Thieves' Gambit Chapter 26 pleasure@netcom.com XXVI. Raak laid her down on the soft pallet and took her tawny- furred hand in his own. He looked with mute pleading at the healer, his huge, liquid brown eyes eloquently expressing his concern. Kraegh took pity on the half-ogre. "I think she'll be all right, Raak. She's been drugged, but not like the others were." He shuddered, remembering what had needed to be done for the women who had wandered out, afterward. "I think she was on a heavy dose of dreamdust, and possibly sopa leaf or another sleeping draught." Kraegh sighed and stroked her head with the feather-light touch of an empath. "I've already given her an antidote, but from what I can read in her mind, she has not returned to her body because she does not wish to. She knows that she has only horror and abuse to come back to." The slight man felt the red anger emanating from the half-ogre, and added hastily, "Not from you. As far as she knows, she's still with Vasht." Raak looked at the healer helplessly. Although he would have been willing and able to speak with the healer alone, there were others watching in Healer's Hall. Reach for her mind, Kraegh. Tell her that I am here for her. That nothing will harm her, ever again. Please. The pale, slightly built empath answered him directly. "I can try, Raak; but you're the one that needs to tell her." He reached out with a delicate-looking hand and brushed it across Raak's face. "Close your eyes. Reach out to her in your mind." The half-ogre gripped Cheltie's hand even more firmly as he strove to touch her fading consciousness. Raak had always been grounded firmly to his body, and he found it difficult to reach beyond its boundaries. But for Cheltie's sake, he had to try. He gritted his teeth and furrowed his brow with the immense effort. He felt something pressing on him from behind, pushing him forward into her mind. Its touch was light and deft, and he recognized the feel of it instantly. Thank you, Kraegh. He could feel her now, even through the drug-induced haze. He was touching her soul. Go away. He didn't hear the words, exactly; but that was the feeling that was being projected. Want to sleep. Hurt, he projected back. Cheltie, I love you. Come back to me. He was met with fear and the memory of brutality. No hurt/no pain here. Safe. Please let me stay. She was slipping away from him, rejecting the mental contact. Behind him, Kraegh drew his breath in sharply. "We're losing her, Raak. You've got to bring her back, or her body will die." His long-suppressed emotions welled up in him like a tide, and he threw at her all the fierce strength of his hoarded passion. You've got to come back, Cheltie, or you'll die! I love you! Please come back to me! He projected a clear picture of what awaited her, a safe haven in his strong arms. I swear, nothing will ever hurt you again. I won't let it. He surrounded her, enveloped her with his caring. Come back to me. He lifted her gently with the full force of his being and pushed her firmly back into her body. Her eyes fluttered and opened. "Raak?" He tried to embrace her, but his body would not obey him. Raak felt a mental wrenching, and suddenly he was able to move. The healer was standing at his shoulder, an astonished look on his face. "You went all the way out of your body, there. And you pulled her back all by yourself. You shouldn't have been able to do that." The expression on his face was almost comical. "That kind of strength is rare, even in a full mage. I think you ought to apply for mage training, Raak. We could always use a few more healers in the Guild. I'd be glad to teach you, if you're interested...." Raak was not listening to a word the healer said. His world was Cheltie. The burly half-ogre held her as tightly as he dared, burying his homely face in her soft, silky fur. "Oh, Cheltie. I'm so glad to have you back. I was worried about you." He never even noticed that he was talking. She started to cry. "He hurt me, Raak. It hurts so much." His own eyes were wet with tears. "It's all over, love. Nothing will ever hurt you again." He lifted her and held her close to him with gentle strength. "I promise." She was still sobbing. "He gave me all the drugs I wanted, but it only made it worse. It gave me nightmares, and I didn't know who I was anymore, and I still remember everything. I don't want to take any more drugs again, ever." "That's an excellent idea, Cheltie." Kraegh commented from behind them. Raak had entirely forgotten that the healer was there, and he started. He could feel his chest and throat clenching up again, and there was nothing he could do about it. The kindly and sensitive empath put a hand on his massive arm. "Raak, you can always talk to me if you want to. I promise I will never laugh at you." He met the half-ogre's gaze squarely and spoke with the unmistakable sincerity of an open telepath. Somehow, his words penetrated to a place in Raak's soul that had not been touched in years, and Raak believed him utterly. He shook his head in astonishment. How did he know? Every time Raak started to speak in front of a crowd, the painful childhood memories of being taunted for being a stupid ogre tore at him and made it impossible for him to talk. Then he grinned wryly. Of course. "I can help you with that, if you like. When those feelings happen, you may believe that you physically can't talk, but what's really happening is that your mind is still sending an old message to your body. If you've enough talent to leave your body on an astral Searching, you've more than enough talent to go into your own mind and fix that blockage." Raak swept up Cheltie in his arms. She clung to him softly, and he kissed her. She smiled up at him through her tears, and he nodded gratefully at Kraegh. "I'll take you up on that, my friend. Later." "Later," Kraegh echoed, and smiled. He carried her through the long halls of the Guild, up to the quiet sanctuary of his room.