Broken Vows and Buried Twins novel Chapter 119

Inside the hospital examination room.

The doctor examined the wound, explaining that they needed to thoroughly clean and disinfect the area before administering tetanus and rabies vaccines.

The bite was on Caden's calf. Thank god Jasper and the dog's owner had intervened the second it happened; otherwise, the damage could have been catastrophic.

Lena had already called Julian. With an incident this severe, she didn't dare try to hide it.

Knowing Julian was on his way, Hester insisted Jasper take Gigi home immediately.

Julian worshipped the ground Caden walked on. Even though it was an accident, Hester was terrified that in his blind rage, Julian might misdirect his fury at Jasper or Gigi.

Caden had cried hysterically when he was first bitten, but now, sitting on the exam table, he was completely silent.

Hester watched him grit his teeth, fighting back tears with everything he had, and felt a suffocating tightness in her chest.

He was only five years old. Yet, in a moment of pure terror, he hadn't hesitated to throw himself in harm's way to protect her.

When she thought back to how coldly she had treated him before...

A crushing wave of guilt and self-loathing washed over her.

Sensing her distress, Caden swallowed his tears and tried to comfort her. "Pretty Lady, I'm not hurt. Don't worry about me."

Hearing him say that only made her feel infinitely worse.

The black dog had been lunging straight for Gigi. Caden had been safely out of the way, several feet back. At that moment, her only instinct had been to shield Gigi; she hadn't even thought about Caden.

She never expected him to be so breathtakingly brave.

He had taken a brutal bite to keep them safe. He was in agonizing pain, yet he was forcing down his own tears to make *her* feel better.

This child was so impossibly kind.

So sweet it physically hurt to look at him.

Julian's jaw tightened. He let out what sounded like a ragged exhale before crouching down to inspect the boy's leg.

The wound had been cleaned, but two deep puncture marks from the dog's fangs were starkly visible against his pale skin.

Julian's expression darkened, an unmistakable flash of raw pain bleeding into his eyes.

He gently stroked Caden's hair, his voice dropping to a low, incredibly gentle murmur. "It's okay, buddy. Daddy's here."

Instead of crying, Caden patted his own chest proudly. "Daddy, I was super brave today! The big black dog was going to bite Pretty Lady, so I beat him up with my sword!"

Standing off to the side, Lena let out a quiet, internal sigh.

'Beat him up' was a massive exaggeration. If the adults hadn't lunged in to wrestle the beast away, Caden would have lost a lot more than a chunk of his calf...

Julian gently cupped Caden's face. "You did amazing, buddy. You kept them safe. You really are my brave little man."

Basking in the combined praise from both Hester and his father, Caden's lingering terror finally began to fade.