The rattling of the pills in the bottle Doctor Walton had left behind drew Vail’s attention back to the bed. He frowned, noticing Victoria’s inability to open the container on her own. Spared from the suffering of physical weakness because of what he was, he had never been so infirm that he couldn’t even take a lid off a bottle. It looked frustrating, but she didn’t ask for help. Instead, he took it upon himself to get up and approach her, sitting on the edge of the bed by her side. His father already knew he hadn’t followed the rule that had been set earlier, so there was no point in trying to pretend like they’d kept their distance now. His scent clung to the sheets where he had been laying before.

“I would be shocked if he wasn’t,” he answered her question as he picked up the pill bottle and opened it for her. The medicine had a slightly bitter odor to it, and he was glad he didn’t need to take anything like it. “My father isn’t used to being disobeyed,” he went on, looking up from the container to meet her gaze. “As the leader of our clan, he is supposed to be our absolute authority. Whatever he says, goes. But,” he drawled the last word while he tilted the bottle. One of the pills fell into his hand, and he pressed it into her palm, letting his fingers brush against hers during the exchange. Her skin still felt cold to him from the combined illness and lack of blood, and he wondered briefly how furious Peter would be if he climbed under the duvet to help her keep warm.

“In this case, I think he’s wrong,” he stated simply. Glancing from the medicine back up to her face, he took on a puzzled expression. “So, do you just ingest it as it is?” Now that Lord James was gone, he was less reserved with his bewilderment. Victoria already knew he was a vampire, and he needed to learn more about human medical practices now that she was part of his life. [i]Maybe not for long,[/i] he reminded himself silently, recalling the possibility that he could turn her. If she was willing to give up her humanity for him, she would never have to take pills again. However, he didn’t want to bring the subject back up when Peter would be returning at any second, and there was no guarantee that she would even agree to do it. For now, he would just have to take care of her in her sickly condition and hope for the best.