“Give it to me.”
Lauren frowned. “You can’t put it on yourself. This cut goes halfway up your back.”
“I won’t try to but I need to activate the qui.”
“The what?” Lauren frowned at the roll of gauze in her hand.
“The qui. It means the Goddess of Mercy bandage.”
“Does it have some kind of microchip in it or something?”
“Hardly. Like most Kindred inventions, it’s actually a living organism. But it must be activated in order to work.” He held out his hand again and raised an eyebrow at her.
Giving in to his unspoken request, Lauren handed him the roll.
Xairn raised it to his mouth and whispered something in a foreign language. Then he pressed the roll to his forehead, both cheeks, and lips before handing it back to Lauren. “There. It should work now.”
“What did you say to it?” Lauren asked, beginning to unroll the gauzy substance. No, not substance—animal, I guess. How weird.
“The exact wording is ‘Drink of my blood and be nourished. My body is thine to heal as thou will. A gift for a gift. A life for a life.”
“My body is thine,” Lauren murmured. “Hmm. I think I like that.” She had the right length of bandage that she wanted now but she wasn’t sure if it was permissible to cut it to fit. Maybe she should just wrap it around and around Xairn’s waist until it— The thought died in her mind to be replaced by wonder. As she watched, the qui shortened itself to the exact length she wanted. It broadened a little as well, becoming a little wider than the palm of her hand. “Well.” She stared at it a minute then shrugged and began to press it gently to Xairn’s side.
She wasn’t sure how it would stay on—was there some kind of glue or tape she could use? But the qui adhered to his muscular side at once and stuck nicely without any help.
Lauren was impressed. “That’s good. That’s really good,” she murmured, stroking her hand over his side to make sure the living bandage was smooth and evenly applied. “I wish the Kindred would share this with Earth.”
“Actually it’s old technology. They have much more sophisticated healing methods now.” Xairn’s deep voice sounded strained. Lauren noticed that his big hands were curled into fists at his sides and he was positively trembling as she touched him. She frowned. Am I hurting him? “Are you okay?” she asked aloud.
“Fine.” He gazed down at her, his eyes blazing. The look on his face was so intense she drew back a little.
“Xairn?” she asked, trying to keep the unease out of her voice and not quite managing.
He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. When he opened them, the fire in their red-on-black depths seemed to have died down a little. “Forgive me but Slk is waiting. Thank you for tending to my wound but now we really must go.”
“All right.” Lauren got to her feet and rubbed her aching knees. “That floor is hard. Let me just put the first aid kit back and we can go.”
* * * * *
Xairn refastened his flight pants as he watched her go, her curves still visible—at least to him—even through the voluminous silvery-blue garment he’d bought for her. It was much too large but he had wanted it that way. He didn’t want to be tempted by her, by the sight of her lovely body. But she might as well not be wearing anything at all as far as he was concerned. He kept remembering how she looked completely nude.
Don’t think about it, he told himself fiercely. But he couldn’t help it.
Just before they had left the Fathership and taken off for the Scourge home world, Lauren had dropped the cloak he had given her and offered herself to him. When he closed his eyes he could still see the curve of her hips, her full breasts tipped with tight, berry-brown nipples. And most enticing of all, the tender lips of her sex, half hidden by the neatly trimmed mound of black curls. Gods, she was beautiful. So beautiful it made him ache.
Of course, Xairn was under no illusion that she actually wanted him—she didn’t. She’d only done it because she preferred his touch to the AllFather’s—as any female in her right mind would. His father held horror and madness in his boney, scabrous hands.
And what do I hold in my hands? Xairn asked himself as she disappeared briefly into the bathroom. For Lauren or any female? There was no gentleness in him. No tender caresses—of that he was sure.
It had been all he could do to control himself when she was touching him so gently, healing his wound. Her face had been right on the level of his throbbing secondary shaft and her soft hands on his body had been maddening. His head had been filled with forbidden thoughts—images impossible to block out.