Shared Mercy Book 5 of the Guardians Saga

Ch. 10.2 What's Worse?

Both the fight and having to calm down the Mercy Tent girls kept Alex too wound up to sleep even after Rile had gone to bed. She walked back to the tent, preferring the brisk, cold night air.

When she reached it, Alex had never before seen the tent flap tied closed. Of course, she had never gone to bed after Rile, either. Maybe he always tied it shut after they fell asleep. She shrugged it off as another cultural thing to learn.

She couldn't shrug off the next sight. Rile was asleep, a strange young female curled with him. Rile did not wake at Alex's entrance, but the girl did. Alex shoved away images of another female, curled with another brother, and knelt by Rile.

"Wake up," her voice and hand were gentle.

No response.

"You're welcome, too," the girl told her. "All of us together. I hear you like that. We can do whatever you want."

Alex didn't spare her a glance but her scent of flowery oil and sweet wine was almost overpowering. She started rubbing a glowing hand on Rile's chest until he sighed and stirred. She shook him a little more insistently this time. "Wakey, wakey."

"Hmm?" Rile looked up at her and smiled sleepily.

Alex did not smile back.

"Do you know this female?" Alex gently turned Rile's head toward her.

His gasp of alarm and scrabbling away from the strange girl satisfied Alex.

"No! What is going on?! Alex, I would never . . ." His gasp of terror was loud in the quiet of the tent. His eyes grew wide with horror. Then he took a deep breath and spoke, his voice quiet and in control. "I don't know this female."

"I know." Alex looked at the girl. "This trick has been tried before. It's more effective when I'm the one sleeping and suddenly awakened. That's when I'm confused and gullible."

"Relax." The girl leaned forward and suddenly Alex felt a sharp stab on her arm. "This will help."

Alex ripped open the tent flap. "Cale! Cale! Help! Bring your medical kit!"

Alex's cry of alarm brought both him and Gabe in at a run, daggers drawn while Rile struggled to sit up. "Cale! She gave me something on my arm! Said it would relax me!"

Alex held out her arm, a bubble of blood welling up on the forearm.

Cale made a quick tourniquet below her elbow and told Alex to brace herself. Alex tried to keep her arm still while Cale took a sample, but she couldn't help a small jerk as he worked. He slashed open the tiny wound and sucked the blood, spitting it out just as quickly. Alex remembered first aid for snake bites and realized the principle was sound. Now she didn't move a muscle until Cale stopped.

Gabe watched the strange scene while keeping watch on his sleepy brother and strange female. Rile also watched, still groggy from the sleep drug. A couple seconds later Cale stopped and Alex sighed with relief.

"Your hand is blue. I have to release the tourniquet. It should be okay now." Cale's worried expression betrayed him.

"Let me blast it with a full spectrum charge. It helped when that Gila bit me way back when. Wash your mouth out, please, Cale." Alex didn't spare an iota of charge and her hand was now both numb and blue.

Cale rinsed his mouth out with wine.

"I brought the usual liquid, if that's what's got you so upset," the girl continued, oblivious to the scene before her. "I brought enough for four. I was told there would be three males and a female. "