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23
Liam
“Great news, you’re cleared to leave,” a nurse says as she pulls back the curtain around my bed.
Finally.
But why?
The nurses made it clear their orders came from my dad. For some reason, he’d kept me here and cut me off from the rest of the school. The only contact I’d had for a week was the nurses who came in to check my vitals and bring me food.
If I’m getting out now, something changed. My father does everything for a reason. Each move is calculated for his own gain.
What did this cost?
Harper.
It has to be about her.
I leave the hospital as quickly as possible and make my way down the halls toward her room. Every step sends pain through my chest, but it’s healing well. The monster should have killed me. If not for Professor Cardale, I’d be dead.
I wonder if my dad is pissed about that.
Slowing down, I take careful breaths to keep from doing too much damage to the stitches. Shifters and demons both heal quickly. I should have recovered fully from this already. Whatever the monster I charged was, the poison in its claws was stronger than the magic flowing through me. I’m still going to heal, but it’ll be a few more weeks.
It’s like knowing what a human feels. I hate it.
I pass my room and walk straight to Harper’s door. She opens it before I even knock. The smile on her face tells me she isn’t upset that she was sent away all week.
“Hey” I say.
“Hey,” she says. “Welcome back.”
“Please tell me whatever you did was worth it,” I say.
Her hand moves to a pendant around her neck and she drops her eyes. It’s clear that I’m correct. She is responsible for getting me out. It’s also clear that she’s not thrilled with the price.
I move closer to her and lift her chin with my finger. “Tell me what happened.”
“He wasn’t going to let you out,” she says.
“You spoke to him?” I don’t need clarification about whoheis. My dad has a way of ruining everything. Apparently, being his son isn’t enough to keep me out of his plans anymore.
“He was going to make you stay in there during the full moon,” she says.
“I would have found a way to get out of there,” I say, not sure if I believe it. “Besides, it was keeping you safe.”
I’d tried at first to get out, but the doors hadn’t opened for me. I’m pretty sure my father had them spelled to keep me in. It wouldn’t be the first time he’d used that trick on me. Though, this time it wasn’t about me being a reckless teenager who got busted stealing his car to go to a party.
This punishment was far worse, though. He threatened Harper. I would have happily stayed there to keep her safe.
“He was going to let you shift in there,” she says. “In front of all those people.”
I knew I was at risk of shifting, but it was worth it if I could buy her more time.
“You did it to protect me?” Since our mating bond snapped into place, Harper has been difficult to push out of my mind. Thinking of ways to make her happy and keep her safe have occupied much of my time.
I never realized she was doing the same for me.
