Page 39 of Rauf: Minotaur Mates

He’d fucked it up before I’d even had the chance.

Through the open door, I could see Teresa crossing the waiting room with a bowl of water. She bent to set it beside Julia, her damp hair falling forward. I wanted her back beside me.

I looked past Korfas at the street. The market was close. Beyond it were roads and houses and all the places a human could disappear while half the town stood outside the clinic shouting.

Jason had seen Teresa’s face. She’d tended his leg. She’d been with us when we found him, and now he was loose, with a vehicle and whatever reason he’d had for hiding in that cave.

I’d brought her back here to leave her.

And she was in danger.

13

TERESA

I wrung out a clean rag and handed it to Julia. She swiped it angrily against the swelling red mark on her face. Her eyes were still filled with tears, and I couldn’t blame her. If some asshole had cold-cocked me, I’d be steaming mad.

It was one thing when a scared kitten swiped at me. They had no idea what was going on. A human, though?

No forgiveness.

“I didn’t think he’d just—” She choked back a sob.

Okay, maybe she wasn’t angry. Well, everyone handled emotions differently.

“Total dick move,” I agreed.

We were alone in one of the exam rooms, with Julia perched on the edge of a table that was much too high for her. Her feet dangled above the floor. Otho had gone to see another patient once he’d established she wasn’t seriously hurt, leaving me to help her clean up.

I set the bowl of water on the counter and pulled a stool over.

“Let me see how you’re doing under there.”

Julia lowered the rag a little, then let me ease it away. Up close, her face looked much better than I’d expected. There was a small cut on her lip, but it had stopped bleeding. The smear down her chin had made it look worse out in the street. I wiped that away and tipped her face toward the light.

“Does that hurt?”

She shook her head. Her eyes shone again, and I waited while she swallowed.

The red patch on her cheek wasn’t nearly as swollen as it had seemed either. Some of the puffiness was around her eyes, where she’d been rubbing them. I checked the other side of her face to be sure, then let go of her chin.

“A bit of ice should help.”

She nodded without looking at me.

There was a small cooling unit beneath the counter. I found some ice and wrapped a few pieces in the damp rag. Julia took it and pressed it to her cheek.

“Gently,” I reminded her. “You don’t have to squash yourself.”

She loosened her grip, but another tear slid down the other side of her face.

Frankly, I was surprised she was still crying. Once the redness faded, she might not even have a bruise. I’d been picturing a black eye, maybe a cracked tooth, something that would leave her hurting for days.

But I hadn’t been the one standing there when he swung at her. I kept the surprise to myself and reached for the tissue box on the counter.

Julia pulled one free and dabbed beneath her nose. I sat back on the stool and gave her a moment. My bag occupied the spare chair beside the exam table, right where I’d dropped it when we came in.

“What happened?” I asked. I didn’t want to send Julia into some spiral reliving her trauma, but I was still reeling with how fast everything had gone down.