To a human it would have appeared they were praying. And in a way they were. But it was so much more.
“Keegan. Come back to us. Fight. We need you.”
Trace rocked her gently back and forth, burying his face in her neck. His tears dripped onto her skin. “He’s gonna be fine, hon… He has to.”
Chapter Twenty-Six
The following day was long. Trace sat on one side of Keegan’s bed while Melinda sat on the other. Neither of them slept.
The CT scan had shown no signs of permanent injury. Melinda had never been more relieved in her life. Now, if only Keegan would wake up.
Keegan’s parents never left the hospital either. They came in and out of the room, giving Melinda and Trace privacy to draw their mate out of his head. Keegan’s sister came for a few hours in the morning.
Melinda knew instantly Kiera was an amazing woman. She couldn’t wait to get to know her better under less stressful terms. And her son too. She didn’t bring him, but he sounded like a pistol to hear his mother and grandparents speak of him.
Trace’s parents came by briefly, but didn’t stay long. Griffen showed up for a while also, looking thoroughly exhausted, which made them all tease him mercilessly and lightened the mood for a brief spell.
So many people loved Keegan. But none of them loved him like Trace and Melinda. And all of his visitors understood this, making a quick visit and leaving Melinda and Trace alone to fight alongside their mate.
And fight they did. They kept a running commentary going with Keegan almost incessantly. When the man did regain consciousness, it would be to tell them to both shut up and let him get some rest.
The doctor came in several times, more than he would have if Keegan had been human. “There are no signs of anything besides a concussion. Please don’t panic. His body is using this time to heal.”
“If he would just wake up and shift, he wouldn’t need this human intervention,” Trace said.
“True, but he doesn’t know that. His body is controlling him, doing what it needs to give his brain time to regroup. We aren’t in panic mode here,” Dr. Bernard insisted. “This is perfectly within the range of normal after a concussion like his.”
Melinda cleared her throat. “When do we start to worry?”
“Not gonna answer that. Focus your energy on encouraging him as best you can. Let’s not address the future. Let’s deal with the cards we have now.” The man was far too optimistic. Almost sugary in his presentation.
Melinda wasn’t sure she liked that side of him. She turned back to Keegan and rested her cheek on his right shoulder, leaning over the bed. His left arm—the one across from her—was in a temporary cast. The bones were all aligned. And he would easily be able to shift and heal the fracture. Unfortunately, he would also have to pretend it had not healed for six weeks.
She almost giggled, thinking how much Keegan was going to like that plan. Too many humans knew he’d broken his arm. For it to heal in a few days would raise eyebrows off the charts.
“He’s so cold,” Melinda murmured after the doctor left.
“You must like the change,” Trace teased. “You’re always complaining we’re too hot.”
The problem was he didn’t feel alive to her. He felt off. Wrong. Not present in a way she detested.
Melinda closed her eyes and snuggled her face in next to his neck. She needed to rest a few minutes before she collapsed.
•●•
Something wasn’t right.
Keegan could not get his brain to work. Any command he sent to his limbs never made it through the synapsis to cause movement. What the hell?
He couldn’t figure out what to make of this situation. Was he under water? Or drunk? Drugged?
Nothing made sense.
He concentrated on breathing. In. Out. In. Out. He had that task mastered. Something warm and heavy was draped over his right arm. Something stiff and uncomfortable trapped his left arm.
He tried to fight his way through the fog to find answers.
His eyes wouldn’t obey the simplest command to open.
“Keegan. We’re both here with you, babe. Please wake up.” That sweet voice belonged to his mate, Melinda. What was she talking about? Her soft fingers gripped his hand as he realized she must have lifted her face away from his arm.
Keegan strained to open his mouth, but got nothing. Agitation set in. What the fuck?
“How’s it going in here?” The voice was deep and unknown.
Trace responded. “He’s flinching. His eyelids are flickering. That’s a good sign, right?”
What? Keegan tried to pry his eyes open. Nothing.
“Yes.” The unknown voice got closer.
The next thing Keegan knew, his eye was pried open and a light flashed in front of it. A man hovered over him. “Keegan. Can you hear us?” He paused. “You’re in the hospital. You’re going to be okay. We need you to wake up now.”