Chapter 3: A Little Sunshine

Chapter 3: A Little Sunshine

*A/N: Studies show that fifteen to twenty percent of people in comas are actually conscious of the world around them and may have an entire inner life while in a coma or a seemingly unconscious state.*

Patch POV

He must be dreaming.

He never imagined Anneliese would snuggle up to him after he knocked her to the floor earlier. For a moment, he forgot how to breathe.

Her soft and slightly frizzy pink hair that smelled of wild rose oil, her warm body against his, and the way she pressed her hands to his chest all fogged his brain. He forgot how to think.

Listening to the beating of their hearts in rhythm with each other, he forgot what room they were in and what they were doing.

“I’m sorry,” he said in a husky voice, his mouth dry. “I’ve acted like an idiot for hours.”

“I’m not normally like this,” she mumbled, sounding weepy. Anneliese didn’t get weepy. Well, he didn’t know that, did he? He had only known her for three months or so, give or take. But from what he’d observed, she didn’t cry at the drop of a hat.

“Well, most of the time,” he quipped, thinking that she could boss everyone around on occasion, not caring what they thought. Her mother was the head of the Wildefell Witch Circle and your father a respected wizard magistrate, so she had command in her blood the way the Crestas did.

“I just said that, Spot. I don’t know what’s gotten into me. I don’t know why I’m snapping at you and picking fights.”

“You said it plainly and I refused to listen.” His fingers itched to stroke her dreamy pink hair, but he couldn’t move. “You’re taking care of the villain who hurt your best friend and people you consider part of your family, all because it’s your duty. A lot of people would refuse.”

She sniffled. “Then they don’t have the Witch Circle around them or my parents.”

“Or a conscience or compassion,” he murmured. “Or if they do, they ignore those things.”

Another sniffle. She was even cute when she sniffled. “But wouldn’t their conscience say they shouldn’t help someone who’s made so many people suffer?”

He sighed. “Mine does, but it can’t argue with certain people who I love and respect, and who terrify me.” He nodded at Tulaska. “SHE would want me to help him, for one. And it’s easy for me to make a big joke out of everything, even though I know better.”

“I’m glad someone is amused,” Anneliese said, trying for a lighter tone.

He became serious. “My intelligence reports about Cyran and Hades from my spy network aren’t a joke, though.”

“Your reports are good. Jiro says so. What do they say?”

Somehow his fingers dared to stroke her hair. It felt like touching sunshine and how he imagined a unicorn’s mane would feel. “The Dark Goddess still owns him and Hades and his followers want to steal him back. Or if they can’t, they want to eliminate him. I wish them luck, with several of the packs providing guards and the capitol crawling with witches. And even if by some miracle old Dark-Face got through all that, Jiro, Garnet, Lilia, and Dane would be ready for him. Especially Garnet and Lilia.”

Anneliese snorted and wiped her nose on his chest. “Garnet blew him to bits, or almost. I don’t think he wants a rematch against her or Lilia anytime soon. Or me.”

His heart swelled with pride thinking about the witches in their lives and how they’d changed the packs for the better. Dane had made a wise choice embracing Lilia as his mate, and Dane had almost missed his chance because of an old legend about a shifter mating with a witch that ended in tragedy …

“As it turned out, it sort of ended in tragedy,” he murmured.

“What? I don’t understand.”

“Sorry … I was thinking.”

“It had to happen sometime,” she said, but not unkindly.

“True. Anyway, I was thinking about the unknown shifter and witch that mated centuries ago and produced our friend here and Garnet.”

Anneliese turned her head to stare at Cyran, who had his arm raised and his claws extended. His arm seemed locked in that position and he just stared up above him, maybe into nothingness. “It looks like he’s trying to cast a spell, even though I don’t feel any magic at work. You can always tell.”

Patch was equally baffled. “Don’t people in comas just lie there until they get bedsores?”

“Ordinary comas, usually, but people are still awake and alive in them and they can understand what’s going on around them … it’s a bit like tapping into a heightened reality.”

He leaned in, intrigued. “Oh, like a lucid dream?”

“In a sense, yes. And to make things more interesting, this is a demon-induced coma. I’ve done the research. And all the books and all the witches say that with a demon-induced coma, all bets are off.”

He winced. “No wonder you’re frazzled, and Lilia too.”

Anneliese sighed. “It’ll be just me and the other witches soon. Lilia and Dane were due to go home after the Alpha Gathering ended. They’ll be leaving any time now.”

“Our pack is calm right now, and Dane knows that once he gets home he won’t be able to spend time with Jiro because they’ll both be busy running their packs,” Patch said.

“I know, but for someone who didn’t want to leave the Bloodstone, Lilia is attached to the pack now in a big way. She loves that skinny carrot-top brother of yours to pieces, but she’s all about the pack. It’s her major duty, even more so than being a witch and whatever the Witch Circle says.”

“Sounds like you envy her.”

“It’s a different set of expectations,” Anneliese hedged. “You know that better than anyone.”

“Do I look like I toe the line?”

Anneliese’s response pierced him to the core. “You pretend you don’t, but you’re actually worse about it than your brothers, even Dane and Jiro.”

Tulaska moaned and shivered, breaking the moment. Patch saw Anneliese’s shoulders slump. “Tulaska’s miserable.”

“I’d ordinarily say Cyran was raising a hand to volunteer to help, but I know better.”

Anneliese snorted with laughter. “Thank the Goddess Brigid for you, Patch.”

“You can thank me even more later because you’re going to walk out of here and get some coffee or tea or take a walk by the lake, which is nice and sunny today with a hint of fog. I envy Jiro, living on a lake. Or you can do whatever you want. Whatever you choose, you’re going to take a break. I’ll watch over Tulaska and Cyran … he is in my care as Intelligence Chief. He’s my asset.” He gently shoved her. “Go, and if the Witch Circle has a problem with it, they can come talk to me.”

* * * * *

Anneliese POV

Just when she thought Patch Cresta couldn’t surprise her anymore, he proved her wrong.

And he was right. Caring for Patch and Tulaska for days on end, only stopping long enough to help celebrate the Alpha Gathering, had her dreading the shade of blue that someone had painted the walls of the Desperate Cases room. She hated the smell of the burning frankincense oil and sea salt in the essential oils burner, kept lit on Azandra’s orders.

In other words, she needed a break.

“Thank you, Patch. I won’t be long,” she said.

“You’ll take as long as you need and there’s not a d*mn thing anyone can say about it.” He plopped down in the chair placed between Cyran’s and Tulaska’s beds, where he could watch over both patients equally. “Go.” He pointed to the door.

Anneliese nodded thanks, although honestly, she could have stayed in his arms for her entire break. Still, if she didn’t get out of this room and breathe fresh air, she would go mad.

“Can I get you anything?” she asked softly.

“A brand new soul for Cyran that doesn’t make Dane immediately want to kick his tail would be nice,” he said, not entirely in jest.

Anneliese nodded, feeling a hard diamond of a lump in her throat. “I think even after he heals, he’ll have to look over his shoulder for a long time where Dane is concerned.”

“Can’t say I blame him. If anyone hurt MY fated mate like that, I wouldn’t be sitting by his bedside, I can tell you that.”

And the look he gave her, as if she were his whole world, quite took her breath away.

She fumbled for something intelligent to say. “Ah … do you think less of Jiro because he’s caring for Cyran?”

“H*ll, no! He’s caught between a rock and a hard place, and a giant is holding the rock. Cyran is Garnet’s brother, And Jiro is a total spymaster. Trust me, he wants whatever information Cyran has about Hades.”

With Patch’s outrageous manner, many people underestimated how intelligent he was. “I can’t argue with that. But I still can’t get you a brand new soul for Cyran from the kitchen.”

“I’ll settle for some of Sarina’s figgican bread with jam and coffee when you get a chance.”

A sweet smile spread across Anneliese’s face. “It is addictive.”

Patch settled back, looking contemplative. Unusual on him, but it did give his eyes more depth. “I never thought I’d even visit the Crimsontails, much less spend all this time in their territory, and certainly not to the point that I’d fall in love with their cooking.”

Anneliese nodded quietly. “I know what you mean. Life has a way of surprising you. But it’s a good surprise.”

A flirtatious grin emerged. “Any good surprises in particular?”

By the Twelve Sacred Sites, when had she started blushing so easily? “Maybe. Ah, I’ll be back, and with your order, milord.” She made a saucy bow and danced to the door.

In the regular ward of the Healing Wing, some of the other witches and wizards flitted from bed to bed, helping the big, muscle-bound Crimsontail Healer Kellam Anmar with patients and cures. Shifters didn’t need extensive healing, or even catch the common cold, but even they could be harmed by magical curses, and by the deadly duo of silver and wolfsbane.

Healer Kellam looked up from examining a shifter child. “How are our long-term patients?”

Anneliese shrugged. “Not much change except that Cyran is restless.”

With a darkening expression, Healer Kellam asked, “Is it time for me to give him a sedative?”

Anneliese bit her lip. “The witch circle frowns on giving him one because it could interfere with his awakening, but they don’t want to interfere with your authority as the pack healer.”

Healer Kellam scowled and folded his arms. “Nice of them. I won’t hesitate to knock him out if he becomes dangerous.”

“I understand.”

He strolled over and peered into her eyes. “You look exhausted.”

“That’s why I’m taking a break, on Patch’s orders.”

“Hmmm. He’s a persuasive one.”

Anneliese nodded and smiled, then left the Healing Ward. In the corridor outside, which had echoed with the laughter of Patch and little Selene, she met up with Azandra and Kyon.

The stunning red-haired and pregnant Acting Evenhide Wise Woman/Healer and the gentle giant Beta of the Evenhide Pack smiled upon seeing her. “Did Healer Kellam finally make you leave?” Azandra asked in her blunt way.

“No … you can thank Patch for that,” Anneliese admitted.

The knowing smile and glance they exchanged brought her blushes back, and they threatened to become permanent. She said, “If you two and Dane, Lilia, Jiro, and Garnet aren’t busy, I need some coffee and some advice, in that order.”

And she couldn’t forget Patch’s figgican bread with jam and coffee.