Chapter 3.4

Chapter3.4

Quinn was still coughing and trying to sit up to get to the glass but couldn't make it. Her body was so weak that she fell halfway back onto the bed and lay exhausted for now.

Her effort had not gone unnoticed. Rei approached her and placed the uniform he was about to put on the bed. Due to the treatment, his upper body naked, his hand reached for the glass and held it out to her.

Before Quinn reached for it, however, she somehow tried to sit up but only managed to pull herself onto the pillow so that she was no longer lying all the way down. As she did so, she felt pain in her back that kept running up and down her spine, bringing tears to her eyes.

Rei's arm slid under her back and propped her up so she could straighten more. As he did so, he felt the warmth radiating from Quinn. He was hurting from the touch, but he didn't let on.

As soon as she had straightened up, he held the glass to her lips.

Quinn's breathing became more frantic, and she took a small sip but couldn't help but make a sound because the pain in her back was getting worse. Still, she tried to drink because she was thirsty right now, and it didn't make her sick.

Now that they were so close, his masculine scent rose to her nose again. One that had something reassuring about it, even though Rei was often cold, dismissive, and arrogant. She had noticed the smell before, too, but so far, she had been able to cleverly block it out.

Again and again, the dragon held the glass to her lips, making sure she didn't drink too much at once and choke. "I'll let you go as soon as you've had enough to drink," Rei assured her gently.

Quinn nodded but didn't empty the glass completely. It was just too tiring for her, and she wanted to lie down again.

As soon as she didn't want to anymore, Rei gently let her slide back into the pillows. "Lay to the side of your back hurts," he advised, finally getting changed.

Slowly, Quinn complied with his suggestion, hoping it would help. "Shouldn't this be over by now?" she asked in a pained voice.

Rei replied that it was supposed to be over. "But since you ate next to nothing before, I'm afraid everything is delayed," he said with a shrug. That's why it was so important to eat regularly, even if it hurt.

"I kept throwing up," she said quietly. "I never said I didn't eat."

Frowning, he glanced at her and shook his head. "It was the stone dragon's job to look after your well-being and help you through the process. That includes making sure you can eat," Rei remarked sourly. The way the stone dragon took care of his women, he would arrive on Barafu one day, the guard was sure.

Quinn snorted contemptuously. "He had over ten wives with me. Of those, one survived," she explained, muttering. "To him, we're just cattle that will get away if they don't do what they're supposed to."

"Not all of them are like that," Rei replied, pouring himself a glass of water, which he turned thoughtfully back and forth before drinking. Quinn had been unlucky to come across someone like that, of all people.

"Maybe so," the young woman countered, watching Rei. "But I guess he wants me back," she sighed, turning over on her back again after all because it was uncomfortable to lie on her side. "After all, I cost him so much work," she quoted him, rolling her eyes.

"According to his words, he doesn't want you anymore," the guard explained. He would get new women for that. Just as he had always done before. It wasn't uncommon for dragons to do that, even though they were supposed to wait until the next sacrifice. "Do you need more pillows?" wanted to know Rei, who hadn't missed Quinn's movement.

"Is there such a thing as laws for transformation?" she asked quietly, nodding.

"A few," he confirmed but didn't elaborate. At least not for now.

Since Quinn had nodded, he approached the closet once more and retrieved two pillows, which he brought to her. Quinn should be comfortable because he could imagine how uncomfortable it must be for her to be confronted with so much suffering all at once.

"Does that include being held like felons in a small, dark cell?" she inquired, memories flooding back to her.

Without asking Quinn, Rei shifted her pillows and then looked at her. "To what extent?" was his counter-question.

"When I arrived, I was thrown into a small cell. Along with the other women," she told him with a shudder. "Then they fed us something and left us alone. There was someone who brought food every day," she said in a hushed voice. "Sometimes it was women with strange ... Outgrowths. But it was very dark," she continued. "Only sometimes the dragon would come when one of the women ... had died," she whispered, "or when it was time to have a drink."

Narrowing his eyes, he looked at Quinn as she told her tale. Frustrated, Rei snorted but was also careful not to put the fire out right away.

"It definitely shouldn't be like this," he snarled. The way the stone dragon handled the women, it was inevitable that he would end up here soon. This was not the way to deal with sacred women! Quinn's tale made him angry at the dragons who had introduced these transformations.

"While I was there, new ones kept coming. Many were snatched away just like that," Quinn explained in a whisper. "I was chosen at the ritual sacrifice and also given to him. The only woman at the time," she said softly, wrapping her arms around herself. "I was also the only one who survived."

If Quinn had been the only one to survive, that was a testament to great strength. Not everyone could stay, and only the strongest were able to pull through. But even then, only if the dragon men supported them. It was not possible on their own.

Carefully, Rei stroked her hand over her gray hair. "I'm sorry for you. It shouldn't have been like that," he said gently.

"You are so sweet," she whispered softly. Though he was cold and assertive, he helped her. The small gestures had not gone unnoticed, and she no longer had the fear she had felt with the stone dragon. Here she was in an actual room and being cared for. Even if she still wasn't sure she could trust it. "Can't I just stay here?" she asked, sounding tired. Like she was going to fall asleep at any moment.

It seemed like Rei's words had been sincere when he'd said that her well-being was paramount. "No. This is not a place for women," the guard said seriously. Nor was it intended for any to live here. This was a place exclusively for dragon men.

"Why?" she asked, muttering, looking as if she wouldn't be able to stay awake much longer.

Instead of answering her question, he stroked her hair once more. "Get some sleep. Later, try to eat something again," he said softly. He hadn't missed how tired she was. Should she sleep? Quinn needed it because her body was going through a lot.

She mumbled something to herself and then was asleep.