Darkness (New Species #12)(66)

He smiled, his expression adorable. “Loud. It woke me up.”
The door suddenly moved and Darkness filled the space. “Salvation.”
The boy jumped, spinning to face the snarling voice. Kat shot Darkness a warning look. “Don’t scare him.”
“He should be frightened. He knows better than to run away from someone watching him.” Darkness entered the room, focused on the boy. He pointed toward the hallway. “Run to your father. He’s to the left.”
Salvation took off, moving fast for a small boy. He was out the door in a flash. Kat gawked at Darkness. “That was mean. You shouldn’t have used that tone.”
“He shouldn’t have been in here. We were looking for him. Sunshine woke to find him gone. Everyone scrambled to search the building.”
“He’s just a little kid. He can’t be more than five years old. What child doesn’t explore his surroundings?”
“He’s three and he’s Species. It’s a safety issue.”
“Three?” She was stunned. “He’s just a baby then.” A big one. “You scared the crap out of him.”
Darkness walked to the end of her bed. “Our children aren’t clumsy, helpless individuals for the first years of their lives. He crawled at three months, began running by the time he was six months old, and spoke complete sentences before his first birthday. He was reading and doing what most of your children learn in school by his second birthday. You may see him as a baby but he’s not human. He knows there’s no excuse for him leaving the care of Sunshine and understands why he must follow rules. They are there for his protection.”
She let that sink in. “Do they age faster?”
Darkness growled. “No. We don’t age in dog years.”
“I didn’t mean it that way.”
“I keep telling you we’re different from you.”
She took a calming breath. “I’m not going to argue with you. Where is Missy? Is she okay?”
“She’s fine.”
Kat closed her eyes, her fear alleviated. “Thank you.”
Darkness snarled. “You nearly died saving her. Don’t thank me. I just arrived in time to see the results of your efforts. You were dying.”
She glanced down her body. “I feel okay. A little sore but—”
Another snarl tore from Darkness and he lunged, getting in her face when he stalked to the side of her bed and bent. “We gave you Species drugs to heal you. You were bleeding out when I found you. Motionless. Near death.”
Darkness’ eyes were almost black and his lips parted, revealing his fangs. Kat held still, assessing what he’d told her.
“You saved me. Thank you.”
“You risked your life for another. I don’t want your thanks. Missy said you turned on the gas and ignited it to blow up your house. She also said you used your body to shield hers from glass and falling debris. Don’t ever do something like that again.”
“She’s my best friend.” She tried to figure out the source of his anger. “You would have done the same. Mason ordered me to kill her and it was the only thing I could think of to do. He had the gun.”He backed off a few inches. “Just don’t do it again.”
He was worried. She found it touching. “The house?”
“Destroyed.”
It didn’t come as a surprise. “Mason?”
“Dead.”
“Good.”
“I would have killed him if he’d still been alive when I arrived.”
“The explosion took him out?”
“Yes. He was found in the rubble after the firefighters were able to put out the fire.”
More details came to mind. “How upset is Missy—at me?”
“She stated you did everything to save her.”
“I meant about Butch and Gus. That’s her dog and kitten. I couldn’t save them. Mason would have shot her if I’d refused to prove I was all in as his partner. He wouldn’t let me get close enough to disarm him or even attack so she could make a run for it.”
“They survived. Missy told one of our males they were still inside the house and that crazy bastard went in after them. Book is lucky he didn’t get killed. The back of the house was gone and the front was about to collapse and was in flames. He found them under a mattress that had pinned them against a wall next to the window he jumped through to reach them. It probably protected them from most of the blast.”
“Please thank him for me. I don’t think she’d have ever forgiven me if they’d died.”
Darkness growled again. “She owes you her life. How are you feeling?” He seemed to search her eyes, looking for something.
“A little groggy and sore.” She glanced at her arm. “How bad is it under that gauze?”
“You will be fine. They were worried about damage to your head.”
She reached up, examining her hair and the shape of her head with her fingers. “It feels intact. Do I look bad?”
“You’re pale. You also have all of your hair. They didn’t have to operate but you suffered a blow to the head. There was swelling.”
“Was?”
“The Species healing drugs were effective. The open wounds have closed and most of your bruises have faded.”
“Open wounds?” She glanced at her arm again. “There’s more?”
“Your hip and upper thigh were sliced open.”
Kat shoved back the blankets and lifted her gown. She found more gauze on her right side. Darkness gripped her gown and jerked it down. “Anyone could walk in. You have nothing on under that.”
“I don’t care. I want to see what happened to me.”
Darkness straightened, crossed the room and closed the door. He twisted the lock and returned to the side of the bed. He lowered the rail and offered her an arm. “I’ll help you up. The doctors said you can stand and use the bathroom with assistance. You could suffer dizzy spells and weakness for a day or two. There’s a mirror in the bathroom.” 
Kat swung her legs over. “I’m a little shaky.”
“You almost died.”
She allowed him to help her out of bed and into the bathroom. Darkness helped her remove her gown and she stared in the mirror. Gauze covered her arm and two places on her hip and thigh. Her ribs appeared discolored under one breast. She turned, staring over her shoulder.
“It was much worse,” Darkness rumbled. His tone revealed his anger. “The drugs have worked very well on you.”
Darkness gently removed the gauze on her arm. She watched him, not surprised at how tender those big hands could be. He tossed the bandage in the trash and Kat stared at the reddened skin. Faint marks revealed stitches had been there. She swayed on her feet.
Darkness bent, scooping her into his arms. “You should have stayed in bed.”
“How long was I down?”
“Just since last night.”
“That’s amazing. I didn’t know there were drugs like that in existence.”
“Only Species have use of them.”
“You should share them with the world. Do you know what a miracle it is that I’ve healed this fast?”
A muscle along his jaw jumped, his anger clear. “Mercile did trials on humans. The results were deadly. We’re much sturdier than your kind. You wouldn’t have been given the drug either due to the risk of death but you were so injured there was nothing to lose. It’s amazing you’re alive.” He carried her to the hospital bed and laid her on it. “You’re going to have to take it easy for a few days. Your body has endured a lot, Kat.”
She let that information sink in. “I feel good.”
“It took three of our doctors all night to make sure they didn’t sedate you to death in order to keep your rapid heart rate and rising blood pressure from killing you while you were on the drugs. It’s lucky you made it, Kat. You may feel as if you’re fine but your body has probably never suffered such stress.”
“Thank you. I take it that you asked them do it?”
He hesitated. “You were dying anyway. It was your only chance.”
“Please thank everyone for me.”
“It’s their job.”
The subject was closed. He didn’t seem willing or able to accept her gratitude. She changed the topic to a safer one. “I’d like to call Missy.”
“She’s down the hall.”
“She’s here at Homeland?”
“Where were we supposed to send her? Your home was destroyed.” He got her a fresh gown and helped her pull it over her head then tugged it down until she was decently covered.
“Thank you, Darkness.”
He backed away. “Stop thanking me. Was I supposed to allow you to be sent to a human hospital to die?” His tone deepened into a snarl. “Was I supposed to just trust them to do everything they could to save you? I thought you were dead when I found you under the piece of roof that landed on you.”
“A roof landed on me?”
“Only your foot was free of it. That’s how I spotted you.”
“Thank goodness I wasn’t wearing ruby slippers. Missy says I can be a witch at times.”
Darkness scowled. “What does that mean?”
“Sorry. That’s my bad attempt at humor.”
“It wasn’t funny!” he roared.
Kat started.
Darkness panted, backing away. “You rest.” He didn’t yell that time but he still looked enraged. “And don’t mention the boy to anyone. You shouldn’t have seen him.”“I signed the confidentiality agreement. He’s cute. He won’t get into trouble, will he? I swear I won’t tell anyone about him.”