8. Chapter 8 #2
“No,” Darcy said, lifting to a standing position. “I told Amid to handle it.” Seeming to give up the search, she peeled off her gloves and gave Camilla one last look. A malicious grin misshaped her face. “Sweet dreams,” she said to Camilla and left the room.
The clicking of her heels echoed the rejection in Izzy’s heart.
How could she do this to me? Her breath hitched, and she leaned against her body, energy tingling from where she pressed into her flesh.
She took a few calming breaths before she meticulously closed the clamps.
That toxin wouldn’t reach her human body. But that was close—too close.
“You barely caught her actions because you were distracted,” Fotios’s raspy timbre filled the room—the constant reminder of her fractured mind.
Izzy felt a phantom splintering behind her eyes, a familiar dread bubbling up. Her throat closed, and the tears stinging her eyes further proved Fotios’s point. She couldn’t be logical around Daxton and her human body. At least, not yet.
“You can’t risk another fracture to your psyche,” Fotios whispered. “This link will surely lead to one.”
She nodded. Daxton may have answers, but at the present moment he was becoming more of a hazard than an asset. Distance would lesson his effect on her, and with a clearer head, she could tackle this predicament more safely.
Kneeling at the foot of the bed, she forced power into her hands, solidifying them to disarm the pressure sensor alarm used to alert nurses.
She’d practiced on many systems to prepare for such an event, never knowing when she’d need to escape a hospital undetected.
Once she disarmed everything, she rushed into her body.
Izzy jolted awake, clutching her throbbing stomach. Images of the Archfiend’s attack to Darcy’s attempt to take her life flashed before her eyes. This was the consequence of returning to her mortal body—she had to relive her spirit’s experiences.
She tingled with adrenaline, as if the Archfiend had manifested in the room. If Darcy was under the Archfiend’s Influence, her murder attempt and odd speech made sense.
Like demons, Archfiends made their victims drunk on their Influence to persuade and manipulate people into doing horrendous acts.
They targeted those they could exploit to do their bidding, like addicts and loners.
And Darcy had a money addiction. Izzy had to admit, it was a smart plan for the Archfiend, relying on her human mother to finish the job as no matter what hospital she’d end up at, Darcy would have access to her.
Izzy rubbed at the residual pain in her midsection, the cloth gown rough against her fingers.
The trickling unease along her spine sank her thoughts into a sandpit.
Not only did she have dragons on her back, but she also had an Archfiend who knew too much about her and would use anyone to his advantage.
Her hands fumbled about the blurred bedside table until she found the plastic frames of her glasses.
She eased them on and gazed around the pristine hospital room, ensuring no one else had walked in.
Ripping the tape from the back of her hand, the sensitive flesh stung.
She withdrew the IV from her vein and pressed a tissue wad against the wound.
Careful not to disturb the wires attached to her body, she leaned over and searched through the nightstand next to the bed.
Her emergency kit wouldn’t be far away, compliments of Simon.
On the first shelf, she found a stack of clothing.
Resting between the shirt and pants lay a burner phone, alcohol wipes, and a syringe.
She sent SOS as a text message to Simon, hoping he had understood why she told him to stay at the residence hall. Heart pounding, she turned the volume down on the phone and waited two breaths for the return reply.
ETA 15. ER.
Setting her mind on a countdown, the tightness between her shoulder blades grew.
Simon had understood that she needed his backup, so he needed only fifteen minutes to get to the ER to pick her up.
She needed to arrive on time so the hospital staff didn’t send him away to park.
She couldn’t leave any time for the dragons to catch her.
From Daxton’s determined personality, she was sure he’d convince her to work with them.
Doubt wiggled into her brain. She wanted to learn about the dragons and the link to break it, but she couldn’t tell whether part of her yearned for the truth—or just yearned for him—and that was too dangerous.
Twelve minutes left to escape the hospital, and she still had to disconnect from the instruments.
Coursing adrenaline heightened her senses and made her hands shake.
It wasn’t her first rodeo, and with her own medical knowledge—eight medical-specific doctoral degrees from her previous lives—she turned off the monitors.
She continued ridding her body of the wires and tubes.
Using the syringe and alcohol wipes from the emergency pack, she removed the catheter.
An uncomfortable shudder racked her spine.
Free of all the equipment, she allowed herself a moment to catch her breath.
She had a feeling Daxton would find out and chase her. She also, shockingly, felt like she wanted him to, but that was just the link.
To fortify herself against him, she packed as much spirit energy as she could into the shield. His presence heated her mind. He was close.
Five minutes left.
This is taking too long. Sitting on the bed, she stripped and yanked on the black pants and simple black hoodie Simon had left for her.
In the next drawer, she found a pair of running shoes.
While changing, she practiced a quick route to escape.
She’d used Sarah’s eyes to memorize the white halls and gray doors of the hospital, mapping a general layout in her mind.
That’s how she’d sensed the Fallen baby in the hallway. Stay safe, little one.
She stuffed her hair into her hood. When she pressed her feet to the floor, her leg muscles protested. A few days in a coma had been enough to fatigue her ligaments. She squatted to loosen the stiffness in her joints. After stretching and massaging her legs, she managed her way to the door.
Two minutes left.
She peered into the gray hallway to her left, leaning a shoulder against the doorframe for balance.
Her short breathing echoed loudly in her ears.
A few gurneys took up space near the end of the hall.
Above them, the emergency exit sign glowed red, just as she had seen through Sarah’s eyes.
The nurse’s station sat toward her right.
A woman’s brown hair hovered over the top of the desk. The coast was clear.
She sighed and slid into the hallway. She wasn’t an expert on dragon senses. If they were a collection of many predatory animals in one being, as Sarah had described, they must be keen.
Hoping for the best, she lurched down the hall as fast as she could and took a right at the end. A posted sign warned of an alarm, but the emergency door ten steps ahead showed no speaker or trip on the handle.
Sweat ran down her spine. Breath locked in her throat. Her shaking hands pushed through the barred door. No alarm. She stared down a long tower of enclosed stairs.
At times like this, she wished her wings could hold up her human body. Her legs moved like wobbly Jell-O, forcing her to keep a tight grip on the railing. By the time she’d gone down three flights, she wheezed as if she had run up them.
She wouldn’t make it much farther in her current state, so she barreled through another emergency door, nearly hitting someone on the other side. She raced down the yellow-painted hall and searched for an elevator. Come on…it must be in the same location…yes.
When the sliding doors split open, she jumped inside and smashed the lobby level. Pacing around the slow contraption, she sucked in deep breaths and shook her numb hands.
As the elevator dropped, a loud clash of thunder erupted along the link. Goosebumps pricked her skin. Her breathing became labored.
Daxton knew she was leaving.
Izzy grabbed at her head when energy tore through the wall she had built to block the link. The dragon hunted; she was its prey. Doubt held her captive, even as giddy excitement pumped warmth into her limbs.
The elevator door opened. She couldn’t move. Her heart hammered. Blurred faces swam in her unfocused vision.
She faltered as she tried to walk, her body tingling with too much adrenaline. The touch of strangers’ hands against her skin and worried questions brought her mind to focus. If she didn’t leave soon, she wouldn’t get to Simon in time.
Yanking herself free of their clutches, she ran.