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Her eyes flashed opened and she grabbed his wrist again "Don’t hurt them," she said in a strained voice that seeth

Raphael shushed her, twisting his wrist carefully to take her hand in his He kissed the back of it "Who is it you think I’ll hurt, lubimaya? Softly now, I’ll hear you"

"Robbie," she breathed "Murphy It wasn’t their fault"

Raphael’sher eyes to close so she wouldn’t see the anger on his face He wouldn’t ed her and nudged hershe would rest until he returned

He waited until she was breathing evenly, then pulled the blanket over her and crossed to the desk, picking up his cell phone

"My lord," Duncan answered iriather whatever supplies he requires I’ll send the elevator up No one but the doctor is to co is already prepared, Saephan needs only to retrieve the blood froe unit"

"Once he is here with Cyn, I’ll come upstairs Where’s Robbie?"

"He is here,the phone back on the desk He went first to the vault door, keying it open and sending the elevator up for Dr Saephan While he waited, he pulled on a robe, then sat on the bed next to Cyn, holding her hand, knowing she would sense his presence and take comfort in it

He heard voices down the elevator shaft, heard Saephan directing others as they loaded up the doctor’s medical supplies And then the door closed and he heard the motor’s hum as the elevator descended The doors opened and Peter Saephan stepped out, dropping immediately to his knees

"My lord"

The doctor was a very sh to know Raphael would be walking the very edge of teravely injured beside hi the instinct to leap across the rooround out at last "You said she needed blood Did you bring it?"

"Yes, aze torn between Raphael and Cyn, his expression that of a physician who saw nothing but a patient in desperate need of his care

And that easily, Raphael relaxed Saephan wasn’t here to harm Cyn or to steal her away He was here to help her He stood and, knowing the doctor would be reluctant to approach with hi so close, walked to the bathroom door, then turned back to say, "I need a shower I will leave her to your care for now"

Saephan met his eyes for the first time "I will take care of her,away to rest on Cyn and then back to Saephan "Thank you, Peter" He stepped backwards into the bathroom and closed the door

Raphael stripped off the robe and showered quickly Normally, he wouldn’t have bothered since he intended to bathe in his eneht was over But he was covered in Cyn’s blood and she was his Her blood was his, no one else’s So he let the soap and water sluice over his body, and he swore privately that the blood of those who had harht

He didn’t bother drying off, just wrapped a towel around his hips and yanked the door open, suddenly needing to see for himself that she ell

Saephan barely noticed the intrusion He glanced up absently, but most of his attention re a unit of blood and was checking Cyn’s IV, his dark head bent over her too-thin arm

"You saved her life, my lord," Saephan said quietly "If anyone else--" He drew a deep breath "She is your mate, my lord, but she is also my friend and I feared for her"

Raphael stood there dripping atching another male touch his mate, and realized he trusted this human more than any other "My Cyn inspires loyalty in others," he observed

Saephan glanced over at him "As do you, my lord Never doubt it" He turned back to Cyn and when he spoke next it ith the flat, dry delivery of a physician reporting on his patient’s condition "Her greatest need at this point is human blood She lost--" His professional demeanor slipped for a reat deal," he continued, his voice slightly rough "But, I can replace that We have plenty on hand, of course, and her type is co is not necessary, because she has your blood to offset any incompatibility She’s also dehydrated, so I’ll run a second IV and provide some critical nutrition at the sa to add so inside her, this is mostly a precaution At best, it will be unnecessary, at worst, it will speed her recovery But, my lord," Saephan turned and addressed Raphael directly for the first time "Even with your blood, her injuries" He drew a breath "She will take a very long time to heal completely"

Raphael nodded "I understand" He walked over to the closet, rubbing the towel briefly over his body before donning clothing for the night Jeans, sweater, boots Black forhis eneain He spoke over his shoulder without turning "With your permission, one She’ll rest more easily once she’s cleaned up"

Raphael froze in the act of pulling on his boots, once again fighting the instinct to protect hishis snarl of frustration to avoid alared, stoht "But," he added, "no one except you is to see her like this, Doctor"