Total pages in book: 215
Estimated words: 217988 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1090(@200wpm)___ 872(@250wpm)___ 727(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 217988 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1090(@200wpm)___ 872(@250wpm)___ 727(@300wpm)
Hack’s gaze softened and he shook his head. “No, Brody, you did the right thing. I’m glad you’re here. I’ve been worried about you.”
Brody winced. “Sorry.”
“Stop making him feel bad,” the Fox barked.
Hack let out a deep breath. “He always this intense?”
“No, it’s because I got hurt.”
“Look, we need to go. I don’t like being out of the den. So hurry up,” the Fox demanded.
Hack mumbled something quietly, looking annoyed. But he carefully unwrapped the bandage. Brody had to fight hard to keep any pain from showing on his face. The Fox was wound so tight, he’d likely shoot first and ask questions later.
Autumn peeked out from behind the Fox. She eyed Brody worriedly and he forced himself to smile for her.
“See? Just a scratch, Tutu.”
“More than a scratch,” Hack countered. “This will need stitches. Here are some painkillers. They might make you a bit loopy.”
He took the pills. Stitches? Fuck. He felt himself pale and Autumn let out a small, scared noise.
Hack froze, then turned to look at her, as though he’d forgotten she was there. She ducked back behind the Fox who was glaring down at Hack as though he’d kicked his dog.
“Sorry, honey. I didn’t mean to scare you.”
“You don’t need to talk to her,” the Fox growled.
It was Brody’s turn to sigh. “Fox, he’s not going to hurt me or Tutu. You know that.”
The Fox moved his gaze to Brody, giving him a firm look. Right. Let him handle this. But then, to his surprise, the Fox nodded slowly.
“Tutu is feeling anxious,” Brody explained to Hack. He thought it best not to tell him that she didn’t trust or like doctors.
“I get it,” Hack said as he started to clean Brody’s wound.
Brody hissed in a breath. Ow. Ow. Owie. The stupid painkillers hadn’t kicked in yet.
“Why is he in pain?” the Fox demanded.
“It’s nothing major. I just need to clean the wound so it doesn’t get infected. It shouldn’t hurt that much.”
Great. Now he was going to have to admit what a wimp he was. “It’s fine. I’m just not good with pain.” He glanced at the Fox. “You know this. And you know he’s not harming me.”
“He better not be.”
“Great,” Hack muttered. “Always hoped I’d at least live long enough to find my own Little, you know?”
He closed his eyes, trying to be brave as Hack cleaned the wound.
Suddenly his free hand was enveloped in a small, chilled one. He opened his gaze to find Autumn at his other side. She sent Hack a wary look, but when he didn’t comment, she leaned into Brody. When he glanced up at her, he could see her eyes were glassy with tears.
He smiled up at her. The Fox moved over, as though he didn’t like her being too far from him. But it was Brody he touched, his hand held firmly on his shoulder. And suddenly, he felt like he might be able to deal with whatever happened next. That he was strong enough.
“Did you want to help me?” Hack asked Autumn kindly.
Her eyes widened and she glanced over to the Fox, as though asking for permission. The Fox stared down at Hack, but when his gaze moved to Autumn, whatever he saw there had him nodding.
“If you want, you can help.”
“Oh whew,” Hack said. “Because I wasn’t sure I could do this next part without you.”
Autumn’s eyes widened. The fear had left her face, which was a relief. He didn’t want her to be upset.
“Now where did I put my wand? It’s a very important part of his operation.”
“Operation?” Brody said in a high-pitched voice.
Hack winked at him. “Small operation. I promise not to take anything too vital. He doesn’t need his heart does he, poppet?”
She nodded.
“He does? Huh. Well, it’s good you came along. I might have taken it by accident.”
To his shock, she gave Hack a small smile. Maybe it hadn’t been a stupid idea to come here.
“Hmm, oh, here it is!” Hack drew a sparkly wand from his bag that had Autumn’s eyes growing wide. It was just a cheap plastic wand, but she was staring at it like it was precious.
“My magic wand! I thought it had disappeared. That would have been a disaster. I don’t know what I’m doing when I don’t have it. Would you hold it for me?”
She nodded, taking hold.
“Good. Hold onto it so it doesn’t get lost. Naughty thing likes to wander off. I’m going to help Brody. When I tell you to, though, you have to be ready to do some work. Understand? You can’t earn yourself some treasure without putting in some effort.”
Hack worked quickly, which Brody was grateful for. He numbed the area before stitching it up. Still, by the end of it, Brody was feeling exhausted. He just wanted to curl up in bed with the two people he cared about most in this world.