My Brother's Keeper (15 page)

Elizabeth was on the phone with her uncle, asking that he send any spare medical supplies via portal to the Lycaonia clinic, the sooner the better.

Anne watched as Amelia coordinated with Kendrick and Sascha to use her magic to level the ground making it easier to care for the wounded. Meryn was on a handheld walkie-talkie talking with unit warriors. "I miss you, too, Adonis. After this is all over, you have to swing by to meet my new peep, over and out."

Anne blinked. "Who is Adonis? Sounds sexy," she teased. Meryn grinned, and before Anne knew it, Aiden and Kendrick were heading in their direction.

Aiden growled at Meryn and nipped her neck, and Kendrick scowled at her. "Never mind any Adonis." He looked out the window. "I'm going out with the men to try and minimize the number of casualties, but it will be difficult doing this in the dark. I need to be able to see to cast. Unfortunately, my form of light is fire, so unless we want to burn the forest down, I'll be relying on flood lights from the warriors."

Colton clapped him on the back. "Not as easy as you thought, is it?"

Kendrick shook his head. "No, but I'll do whatever I can to keep you all safe."

Colton didn't say anything, just clapped him on the back again, and walked to Aiden.

Anne grabbed his arm. "You have to be safe, too." It was sinking in that the men were about to head out to battle; they could be killed.

Kendrick looked down at her, and she was confused by the frustration in his eyes. Suddenly, he leaned down and kissed her forehead. He kept his lips to her skin and whispered. "I'll be back. You and I have unfinished business."

When he pulled away, she felt as if he'd pulled a piece of her heart out of her chest with him.

"Be careful!" She called after him. He nodded and ran to catch up with the men who were already filing out the door.

Rheia walked up and wrapped her arm around Anne's shoulder. "It doesn't get any easier no matter how many times I do this. It helps to stay busy."

Anne nodded. "Point me where you need me doctor."

Rheia smiled. "That's what I wanted to hear."

*****

Anne quickly began to notice that they were receiving more injured than just she and Rheia could handle on their own. When two more shifters showed up with bullet wounds, Anne made the decision to send all critical patients to the clinic.

She ran up to one of the warriors carrying a stretcher. "No. Get him in a vehicle and send him to the clinic."

The man frowned. "But Dr. Bradley said that we were to bring all the patients here."

Anne put her hands on her hips. "That was before we realized how many injured were on the way. This man needs surgery; that cannot happen on the front lawn."

Rheia raced up to them. "She's absolutely right." 

Anne looked around the lawn. "Noah!"

The blond turned to them and quickly jogged over. "What do you need?"

"Follow behind me. Get a pen and paper, and tag each patient for transfer that I point to." She turned to Rheia. "You need to call the clinic doctor and tell him to stay there and expect incoming."

Rheia nodded and pulled out her phone. She was giving orders when a new batch arrived in an SUV. She cut the call short as they both ran over. The new arrivals were two children who had a death grip on Sascha. He handled them very gently, one perched on each hip. When he saw Rheia and Anne approaching, he practically sagged in relief. "Thank the Gods! Can you look these two over? I don't think anything is wrong, but they are so little," he fretted, looking with worried glances between the two.

When Rheia reached for the little boy, he turned and buried his face in Sascha's chest. Sascha looked up at Rheia, a frantic look on his face.

"Doc! We need you over here!" another warrior yelled. He was straddling a man's body on a stretcher holding blood-soaked bandages. Rheia immediately ran over to assist.

Anne looked at Sascha. "They seem to be okay. I don't see any broken bones or open wounds. Keep them calm and warm." She turned and ran back over to where the wounded where being laid out in rows.

"How do I do that?" Sascha yelled.

"Blankets and hot chocolate!" she shouted.

Noah caught up to her, and they quickly worked their way through the wounded. Out of the one hundred hostages over thirty of them had been hurt. When they were done prioritizing the care of the seriously wounded, Anne and Noah looked for Rheia.

Rheia's face looked pinched as she worked on a patient too critical for transport. She looked panicked when she called out for items she needed only to realize there was no one to assist. Anne ran forward. "I'm here, keep going."

"Noah! I need you and four warriors to grab blankets, tarps, whatever you can and create a makeshift operating room. We need as much coverage as possible!" Anne yelled.

Noah took off like a bullet. Anne turned her attention back to Rheia and calmly handed her the instruments she needed to remove the deeply lodged bullet. She hardly noticed when the wind stopped blowing her hair in her eyes due to Noah's superb efforts to keep them protected.

Anne ran through the list of steps in her mind and was determined to stay two steps ahead of Rheia, anticipating her every need. She was never so grateful for her mentor's suggestion to volunteer as an ER nurse. In the ER, one needed to know a little bit of everything. It had been equal parts exhilarating and frustrating. She had been determined to learn as much as possible, and it was paying off.

An hour later, the man was stable and most of the patients were wrapped in blankets and ready to be sent to the city.

She was washing her hands for what seemed like the thousandth time that night when Rheia walked over. "You have to be one of the best nurses I have ever seen. Are you sure you aren't psychic?"

Anne smiled and shook her head. "No. I just hated it in nursing school when a patient suffered because I didn't know something. So I studied everything."

"You are exactly what we need here in Lycaonia. I don't think I could have handled this on my own. You and Noah were invaluable at getting the patients lined up with the correct care. You thought clearly and adapted well. Good job." Rheia nodded at her in admiration, and Anne's breath caught.

"Thank you, Dr. Bradley."

"You're very welcome, nurse." Rheia stretched and rubbed her back. "How do you think Sascha faired with the kids?"

Anne grinned and nodded her head to the edge of the treatment area. Sascha had spread blankets on the ground and sat leaning against his SUV. Both children were sound asleep with their heads in his lap.

Rheia shook her head. "Big softies, every single one of them."

Anne couldn't help but agree. "We wouldn't want them any other way."

"You can say that again!" Rheia exclaimed and looped her arm through Anne's.

They inspected the area together, making sure that everyone who needed treatment had received it.

CHAPTER NINE

Kendrick sat on the front porch steps and watched as people milled around him. The battle had been surprisingly short. When the reapers realized they weren't going to get what they wanted, they turned on the hostages, wounding many and killing five before the warriors were able to get between them and their attackers. At the end of the skirmish, Kendrick ended up with more necklaces for testing.

This is what Keelan had been doing for two hundred years? How did he do it? Feeling useless, Kendrick stood and decided he had to find a way to help. He had more magic than he knew what to do with; surely he could accomplish something useful.

He was walking around trying to find Anne when he spotted Amelia. She stood in the middle of the training yard, a blank look on her face. He hurried over to her, grabbing a blanket from a nearby pile on his way. He wrapped her up and held her close.

"Shush, it's going to be okay Amelia." She began shaking under the blanket.

Looking around, he caught Darian's eye and nodded to Amelia. Darian almost plowed people over in an effort to get to her side.

"What's wrong with her?" he asked.

"Let's get her inside and away from these people. Then I want to look at her magic." Darian swept Amelia up in his arms.

Kendrick looked around and spotted Meryn. She was scowling fiercely at everyone, breathing heavily, and snapping at anyone who got close enough. He ran over and scooped her up. "You're coming, too."

"What gives? Put me down!" Meryn screeched.

Aiden's head whipped around at the sound of Meryn's yells. He charged over. "Kendrick, you wanna tell me why I shouldn't kill you?"

Kendrick jerked his head toward the door. "Inside."

Kendrick didn't wait for Aiden. He hurried toward the house where Ryuu met them at the door, a relieved look on his face. "Thank the Gods, I was about to come find her. How did you know,
Heika
?"

Kendrick kept walking. "I had a feeling she'd be upset." Ryuu and Aiden followed him until they were in Aiden's office. It was the quietest room downstairs and where Darian had chosen to go with Amelia.

Kendrick set Meryn down next to Amelia. He reached out with both hands, grasping Meryn with his left and Amelia with his right. Gently, he sent his magic through them, searching. As he had suspected, Meryn had a touch of magic. He carefully corralled their magic and secured it behind the mental doors he created. It was easy for Amelia, she had been raised thinking this way and he had done this with her once before, but Meryn's magic was completely wild. He took his time and coaxed it behind the thick door before closing it for her.

He sat back on his heels. "Well, I know where you got your empathy from Amelia."

Amelia shook her head as if trying to clear it. "Wait, what?"

Aiden collapsed into a chair. "What?"

Kendrick moved so that he could lean his back against the coffee table. These two would be the death of him. Getting their empathy under control was exhausting.

"Is everything okay in here? We saw you carry Meryn and Amelia in and we were worried," a soft voice asked.

Kendrick looked up and smiled. Anne, Rheia, Elizabeth, and the rest of the Alpha Unit were walking through the door.

"Evidently,
denka
has magic," Ryuu replied.

"No, I don't. I would know if I had magic," Meryn protested.

Kendrick raised an eyebrow at the stubborn female.

"I don't!"

"Meryn, I was told that you didn't have it easy growing up, is that correct?"

Meryn quieted immediately. 

Kendrick kept going. "You have magic, but it's a very small amount, just enough to be bothersome. You have empathy, the same gift as your cousin."

"No, she doesn't." The sentiment was echoed throughout the room.

Kendrick shook his head at their denials and continued to look at Meryn. "It's just enough so that you would know someone's true feelings, just enough so that you would know when they were lying. Amelia was raised in a warm and loving home, where people said what they felt, didn't lie, and were very kind." Kendrick gently held Meryn's hands. "Now, this is just a guess, but I bet that wasn't true for you."

Meryn shook her head.

Kendrick continued. "I bet the people you grew up around were petty and hurtful."

Meryn nodded silently.

Kendrick looked around the room. "If you have the gift of empathy and were raised in such an environment, what do you think would happen?"

Amelia hugged Meryn close. "She would turn away from people and keep to herself, because if she's alone, she can't be hurt."

Aiden got up and sat beside Meryn. He pulled her into his lap and rubbed his chin on the top of her head. "My poor baby."

Meryn settled in against her mate. "It wasn't all bad, and it brought me to you." She tilted her head back, and he placed kisses all over her face.

"It could also explain why she can see sprites," Gavriel theorized.

There was a knock at the door and then it swung open. A blond man Kendrick hadn't met walked in. "Aiden, we have just about everyone sorted. The units are escorting the people into the city and your committee members just left."

Aiden sighed. "Thanks Ben, I had forgotten about them." He turned to Kendrick. "Will there really be an article about Meryn in the paper?"

Kendrick nodded. "Yes. The committee should be well behaved little kittens after I pulled their fangs and claws." He turned to Elizabeth. "Though I must say, it was a much easier task thanks to you."

Elizabeth smiled. "One of the benefits growing up in a noble household."

Rheia clapped her hands together. "It's been a long evening, everyone should wash up and grab some dinner."

Ryuu stepped forward. "Tonight's meal is a variety of different soups. They have been simmering all day. If you leave me your choices I can have your dinner waiting for you when you come down."

Colton grabbed a pen and piece paper off of Aiden's desk and began organizing their selections. Anne shocked Kendrick when she chose the beef stew, he had pegged her for a vegetable kind of girl. He chose the lentil soup and made his way over to Anne. Smiling, he held out his hand. "Let's go check on our boy." Anne's face lit up and she grasped his hand. He took a moment to enjoy the simple act of walking hand-in-hand with her up the stairs. It was time to tell her the truth.

*****

Anne walked into the bathroom, her heart in her mouth. The walk up to her room had been too short. She wanted to enjoy holding Kendrick's hand a bit longer. Looking in the mirror, she had to face the realization that she was already half in love with Kendrick. She didn't know what she was going to do if they found out she was truly Keelan's mate. She took a deep breath and smiled at herself. This was something her mother taught her to do as a child. When things get difficult, smile at yourself in the mirror. Your body is tricked into thinking that it's happy, and your smiling face mentally bolsters you. Today, she bared her teeth then stuck her tongue out for good measure.