are curled around her knees protectively. There’s a blanket on the floor next to her. I think she tried to wrap it around herself, but it must have fallen at some point after she fell asleep.
Who is this woman?
I need to get her out of my cave. I know this. I don’t exactly have a reputation of protecting humans who wander too close to my treasure trove, but something about her just…calls to me.
Then something else tickles my senses, and I move more quickly. My medical training kicks in as I realize I smell blood, and no little bit. I peer at the human’s hands. Sure enough, they’re caked in dried blood. Then I see her pants, and I let out a growl at the sight of her injuries.
I don’t know this woman is or where she’s come from, but she’s hurt. As much as I don’t want her here with me, I have to take care of her. I swore an oath long ago and right now, keeping that oath means keeping her safe. I will do whatever it takes.
Realizing I’ll have to risk waking her, I squat beside the woman and reach for her. Carefully, gingerly, I pick her up and rise to my feet. She feels weightless, just about. Has she been eating enough lately? Has she recently lost weight? The thought of her not getting enough food bothers me for some reason, and I shake my head. I move toward the back of the cave, leaving her backpack and blanket behind. I’ll return for those things later. Right now, the most important thing is getting her wounds clean.
“Who are you, little human?” I ask, and my voice is almost a whisper. To my surprise, she whispers back.
“Fucking dragons,” she says, but her words are so clear that I almost drop her. “Always causing trouble for me,” she grumbles. “Dragons indeed.”
Then she falls quiet, and I realize I’m not quite sure what I’ve gotten myself into.
*
As a doctor, working on a patient who is injured doesn't turn me on. It doesn't affect me on a sexual or personal level. When I'm taking care of someone, I instantly go into "doctor mode" and my only goal is to assess the damage and take care of the patient. With the woman in front of me, I'm dealing with a couple of problems.
First of all, there's the bleeding. It doesn't seem overly extreme, and I'll deal with that in a moment. First, I need to work on getting her fluids and medication to calm and relax her while I do any stitching she might need. This woman is completely dehydrated. What the hell? When was the last time she drank a fucking glass of water? I shake my head as I work on getting an IV set up. Her veins are weak. She's been dehydrated for awhile and actually getting things set up proves to be challenging. On my third stick, I get a good vein.
Yeah, I might be living like a damn fox in a tiny little hole, but I haven't neglected my medical training or my supplies.
Despite basically running away from my hometown and my problems, I've kept up with medical work. I've volunteered all around the world in different shifter communities, but I haven't stayed in any one place for too long. Although most people from Fablestone don't travel often, the truth is that you never know when you're going to run into someone you know. I don't like the idea of seeing Loretta or Cameron or Ellie and having to explain that yes, I did leave Fablestone, and no, I am not returning.
I hook the little human up to an IV and begin to assess the rest of the damage. She seems weak and pale. I bet she's dealing with something difficult because her body seems stressed and tense. Whatever she's been facing, the issue has been going on for awhile. Is she sick? Did she come from an area with sickness? Maybe the stress is mental and not physical. I'm not sure.
I grab a pair of scissors and begin to cut, easily removing her clothes. I don't like doing this to someone unconscious, especially to a stranger, but the bleeding needs to be taken care of. It's not pressing enough that I had to focus on that before setting up her IV, but it is something that can’t be ignored.
Once her clothes are off, I get to work on cleaning each of her cuts and scrapes. Most of her wounds are superficial, but both of her knees are going to need stitches. Unfortunately for the little human, she doesn’t heal as fast as shifters do.
The medication I gave her in the IV will help minimize any pain she feels as I start to carefully suture her cuts. I work methodically and quickly, careful to make each stitch neat. She only needs a few, and her scars will be quite small. They’ll fade quickly, too. Soon
she won’t even notice them.
I finish treating her and wash my hands, then return to the young woman and cover her with a blanket. She stirs slightly, but not too much, and I pull up a seat beside her so I can watch over her.
