Chapter Ten

It had been another two days since he had seen or heard from Evette, and Valen was done with it, finished. He got competent employees to cover the whole day, and he was going to march up to her place and demand to know how she was. In the back of his mind, he was almost certain as to why he hadn't heard from her. Joe, her ex-husband, was most likely at the house. Kathy had let him know they had called to let them know she was having the baby the day before, and he had been the one who answered. Both he and Kathy were pissed, but she had to focus on having that baby and healing from it rather than what was going on with her sister and that jerk.

That was exactly what he was from what he had been filled in with by Kathy and her husband.

Valen pulled up to her house and did see there was a car parked out front that he did not recognize. It meant she was dealing with Joe, probably acting like they were back together. Kathy had mentioned she never did like the guy anyway but that Evette seemed to be in love with him and happier than her first marriage, so she let it go. That Joe was a bit controlling and pushed his opinions on Evette's actions, which never went over well. Not until now, anyway. Valen could imagine that, with how hard-headed she tends to be, but he loved that about her. Joe clearly did not, and she was too weak both mentally and physically to fight him on it right now.

Valen went up to the door and rang the doorbell, trying to look as intimidating as possible. That was what he had going for him. He was a dragon still, even if he was in his human form. He looked like a dragon prince, and somewhere in the back of most human minds, they sensed something about him; about his strength and beauty.

The door opened to reveal the same man he had seen before, still in a baseball cap but no jacket this time. He appeared to be older than Evette, and in fact, Valen could see the appearance of wrinkles on his face under the light of the house. "Look buddy, Evette told me all about you," he began, in a bit of a condescending tone. Valen really didn't even want to listen to this. "I appreciate you being around when I wasn't, when I couldn't be. I truly do. But I’m here now. So, if you could just keep that store of hers up and running until these meds really do their job, we would both appreciate that."

"Why exactly can't Evette tell me any of this herself? I have come to see how she is because I haven't heard anything. I am concerned, everyone who cares is concerned, including her sister and her nieces and nephew; one of those being a newborn baby she has not seen yet," Valen said, leaning into the door frame. Joe backed up a bit, at least slightly intimidated.

"She doesn't want to see or talk to anyone right now, and as far as her new niece, I don't see how her being around a baby right now is smart. She can see her when she is well, when she can actually hold her and play with her." He did have a point there, but it didn't mean what he was doing was right.

Valen backed off and got in the car, heading straight for Kathy's house where she and the baby would be by now. He would at least go see that child on Evette's behalf and maybe one of them could talk some sense directly into Evette since he was not allowed to see her.

In his head, Valen was running through a decision, one he had been thinking about for a couple of weeks now but didn’t want to fully admit it to himself was an option. It would mean doing something he never thought he would do; going back home.

Kathy's house was not too far from where Evette lived; about a ten-minute drive even with the fact that traffic was always terrible no matter what. It was a nice suburban neighborhood with lots of ranch-style houses. If a single man living in one of these would not look creepy, he would have totally chosen this over being right smack dab in the middle of the city like he was now. Not that any of those ideas mattered if he stopped weighing his options and just decided to save Evette, no matter the cost to himself. And that cost would be steep. It could cost her too, but there was a chance that if he took her home with him, she would be saved and be allowed to go home.

Valen got out of the car and went to knock on the blue-grey door with a wreath on it filled with white flowers. It fit so much with the lightness that surrounded Kathy all the time. Evette and Kathy were the best selling compliments to each other, and he kind of wished he had a sibling to grow up with and always go to when he needed something. Maybe that would be someone who would help him now when he was at a loss at how to help the woman he was very nearly sure he was in love with.

Kathy's husband came to the door with a broad smile on his face, the exact kind Valen would imagine any father should have when having a child. Though, most high ranking dragons were not that way. They were more proud of having an heir than happy to have another person to love.

He led Valen through the house into the den where Kathy was sitting with the sleeping baby in her arms, looking down at her. Valen leaned over to look at the precious being, so small and delicate. It was a wonder humans survived their first year of life in such a vulnerable state.

"Any luck with Evette?" she whispered. Valen knew she must have been feeling sad that her sister wasn't there to see this when they were always together for everything from what he could tell. Valen shook his head and walked over to the couch to take a seat, sighing with anxiety. He wished for them to find a logical solution together, but he just had this feeling in his gut that there was not going to be an answer, not one that he liked.

"Joe is still there, and he won't let me see her. He says that she doesn't want to see me and that he is going to take care of her now. She’ll come see the baby when she is well enough to. I don't know. I almost feel like he’s holding her hostage in her own home, and I don't like it. I didn't want to start something with him in case he was telling the truth, but to be honest, I just wanted to take him down."

Kathy's husband quietly chuckled, standing next to his wife. "I feel like that a lot with him. He kind of brings that out in people. Look, do the two of you want me to go get her? I have a key, and I don't think Joe is going to mess with me if I literally carry her out of there and bring her here?"

Valen and Kathy looked at each other. the decision was clear. The first step to any healing, whether emotional or physical, would be to get her out of the grasps of a man who left her for her beliefs and her medical brilliance. Valen turned to her husband and nodded. "If you think you can do it, then yes."

He went for the keys and was quickly out the door. Valen looked at Kathy.

"I am going to go put her to bed now, but don't worry. Joe has always been scared of him for some reason I think it's because he is so successful and Joe is so not."

Valen nodded and sat there nervously rubbing his hands together.

Valen waited patiently for Kathy's husband to return with Evette, wanting to see just exactly how she was doing. That was what was going to make his final decision about whether or not she needed to be healed by a dragon instead of anything a human could offer her. In truth, he would have done it already himself. It wasn't like he was squeamish. He could easily use some of his own blood to heal her. It didn't have to come from a specific dragon. However, he was not a healer. He did not have the experience he needed to care for her while undergoing that intense of a treatment. He had never actually seen a human being treated by dragon's blood, he had only heard stories. Some humans could reject it entirely, and he might give her too much or too little. It needed to be done by someone who knew what they were doing. At the age of ten, he had been dragged away from doing anything with the healer because it was deemed inappropriate for the prince.

He shook his head angrily at the memory, knowing there was a good chance he would have to face those people and ideas again if he took Evette there. At least she would be worth it; worth every minute he had to face being oppressed by his own kingdom again.

Finally, the door opened, and Valen rushed to it to see if any help was needed. He had his answer as soon as they were fully in the door, Valen reaching out his arms to give Kathy's husband a break. He had to carry Evette up to the door. It was clear she was not any better than the day she left the hospital. Sure, the meds did not necessarily begin working right away, but what if they didn't work in time to save her at all? Valen could not risk that. So, he knew he would have to make his move tonight. He would stay as late as he could, offer to take her home or to at least stay up with her for a bit so the new parents could sleep, and that when he would get her out of there.

Valen felt a pang of guilt at the idea of just making her disappear. They would wonder what happened to the two of them after a while. There might be rumors and suspicions. Kathy would be devastated, but as much as that hurt him to know, he couldn't tell any of them the truth. He could not risk losing his chance to take her where she could be saved.

Valen was never asked to leave, and in fact, everyone seemed to be relieved to have him there. Evette was laying down, asleep in the guest bedroom with the door open. Valen waited until it was clear everyone was down for the count, even the baby before he tiptoed into Evette’s room. He was going to have to be gentle and quiet, making it out the door with her before she woke up because if she woke up, then he would be busted and she might never be saved.

He pulled her up into his arms slowly as she snored and tossed, but she did not wake. There was a large window behind her bed, and he took advantage of it, standing up on the bed while holding her and using his foot to shimmy the thing up. Then, as he perched on the sill, half into the night and half still in, he knew he would have to risk changing. He glanced upwards to see that it was thankfully a cloudy night. He would be able to soar up quickly from darkness and hit the cloud cover with few prying eyes to see him. They wouldn't know it was a dragon if they did see it and would probably make some claim about a UFO or government project.

With one fell swoop, he came out, his golden wings expanding and then going behind him to get him up to speed as he straightened out, heading into the clouds like a bullet. Valen was sure this movement, if nothing else, was going to wake Evette up, so he hoped to stabilize soon so she wouldn't squirm like that where he would drop her from his claws.

Sure enough, just as they hit the right altitude, the whispy pillows hiding his otherworldly appearance from sight, Evette began to scream bloody murder. She kicked and screamed as he held on tightly, unable to communicate with her that it would be alright. There as no way he could produce a psychic connection when she was in this state, and he was partially afraid she might have a seizure any moment. The thought just made him fly faster.

The journey didn't seem as long as he expected. He had felt completely removed from who he was and his home for several months now, and he didn't exactly think it would be so easy to just fly back, but it was. He did not know how bad the trials he would face when he got there would be, but he just felt in his heart as he landed at the entrance to his village that they would be able to help Evette.

The guard that was there was one Valen knew well. He was younger than him by about a year, and the two had lived close to each other growing up. They often played as young children, well, fighting is more the word. All dragons play, especially among men, was meant to prepare for battle with other dragon clans and any other race that decided to show up in their territory.

"Valen, what the hell are you doing? You are gone for almost a year, and then you come back carrying some human woman in your claws!" the voice of the guard screeches in his head. He had missed this, the silent communication of the psychic powers of a dragon. He had gotten so used to having to speak aloud that he had almost entirely forgotten what it was like.

"She is very ill, otherwise, I would not be risking this. Do not ask any questions. Get the healer up here, now, and do not come in contact with anyone else on the way!" Valen ordered. He could feel the guard was trying to resist him, but he had not been gone quite so long that the pull to follow his commands was no longer inside of his subjects. He was a prince and of age. It was their job to do as he said, even if they did not agree. Even if it might get them killed later. He was certainly afraid that his father would have mercy on all but him.

The healer showed up, and Valen was relieved to see him and that it was the same dragon he remembered from his childhood. He had not been removed from his position, which was a good sign. There was hope.

The healer, Stathim, looked back and forth between him and the woman in his arms. Evette was out cold now, and he was worried about her. The healer shifted into a human, placing his hands on her and nodding. He understood something was very wrong with this woman. “I can start treatment tonight, but you know this will get to your father by morning. Are you prepared for that?” he asked with compassion, scooping a weakened Evette up into his capable arms. Valen nodded, blowing a puff of smoke from his nostrils. He was perfectly aware of that. But if the healer could get to healing Evette first, that was what mattered.

Stathim turned and carried her away, and Valen turned into his human form to follow, leaving the guard back at his post as if nothing had happened, as if the long-lost prince had not just come home.