Black Stars - The Mors Mortis Trilogy Book 1

Chapter 27 - Selfishly Worried

I always hated when my scars started to fade, because as long as I could still see them, I knew why I was hurting. 

- Jodi Picoult, Handle with Care

When Leah woke she was lying down, her head resting on a rolled up sleeping bag and her injured leg propped up against a tree. Her jeans had been ripped off at the top of her thigh and replaced with cotton and gauze. She glanced around and found a tangle of branches above her and a small creek to her left. The grass underneath was soft and damp, a stark contrast to the packed earth she'd been sleeping on for the past few nights.

"How are you feeling?"

The voice came from her other side, and Leah swivelled around to find Jared. Her vision blurred with the movement and she let out a quiet groan. Jared had been leaning casually against a nearby tree, but sat up quickly and moved over to her.

"Do you want some pain killers?"

Leah blinked up at him, letting her vision return to normal. "No. It's okay."

She glanced at her leg once more and tried an experimental flex of her thigh. It sent a throb of pain up her spine and she lay back with a huff.

"On second thought, pain killers would be great."

Jared nodded and retreated to grab the first aid kit from his bag. Leah watched him silently. His hair was greasy and there were sweat patches under his armpits. The exhausted sheen that ran across his skin was one she hadn't seen before and she couldn't help but wonder how long she'd been asleep, and how far he'd carried her.

"It'll get better." He said, returning to her side with some pills and a water bottle. "You lost some blood, but you got lucky. The bullet missed any major arteries, and people heal quickly here. You'll probably be okay by tomorrow morning as long as you rest."

Leah eyed him curiously.

"How close was I to dying?"

"Close enough."

Leah tipped the tablets into her mouth and washed them down. She was oddly disturbed by that information. If this incident had happened in the live world, would be she have died? Would she be back here with no escape route?

Jared was watching her quietly, his brow furrowed. She wasn't sure if his defences were getting worse, or she was getting better at reading him, but she could sense a question hanging at the back of his throat.

"What?" she asked. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

Jared's head cocked to the side, his gaze curious. "Why didn't you run away?"

"What?"

He lent forward, watching her carefully. "When I started fighting, you were meant to run."

"I did run," Leah said defensively. "I just didn't want to lose the camp, so I came back once I ditched the officers that were chasing me."

Jared raised an eyebrow. "We must have different definitions of 'ditched'."

Leah gave her best impression of a glare, however she was fairly certain it lacked its usual menace. "I got distracted and one of the other officers found me."

"Distracted by what?"

"I heard voices and I thought you might've need help."

Jared leant back against the tree, folding his arms loosely around his legs. His eyes held hers and Leah felt his gaze down to her bones. It was the kind of penetrating look that made her feel both vulnerable and defensive.