“Fuck.”
“Dex, talk to me. You’re scaring the shit out of me.”
“I feel weird.”
Before Sloane could ask how he felt weird, Dex’s eyes went wide and he fell back onto the bed. His back arched up, his body seizing painfully before a fierce, almost inhuman cry tore from his lips.
“Dex!”
Sloane tried to examine Dex, but he was thrashing so much it was hard for Sloane to keep a hold on him. Dex gritted his teeth, his face turning deep red and his neck muscles straining as he fought against the pain he was so obviously in. His body twisted and contorted as if he were possessed, his fingers grabbing fistfuls of the bedsheets. Unable to help, Sloane turned to grab his phone, but it wasn’t on the nightstand where he’d left it.
“It was right there.” He always placed his phone on his nightstand in case of emergency. Where the fuck was his phone?
“He’ll be fine.”
The familiar voice startled Sloane, and he peered into the shadows at the end of the room. Austen emerged, his expression sympathetic as he watched Dex. What the hell was Austen doing here?
“Austen? You need to help me. We need to call emergency services.”
Austen shook his head. “You need to let this play out.”
“Are you out of your mind?” Sloane thrust a hand in Dex’s direction. “Look at him!” This was fucking ridiculous. Dex’s phone! Sloane ran over to Dex’s side of the bed, stunned to find Dex’s phone was gone. His head shot up, and he stared at Austen.
“You took them.”
“It’s a seizure,” Austen said gently. “Sort of. He’s had one before. You need to let it play out.”
“What?” Sloane shook his head. “That’s not possible. I would have known if this had happened before.” He quickly returned to Dex’s side, Austen joining him. “Dex would have told me.” Something this serious, Dex would have said something. They were done keeping secrets.
“He didn’t tell you because he couldn’t remember.”
“Explain,” Sloane growled.
“The other day, when you called him from work and he told you he must have fallen asleep. He’d had a similar episode. TIN was immediately on the scene, and Sparks was called in. They took care of him.”
“Why wasn’t I told?”
Dex’s anguished cry startled Sloane, and he climbed back onto the bed, kneeling beside him and running a hand over his head. “It’s okay, sweetheart. You can get through this. I’m right here with you.”
Tears streamed down the side of Dex’s face. He looked so scared, but he couldn’t talk. Sloane’s heart was breaking, and he felt helpless. How could he sit here and do nothing while the man he loved was in so much agony?
“There has to be something I can do.”
“All you can do is comfort him. It’ll pass.”
“And if it doesn’t?” Sloane growled, his eyes meeting Austen’s. “I can’t just—”
“It will pass, Sloane. You’ll put him in more danger if you send him to the hospital.”
“Austen….”
Austen gently put his palm to Dex’s brow, smiling warmly down at him. “You can do this, Dex.” He looked up at Sloane, his expression grave. “I would never lie to you, Sloane.”
Sloane was beside himself. “What do I do?” In these kind of situations, his job would be to administer first aid, to get the victim help, but this was like nothing he’d ever seen. He trusted Austen, but Austen worked for TIN.
“Sloane. Trust me.”
Sloane looked up. The sincerity in Austen’s voice and the promise in his eyes had Sloane taking a chance he wouldn’t have taken on anyone else.