Born of Defiance

“Because of Talyn?”


Felicia nodded. “I’ve already passed my PT certs, and I know he’ll have long-term concerns with what he does during his off-duty hours. I’d like to be able to help him later.”

That seemed to please her.

Galene inclined her head to the small recliner in the corner. “Why don’t you rest while I keep first watch?”

“You sure?”

She nodded. “I’m military and used to sleep dep. And you look like you’re about to fall over.”

Honestly? Felicia was. It’d been a long day, and with finals coming up, she hadn’t been sleeping well. Yawning, she went to the chair.

Galene pulled a spare blanket from the medical supply cabinet and covered her with it.

“Thank you.”

She patted Felicia’s shoulder. “Good night, sweetling.”

As Felicia closed her eyes, she saw Talyn’s mother move to the bed to take his hand into hers. She pressed it against her lips to kiss his knuckles, then held it to her cheek as she whispered desperate prayers for his recovery.

I was so wrong about you. Now she understood why Talyn was devoted to his mother. Why he never spoke ill of her, and had given his hours for her promotion.

He was his mother’s entire world.

Unlike Felicia’s parents with her, Galene didn’t see him as a burden or nuisance. He was her blessing and strength.

That was something Felicia not only understood, but related to. Tears brimmed in her eyes as she glanced back to his bruised face.

Don’t leave us, Talyn.

They both needed him. All her life, she’d felt unwanted and alone. Subpar. But Talyn needed her as much as she needed him. For the first time, she felt like she had a place in this world. Someone who really cared about her. And yet in the back of her mind was the reality that any time in her life things had gone well, they’d derailed. Horribly.

Please don’t die.

As she gazed at the monitors, she knew, in spite of what she’d told Galene, that the odds weren’t with the Hammer in this. His chances of survival were so small, she couldn’t bear to think about it or she’d scream.





Chapter 7





T

alyn slowly blinked his eyes open and groaned as pain split his head in half. Gods, it hurt. His breathing harsh and labored, he felt pressure on both his hands. Scowling, he looked up into Felicia’s bright gaze.

Then his mother’s.

Confused, he started to speak, only to feel the tube in his throat that kept him from it.

His mother buzzed for the doctor while Felicia tightened her grip on his hand.

“Hey, baby.” She lifted his hand to her lips and kissed it.

He tightened his grip on her fingers.

“You had us both terrified,” his mother lovingly chided. “Don’t you ever get hurt again. I mean it!”

He really hadn’t meant to get hurt this time. To be truthful, he couldn’t remember what had happened. One minute, he’d been dogfighting. The next…

Everything else was a blur in his memory. Even most of the day was missing. He really couldn’t recall anything.

His mother and Felicia stepped back as the doctor and nurse came in to evaluate him.

“It’s amazing,” the doctor said at last. “He’s still recovering, but his vitals are strong and he should be back to normal in a few weeks. He’s definitely healing better than we’d hoped.”

Gee, Doc, thanks for that happy prognosis. Nice to know he was still defying the odds that said he’d drop dead any second.

“If the two of you will give us the room, I’ll remove his tube.”

His mother left first. Felicia hesitated.

With a sweet little nose wrinkle, she smiled at him. “Don’t bite the doctor.”

He laughed, then choked.

The doctor, however, didn’t appreciate her humor.

At first Talyn did fine as the tube slid out. Until it caught. Then he started throwing up immediately.

The nurse scrambled and barely caught it.

Shaking all over, Talyn leaned back as his stomach slowly settled down again.

“Breathe easy.” The doctor retook his vitals. “You’re doing fine.”

Yeah, right. Talyn looked at the doctor as if the male was crazy. He didn’t feel fine. He felt like total shit.

After a few minutes, the doctor let them in again. “Feed him ice chips. He’s not ready to drink just yet, but he needs to stay hydrated.”

Felicia went to get a cup as his mother returned to stand by his bed.

“You should have told me about Felicia. She was quite a shock to my system.”

He swallowed hard before he tried to speak. “I haven’t known her that long. Just a few weeks.”

She narrowed her gaze at him. “She’s a companion, isn’t she?”