Page 51 of Faerie Gift

I was too weak to defend myself if those boys caught my scent and tracked me down. I knew it instinctively. Even though I was scared the shifters would find me…what could I do?

And did their presence here have something to do with me? They were second-years, yeah, but I didn’t remember seeing them before. Except…

The bullying, with Chase and Xander. I’d seen them then but nothing about them stood out.

Those kinds of thoughts automatically spiraled. Were there shifters infiltrating the school, hiding under a glamour and pretending to be students, looking for me?

But why would they then try to break into the exchange students’ dorm? Why would they be killing people?

The answers were right there, I knew. Like having a word at the tip of my tongue I couldn’t quite grasp.

Nothing made sense to me but I had the sneaking suspicion that a few more hints, one last push, and I’d have the answers.

My mind automatically drifted to Mike and I growled, shaking my head to clear it and immediately regretting the action. Mike had nothing to do with any of this outside of being a huge prick with dubious taste in members of the opposite sex.

The night progressed and I ended up passing out despite my valiant attempt to stay awake. My fever returned worse than before, and although I finally kicked the sore throat, the mucus drainage left my belly upset and growling in protest.

I spent the next several days drifting in and out of consciousness thanks to a draught Nurse Julie coaxed me to drink, something smelling overwhelmingly of lavender and other earthy herbs I couldn’t recognize.

There were times I woke up to her changing my sweat-soaked sheets. Other times I woke up to see a man I didn’t know sitting in the visitor’s chair next to my bed. Young, his disheveled brown hair hung over his ears in a wave of oak and maple, his eyes a robin’s egg blue with a bit of yellow around the iris. He wore a gray blazer and black jeans. He didn’t bother me. If anything, his presence was a comfort because surely he was the help Detective Wilson had promised to send.

Someone from his own pack. It made the man trustworthy, in my eyes, because the last time Wilson called in his mates to help, they’d been instrumental in taking down Roman.

Three days of torture and the fever finally broke. Though my limbs still ached and the rest of me didn’t feel much better, I woke up to sunshine and Julie bustling through the door holding a tray. Her blue wings flickered at the sight of me, her lips rising in a smile.

“I knew today would be the day,” she told me. “I had a gut feeling about it. See? This is why you always trust your gut. You can go now.”

But I knew she wasn’t talking to me. That last part was directed toward the same brown-haired man seated at my side. He met my eyes for the first time, his gaze warm and inscrutable, and he gave an almost imperceptible nod of his head.

“I’ll excuse myself,” he said. “Check in with Wilson. Don’t you worry, Miss Alderidge. I’ll be watching you. Nothing is going to get through me.”

Nurse Julie watched him walk out, shaking her head lightly and chuckling.

“What?” I asked her. Probably looking like something someone unclogged from a drain. I hadn’t washed my hair or body in days and my tongue and teeth felt fuzzy.

Julie’s focus returned to me and she walked over to set the tray down on my lap, clucking her tongue. “I’ve always been one to appreciate a good-looking man. Especially a good-looking wolf. He gets my blood pumping, if you know what I mean. I’ve been trying to warm him up but his attention has been completely on you, kiddo.”

I knew she said it as a joke, but there was just enough truth beneath the statement to have a real smiling gracing my face. “I didn’t get a good look at him. I’ll have to take your word for it.”

The tray held a decent-sized breakfast consisting of fresh fruit, scrambled eggs, and several strips of bacon. I hadn’t been able to eat during my illness and now that I finally felt better, the food smelled like heaven. My stomach gave a rumble of approval. It seemed to be ready to ingest again.

“I don’t want you to push yourself,” Julie said. She settled into the now empty chair and watched me eat.

I shoveled a forkful of eggs into my mouth. “What do you mean?”

“I mean Iknowyou, and I know how you react to these things. You’ll think these days you spent here, these days of inactivity, will put you behind and your teachers will take it out on you. Meaning you will have to push extra hard to catch up and try to regain whatever ground you think you lost.” She shook her head. “It’s not the case, I assure you. I am putting you under strict orders to take things slow because your body is still recovering. And certainly no games of Capture the Scroll. Nothing to push your heart rate up too high.”

“You got it. I’m not in the mood for games right now.” I swallowed the eggs, nearly groaning at the delectable taste, and moved on to the bacon next. I’d never tasted anything so delicious.

“The school work?” Julie pushed.

“I’ll take it easy. I promise. Pinky swear.”

“I’ll have to take your word for it,” she joked, reaching out to smack me on the leg, repeating my own words.

I finished the entire plate of food, letting it settle in my stomach. Julie had been right about the food. Right about my desire to catch up. Way too many days of inactivity, and how could I be sure none of my teachers would try to punish me for not being in class? I couldn’t take her word as a guarantee. Especially not with Hoarfrost. Surely he’d removed a ton of points away from me already for missing his classes.

Another hour passed before Melia came to see me, racing through the door with a wide smile on her face, hair wild around her head.

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