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His dragon growled.I don’t like this. I thought the doctors said it’d take longer for her dragon to wake up? And where’s the nurse?
Bronx had noticed the lack of sound of someone else in the cabin, apart from Percy.They said they weren’t completely sure about her dragon. The inmates had been given loads of drugs, and who the hell knows what it’s done to Percy’s system? And maybe she knocked the nurse unconscious.
Just help her.
If his dragon seemed overly concerned about Percy, he paid it no attention.
Bronx finally reached her room, knocked, and said, “I’m coming in, Percy.”
He didn’t expect a reply beyond the tortured cries, and he was right. Rushing inside, he saw Percy on the bed, arching her back and scratching at the sides of her face. At the blood trailing down her face, both man and beast growled.
There was no sign of the nurse.
In two strides, he was on the bed. He took her wrists in his hands, pinning them to the mattress. “Percy, can you hear me? Percy!”
She screamed and writhed some more, bucking as if she were trying to get away from something.
If it were her dragon, she’d never be able to do that since her beast was a part of her.
If she was having a nightmare, then he’d deal with that later, once he calmed her down.
Fuck, fuck, fuck.But how? He kept his grip on her wrists firm yet as gentle as he could as he said, “Percy, listen to me. If you can hear me at all and if your dragon has woken up, you need to fight for control. Dragons usually respond to firm tones and strict instructions. Try giving her one and tell her to calm down. If that doesn’t work, maybe try singing to her, or even imagine constructing an imaginary wall around her, to contain her.”
She continued to squirm and pulled against his grip, and the actions hurt his heart.
“Percy, did you hear me?”
Her screams grew a little fainter, but it still felt as if someone were stabbing him with each and every one. All he could do was keep her wrists in place and pin her legs down so she wouldn’t hurt herself.
His dragon said,Try singing to her. That always worked with Edith.
Their late mate had suffered nightmares about her ex-boyfriend for the entirety of their short mating. One time, he’d tried singing, and it had helped to wake her up.
Without thinking, he started crooning an old-fashioned dragon ballad about a dragonwoman who lost her clan and spent years searching for them. Eventually, she was reunited, found her true mate, and helped to forge ties with the other clans she’d met during her journey.
It was long, and at first, Bronx didn’t think it was doing anything. However, as he neared the final verse, Percy struggled a little less and stopped screaming.
After he sang the final note, she acted up again. And so Bronx sang the same song over and over again, until Dr. Sid and Dr. Gregor Innes dashed into the room.
Dr. Sid stopped near Percy’s head and quickly murmured, “I’m sorry I have to do this, Percy. I truly am.” Then she took out a syringe, made sure there was no air, and injected the contents.
Within seconds, Percy went slack.
And as Bronx perched over Percy, staring at her scratched face, blood drying on her cheeks and jaw, he felt like he’d already failed her.
His dragon spoke up.No, this is all because of those human bastards who hurt her. We’ll look after her, and it’ll help. You’ll see.
Dr. Innes put a hand on Bronx’s shoulder, and he jumped a little. The doctor’s familiar Scottish accent brought him back to reality. “It’s all right, Bronx. You can release her now, aye? We’ll look after her.”
Slowly, ever so slowly, he released his grip on Percy’s wrists. He almost brushed her cheeks but resisted. Not only because it was wrong on so many levels, but also because Bronx had no right to it. Percy deserved to choose who touched her when she wasn’t in danger, either from herself or from others. Always.
He backed off the bed and watched as the two doctors examined Percy and tended to her wounds. He should’ve been patient, but he blurted, “What did you give her?”
Dr. Sid glanced at him before continuing her work on Percy. “A regular sedative. I probably should’ve given her the dragon silent drug, but I can’t bring myself to do it. She’s had too many doses as it is, and I don’t want to give her the one that might steal her dragon away forever.”
Since Dr. Sid had lived exactly that scenario—it’d been decades before her dragon had returned—he understood her reasoning. “But if it was her dragon just now, won’t this just happen again when she wakes up?”
Dr. Sid sighed. “Maybe. Maybe not. We really should restrain her, Bronx, until we know how her dragon will act.” He growled, but before he could say a word, the doctor continued, “I understand why you don’t want us to do it, given her past. And I know you’re protective, and always have been. However, what if you hadn’t heard her cries and come to stop her from hurting herself? She might’ve scratched her eyes out, or if the dragon figured out how to extend a talon, maybe even sliced her throat.” She met his gaze again. “And I can’t risk that happening.”
