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“Her feet are in terrible condition,” Violet chimed in, pity in her voice. “I’m not sure how she’s been able to walk.”

“Probably numb from the cold. Any signs of frostbite?”

“They’re not a healthy color.”

Linnie glanced over, frowning. “Frostnip. Linen closet out in the hall, second shelf down. Wrap her feet in warm, wet cloths, Violet. Get the blood circulating back into those digits. There should be clean blankets and some emergency pairs of self-heating socks. Cover her up, I’ll start at the top and work my way down.”

Merrick lifted an eyebrow. Evidently, the doctor wasn’t perturbed at all by being summoned from her bed at almost three in the morning to deal with a minor clusterfuck. A smart hire on Elias’s part. “Want me to lift her up so you can get behind her?”

“That would be helpful, thank you. Let me just…” The scissors continued to cut along strategic lines, decimating the remnants of the jacket, then the thin thermal shirt beneath. “All right, ease her up. Gently, gently,” she murmured as Merrick used one hand to brace the girl’s head and neck, while raising her up with the other.

The rest of the material landed on the floor. “Poor thing’s black and blue. Couple of nasty lacerations here that need stitching. She’s going to have a rough few days feeling everything she’s been through, whatever that may be. You can put her down again.”

“She can have pain meds, right?”

“Yes, Master Softie, she can have meds. I’ll make sure she’s comfortable.”

Though he grunted in approval, he wasn’t pleased with the nickname.Softwasn’t something he associated with himself, character or otherwise. He was a connoisseur of pain, an artist who prided himself in blending it in all its shades with pleasure, but he hated seeing someone suffer against their will.

He wasn’t a sadist, didn’t see himself in that role.

He didn’t need pain to get an erection or maintain one. Fucking a sub without utilizing it wasn’t an issue, although any submissive who played with him came to his scene with the full knowledge of exactly what he brought to the table.

Settling the little owl back down, Merrick pinned Linnie with a hard stare. “What’s your game plan?”

She shot him a look in return that told him she wasn’t intimidated. Gently, she picked up the now bare arm, running her fingertips over the tight, red flesh. “Unfortunately, I can’t do anything about this until the swelling goes down. I’ll wrap it with an ice pack for the next couple days, then maybe I’ll be able to cast it. I’ll put her on anti-inflammatories along with the painkillers. They should help with the bruising as well.”

Violet reappeared from the hallway with an armful of blankets and the requested socks; Merrick realized he’d been so preoccupied with Linnie’s exam, he hadn’t seen the Mistress leave.

Laying the wounded limb on the table, the doc studied her patient with a critical eye. “From the state of her clothes and the contusions, I think she took a really bad fall. She does have some old scars I’d like to take a look at, but they’re not a priority. All in all, she’s had a rough ride, needs a lot of TLC. She’s going to be spending a lot of time with me, I’m afraid.”

Merrick’s eyebrows shot up. A laugh burst free, brimming with disbelief. “After that little performance, you think she’s willingly going to stay here of her own accord? She’s terrified in here, Linnie—she was fine downstairs, scared but not out of her wits. She lost her shit the minute I carried her through the door.”

“There’s not a lot I can do about that. Keeping her lightly sedated will help her heal. I’ll speak with Evander and Elias at a more civilized hour and see what they want to do with her; she isn’t a guest, we don’t know where she’s come from. Someone might be looking for her.”

Hmmm, that was a good point.

Pulling his cell phone from his back pocket, he opened the camera app and took several photos of the girl’s face, making sure he caught nothing below her throat. He fired them off to Grit, asking him to check the relevant databases for missing person reports matching her description. “Grit will find her family if they’re searching for her. I’ll speak with Elias myself.”

“My patient,” she reminded him. As though that put an end to it, she walked over to the counter and started gathering items on a tray. “I’m not going to torture the girl, Merrick. Once she understands she’s safe here, everything will be fine.”

He had a differing opinion, but kept it to himself. This wasn’t his area of expertise, and fighting with Linnie now was a waste of time and energy. She hadn’t felt the girl’s terror on an intimate level, in the clutch of that small hand as she begged silently for help.

Everything wasn’t going to befine, but they’d deal with it when the time came.

Instead of bitching about it, he rolled up his sleeves and helped. As Violet tended to the girl’s damaged feet and began covering the red-and-purple mottled appendages in warm cloths, he cleaned the tears in her flesh so Linnie could start the slow process of stitching them up.

They worked in silence, the quiet only broken if he or Violet asked a question.

Linnie’s focus was utterly centered on her task, and although he wasn’t medically minded, even his untrained eye could see the stitches were immaculate. If they left scars, it wasn’t for lack of care on the doc’s part.

By the time the girl was sewn up, her feet swaddled, the IV and catheter inserted, and her meds administered, Merrick was surprised to see it was almost six a.m.

Linnie finally stepped back, assessing her work. She’d stitched half a dozen deep cuts, and more bruising was coming to light by the hour. There was nothing she could do to immediately fix the girl’s malnourishment or stabilize the broken wrist.

Picking up a blanket, she shook it out and spread it over the naked form on the table, followed by a second. “And for now, boys and girls, our work here is done. I think it’s time you both go home and rest.”

Violet stretched, yawning. “I have to agree with you. My bed is calling.”