Sisters of Blood and Spirit
Page 52
“You always have to be right. Well, if I’d scared him at the asylum we wouldn’t be here right now.”
So, she had a point. So did I. “But then I wouldn’t have leverage against Officer Olgilvie, would I?” I checked my watch. It was well after midnight. “Think they’d let us into the hospital now?” It was just down the street. Maybe Ben would still be there and could give me a ride home.
“Let you in,” Wren corrected. “I could just drift through the walls.”
She could also just zap herself home if she wanted and leave my sorry ass to get back on its own. I didn’t want to call Nan, but cabs were scarce around here, and I didn’t have anyone else, damn it.
Screw it. I was going to walk.
“Want a ride?” came a voice from behind me. Mace.
I turned. “Thought you’d be long gone by now.”
Hands in his pockets, he walked beneath the bright station lights toward us. “My father had some things he wanted to say to me first.”
“I bet.”
He pulled keys from his pocket. “But he had one of the guys go get my car, so I can drive you home if you want. Or you can come to the hospital with me to see Gage. I got a call from Kev. I assume Wren brought you up to speed?”
I nodded. “I figured they wouldn’t let us in?”
“Nah, Kevin’s aunt is on the ER desk tonight. You coming?”
“Yeah.” I wanted to see Gage.
We turned and walked through the parking lot. Mace seemed to know where he was going, so I followed after him. Sure enough he led us right to his Jag. He opened the passenger door for me and I climbed in.
The interior smelled like Sarah’s perfume, cloves and fennel. It was a weird combination.
“Sarah doesn’t like me much,” I said as I buckled my seat belt.
He checked for traffic before steering the car out onto the street. “That’s random.”
I shrugged.
“She likes you fine. She’s just jealous.”
That was a bit more direct than I had expected. I shouldn’t be surprised. “Why?”
Mace glanced at me. “Because you and I have history.”
I snorted. “Not the sexy kind.”
He chuckled. “No. But we have a connection, and she feels threatened by it.”
“I just can’t imagine her feeling threatened by anyone. She’s perfect.”
I felt him look at me. “You think so?”
When I turned my head he was looking at the road again. “Yeah. Don’t you?”
“No one’s perfect.” We turned into the hospital lot. After a few moments he asked, “Can you do that thing you did to me to Gage?”
“I can try.”
“Good.” And then, “What the hell was it anyway?”
I shook my head. “No freaking idea.”
“Does it matter?” Wren asked from the backseat. She was frowning at Mace. “How about a little gratitude there, pretty boy?”
I choked back laughter. Mace glanced at me. “You okay?”
“As well as can be expected.”
“Yeah. Hey, what did Joe Hard tell you about Olgilvie?”
“Just what you heard.”
He looked like he didn’t believe me, and I was okay with that. Joe Hard had a horrible name, but I wasn’t going to give away his secrets, not when I wanted to make them my own.
Mace fell quiet. We parked near the door and went inside. A pretty woman with dark skin and a gorgeously huge head of corkscrew curls was at the front desk. The security guard nodded at Mace, who nodded back.
“Hey, Ivy,” he said to the woman. “Can we see Gage?”
She nodded. “Go on back. I’ll let Kevin know you’re here.” Then she looked at me and smiled. “You must be Lark.”
This gorgeous woman was Kevin’s aunt? Had to be by marriage. No way they were related.
“Um, yeah. Hi.” I didn’t know how to feel about the fact that Kevin had obviously talked about me. I could only imagine what he might have said.
I followed Mace into the emergency ward. Wren stayed close to me. “I don’t like this place,” she whispered. “It’s too sad.”
I took her hand and held it close to my thigh so no one would notice. Hospitals always had a lot of spirit activity, but they retained a lot of energy, too. Wren responded to both. I guess I did, too, because I really didn’t want to be there.
Just as we walked into the fairly open area with the curtained-off beds, Roxi’s head popped out from behind a curtain down at the far end. She waved us down. As we walked, I heard a woman crying and someone else moaning in pain. Doctors and nurses scurried around, but no one seemed to pay much attention to us—not even the ghosts.
Mace parted the curtain and we walked into the small area around Gage’s bed. Everyone was there. Ben grinned when he saw me. I smiled back like a demented idiot. I was just so glad that he was okay.
“Hey, jailbird,” he teased.
Better than Jail Bait, I thought. “Hey. How is he?”
Ben shrugged. “Okay, I guess.”
Gage was in the bed. He wasn’t awake. His color didn’t look too bad, but he was sweaty with dark circles under his eyes. His arms were bandaged from wrist to just above his elbow. What had Bent made him do to himself?
“Has he woken up?” Mace asked.
Roxi shook her head. She’d been crying, poor thing. “Once. After the seizures stopped. He’s been asleep ever since.” She looked at me. “Is he going to be okay?”
So, she had a point. So did I. “But then I wouldn’t have leverage against Officer Olgilvie, would I?” I checked my watch. It was well after midnight. “Think they’d let us into the hospital now?” It was just down the street. Maybe Ben would still be there and could give me a ride home.
“Let you in,” Wren corrected. “I could just drift through the walls.”
She could also just zap herself home if she wanted and leave my sorry ass to get back on its own. I didn’t want to call Nan, but cabs were scarce around here, and I didn’t have anyone else, damn it.
Screw it. I was going to walk.
“Want a ride?” came a voice from behind me. Mace.
I turned. “Thought you’d be long gone by now.”
Hands in his pockets, he walked beneath the bright station lights toward us. “My father had some things he wanted to say to me first.”
“I bet.”
He pulled keys from his pocket. “But he had one of the guys go get my car, so I can drive you home if you want. Or you can come to the hospital with me to see Gage. I got a call from Kev. I assume Wren brought you up to speed?”
I nodded. “I figured they wouldn’t let us in?”
“Nah, Kevin’s aunt is on the ER desk tonight. You coming?”
“Yeah.” I wanted to see Gage.
We turned and walked through the parking lot. Mace seemed to know where he was going, so I followed after him. Sure enough he led us right to his Jag. He opened the passenger door for me and I climbed in.
The interior smelled like Sarah’s perfume, cloves and fennel. It was a weird combination.
“Sarah doesn’t like me much,” I said as I buckled my seat belt.
He checked for traffic before steering the car out onto the street. “That’s random.”
I shrugged.
“She likes you fine. She’s just jealous.”
That was a bit more direct than I had expected. I shouldn’t be surprised. “Why?”
Mace glanced at me. “Because you and I have history.”
I snorted. “Not the sexy kind.”
He chuckled. “No. But we have a connection, and she feels threatened by it.”
“I just can’t imagine her feeling threatened by anyone. She’s perfect.”
I felt him look at me. “You think so?”
When I turned my head he was looking at the road again. “Yeah. Don’t you?”
“No one’s perfect.” We turned into the hospital lot. After a few moments he asked, “Can you do that thing you did to me to Gage?”
“I can try.”
“Good.” And then, “What the hell was it anyway?”
I shook my head. “No freaking idea.”
“Does it matter?” Wren asked from the backseat. She was frowning at Mace. “How about a little gratitude there, pretty boy?”
I choked back laughter. Mace glanced at me. “You okay?”
“As well as can be expected.”
“Yeah. Hey, what did Joe Hard tell you about Olgilvie?”
“Just what you heard.”
He looked like he didn’t believe me, and I was okay with that. Joe Hard had a horrible name, but I wasn’t going to give away his secrets, not when I wanted to make them my own.
Mace fell quiet. We parked near the door and went inside. A pretty woman with dark skin and a gorgeously huge head of corkscrew curls was at the front desk. The security guard nodded at Mace, who nodded back.
“Hey, Ivy,” he said to the woman. “Can we see Gage?”
She nodded. “Go on back. I’ll let Kevin know you’re here.” Then she looked at me and smiled. “You must be Lark.”
This gorgeous woman was Kevin’s aunt? Had to be by marriage. No way they were related.
“Um, yeah. Hi.” I didn’t know how to feel about the fact that Kevin had obviously talked about me. I could only imagine what he might have said.
I followed Mace into the emergency ward. Wren stayed close to me. “I don’t like this place,” she whispered. “It’s too sad.”
I took her hand and held it close to my thigh so no one would notice. Hospitals always had a lot of spirit activity, but they retained a lot of energy, too. Wren responded to both. I guess I did, too, because I really didn’t want to be there.
Just as we walked into the fairly open area with the curtained-off beds, Roxi’s head popped out from behind a curtain down at the far end. She waved us down. As we walked, I heard a woman crying and someone else moaning in pain. Doctors and nurses scurried around, but no one seemed to pay much attention to us—not even the ghosts.
Mace parted the curtain and we walked into the small area around Gage’s bed. Everyone was there. Ben grinned when he saw me. I smiled back like a demented idiot. I was just so glad that he was okay.
“Hey, jailbird,” he teased.
Better than Jail Bait, I thought. “Hey. How is he?”
Ben shrugged. “Okay, I guess.”
Gage was in the bed. He wasn’t awake. His color didn’t look too bad, but he was sweaty with dark circles under his eyes. His arms were bandaged from wrist to just above his elbow. What had Bent made him do to himself?
“Has he woken up?” Mace asked.
Roxi shook her head. She’d been crying, poor thing. “Once. After the seizures stopped. He’s been asleep ever since.” She looked at me. “Is he going to be okay?”
