Page 19 of The Alpha's Fallen Spell
I nod, though my heart races at the sight of the needle she removes from her case. Maya seems to notice my fear, because she slows her movements, explaining each step before she takes it.
“This will pinch for a moment,” she says, approaching with the needle. “You can look away if you want.”
I don’t. As I watch as the needle pierce my skin, I feel Erik’s hand settle lightly on my back. This small pain is nothing compared to what I’ve endured, but having him here makes it easier to bear.
Maya works efficiently, drawing blood into several small tubes. “Perfect,” she says, placing a small bandage over the puncture. “Thank you, Fiona.” She labels the tubes carefully before returning to sit across from me, a small notebook in her hands. “Can you tell me how long they held you captive?”
I close my eyes, trying to sort through memories that blur together in an endless stream of white walls and pain. “Almost my whole life. Twenty years.”
“Do you remember how old you were when they took you?”
The memory surfaces like a bubble breaking the water’s surface. “Six,” I say. “I had just turned six.”
Erik’s hand moves up to my shoulder and tightens around it.
Maya makes a note, her expression carefully neutral, but I see the constriction around her eyes. “And do you remember anything about your life before? Your family?”
“My mother,” I say softly. “She disappeared one day. My stepfather took her with him and came back with money...” I trail off, bitterness coating my tongue. “He sold her, just like he did me.”
Erik stiffens beside me, a low growl rumbling in his chest. The sound makes my wolf stir, responding to his anger.
“He sold you?” Maya asks gently.
I nod, focusing on the pattern of the wooden table beneath my fingers. “Some men came to our town. They were looking for gifted children, they said. Special ones.” I swallow hard. “They took blood samples from several kids. They came back for me a few days later. With money for my stepfather.”
Maya’s pen scratches across her notebook. “Did they say what made you special? What they were looking for?”
“No. But I remember hearing them talk about ‘potential’ and ‘markers.’” I pause, remembering something else. “I think I have a photographic memory. I always did. I could remember things exactly—books, conversations. My teachers noticed. Maybe that’s why the men chose me.”
Maya looks up sharply. “You have a perfect memory?”
I shrug. “I don’t know if it’s perfect. But yes, I remember things easily. Details most people miss. And when I’m taught something, I can recall it perfectly later. I understand thingsquickly, too.” I hesitate. “They used to test that. They’d teach me complicated things—languages, mathematics, diagrams of the human body—and then make me recite them back. If I made mistakes...” I don’t finish the sentence. I don’t need to.
Maya glances at Erik before making another note. “That’s remarkable, Fiona. And it might explain part of their interest in you.”
“They were very careful about what they taught me. They said that I didn’t need to know anything about the outside world. That if I was a success, then they would think about it.”
Erik’s hand slides halfway down my back and tenses, his fingers pressing slightly into my spine. The pressure is grounding, anchoring me to the present.
“Were there others like you?” Maya asks. “Other subjects?”
I nod, images flashing through my mind. “Many. But they were the most vicious with me. The tests were worse for me than the others.” I look down at my arms, remembering needles and scalpels. “They said I healed faster. That I could take more.”
Maya’s pen goes still. “And the shifting? When did that start?”
“It didn’t. Not with them. They were trying to make it happen for a long time. Injections, electric shocks, drugs.” I shudder at the memory. “Then it just...happened. When I was escaping.”
Maya and Erik exchange a look I can’t interpret.
“Fiona,” Maya says carefully, “you seem to pick things up very quickly. Your speech patterns, your comprehension—it’s remarkable for someone who’s been isolated for so long.”
I hadn’t thought about it. “I’ve always learned fast. And I listened to them talking. The scientists, the guards. It helped me understand what was happening to me.”
Maya closes her notebook and smiles. “You’re doing incredibly well, Fiona. We’ll help you adjust to life here, I promise.” She stands, gathering her things. “I’m going to runsome tests on your blood, but everything else can wait. You should rest, explore a little if you feel up to it. The palace is your home now, for as long as you want it to be.”
After she leaves, Erik stays with me, quiet and thoughtful. “Are you okay?” he finally asks.
“Yes,” I say, surprised to find it’s mostly true. “She’s nice.”
