Tenebrous ↠ Volturi Kings {1} ✓

034

Three days before the wedding, I was finally allowed to walk. Most of the family was standing on the edges of the room, watching with vested interest, but my three mates and Emmett all hovered anxiously around me.

"Give her some space," Carlisle ordered. Emmett stepped back at once, but the kings were not so obliging.

Caius turned to snarl at him. "You cannot tell us to-"

"Caius," I said sharply, and he fell silent at once. "Carlisle is a doctor. He knows what he's doing. And I can't walk if you're all crowded around me."

"Apologies, amore," he said and stepped away. Aro and Marcus followed suit, but they wore matching worried expressions.

"Now, careful that you don't stand too quickly," Carlisle said, moving to stand in front of me. "And if you feel sick, dizzy, or faint I want you to tell me immediately. Do you understand?"

"Yes, I understand," I said impatiently. "Can I stand now?"

He chuckled. "Yes, you can. Hold to me if you need to steady yourself and be very mindful of your shoulder."

"I can't move it anyway, between the bandages and the sling," I pointed out. The only time my arm was out of the sling was when Carlisle changed the bandages once a day.

"I meant to be careful not to jar it. You won't tear any stitches that way, but it will hurt," he said with an amused smile. "You can stand whenever you're ready, but be sure to take it slow."

"Okay," I said, letting out a determined breath. I carefully eased myself down to the floor, cool against my bare feet. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Aro, Caius, and Marcus all tense in unison as I put weight on my legs, relieved that they didn't give out like the last time I had tried standing in the hospital.

"Feeling okay?" Carlisle asked.

"Yes," I said. It was odd, standing after being confined to bed for so long. My muscles felt very stiff, and I took a wobbly step towards Carlisle.

"Good," he encouraged. "Your legs will be a bit stiff and weak until you get accustomed to walking around again."

"Noticed that," I said, intensely focused on making sure my legs didn't buckle as I walked several more steps.

"Watch her, Carlisle," Edward warned. I sent him a betrayed look but nearly collapsed a second later.

"I've got her," Carlisle already had an arm wrapped around my torso to help me regain my balance. All three of the kings has started forward. "It's perfectly normal. I was expecting you to fall. I'm impressed you made it this far."

"I can go farther," I protested.

He smiled. "Let's not push yourself too far. Rest for a little while and you can try again in a few minutes, if you really want to."

"I do," I said.

"I thought you would," Carlisle said with a chuckle. Most of the family dispersed now that I was reseated on the bed, but Emmett sat down beside me and shot me a grin.

"That was good, squirt. You'll be running around again in no time, I'm sure of it," he said.

I grinned back. "Thanks, Dad. I sure hope so."

"I'll get you some lunch," Rose said. I had regained my appetite around mid-morning yesterday, though the intermittent strong painkillers I had to take still made me nauseous.

"That would be great, Mom. Thanks," I said. I swiveled on my butt so I could lean against the pillows. My ribs would take a while to heal - as would the linear fracture in my skull - but the pain from the fractures had ebbed. The only real trouble was my shoulder, which throbbed duly on the best of days and protested if my shoulder moved even a fraction of an inch.