Page 79 of Fated Exile

Now that I know he was warning me because he feared the powers my mother passed on to me as much as anything, it seems strange to be scared by them. Even humans have herbs in their pantries and taxidermy hung on their walls. The dried plants and bones in here aren't a threat. All this time the threats were coming from an entirely different direction.

Kerry doesn't know why Cat is sick, and Niall can't explain it. One moment she was weeding in the back garden and complaining that we'd given up on the house renovations once the easy things were done. The next thing he knew, she'd stumbled inside and was slurring her speech, her skin so hot to the touch that he rushed her immediately to the urgent care clinic.

They gave her IV fluids and anti-fever medications there, but couldn't explain what was going on. The clinic has limited hours and staff, so they sent Cat home with some antibiotics and instructions to come back in a day if things got worse. Meanwhile, Kerry came home from some errands in town and immediately smelled curse magic lingering in the air.

I smell it too, though I can't explain why, or how I know that's what it is. All I know is that Ihaveto save Cat, because I don't know who I am without her, or what to do with myself if she's gone.

It doesn't even make sense. How could Delphine attack her like this when she's not even on our lands? And why go after Cat, who is no threat to her at all?

I find the horehound under H in the filing cabinet—it's a minty kind of herb, dried out in a plastic baggy written on with permanent marker. The rattlesnake bones are next, and I don't know what to look for them under, so I start with R for rattlesnake. As I'm flipping through the letter—Rosemary, Raindrops, and Raven Feathers flip by—footsteps come up the stairs, and I sense the nearness of Roarke's comforting presence.

"Do you need any help?" He hovers in the hallway, attentive but not pushy. "Finn already tried taking his shirt off in front of Cat, and it didn't seem to do anything, but I'm willing to give it a valiant effort."

"I just need to find some rattlesnake bones." I shoot him a tight smile. "Did you investigate the area where she was weeding already? Have you contacted anyone from the other packs to see if they might be able to help?"

"Yes, and also yes. The garden didn't smell like anything as far as we can tell, though Bastian offered to go search it as well, and he's out there now."

Roarke approaches me and kneels gently nearby, placing a hand on the small of my back. It takes everything in me not to relax into that touch and fall in his arms, weeping like a little girl.

"As far as contacting the other packs is concerned, I did reach out to the Chattahoochee Pack, since they have a more cordial relationship with some of the covens in their area than we do. Nothing yet, but there are some witches willing to fly out if it gets worse, or contact the nearby covens on our behalf."

"That's good." I bite my lower lip, pushing down grief and anxiety that wants to spill from me in the form of tears. R doesn't have the bones, so I skip over to S for snake. "Do you think Kerry is going to use these for anything, or did she just send me on an errand to occupy me?"

"Both." He drops a gentle kiss on my forehead, then takes my hand and skips it forward to the B of the filing cabinet. "Check Bones comma Rattlesnake."

I do, and that's where they are. Throwing my arms around Roarke's shoulders, I snuggle into his neck and let his comforting scent wash over me. He's a balm to my shaky soul, his clove and bergamot scent anchoring me to the pack and land around me.

Stretching up, he sweeps the bag of herbs off the floor and pulls me gently to my feet. I lean against him, worrying my fingers up and down the paper packet filled with tiny snake vertebrae. He tilts his mouth towards my neck and inhales the scent of me, his face sinking into my hair.

Then I take his hand, and tug him down the staircase. There's a thick air of worry in the lower level of the house; I race to the back bedroom to find Kerry hovering by the bed, a sheet scrawled with notes in front of her.

"Here." I thrust the bones at her, and Roarke hands over the herbs. Anxiously, I ask, "Is it enough? Will it work?"

"I don't know." Kerry is plain in her assessment as she looks down at Cat, who has drifted off into an uneasy sleep. "It should at least help me figure out what's wrong with her, and lower her temperature a bit. In the meantime—you two need to get out of here. I can't perform the spells with any interference."

Biting my lower lip, I glance over at Cat and ask in a low whisper, "Can I...?"

"Say whatever you need to say to her," Kerry says, face softening. She spills the bones into her palm and paces over to the desk. "It'll take me a moment to get the spell ready anyway."

While she's busy, I slip over to Cat, anxiously tugging Roarke behind me. He hovers over my shoulder, hand still in mine, as I kneel beside the bed and lean down towards Cat.

My throat closes up the instant I'm close to her. I can feel the heat rolling off her in waves. Her skin is sweaty and clammy, her hair sticking to her forehead. Her closed eyes roam behind thin eyelids.

I can't think of anything to say besides, "I love you." And, "Please, don't give up."

Cat makes a small noise. Her eyes flutter open, and her hand, though weak, reaches for me. I take it in my free grip and squeeze my fingers. In a quiet voice she mutters, "Not going anywhere, Lilah."

Then she drifts off again, and I sense Kerry looking over at us, an air of impatience to her. Swallowing my grief and fear, I pull back from my mother and tell my aunt, "Do whatever you have to."

When I turn away, I know I can't look back. I have to just slip out the room, close the door behind me, and not look. Roarke goes with me, his hand dropping from mine as he slides around to face me and takes me in his arms.

I lean against him, inhaling his scent, trying to focus on the present and not the uncertain future.

"Nothing will happen to her," he says, voice loud and clear, rumbling against my chest. His pulse is so steady, his confidence so certain, that I feel my anxiety melt out of me and into the floor. "I'm not going to let her fade away, Delilah. You need her still, which means I'll do everything it takes to help her and keep her safe. Do you believe me?"

I pull back, looking into his clear blue eyes, and nod. "I do."

"Then you have nothing to worry about." Roarke drops a kiss on lips, brushing his mouth against my cheek and trailing warmth wherever he touches me. "You're my mate, and that means nothing bad happens to you without my permission."

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