Once it was determined I had fully lost them, the Elders and Kings silently left the room after each one pulled me into a bear hug. Even Cahal. Bindi glanced around at the remaining occupants — Pearl, Jack, and Ezra — before delicately clearing her throat and saying, “Ms Ruckler, I’d like to talk with you privately.” She held the door wide open for them to leave.
I shook my head on the pillow, not wanting to move further. “Just shut the door. They may hear whatever you have to say.” My voice and heart were empty, void of caring about a damn thing right now. Including hurting Bindi’s feelings when she cleared her throat again, peering at me pointedly. “I said shut the fucking door.”
She stiffened, eyeing me, but did as told. The door was firmly shut, and she sat, her eyes flashing gold. The walls were suddenly encased in a sparkling gold protection, soundproofing the room. She tilted her head at the door. “They’re still out there.” Hands primly folded on her lap, she stared. “Your tubes were magically tied.”
I stared back. “Yes, they are, so how the hell did this happen?”
Her lips pinched. “During your exam, I took a few shots of them to study during the wait. What I found was that they have grown back together.” She paused. “The likely reason for this is that you didn’t wait the recommended period after the procedure for intercourse.”
A slow blink. “Recommended period?”
“The surgeon didn’t tell you?”
My eyes closed as I shook my head. The surgeon hadn’t known what he had even done because of the spell, therefore he wouldn’t have known what instructions to give me. “How long should I have waited?”
“At least three days,” she murmured absently. “The spell was there, but broken.”
Opening my eyes, I met her dumbfounded gaze. “I didn’t wait three days.” This situation was no one’s fault, and it made it even worse having no one to blame. “Can you correct the procedure? Fix where my tubes have reconnected?”
Her face went blank. “You still want your tubes tied?”
The answer was easy. “Yes. I’m not ready for children.” What was no longer clear was if I would ever want to have children in the future. But I never wanted the possibility of creating one of those Beasts with a Com. My tubes needed to be tied.
“You’ve just gone through a traumatic event, perhaps you should—”
“She said she wants it,” Ezra stated gruffly, cutting her off. “Can you do it or not?”
A deep breath. “Yes, I can do it.”
“Confidentially? Or do I need to have a spell put on you?” I scented the air, waiting for her response.
Her eyes narrowed. “Confidentially, of course. I never disclose information about my patients.” Truth.
“Good.” I rolled, pulling the blanket up higher on my shoulder. “I want it done today.”
An extended pause. “Okay, Ms Ruckler.” She cleared her throat. “To reiterate: you should not have sex, or do any extraneous activity, within the next three days.” She made an odd noise in her throat. “Also, the procedure can be reversed once you decide you’re ready for children.” She stood by the door, her hand on the doorknob. “I’ll be back in less than an hour to begin.”
The next three days were a blur in wretched time.
My best friends stayed with me during my stint in the medical ward, in which I spent a full day after my procedure. Bindi told everyone who came to see me — none of whom I allowed into my room as I was in no mood to talk with anyone — that I was recovering. She left it at that, letting them make their own assumption that I was recovering from miscarrying.
In truth, I was.
Just as I spent the next two days recovering lying in my own bed.
As did Ezra.
We barely moved, the TV on constantly as background noise, while our positions with Jack and Pearl were reversed. In retrospect, that time was the true turning point for them in their loss-filled attentions. They pushed aside their month-old hurt to take care of us with our unexpected losses. Slowly, my crying jags became shorter and Ezra’s bouts of silence became fewer while they watched over us, forcing us to eat three meals a day and to talk to them, getting directly in our faces at certain points when we didn’t even realize they were speaking.
The Kings let us be, more than likely because when a knock came at Ezra’s or my door, it was firmly ignored. We had no wish during that period to speak with anyone but Jack and Pearl, who wouldn’t allow us to ignore them, even if they had no real clue how to console us, this incident one none of us ever expected to experience.