Chained Hearts

Chapter 2-2

Long, dark shadows were inching through the flaps of the wagon cover when Todd was yanked away from sleep. They’d probably been asleep no more than an hour or two.

Nick’s knee shoved sharply and forcefully into Todd’s hip. His entire body quaked. He jerked away from Todd, tense, almost seizing, before he cried out. There weren’t any words, simply garbled, strangled noises that were pure terror. His legs jerked one way while his arms flailed in different directions.

“Nick!” Todd barked, and made a grab for both of Nick’s arms, intending to shake him awake. He was pinned beneath his mate’s weight, however, making it difficult to move efficiently.

Todd’s befuddled brain chased away sleep and his mind sharpened to a point aimed at Nick when the familiar weight of him was suddenly gone. Sitting up fast, Todd lurched forward, making another grab at Nick. His fingers curled through nothing but air. “Damn!”

Nick rolled to the side; now up on hands and knees, he padded across the wagon and flung himself at the opening.

“Awww…shit…Nicky!” Todd hollered. His words ended in wet coughs. He flung the sheets to the side, scuttled across the wagon, and followed Nick outside.

He was immediately hit with some sort of wet, soggy combination of rain and snow. Slipping in the mud, Todd tried to get his footing. It was made even more difficult when his breathing stuttered and a bout of coughing erupted. Ignoring it as best he could, he hopped a few steps when his foot ground against a sharp stone. Nick was running, or trying to, across the slick, muddy ground. Pitching forward, his legs were pumping, and the upper half of his body would have hit the ground hard had he not put his hands out, scrambling a few feet using hands and feet.

Running after Nick, Todd reached him in a few long, panicked strides. Grabbing one of Nick’s arms and winding his other arm around Nick’s chest caused Nick to struggle. He lost his footing and fell away from Todd, scraping his forearm and elbow over a rough patch of dry, grassy semi-frozen ground. Shouting, Nick twisted and elbowed Todd’s middle.

Tightening his grip on Nick’s wrist, Todd pushed forward, cringing at how hard Nick landed on his knees when Todd forced him down, Todd lying atop Nick.

“Nick, stop!” Todd panted against Nick’s neck. Turning his head to one side, he blew out rough breaths that turned to hazy clouds over Nick’s skin. Perspiration beaded along Nick’s shoulder blades and ringed the edge of the wound there that simply wouldn’t heal.

Slipping to the side, Nick got loose, staggered halfway to his feet, twisted around, and took a swing at Todd. Fortunately, Todd was ready for that move and was up, meeting Nick and capturing both of Nick’s wrists in his hands, yanking hard. “Nick, it’s me! Nick!”

Nick stopped struggling for a second and stared at Todd, but his eyes were unfocused and vacant, staring off to one side of Todd’s head.

He was still asleep.

“No, no, no, no,” Nick garbled and kicked at Todd’s thigh, trying to back away. “Don’t touch me!” came out loud and clear right before Nick got an arm free, and he slammed a punch into Todd’s shoulder.

Growling and frustrated, Todd pulled them both onto their knees again and hit Nick’s shoulders with both hands, hard. Nick reeled backward, landing flat on his back. Shoulders arching off the ground almost immediately, Nick howled. This time, his cries were pain laced with fear.

Todd pounced, his hands on Nick’s shoulders, latching on with a death grip. He held Nick to the ground while he straddled his hips. Pulling Nick’s upper body quickly forward until his mate was sitting up, Todd dropped all his weight down, forcing Nick back down with enough force it jarred through Todd’s entire body.

His lungs rebelled at the sudden change in activity and temperature, contracting and forcing him to hack up phlegm. His throat tightened with each spasm, causing him to hunch over. He braced against Nick for a minute before he caught his breath and the pain between his ribs eased.

Gulping in air, Nick finally ceased struggling. His eyes were wild-rabbit wide as his gaze jumped from Todd to the wagon and back.

“It’s here,” he wheezed out. Todd let go of his wrists, sitting up straighter and Nick immediately grabbed at Todd’s arms. “It was here. She came for us. She’s here!”

The way Nick rolled his hurt shoulder was a sure giveaway that he was completely awake now.

Head dropping forward, Todd closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Opening his eyes again, he looked at Nick. Getting his feet under him, he sighed, took hold of Nick’s arms again, and hoisted them both up.

“Nothing is here, Nick. It’s you, me, four horses, and a wagon. Nothing else!” He didn’t mean to shout the final two words, but this was getting under his skin in a way things rarely did. It wasn’t Nick’s fault and he knew shouting at his mate did no good, but he was tired, irritable, and running very short on patience.

Nick’s eyes widened even farther and he cringed away. Only Todd’s firm grip kept him from losing his footing on the slick ground.

“Nicky,” Todd said, voice much softer. “Just us here, buddy.” Slowly he let go of one of Nick’s arms and raised his hand, letting it settle on the side of Nick’s face for a second before brushing down to Nick’s neck. “It’s okay. You’re safe. I’m safe. We’re alone, and nothing is going to hurt either of us.”

“Where—” Nick looked around, relaxing a small amount. “I-it—”

“Nothing here but us,” Todd repeated gently, this time wrapping his other arm around Nick’s shoulders and pulling his mate close. They stood there for a few seconds, Todd holding Nick tightly against him. “It’s okay,” he repeated and swallowed the urge to cough again.

Nick sucked in a shuddering breath. Knees buckling, body shaking, he wilted against Todd.

“It was so real.” Nick moved back far enough to look at Todd, his whole face crumpling, leaving nothing but confusion and fear. “So real.”

Ice mixed with rain pellets hammered down on them, making Todd’s skin sting and goose-bumps ripple up. He turned, guiding Nick back toward the wagon.

“C’mon, buddy, let’s get dried off and cleaned up.” The words ended in more broken, short coughs.

Nodding, Nick huddled closer and let Todd steer him to the wagon, thankfully, without any resistance. He sat Nick down on the wagon steps under the canvas overhang. Todd reached inside and pulled out towels and blankets, wiping mud from himself and handing towels to Nick, so his mate could do the same. Nick sat shivering with one towel wrapped around his hips and another draped over his shoulders, the corners clutched in one hand. He looked small, too young, and pathetic.

Todd managed to get a small fire going under the canopy extension near the steps and heat enough water for them to wash off with. Once Nick and he were dressed in sweats and Nick was safely back in the wagon, Todd used the last of the fire to make some hot coffee. Scooting across the inside of the wagon, juggling both mugs, he held one out to Nick. “How’s your arm? I’ll put more cream on your shoulder in a minute and your arm, too. You scrubbed it good?”

“Yeah.” Nick wrapped both hands around the mug, but didn’t drink, just sat there, hunched over on himself, holding the mug close to his chest. Todd…I’m sorry…I didn’t mean…”

“Shush. Drink your coffee.” Todd blew on his and smiled over the rim of his mug. “It’s not your fault. The kelbit again?”

Nick nodded.

Todd sighed and sipped his coffee, stopping every few mouthfuls to cough. “This weather isn’t going to get better.”

“Neither is your cough.”

Nodding and holding his mug away from his body when he was wracked with another round, Todd shoved his fist against his mouth until his lungs and throat stopped their rebellion, his ability to control the urge to cough gone.

“As soon as it’s light out, I’m going to get the team hitched. We’ll get everything packed up and stowed away tonight. We’re finding a better shelter, even if it’s just for a few weeks.”

“About damn time,” Nick grumbled, but Todd ignored him.