Tanya picked up the hammer. An eye for an eye, Zane had rescued her so like it or not she felt it was only right if she helped him. She straddled the big man keeping her eye on the wound which was crusted in blood. His hands found her hips and he squeezed lightly. “Do it.”
She took the hammer in both hands and hit the arrow straight on.
“Harder,” he spoke through clenched teeth.
She pulled back and swung again hitting as hard as she dared. It would be too easy to miss or break the stem.
“Again,” he growled. She did as he instructed.
Zane dug his fingers into her hips. “One more time should do it.” Another hard hit and he groaned leaning forward. He rested his head on her chest for a few seconds.
“I think that did it.” He was breathing hard. Sweat beads had formed on his brow.
Blood oozed from the wound. Tanya moved back to the side staying on her knees. Zane remained forward so that she would have easy access to his back. She tried not to react. Half of the arrow head protruded from a mean looking gash.
She picked up a pair of pliers, moving towards the arrow head. The thought of pulling the thing out made her feel queasy.
“Do it.”
She clamped the pliers on to the piece of metal and took a deep breath. Tanya pulled and he made a pained noise through clenched teeth.
“I’m so sorry.”
“Don’t worry about me, just get it out.”
“Scoot forward. I need to get in behind you.”
He did as she said and Tanya slid in. She kept her knees bent at her chest using them as leverage against his back. Tanya used both her hands to clasp the pliers and pulled as if her life depended on it. She tried not to think too much about what she was doing, just focussed on the mechanics. She pulled and then she pulled some more. Just when she felt almost ready to give up, the arrow head tore free.
Zane grunted letting his head fall into his hands. His elbows rested on his thighs. “Thank you.”
“You’re bleeding quite a bit.”
She tried to staunch the flow with his ripped shirt.
“Leave it. I want the poison to bleed out. I’ll heal quicker in the long run.” His low voice was uneven and weak. “Give me a minute and then get me to the shower.”
She felt useless. Not sure of what to do. “Do you have a first aid kit? Maybe…” She tried to move out from behind him.
“Stay there. I find your touch oddly soothing.”
His biceps filled her hands, her legs had fallen open and her chest rested against his back. Her breath caught in her throat. Even amongst this blood and gore, their position seemed oddly intimate.
“You didn’t kill that girl did you?”
Zane sighed. “She didn’t die by my hand but I feel responsible,” he paused. “I thought that giving her space would be the best thing. That she could do with time to adjust. I was wrong.” His voice broke and she wasn’t sure if it was because of the physical pain or the emotional kind.
“Those guys were after me weren’t they?”
He nodded. “You are the only female capable of bearing vampire heirs now that my chosen is...” he shifted wincing as his wound pulled. “With you out of the way, vampires would become extinct.” Before his words had a chance to sink in, he turned his head slightly. “I need to get to a hot shower. The wound needs to bleed some more and hell…” He looked down at himself. “I could use a wash. You need to help me.” He still looked like shit but at least his voice was a little stronger.
Getting him off the sofa took a few attempts. Using his good arm, he leaned on her and they made slow but steady progress.
The shower was all glass with a stunning view of the forest. There was no shower door or curtain. Come to think of it, there wasn’t even a door on the restroom itself. “Not so big on privacy?”
“I prefer open spaces.”
Chapter 8
It occurred to her that if she tried to leave right now, he might end up falling. The guy might be all muscle but he was seriously weak. “How are we going to do this?”
Using his good hand, he ripped what little remained of the shirt from his body and unbuttoned his jeans. “Help me get them off.”
Her first instinct was to tell him to go to hell but when she glanced at his ashen face she swallowed her words. She took her lip between her teeth, took hold of the lapels on his jeans and tugged the denim down. Clearly Zane enjoyed the freedom of commando. His thick cock rested, what seemed like, halfway down his left thigh. Even covered in congealing blood and dripping with sweat, he was a sight to behold. A warrior in every sense of the word. He cleared his throat. “I’ll let you explore me thoroughly some other time.”