Red Blooded

Chapter 17 - The food is safe

Maybe my destiny was to always be the one that saved others. Maybe this was the path that I was always supposed to go down. I was destined to live the life I led...to save him. Hayden. And that would be a worthy cause, no? To save someone? Just like I wished they had with me? Maybe that was the way it was always going to be.  Or maybe I was just deluding myself into thinking it was all for him, because I had to justify my actions somehow.

I didn’t want to carry on leading the existence I had been living for the last twenty four years. I wanted to stop. It hurt too much. But then again, life worked in mysterious ways. And maybe it was about time I opened another door.

So much daylight had passed that night fell easily, chased quickly by the sun again. In that time Hayden hadn’t woken; his body stayed still, sprawled out on the couch. I just watched him, waiting for signs to tell me that he would come to...only for me to be disappointed when the sudden sound I could hear was the sound of my stomach rumbling. It had been more that twenty four hours since any form of sustenance had passed my lips and I was acutely aware of pains that lined my stomach. With no signs to say that he would come to, I left promptly at ten the next morning so that I could make it to my last chemo session for the week. After spending six agonising hours in the hospital, I left, feeling drained and desolate. Before I went back to the Victorian house in the little town, I bought clothes for Hayden. He was naked when I found – I was pretty sure he wouldn’t have had time to fold his clothes neatly into a pile before his wolf ripped his skin apart.

The taxi stopped outside the large house, and once I was out I started to think – just like I had been doing all day.

I loved Hayden for the sake of the mate bond. There was nothing else tying us together. If I left him, I would die a slow death. If I stayed nearby, I would die a fast, painful death. Either way, death was always the end result.

Taking each step slowly, I unlocked the front door and pushed in. I breathed in calmly and carefully shut the door, cringing slightly even though there was no sound. All thoughts vanished though as I thought of what I would do next. Pack – that would be a good place to start. My next session wouldn’t be for another two weeks. Dr. Jefferson explained the intensive route I would be going down to fight the leukaemia. I wasn’t going to be treated like other patients. I wasn’t normal – go figure. I would just have to find a way to process everything accordingly and let the chips fall where they –

“Em?”

My heart jumped, a gasp escaped me, and two out of the three bags in my hand fell to the floor. My head snapped to the ground to check which of the bags fell.

The food is safe – thank God.

Only when my eyes returned to Hayden did I find my voice. “You’re up.” I breathed, breathlessly, averting my eyes away from him. As it was, Hayden stood opposite the fire he had started in the chimney, with my comforter around him, and I stood uncomfortably in the door way after picking up the bag of clothes I had dropped. Even with my large comforter surrounding him, he still made it look as if it were made for a child; it left his toned legs exposed.

“What were you talking about?” He questioned, quietly. He moved back to the couch I had left him on earlier this morning. I felt confident to move further inside the room when he withdrew.

“I didn’t say anything.” I replied, confused. I stopped at the armchair and dropped my purse.

He looked up, raising a brow. “You said ‘let the chips fall where they may’.”

Damn it! You talked out loud!

“Nothing.” I shot out quickly, avoiding his questioning eyes. “Here,” I placed the bags of clothes onto the coffee table before us, “I take it that you have nothing to wear.”