“They have,” I agreed. “And we will move. But it doesn’t need to be today or tomorrow or even this month. Give yourself time to heal.”
He gave me a considering look but didn’t argue further. He didn’t fool me. He likely planned to work on Tor or maybe Cassie next. With Tor, Adam would play up my safety. Heck, he’d probably use the same angle on both of them.
“It’s not going to work,” I said. “My safety isn’t more important than yours.”
“We’ll need to disagree on that.”
“Why? Why do you think I’m so much more important than you?”
He shrugged and winced.
Tor came in before I could press him for an answer.
“Thank you.” I started filling bags and placing them around Adam’s leg. Tor worked with me. Adam exhaled deeply when we’d placed the last one.
“Try to rest,” I said, grabbing Tor’s hand and pulling him from the room.
“Should I stay with Adam to—”
“Nope. You can help me.”
I waited until we were downstairs before rounding on him.
“Adam’s hurt bad. You know that, right?”
“Yes.”
“He can barely move. Watch him when he breathes, he’s avoiding inhaling too deeply, which could lead to pneumonia. That’s why he didn’t want you to carry him to the bathroom this morning. Every time he uses the bottle instead of the bathroom, he’s telling you without words that moving him would cause immeasurable pain.”
With each word I said, Tor’s frown grew.
“I don’t want to hurt Adam.”
“I know you don’t. That’s why I’m telling you this. Adam’s so worried about my safety that he’s going to try to convince you to move him to Tolerance before it’s safe. We need to protect him from himself. Okay?”
Tor nodded. I smiled and leaned in to give him a quick hug. He twitched the moment my arms wrapped around his waist, which only drove me to give him the hug he deserved. Resting my head against his torso, I gave him a squeeze.
His large hand tentatively patted my back, and I laughed.
“It’s a hug, Tor, not an attack.”
“You like touching.”
“I guess I do. It’s another way to show appreciation and affection. Sometimes, even annoyance.”
He grunted and gently wrapped his arms around me.
“This is appreciation and affection,” he said. “I’m not annoyed with you.”
I chuckled.
“I’m not annoyed with you, either. Want to pick out our movie selection for today?”