Page 12 of The Dragons' Healing Mate

The door to my room creaked as I stepped out into the hall, the sound immediately followed by, “You’re up early.”

I jumped, careening into the wall, and then whipped around. Grey was standing in the hallway, his arms crossed over his chest, wearing casual gym clothes. He fought back a grin as I righted myself and narrowed my eyes at him.

“Geez, Greylen. You scared the crap out of me.” I stomped off in his direction, because that was the way to the clinic, giving him a playful shove. “You should wear a bell.”

He laughed, rolling his eyes. “That would certainly defeat the purpose, now, wouldn’t it? Going to the clinic?”

I dipped my head, continuing to walk toward the rear entrance. “Yes. I couldn’t sleep, so I figured I might as well be productive. I’ve still got patients to see, and I have a feeling the place needs a good tidy.”

“Want a hand?”

Shooting Grey a look, I cocked my head before shrugging. “Sure. I would’ve thought you had better things to do, but I could use the help.”

He shrugged back. “Eh, just the gym. This’ll work well enough.”

We walked in companionable silence as we made our way to the clinic. The door wasn’t sitting right as we approached. I stopped, frowning as I peered through the open crack, caused by the damaged hinges.

“Don’t suppose you have tools, do you?”

Grey dipped his chin. “I can get them. Be back in a flash.”

I pressed inside the clinic while Grey went to get his stuff. It wasn’t too horrible inside, not like how I’d originally found it, but my files were scattered everywhere. Plus it was obvious that Bastian had been less than careful when he’d come here in search of the supplies.

“Well, this is going to be… annoying.”

Still, I started gathering the papers from the floor, ready to get them sorted so that I would be prepared for my patients who needed follow-up care. When I was finished, there was a hefty stack, and I sat at my desk in the office to organize them.

Before long, Grey showed up, getting to work on the door. He had it back in place in a matter of minutes. I had to admit I was thoroughly impressed. I offered him a smile as he walked over from the front door, wiping the sweat from his brow with the back of his hand.

“Good as new, which, considering this place was junk not too long ago, should fill you with the utmost confidence.” He approached the desk, handing me something. I was surprised when a key landed in my palm. “I changed the locks. I also told some of the handy horde members to install locks on all the windows. You’ll also have a security system fitted later tonight.”

A scoff broke free, followed by a chuckle. “You did all that just now?”

“No.” Grey shook his head, turning the corners of his mouth down. “I had that in the works the moment we couldn’t find you.”

My stomach clenched, and I shot my eyes to the papers in front of me. I knew the situation with Allison and Colin had been more than complicated, and I really had no anger toward them because I understood their desperation. But it was occurring to me more and more how much my sudden disappearance had affected my… mates. Bastian and Orsen were undoubtedly furious, and I remembered that frantic, desperate look in his eyes when he saw me again—bothtimes. It was impossible to deny how much my “kidnapping” had upset the guys. I could see it now, on Grey’s face, when I dared to sneak a glance at him.

Guilt swelled in my gut, making it churn. “I didn’t mean to… It was hardly my goal to get kidnapped. I hope you know that.”

“I can’t speak for the others”—Grey cocked his head, his eyes flicking to the side, and I could just picture Orsen and Bastian glaring in his mind—“but I never assumed that. I understand why they’re pissed, though.”

My eyes flared wide, and I felt like disappearing under my desk. “There were circumstances. An unborn baby was involved! Surely, you?—”

“It’s not that, Rowan.” Grey shook his head, resting his hip on the desk, his arms over his chest. “It’s the fact that, not only were you gone—again—but the person responsible can’t be brought to justice.Again.”

I sagged in my chair, leaning backward. “I… I hadn’t thought of that.”

At least this time, they knew who’d kidnapped me and why. They just couldn’t get a pound of flesh from it.

“I get that. I do. And you seem damn good at seeing things from others’ perspectives, so maybe… try that now?” Grey met my eyes. He wasn’t pushy, which was probably a big part of the reason I was actually hearing him out. “We lost you once before. I don’t think any of us can go through that again. Andwestilldon’t know what happened. Why you left, how you got those scars, who did it: it’s all still up in the air. I’ll be the first to tell you, I don’t fucking like it.”

I pressed my lips into a thin line and busied myself with scanning over the patient files again, running my fingers along the edges. They were so soft that I didn’t worry about giving myself a papercut. My mind went back to the nightmare as Grey lingered on my desk, his breathing painfully loud. I didn’t know what’d happened, just like the Alphas. If I were being honest with myself, that lack of knowledge, the way the truth had been taken from me, had been one of the hardest parts of healing, of moving on with my life.

It had been a big reason why seeing them all again had felt too heavy.

I wanted to shove all that angst away and pretend it never happened, which was not the best coping mechanism, sure. And I knew that, even if the guys hadwantedto do the same, theycouldn’t. Every time they saw each other, every time there was a wedding or birth or even just mated dragons being visible, they’d be reminded of what they once had… Of what was stolen from them.

Having a target for all that rage and grief felt better than aimlessly going about their days, I had no doubt. And now, after the stunt Colin had pulled, they were remembering it all over again, worried all over again, and still unable to take out their frustration all over again.