The weight of it sunk in and I reached out a hand to the wall to support my suddenly shaky legs. I’d been surrounded by death today. I’d walked through it and I’d refused to let myself feel it, not really, until now.
I grabbed my chest and shuddered. All the emotions I’d been packing down for hours threatened to bubble up and take me under, but I couldn’t let them. It would paralyze me and we weren’t done.
I refocused my mind and pictured Xavier as I’d left him. With Daniella getting worse so quickly, I couldn’t help but think it was already too late for him, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized that assumption was wrong.
Daniella had succumbed quickly because the infection had been so close to her heart. Xavier’s wound was a lot further away from his heart, so there was a chance…
I’d hold onto that chance with everything I had and it would get me through.
“Daniella?” Bash’s soft question caught my attention and I turned to see her long dark lashes flutter a few times. I crossed the room and laid a hand on Bash’s arm, and squeezed.
Her lips parted and a soft exhalation slipped past them. The tip of her tongue touched her dry lips.
“I’ll get her some water,” I said, leaving his side to fill one of the little paper cups by the water cooler.
Bash put his arm behind his sister’s back and shifted her gently until he was able to slide behind her and brace her on his lap. Slowly, I poured small amounts of water into her mouth until she whispered, “Thank you,” and opened her eyes.
I stared into them, barely recognizing the emerald eyes that had watched me with such contempt. There was a softness, a weakness that made me a little uncomfortable to tell the truth, and confusion that made me feel for her.
“We got you the antidote in time,” I said softly, lowering the cup. “But it was close, so it’ll probably take you a while to start feeling better.”
“Xavier,” the words came out raspy and rough. Daniella’s gaze stayed locked on mine and her hand, weak and quavering, reached for mine.
I took it and felt the effort she put into the squeeze.
“Go,” she whispered, then turned her head to look up at Bash. “Help him,” she urged then closed her eyes for a moment.
Bash looked up at me and, in his eyes, I saw a storm of confusion and guilt. He wanted to stay with her, wanted to go with me, and didn’t know what to do.
I reached for his hand. “You can stay.”
He down at his sister, his heart, the literal other half of him. I watched the play of emotions on his face and my heart filled for him.
“She’s safe here and getting better.” He looked up at me and, this time, there was a firm set to his brows and a determination in his eyes. “Let’s go save Xavier.”
Daniella’s eyes opened again as Bash shifted and laid her down on the bed. “Be safe,” she whispered, lifting her hand for him to take. “I love you.”
“I love you, too,” Bash’s voice broke but he choked back the tears that I could see welling in his eyes. “Don’t try to leave, okay? I’ll come back for you. Just stay here and stay safe.”
She nodded slowly, letting her eyes flutter shut a few times, then her breathing shifted and she was asleep.
I straightened my uniform. While Bash pulled himself together, I found an empty bottle that I filled halfway with the antidote, and put it and a few needles into the cargo pockets on my legs, thinking they’d be the safest place on my body. I figured I’d leave some behind in case Daniella needed another dose or someone else showed up needing it.
As I put the bottle and needle on the table next to Daniella, something flickered in my memory. I frowned at the array of bottles I’d left on the counter and wandered over to sort through them again. There was something there that was niggling at my brain and I wanted to find out why.
I pulled bottle after bottle, putting the discarded ones back on the shelf, until I was left with just one.
Aconite.
I’d heard that word before, or read it somewhere, and I knew it was important. I reached for my phone to Google it out of habit and gritted my teeth when I remembered that wasn’t an option.
There had to be a medical dictionary here, though, I reasoned. Seemed like a pretty logical addition to any nurse’s office. I scanned the room, frowning when I didn’t see a bookshelf. I turned to the cabinets. I hadn’t run across any books when we’d been searching for the antidote, but I also hadn’t been looking for one, and I hadn’t checked the lower cabinets.
“What are you looking for?” Bash asked, coming out of the attached bathroom.
“A medical dictionary,” I said, looking for the stirrup, so I could start smashing cabinet doors again.
Bash wiped his hands on his pants and walked straight to the cabinet on the end, one he’d opened. “Like this?” He pulled a thick book out and held it up.
I grinned and took it from his hands. “Exactly like that.” I flipped through the pages, muttering, “Aconite, aconite,” until I found it.
Aconite (noun) Aconitum napellus (A. napellus, also known as monkshood or wolfsbane) is a perennial herb often grown as an ornamental plant due to its attractive blue to dark purple flowers.
“It’s wolfbane,” my eyebrows shot up in surprise. “It’s poison.”
“We should take it with us, just in case,” Bash said with a frown. “But, we should leave this here for when Daniella wakes up.” He bent to pick up the gun that still lay on the floor next to the examining table and put it on the bed next to her hip.
I grabbed two needles and filled them with wolfsbane, figuring if we needed poison, there wouldn’t be time to draw it. I put them in another pocket then turned to the door. “Are you sure?” I asked, leaving another opening for him to change his mind.
“Yeah.” He leaned in to kiss Daniella’s forehead one more time, then strode across the room and hefted the still unconscious guard over his shoulder. “Let’s find somewhere to toss him.”
I unlocked the door and opened it slowly, listening for the sound of voices or footsteps. When I heard nothing, I poked my head out and glanced up and down the hallway. “All clear,” I murmured, then slipped out.
We found an open janitor’s closet at the end of the hallway and stowed our captive inside after making sure his binds were tight and his gag was in place. Just to be safe, Bash cracked him on the head again with a broom handle.
We moved quicker this time, careful not to rush or draw attention, though. I thanked the Old Ones Bash was with me this time, that I wasn’t alone anymore, and that I’d been able to help one person from death’s door.
Outside, the sun was still shining. I stared at it for a moment, confused as to how it could still be daytime when so much had happened. I had no idea how much time had passed since I’d left Xavier. I pulled my cell out of my pocket and glanced down at the time.
2:57 p.m.
Two hours ago, I’d been sitting in the solarium, waiting for Bash to show up. Two hours ago, my life had been completely normal, except for the drama, failed romance, and arch nemesis. I tucked my phone back into my pocket and prayed that in two hours from now, we’d still be alive.
We passed a few guards along the way, men and women who simply nodded in our direction or raised a hand in passing. Friendly terrorists, I thought, but was grateful no one stopped.
It only took ten minutes to make it across campus to the library. When we stepped through the main doors into the foyer and found the place empty, I let out a sigh of relief and headed straight towards the rare books room, pulling my mask off as I went.