Not food, her tiger snarled. I want to chase. I want to hunt NOW!
It felt like the beast would explode through her skin, tearing her to bits in an effort to set herself free.
Destiny found herself down on her knees on the hard stone streets, clutching her head in her hands and shouting aloud. “Stop! I have to bring the herbs to Ethan! If you take me over, he could die!”
Her tiger backed down with a final, resentful snarl.
Destiny got shakily to her feet. She could feel the beast within as a raging, uncontrollable presence, not only in her mind but in her body, in her entire being. She’d defeated the animal for now, but she had no confidence that she could do so again. It was stronger than she was. It always had been. And now she’d lost her only defense against it.
She hurried back to the palace, pulled the drawbridge, and went to check on Ethan. He was still asleep, and didn’t even seem to have moved. She stood for a moment looking down at his sleeping face, at his sandy eyelashes, the nape of his neck. She had the crazy impulse to bend over and kiss it…
…which was not what he needed. Maybe if she was his mate, her touch alone might soothe him. But she wasn’t, so it wouldn’t, so she wouldn’t.
Destiny practically bolted out of the room before she could change her mind. She found the palace kitchen, which had a lot of sealed jars she decided were better left unopened, and also pots and pans and a cooking hearth, which she used to prepare the herbs.
We could have fresh venison right now, sweet and tender, if you weren’t so stubborn, growled her tiger.
We’ll hunt for deer later, Destiny promised. I don’t have many outfits, remember? I want to undress before I shift.
Why bother? Fur is better than stupid clothes.
Destiny didn’t dignify that with a response.
She carried a tray up to Ethan, set it on the table by the bed, and shook him awake. “Hey, jarhead. Buddy. Ethan, come on. Wake up.”
He was hard enough to rouse that she thought he’d been closer to unconsciousness than sleep. His blue-green eyes were glassy, his face flushed. “Everything okay?”
“Yeah, we’re fine
. I made you some herbal remedies. Here, take this. It’ll help your cough.” She gave him a spoonful of sticky syrup. Then she held up the mug of tea she’d made from the herb with pale leaves and purple flowers. “This one… Let me tell you what it is, then you decide whether or not you want to take it.”
He rubbed his forehead like his head hurt. “That sounds ominous. Are you not sure whether it’s mushrooms or toadstools?”
Destiny rolled her eyes. “No, jarhead. I know exactly what it is. That’s the problem. It’s a… kind of a pick-me-up. It’ll help with the pain, knock your fever down, give you more energy and a clearer head…”
“What’s the catch?”
“It’s not a cure, or even a treatment. It’ll make you feel better for a little while, but once it wears off, whatever’s wrong will still be wrong. Worse, probably, since you’ll have been running around doing things when you should’ve been resting.”
The moment she said those last words, Destiny wished she hadn’t. Eagerly, Ethan said, “Run around? It could get me back on my feet? For how long?”
“No idea. Might be a few hours, might be a few days.”
“Days, huh? Think it could last long enough to get me to the base?”
Destiny bit her lower lip. “I really don’t know. Like I said, it could just be a couple hours. Or it could last just long enough to get you to the base, then you collapse once you’re inside.”
“I’ll take that risk.” He held out his hand for the mug.
“You sure?”
“Positive, mudpuppy. Hand it over.” He struggled to sit up, then fell back. Destiny helped him sit up and lean against a bunch of brocade pillows, then steadied his hands around the cup. She’d found it in the kitchen; it was made of fine porcelain painted with a delicate pattern of jungle vines.
Ethan sipped the concoction and made a face. “Tastes like old socks.”
“How do you know what old socks taste like?”
She thought he was going to say it tasted like old socks smelled, but he chuckled and said, “Because Ellie stuffed one of hers in my mouth when we kids.”