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Chapter 27: Kai

I nearly lost it when I saw the wraith hovering over Daisy’s curled up body, protecting Delphi. There’s red blood smeared all over her shirt and I have no idea if it belongs to her or Delphi. Either way, something inside me snapped. A fierce fiery need to protect what’s mine, my Blossom, my love, my mate.

I placed myself between the wraith and my future on instinct. My inner fire becoming my outer fire. I’ve never fought a wraith, but it only made sense that a being made of shadows, darkness and iciness wouldn’t like fire. It’s its polar opposite. I didn’t think, I just acted. Thankfully it was the right thing to do, and the wraith didn’t absorb and kill all of us. If it had, I would have died willingly, knowing I did everything to protect Daisy.

“Where are you hurt?” I ask, kneeling in front of Daisy and running my hands over every inch of her looking for an injury.

“It’s not mine, it’s from Delphi.” She lifts Delphi so I can see the poor injured sprite cradled in her arms. “She protected me from the wraith.”

Tears pour down my blossom’s beautiful face and I brush them away. I may not know how to heal the hurt I have created, but I can heal Delphi’s wounds.

“Come on, Blossom. Let’s get her back to your house. I can help her there.”

“What? What do you mean? We have to get her to a doctor or a vet…fairy…someone…” Her words trail off as I help her stand, and she carefully shifts the sprite in her arms.

“There are a few things you still don’t know about me. One of them is, I just so happen to be a vet.”

Large glassy green eyes stare up at me in confusion.

“It’s a long story but trust me, I know what I’m doing. I can help her. I promise.”

She doesn’t look like she wants to believe me, and I don’t blame her. With no other options and Delphi bleeding in her arms, she concedes. Nodding once and sniffling.

She doesn’t argue or pull away when I hold her under my arm and close to my side. Her shoulders rise and fall with each heart wrenching sob, and I feel like an even bigger asshole. If it weren’t for me, she wouldn’t have been out here and neither of them would have been in danger.

My heart nearly ripped out of my chest when I thought I might have lost Daisy and only with her tightly in my hold does it settle into a steady rapid beat.

When I realized she wasn’t in the woods surrounding the festival and had wandered deeper into the forest, I connected with any animal in range searching for her. I’m only happy I found her when I did.

Daisy follows my lead as we enter familiar land and finally make it back to her property. Her house sits dark and empty, Sage and Tobias still at the festival, no doubt on their way home soon. The festival ends at sunset. In the next hour everyone will be making their way back home for the night to sleep off the revelry.

“Do you have a sewing kit, Daisy?”

“Um, I think so.”

“Where is it?”

Daisy shakes her head trying to focus on my question. I’ll need a needle and thread to stitch up Delphi’s cuts, and Daisy needs something to focus on other than Delphi.

We make it into the kitchen, and I send Daisy off to find the sewing kit while I clean Delphi’s wounds. Thankfully they’re just deep cuts with no internal damage. I make quick work of everything. Once the wounds are stitched, Delphi’s sprite healing will kick in and finish the job. It’s stopping the bleeding that’s important, to allow for her magic to replenish.

Sprites are one of the most magical creatures in our world, but even they can’t survive bleeding out. I look down at the sprite that most likely saved Daisy and stroke her blood-stained fur. I owe her for that. I’ll give her every trinket she will ever want. I’ll even build her a larger nest so she can fit everything.

“Will she be, okay?” Daisy asks softly. She clings to my arm, needing something to hold on to as she watches Delphi sleeping in the nest of towels and blankets I made for her in the kitchen sink.

“She’ll be fine Blossom. Now that she’s stitched up her healing magic will finish the job.”

I press a soft kiss to her hair covered in lilies and one black dahlia. I’ve never seen that flower in her hair before and I know it has something to do with me and not Delphi.

“Come on Blossom, you need rest too. It’s been a long day.”

She nods and allows me to guide her to the couch in the living room, still within line of sight of Delphi in the kitchen. I sit and pull her down with me and she curls into my side. Even while angry at me she reaches for me for comfort. Presses against me for warmth and reassurance.

When she’s settled our tails naturally twine together. The action comforts me just as much as her. Daisy’s petite body curls into a ball, her knees pulled up to her chest and her head tucked under my chin. I pull the blanket off the back of the couch and wrap it around us both.

“I’m sorry, Blossom.”

Her eyes turn up to look at me and she frowns, a cute wrinkle forming between her eyes. “It wasn’t your fault; she tried to protect me from the wraith.”