Page 65 of A Touch Of Death

She talks like she's discussing the weather and not someone's life like it's the most natural thing in the world. My body shudders. I may not be afraid of Davis anymore, but this whack job still instills a healthy dose of caution and fear. As messed up as it is to admit, she has earned it. I've seen what she's capable of, been on the receiving end myself. It would be monumentally stupid not to have even an ounce of fear for Dr. June Gates, even though she’s human.

Dr. Gates turns on her heel and walks into the facility, Davis close on her trail. The moment they're within the confines of the building, there's a warm hand on my lower spine, urging me forward. Quinn stands close to my back, the feel of his warmth oddly comforting.

I feel him press into my back, and his head lowers slightly until he's at a distance I can hear him from. In a near whisper, he tells me, "I'm supposed to tranq you, but I'd prefer not to. How long does your little sleeper trick work for, Dusty?"

Sleeper trick? Oh..

Whispering back, I say, "Depends on how long I need my target to stay unconscious for. Why?"

"Can you use it on yourself?" he asks, sounding a little more urgent.

I nod subtly.

"When I tell you to, I need you to dust yourself. Make it a high dose, Dusty. I need you conscious in about eight hours, and you’re better off unconscious until then." He moves away as soon as the words leave him. He leads me to the facility, and just before we reach the door, there's a pricking sensation in my neck. In an almost inaudible whisper, he says, "Now."

Quicker than I have before, my palm fills with a ball of dust that I know will keep me under for just less than eight hours. I raise my hand as if to scratch at my nose, my cuffed wrists bringing the other hand with it. It works in my favour, my empty hand blocking the gold dust from any prying eyes

The moment my hand is close enough to my face, I inhale deeply, taking in the dust that will render me unconscious in moments. Quietly, I mumble, "You better catch me."

Before the lights dim and vanish entirely, I hear him reply. "I've got you, Novia."

Chapter 31

Spencer

I stormthrough the front door with my chest heaving from how fucking fast I ran from where I was left lying on the goddamned floor of the forest, dazed and sluggish. The first thing I noticed was Novia missing. She'd been right by my side, but when my eyes opened, and I could finally see straight, I found myself alone in the forest.

The note Novia wrote me is clutched in my hand while my heart tries to crash its way through my chest. My mind is running a million miles a minute, but the most prominent thought that's highlighted like a figure standing under a streetlight in the dark is this:They have Novia.

She's been taken, and I know deep within me that those that took her are the very same bastards that she was running from the day we found her. And they have her now.

The door slams against the wall so hard that the paint chips and dust falls from the crack I've left. It's the least of my worries. The sound startles Ezra from where he's lounging on the couch, bright red orbs of power appearing in his hands before he knows it's me. They disappear in an instant when his eyes meet mine, but he's out of his chair and standing in front of me within seconds when he sees the absolute panic that's plastered all over my face.

"What? What is it?" he asks warily.

Nix comes from the hallway, his steps slowing when he sees me. His eyebrows draw down in confusion, and I know the next question that's seconds away from leaving his mouth.

"Where's Novia, Spence?" He sounds eerily calm, but his eyes flash yellow, the only indication that his animals are close to the surface, predominantly his wolf. Shit.

"She's gone. They took her. After all she went through to keep us and her safe, they still found her," Zayn says from right behind me, his voice strained with worry and panic. Where the hell was he if not in the house already? "Phoenix suggested I take a little walk to regain my senses after I woke up from my Novia-induced sleep. But that's of no matter. Novia has been taken."

It's like watching Ezra and Nix's reactions in slow motion. Ezra's hands dart into his hair, tugging it tightly with suddenly frantic eyes. Nix... well, Nix looks like he's a second away from shifting right there in the damn living room.

"What does the note say?" Zayn asks, coming to stand next to me. With shaking hands and the inability to speak when guilt and dread begin to choke me, I hand him the crumpled note that I had clenched in my fist. He smooths it out and reads the words out loud for the others. "I'm not running, I promise. Just got held up. I'll be back soon. Don't do anything stupid. Yours if you'll have me, Novia."

"Did she think we'd assume she ran again?" Ezra asks, annoyance lacing his words.

"That first part was for me. She promised me she wouldn't run again," Nix explains. "She was taken, but that note makes me think she went willingly. But why?"

That's when I find my voice, the guilt dragging me down with sharp claws. "Because I was there. She wouldn't risk us. It's why she ran away to begin with. I was shot with a tranquiliser dart that was meant for Novia. I pushed her out of the way before it could hit her, and it got me instead. I have no idea why I wasn't taken too. I was easy enough to capture.."

I leave my sentence to hang between us all. It's been one of the thoughts that plagued me as I ran home as fast as my legs could carry me. Why wasn't I taken, too? Why did they only take Novia and leave me on the ground to wake up? Why the fuck did they let her leave me a note?

"Glamour," Zayn says like it's the most obvious thing in the world.

"What?" I ask, turning to face him.

With patience I'm sure he isn't feeling based on the tightening of his mouth and the way his eyes are flickering between green and black, he says, "She glamoured you. She did it when Davis found her the first time, so it only makes sense that she did it again to keep you hidden. If our theory is correct, and they're accumulating moreNaturals than fae, then you surely would have been taken with her. It makes no sense to leave you behind, a Naturalthey could use, and with a note written from their captive. She used her glamour to assure you were kept hidden, so they couldn't take you too."

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