Grounding Gracus (First Wave Book 6) by Mikayla Lane Page A

the bears and bring them back to the sanctuary at Dillon. For detox… or whatever they needed , he thought, shaking his head.
    Joe waved as he watched Grai get into the SUV, knowing damn well that the Nelson family was going to be feeling very blessed soon.
    *****
    Hours later, Gracus groaned and rolled over, feeling like he’d spent a few hours sparring with Scaden in the training room. His head felt like it was full of clouds and he ached. Everywhere. He tried to think, to remember where he was and what had happened but all he could see were flashes of images that he couldn’t seem to put into a full picture.
    What seemed like blinding light, showing through his closed eyelids, made him shield his eyes before he tried to open them. As he did, he heard a familiar voice.
    “Hey, take it easy. You’re going to be a little messed up for a bit,” Scaden said when he saw Gracus move his hand. He sighed in relief that Gracus was finally awakening and they could get some answers about what the hell had happened.
    Gracus laid back and put his hand over his eyes and sighed. Yeah, if Scaden was there, he was in good hands , he thought. He laid their quietly for a moment until he heard Amun’s voice.
    “The drug is leaving his system. He should be fine in another day or so,” Amun said, pleased with the progress of his patient.
    Gracus sat up suddenly, his eyes going wide. He was drugged? he thought as he swayed slightly before Scaden reached out a hand to help him. What the hell? he thought as everything around him looked blurry and out of focus. Taking stock of himself, he realized that his beast was completely silent and he began to panic.
    “What the fuck happened to me? Why can’t I see correctly? Where are we?” Gracus asked, trying to get out of the bed.
    Scaden and Amun rushed to stop him from harming himself. “Stop! You’re going to fall out of the damn bed and hurt yourself!” Scaden said, trying to keep his now agitated friend in the bed.
    “Try to calm yourself Gracus, and listen to me,” Amun said, trying to speak calmly to his patient and friend.
    “You ate some candy… a lot of candy. But, you didn’t realize that it was a legal drug and it’s affected your senses. You will be fine in a day or so, when the drug has completely left your system. I promise, you will be fine soon,” Amun said reassuringly.
    Candy? Gracus thought, trying hard to understand what Amun was talking about. He didn’t remember any candy. The last shipment they had on the Adaria had been a month ago and it usually went pretty quick because it was a favorite among the crew. He didn’t remember the last time he’d eaten any.
    Gracus needed answers. “What candy are you talking about? Is anyone else affected? Is it an outbreak on the ship?” he asked, needing to know if his crewmates were all right.
    Scaden turned a worried frown to Amun, not understanding why Gracus did not remember the planet and the candy he had eaten. Amun just shook his head at Scaden before turning his attention back to Gracus.
    “Gracus, because the drug is still in your system pretty heavily, you’re having short term memory problems. You were on the planet, taking a vacation when you bought the candy by accident. Try to be patient and give yourself a few hours for it to clear and your memories will return to you,” Amun said, trying to help calm the nervous and confused energy he could feel coming from Gracus.
    Gracus couldn’t fathom what Amun was telling him. He didn’t remember going to the planet. How the hell could he forget such a thing? What drug could do this to him? He leaned his head down and held it in his hands, trying to force his mind to clear. But, the fog was too thick and he couldn’t seem to fight it back so he could remember.
    Amun knew what he was doing and laid a comforting hand on his shoulder. “It’s all right. Don’t try to force it, you will only delay the memories if you do. Give yourself a few more hours to clear