The Defiant Claim (The Claim: Book 2) LGBT

Chapter 20 - Mik (Part 2)

Day by day, Dr. Waaban came to dress his wounds and check up on Sam. The nurses flitted in and out. The heart monitor reached a steady and normal pace and the ventilator was replaced with a simple oxygen tube.

Cameron came to visit Sam for hours every day but didn't disturb Mik. He slept through most of Cameron's visits, anyhow. Mik thought he got a whiff of Noodin once or twice as well, but refused to open his eyes and acknowledge him.

The old hag—Eloise—was curt but polite with Mik and he returned the same level of courtesy to her when she came to check on Sam.

Every day, Sam grew a bit better, a bit stronger. No one knew when he'd wake up but the doctor and nurses all murmured amongst themselves that he'd wake up when he was ready to.

A week went by. Then a second. Mik's fever left completely and his lacerations started scabbing over and healing. Dr. Waaban still insisted that he not move and remain in bed until he was sure they would not reopen. Eloise was instructed to massage his aching body and give him sponge baths. Neither she nor Mik were happy with this arrangement at first, but they tolerated each other. Mik couldn't lie that the massages worked wonders and he appreciated washing away the dirt, grime, and sweat that had collected.

Eloise was company that was far nicer than the voice in Mik's head. Mik started asking her about herself, her life, her family, her youth—anything to take his mind off the voice in his head and the dread he felt inside for the moment Sam would wake up and face him. Eloise was skeptical at first, but every day she came back, he asked her about her family, what she liked to do in her free time, what meals she would be having later, what spices and herbs she put into those meals. Digging deeper into little things that he otherwise would have found meaningless.

She must have woken up on the wrong side of the bed one day as she snarled at him. "Stop prying into my life."

He took no offense but apologized nonetheless. "I'm bored and you're life, however dull you might think it is, is more interesting than what I got going on right now. I'll stop prying. Can we talk about food instead?"

She snorted. "Of all things to talk about, you want to talk about food?"

"Why not? We all need to eat and I assume I'll be looking after Sam once I'm well enough to do so."

"Confident, aren't we?"

"He's alive and getting better every day..."

"Yeah, I don't know how much he'll want you after all this. Alpha might put you back in prison. What do ya think about that?"

Mik closed his eyes and heaved a sigh. "I deserve it."

She humphed and got to work massaging his legs. After a few minutes of silence she said, "So, you want to cook for him, huh?"

"Yes. I did while he was cramming for his Friday exams. He said I was good but... there's a difference between good and great when you compare it to the charcoal he makes."

Eloise chuckled. "Sam burns everything, huh?"

"Terribly."

There was a short, sharp exhale through her nose, like a half snort. "I always thought he'd be the one preparing meals for the two of you."

"That makes two of us."

"So what have you tried making for him? And tell me all the details like spices and herbs you used."

While she continued her massage, he described in detail the various dishes he made for Sam. The spices they had tried and the texture and flavor of the meat to the best of his ability. By the end of it, he could smell her drooling and wiping the saliva from her mouth as she pulled away, her job completed.