Chapter 7
Chapter seven
Seth
I’m sick of being in the hospital. Sick of it, and I’ve only been here a day. It hurts to swallow and talk, but the doctors said there shouldn’t be any long-term damage. I’ve been under observation since then, to make sure my throat doesn’t start swelling.
Oliver was here earlier with his fiancée, Alexis, in tow.
She gave me a distracted smile before she started tapping away on her phone.
Oliver just rolled his eyes at her, scooting the chair closer to my bed so he could talk to me.
They stayed for nearly an hour before Alexis complained enough that they left.
The whole time they were there, though, I wanted to ask Oliver about his relationship.
But I couldn’t just ask when Alexis was sitting right there.
Are they still together? I have my doubts because they didn’t act like any engaged couple I’ve ever seen, except in those horrible arranged marriage sit coms.
And if they are together, what the hell was going on between him and Orson? Unless Oliver is completely oblivious to Orson’s feelings.
I was saved from my confused wheel of questions by Mattie showing up with a steaming thermos.
He presented it to me with a flourish, proudly informing me that he had created a calming and healing tea for me to sip on while I’m stuck here.
He stayed for a short while before he had to go to work.
The tea is good, an earthy and aromatic blend that soothed my aching throat as I slowly sipped on it.
Much better than the zero-sugar juice and plain water the hospital offered.
The sun is setting, painting one wall a bright reddish-orange. Visiting hours are over now, but I’m restless. I want to call and let my mom know, but I don’t want her to worry and I especially don’t want her here if Jake is around. Plus, it freaking hurts to talk.
Not that I really want to talk with anyone right now, even if I could. The cops were here earlier getting my statement and asking if I wanted to press charges on the guy should they find him. I don’t think I can press charges on a corpse, which I’m pretty sure is what the guy is at this point.
Not that I told the cops any of that.
No, I kept my stalker’s involvement out of it, which meant I didn’t tell the cops the crazy guy was most likely dead at this point. I didn’t even tell Oliver when he met the ambulance at the hospital.
Yeah, I put him down as an emergency contact when I first told him about my stalker. It was either that, or he was going to put a tracker app on my phone. Though I think that threat was Mattie's idea
Shit, how did I go from working a relatively normal retail job to getting assaulted by some lunatic and then saved by my stalker who’s a literal monster?
That’s another reason I didn’t say anything to the cops. I know I was terrified and panicking in that alley, but I definitely saw fangs and claws and glowing yellow eyes on Mr. Silver Fox. And no regular human could have ripped a guy’s arm off that easily.
Knowing that my stalker isn’t human, is terrifying. I have so many questions, but I don’t know if I actually want the answers.
I don’t think Jake hired him to find me, but then how did the crazy guy from the alley find me?
Did my amulet stop working? Did Jake manage to get to my mom?
The guy said that Jake sent him, and I don’t doubt he’ll send others.
He’ll do anything to get me back, even hiring people to assault me in the street.
Or go after my mom.
Panic starts swirling through me, making my stomach clench painfully. I have to swallow hard to keep the bile in place. I have to know that she’s ok.
With shaking hands, I send her a text and try to steady my breathing. It could be hours before she answers me, but I really don’t want to call. She will know immediately that something is wrong.
I beat out a rhythm on my leg, watching my phone as the minutes slowly tick by. I keep watching until the anxiety feels like it’s choking me before I give in and dial her number. I can’t wait the hours it might take for her to see the text. I’ll go mad.
She answers on the second ring with a cheery, “Sweetie pie! I wasn’t expecting you to call.”
“Hey, mom,” I croak out, cringing at how hoarse my voice sounds.
“What’s wrong?”The concern is thick in her voice.
“Just a little sick. Should be fine in a day or two.” I grimace at the lie, but I can’t tell her the truth. As far as I know, my mom has no clue about the real reason Uncle Cody is in jail. She gives me a huff of disapproval, and I hear the sound of a spoon hitting the side of a pot.
“You know, I had the urge to make some of that herbal broth your grandmama always used to make. If you were closer, I could have brought you some.”
I smile at the mention of my grandmother. She claimed to have been a witch and that all her powers came from the use of plants. My mom and I never argued with her, and I can honestly say, I don’t remember ever really getting sick as a kid.
My grandmother died when I was eleven. My mom kept up her recipes, but I know we lost a lot of knowledge.
Most of what my grandmother made was done by memory and she wrote very little down.
The herbal broth was one such remedy and it never failed to cure whatever sickness I managed to pick up as a kid.
“Maybe you should send me the recipe,” I suggest. “I’m sure I can find the ingredients here.”
I know I can find the ingredients since Blackstar Academy is so close, but I would probably have to hire someone to make it for me.
“Never know, you might have the power, too. Hear it can sometimes skip a generation.” I blink at the wall across from me as I process her words. Sometimes, when she talks to me, it’s like she’s replying to things that I never actually say out loud.
“I don’t think her powers skipped a generation,” I point out, and she laughs. I chuckle along with her but can’t muster much more than that. It hurts too much.
“Well, I’ll send you the recipe then,” she says. “And you’re sure that’s all that’s going on?”
I swallow past the lump in my throat at the suspicious tone in her voice. “Yeah, I’m ok.” I want to ask if anyone’s shown up at her house or asked around about me, but she will for sure know something is up if I do.
“Oh, before I forget, that boy showed up last week. You know, the blonde one that I never liked. Said, he forgot something of his last time he was here.”
My stomach twisted at that, and I have to swallow twice before I could form any words. “Jake showed up?”
He was there. He was with my mom. He could have done anything to her.
My vision starts going spotty and I can hear my monitors beeping like crazy.
But none of that matters over the fact that my crazy ex was in the same house as my mom.
He could have killed her if he thought it would have brought me to him faster.
“Sweetie, what’s wrong? What am I hearing?” My mom’s scared voice forces me back to the present, instead of going down the rabbit hole of all the ‘what if’ scenarios.
“I’m fine. Did he get what he forgot?” She hums disapprovingly at my topic change. She knows something’s up. Of course she does. She didn’t just coincidentally remember Jake came by. She picked up on my thinking about him, and that reminded her.
The door to my room opens, and a nurse peeks her head inside. I give her a small smile and cover the speaker of my phone. “I’m ok, just got some shocking news,” I say softly.
She looks between me and the monitors before nodding her head and retreating. I let out a silent breath. If I can get through this phone call without someone coming in again or my monitors going off, I might not have to tell my mom the truth.
She snorts into the phone, and I jerk at the sound. “I did not let that boy into my home. His energy was all off, and I didn’t want him inside. Told him you’d cleaned out your things and anything left was trashed, so if he didn’t get it, then he was out of luck.”
My jaw drops. My mom doesn’t lie. As far as I know, she’s never willingly told a lie to anyone. My grandmother believed honesty was the best way to handle the world, and passed that belief onto my mom.
Can’t say I took after either of them in that regard, unfortunately. She’d be so disappointed in me right now. And my grandmother is probably turning in her grave as I speak.
“I know lying isn’t a good thing to do, but I just know something bad would happen if he stepped through my door. I asked a friend of mine - you remember Amos? – to put some wards on the property.”
I let out a shaky breath, which my mother inevitably catches.
She ‘tsks’ at me, but doesn’t try to get any more information.
Bless her, she’s a saint putting up with my bullshit the way she does.
I know she realizes there’s more to my sudden cross-country move than what I’ve told her.
She has no idea that Jake isn’t human. At least, I don't think she knows.
But she drops the questions. We talk for a few minutes more before she hangs up, so I can rest. Amazing timing, too, because one of the nurses walks in with a food tray, a bowl of something that smells absolutely mouth-watering.
“Doctor put you ona liquid diet for now. Brought you some chicken broth. If everything goes well tonight, you should be discharged tomorrow.” She gives me a smile as she places the tray on the wheeled table and moves it over the bed so I can easily reach it.
The broth smells amazing, and the first spoonful has my eyes rolling in my head.
Either I’m famished, or this is the best broth I’ve ever tasted.
It has the perfect amount of salt, and all the herbs mixed together fill me with the comforts of home.
The few morsels of vegetables are so soft they practically melt in my mouth.
I finish the broth while she is still checking my vitals and writing in my chart. “So, did the broth get enchanted or something to make it that good?”