赤裸裸的滑稽故事

“I’m sorry,� Bell whispered as she pulled the needle from his arm and placed a small bandage.

“Barely felt it,� Axel replied quietly as he rubbed his arm.

Bell smiled.

“I didn’t mean the needle,� she said.

Axel looked up at her, and she gave him a sad smile.

“Seems pretty obvious that the blood stolen from you during the convoy was used to make that thing.�

“Seems likely,� Axel nodded. “But why would you apologize for that?�

Bell sighed.

“Roman,� she said. “I’m sure he was leading the attack on that convoy.�

Axel chuckled.

“You know, Bell, you don’t have exclusive rights to being his target,� he said. “Not to mention, that attack had a pretty clear objective.�

Axel touched his chest.

“I’d be honored that he put in so much effort if not for the current results.�

Axel was making light, and Bell knew it was primarily to make her feel better. But she could tell that something was bothering him.

“Are you alright?� she asked.

Axel turned and looked at her. He seemed to be considering her carefully.

“How’s Myka?� he asked.

Bell was surprised. She hadn’t expected that.

“He’s getting better. His bloodwork looks great, and some of his physical symptoms are clearing up. So we are hopeful he might wake up today or tomorrow.�

“But he’s not cured?� Axel asked.

“No,� Bell confirmed. “Peter and I are working on it, but there is still a lot to go over, and we are practically guessing where to start.�

“And you’re sure he won’t just... heal on his own?�

Bell sighed and shook her head.

“Whatever Alice did, it definitely helped. He is healing, but every test I run still shows the infection in his system. It’s being pushed back, and to some extent, it’s staying back... but the infection will eventually spread and grow unless we find a cure before then.�

Axel clenched his jaw and lowered his head with a nod.

Bell furrowed her brows and observed him. It was a horrible situation, and she desperately hoped that Myka would pull through, but why was Axel so affected? He had only met Myka a few times; from what she heard, they mostly butted heads.

“Axel,� she said softly, touching his shoulder. “What’s going on? This... isn’t about Myka, is it?�

Axel shook his head.

“No, not exactly,� he sighed.

“What is it?� she asked.

Axel took a deep breath.

“So many people assume the worst of her,� Axel sighed. “I hear the whispers, the doubts, the suspicions.�

He looked to the floor, bringing his hand up to his eyes and rubbing his brows.

“You mean Alice?� Bell asked.

Axel nodded, still keeping his head down.

“All these people that don’t know her don’t understand her. They all just see the doll. The spy from Spring,� Axel spat bitterly. “They call her a traitor, a liar. They presume that she has bewitched me somehow, and they question whether the Goddess really paired us or if she tricked me into our relationship.�

Axel chuckled.

“She hears it all too, and she doesn’t care.�

A gentle smile formed on Bell’s lips. But, of course, Alice wouldn’t care. She had heard far worse in her life. Her skin was thicker than any wolf Bell had ever met.

“For all that talk, all those accusations of her greed and treachery... Alice has always given me her endless love. She has put my interests above hers, and she has only ever asked one thing of me,� Axel said with a sniffle and soft sob.

Bell put her hand on his back, rubbing gently.

“All she wanted...� he whispered. He sucked in a sharp breath as the emotions began to overwhelm him. “Her one... ‘selfish’ request... she wanted us to have a family.�

Bell wasn’t sure why, perhaps just how he spoke, but she felt worried.

“The only thing she wanted for herself... was to be a mother. To have a child made from our love. One that she could love without restraint or expectation, without conditions.�

Axel’s voice cracked, and the sobs poured out of him. His tears flowed, and his pain gripped his heart.

Bell curled her lips together and closed her eyes, trying to suppress the awful feeling in her stomach. She didn’t understand why he was so upset, but her gut told her something terrible was happening.

“Axel...� she whispered. “Did something... happen?�

He didn’t respond. He was still weeping, letting out the pain he held tightly inside him. He had kept his calm with Alice. Told her that everything would be all right, that Myka would be cured, and they would have their family one day.

He was disappointed. He wanted a little girl with Alice’s short curls or a boy with her chocolate eyes. But the truth was, at the end of the day, having children or not didn’t matter to Axel. What mattered was that Alice might lose the chance for the only thing she ever wanted for herself.

And that broke his heart.

“Do you know how she helped him?� He asked.

“You mean, how Alice helped Myka? No... she didn’t give us any details, only said it would work. So we left them alone for about an hour. When we came back, he was already healing.�

Axel nodded.

“She gave him her wolf.�

“What?� Bell asked with surprise and confusion. “What does that even mean? You can’t just give away your wolf....�

“You can, apparently, when one of the original Lunas helps you.�

Bell’s eyes widened. The original Lunas, the fae women that had been turned into the first wolves.

She still had a hard time accepting that she was part fae or that these women were still alive. But one had come to Alice and helped to save Myka?

It seemed there was always a surprise waiting around the corner. Bell sat beside him, trying to think through what he was saying.

“Even if it were possible... how? And why? What does that even mean?� Bell asked in disbelief.

“Some kind of switch,� Axel sighed, leaning back in his chair. “Alice was a human turned into a wolf. There is no trace of fae in her system. Myka’s body was getting worse whenever his natural healing kicked in.�

“So... they traded?�

Axel nodded.

Bell furrowed her brows; it made no logical sense that they should be able to do this. But lately, it seemed logic was taking a backseat in their lives.

“Now, Alice’s wolf can heal Myka,� Axel continued. “For a time at least.�

Bell remembered the tests she had run on Myka after he had begun to improve. She also remembered the way that Alice had insisted they find a cure. Of course, they knew it wasn’t permanent, but Bell had assumed that Alice’s insistence was because she was worried about Myka.

But why would Axel be sitting here, crying, and worried if that was all? Why would he talk about Alice’s desire to be a mother in such an anguished voice?

Her eyes widened, and her heart sank as the realization hit her.

“She took the infection into herself....� Bell whispered. “It won’t hurt her... but you–�

“But I... am one of three wolves that have almost pure fae blood,� he sighed. “Which means that if Alice keeps the infection inside of her, it won’t kill her. But it will kill any life we create together.�

Bell covered her mouth, trying to keep her reaction controlled.

“Did she know...?�

Axel nodded.

“The Priestess, Luna, whatever. She warned Alice that helping Myka would put her at great risk. She told her what would happen if the cure came too late.�

“So, what if we find it in time?�

“If you can cure Myka in time, they can switch back with little to no harm done,� Axel said. “If the infection comes back and you find the cure after, you can save him at least.�

Bell took a deep breath.

“I’m sorry, Axel,� she whispered.

In the hallway, Peter had his back pressed painfully into the wall. His jaw was clenched so tightly that he felt his back teeth might crack. Hot tears rolled down his cheeks, and he drew short deep breaths.

He came for the newest test results and intended to walk away when he saw that Bell and Axel were talking. But, unfortunately, he arrived at a point in the conversation that he could not walk away from.

His mind drifted back to the night he shared with Myka. As they took a short rest from enjoying each other, they talked about life and the people they loved and admired.

“Ok,� Myka smiled. “I’ll tell you a secret about Alice that you won’t believe.�

“Hmm... that’s tough. That woman has so many secrets and skills. There is very little I wouldn’t believe about her,� Peter replied with a grin.

Myka laughed, wrapping his warm arms tighter around Peter.

“That’s a fair point,� he said. “Still, I think you’ll be surprised by this.�

“If I didn’t know any better, I might be a little suspicious of how much you know about and want to talk about Alice,� Peter replied with mock jealousy.

Myka laughed again, his warm throaty laugh. Peter smiled at the sound.

“Alice is my sister,� Myka said softly, laying his chin on Peter’s shoulder. “She was the first to show me kindness because she wanted to. She will always be important to me.�

“I know,� Peter smiled. “All right, tell me this surprising fact about sister Alice.�

Myka grinned.

“Her one and only dream in this life is to be a mom,� he replied, his voice beaming with satisfaction and strange pride. “With all the skills she has, all the secrets she knows. All the possible ways she could gain power or control in this world. She only wants to create a life with the one she loves and cherish it.�

Peter smiled.

“I can see why she is so special to you,� he said gently.

Myka turned Peter’s chin to him, pressing their lips together in a soft kiss.

“Second only to you,� he whispered, kissing Peter again.

As the memory faded, Peter closed his eyes and fought to keep quiet, not wanting Bell and Axel to know he was there.

When he got the chance, he quickly escaped, swearing in his mind to both Myka and Alice that he would find the cure.