Page 3 of Strength of Desire

Cinda looked up from her desk, her warm brown eyes widening, and her brows climbed her scalp as the pair of them explained what had happened in Combat.

“They’re all dead now. Noah—that is, Professor Braverman—he killed them. But he wanted you to examine Erika.”

Min’s voice was reverent, like she was still picturing the way Noah had moved in the gym. Faster than I would have believed, if I hadn’t seen it myself.

“Get her to the cot,” Cinda said briskly. She sent a glance in my direction, then gestured to a chair against the far wall. “Sit there until I have time for you.”

As soon as Erika was lying on the cot, free of the jackets that had been wrapping her, Cinda murmured something that made a light blue aura spring up around Erika’s supine form. Keelan leaned forward as if to inspect it more closely.

“Stay back,” Cinda snapped, her curly hair whipping around as she held a hand up to keep Keelan away.

“Do you think she’s been infected?” Keelan asked.

“I don’t know yet. But unless you’d like to spend the next two days unconscious, I suggest you refrain from entering the containment area.”

Min motioned Keelan back, and they both murmured apologies as they leaned against the wall.

Cinda bent over Erika and began undressing her, doing it carefully so her body was covered with a blanket the whole time. She held each article of Erika’s clothing by her fingertips, and she looked like she wished she had a pair of tongs.

She dumped Erika’s clothes on the floor, then began waving her hands in complicated gestures over Erika’s body, muttering things that I didn’t understand at all. Min and Keelan’s jaws dropped, though, so I assumed whatever magic she was doing was impressive. It was fifteen minutes before Cinda turned around.

“Is she okay?” Min asked. “I don’t think any of the moraghin bit her, just knocked her out.”

“I’m not prepared to make an pronouncement yet either way,” Cinda said. “But I’m satisfied that she’s stable. For now, at least.” Cinda turned to me, her dark brown eyes assessing me. “Which means I can finally deal with you. What brings you here, Cory? Because if it’s anything less than an axe to the skull, I’m afraid I don’t have time for you today.”

“Oh, I—I mean, I’m sure I—I’m probably fine.” I stood up hastily. “Noah told me to come up here, but I don’t want to keep you from Erika if she needs you.”

“Professor Braverman told you to come here? You were in class with them?” Cinda said, tilting her head towards Min and Keelan.

I nodded, and Min offered, “A moragh attacked him too.”

“Well for heaven’s sake, why didn’t yousay so?” Cinda looked at me in disbelief. “You could be infected too.”

“I’m not. That is, Noah checked and said—”

“I’m sure he did,” Cinda interrupted, “but with all due respect to Professor Braverman, he’s not a Healer. He’s not even a witch. I’ll need to make my own assessment.”

She walked over to where I sat and drew a curtain I hadn’t noticed before around us, creating a little bit of privacy. I was still clutching the jacket Noah had given me, but she made me set it down and strip so she could inspect me thoroughly. I felt like I’d been doing a lot of that lately, but at least her interest in me was purely clinical. After I put my clothes back on, she told me I was free to go.

“You don’t need to do a spell or make me all blue?” I asked. I’d been expecting more, after seeing how she’d treated Erika.

“Areyoua Healer now too?” she asked, and I flushed. Her expression softened. “Erika suffered a skin-breaking wound. I won’t know for a little while longer if it’s been infected with any fluids from the moraghin. The spells I used on her aren’t necessary for you, and you should consider yourself lucky they’re not.”

“Oh.” My flush deepened. “Yeah, thank you. Do you need my clothes or something? They’re kind of…”

I trailed off, gesturing at myself. Everything I was wearing had been sprayed with blood when Noah had killed that thing in the gym.

Cinda shook her head. “Once their blood has dried, it’s no longer harmful to you. But I’d recommend burning your clothes nonetheless. It’s not easy to get those stains out.”

As she pushed the curtain back to let me leave, Vesperwood’s bell rang out. I looked instinctively at the clock on the wall and realized it was late. It should have peeled fourteen times for the start of dinner ten minutes ago. This time, it only rang once, and was followed by a crystalline, woman’s voice coming from everywhere and nowhere at once.

All students report to the ballroom for an urgent meeting. All students report to the ballroom for an urgent meeting.

“That means you three,” Cinda said, gesturing towards the door. “Off with you.”

“But, Erika—” Min said. “What if she’s infected?”

“What happened to Erika will not be clear for a while yet. But if moraghin managed to attack you here on campus, you will be safer in the company of the rest of the student body. Straight to the ballroom, mind—no stops along the way.”

---