Chapter 86: The Sleeping Powder And Popi’s Confession!
Neve had gotten to the cave about ten minutes ago.
He could not help but wonder why all of this had to happen today of all days. First Ryker losing his chieftaincy. Then Popi attacking Sorin. Now Cael being bitten by an outcast snake. It was like the universe was testing him. Like it was seeing how much he could handle before breaking.
He had already administered everything he could for Cael. The numbing paste was on the wound. The poison had been extracted. Now it was just a matter of waiting to see if his treatment would work. If Cael’s body would fight off the venom.
If Cael would survive.
While he was pacing back and forth in the cave, Ryker was watching him with worry clear in his eyes.
The tiger understood how dangerous snake poison was. He knew how venomous those bites could be. And he was watching Neve, who had sucked the poison out directly with his own mouth, walking around like nothing had happened. Like he was completely fine. Like he was not worried about his own health.
Ryker stood up from where he had been sitting and grabbed Neve’s wrist gently but firmly, stopping the pacing.
"As long as it’s you who treated him, Cael would survive," he said, his voice calm and certain. "You have a gift for this, Neve. Trust in it."
Neve looked at him, his breathing coming fast and hard from the stress and the pacing.
"You should rest, Neve," Ryker said quietly.
"I’ll do so when Cael wakes up," Neve replied, trying to pull away so he could continue pacing. "He must open his eyes before I’m able to rest. I need to know he’s okay."
"Neve!" Ryker yelled his name in a scolding voice that made Neve flinch. "You will end up fainting at this pace. You’ll collapse and then what? Who will take care of Cael then?"
The logic was sound but Neve was too anxious to accept it.
"Ryker is right," Popi’s voice came from the entrance.
Ryker turned his head to meet her eyes.
"Where did you go?" he asked, noticing that she had been gone for a while.
"I went to confront the elders of the tiger tribe for what they did to me," Popi said, folding her hands in front of her chest. There was a calmness to her voice that suggested she had made peace with something. "Since I’ve cut ties with them, I’ll send a message to my father to start supporting the leopard tribe instead."
"What does that mean?" Ryker asked, raising an eyebrow.
"I’ll be staying here from now on!" Popi said, clasping her hands together with a smile. "I’m going to serve the leopard tribe."
Neve heard what she said but he was too tired and too anxious to react properly. He would deal with the implications of that statement later. Right now, his entire focus was on Cael. On making sure the leopard prince survived the poison.
Neve held Cael’s hand and pressed his lips gently on it, a small gesture of prayer or hope or both.
"Neve," Popi called his name.
"If you’re still going to convince me to rest, then don’t!" Neve said sharply. "I can’t rest. I won’t rest. Not until Cael wakes up."
"Of course not," Popi said, her voice calm and understanding. She walked closer to him. "Look at me, Neve. I’m not going to convince you to rest."
Neve was exhausted enough that he decided to trust her. He turned his head to look at her directly.
That was his mistake.
A powder was blown directly into his face.
Neve started coughing immediately, waving his hand in front of his face to clear the air around him. But even as he waved, his eyes grew heavier. His vision started to blur at the edges.
"What... what did you do?" he asked, his voice already slurring slightly.
He tried to check what the powder was, tried to identify it, tried to understand what was happening to his body.
Fuck. It was sleeping powder.
"Like I promised," Popi said, her voice coming from very far away even though she was standing right next to him, "I won’t convince you. I’ll only force you."
"You cunning," Neve muttered, his words trailing off as his consciousness started to slip away.
His knees gave out.
But Ryker was there, catching him before he could fall. The tiger prince’s strong arms wrapped around Neve’s body and held him secure.
Ryker exhaled deeply, looking at Popi with a mixture of gratitude and slight annoyance that she had resorted to drugging Neve.
"Thanks for your help," Ryker said.
"You’re welcome," Popi replied, her expression gentle. "I only did it for Neve. He needs rest. His body needs recovery."
Ryker nodded in acknowledgment of her reasoning even if he had not liked the method.
He carried Neve carefully to the bedroom, his movements gentle and protective. He laid Neve down on the soft white bed and adjusted the blankets to cover his sleeping body completely.
Neve looked peaceful when he slept. Ryker took a moment just to look at him. To commit the image to memory. To see the worry lines disappear from his face when unconsciousness claimed him.
Ryker leaned closer and pressed his lips softly on Neve’s forehead.
He pulled back and looked at Neve one more time before returning to the main cave.
.
Popi was still there, standing by the small fire, looking out at the entrance like she was thinking about something far away.
"Where did the bear and his sister go to?" Ryker asked, looking around the cave.
"They headed back to their cave," Popi said without turning around. "It was empty here, so you don’t expect them to wait in a stranger’s cave, do you? They’re not part of the tribe yet."
"They could really just hang around and wait," Ryker said. He turned to face Popi directly. "So, tell me the truth, Popi. Why did you abandon the tiger tribe for the leopard tribe?"
Popi tilted her head to the side and her grey hair spilled across her face in a way that was almost deliberately graceful.
"Why else would I do that?" she asked, and when she turned to look at him, she was smiling. It was not the desperate smile of someone clinging to a fated mate connection. But a genuine smile. "I’m here because of Neve."
She said it simply. Like it was obvious. Like the answer had been in front of Ryker the entire time.
Ryker stared at her.
"Because of Neve," he repeated, trying to understand.
"Yes," Popi said. "Because of Neve."