Chapter 6
“I know I told you not to miss training today,” Meera said the next morning, her communication amulet gleaming against her scarred neck, “but I also expected you to be awake for it.”
Viri grunted as her mentor landed yet another blow, this time a firm kick to her abdomen that stole her breath and made the dark green walls of the Hunters’ Guild sparring chambers spin around her.
“I’m awake,” Viri wheezed, raising a hand to say she needed a moment.
Meera didn’t give it to her, launching another attack that sent Viri scrambling backward across the large gray mat while trying valiantly to refill her lungs.
“You’re like a newborn fawn stumbling around on fresh legs,” Meera said, her dark features set in a frown. “I haven’t seen you fight this poorly since you were a novice.”
That was harsh, Viri thought, though not untrue.
It was Wynter’s fault—Wynter and her stupid alchemy.
All too vividly, Viri recalled what had happened the previous night after she’d been dragged to Wynter’s lab in the undercity, the memory playing out in quick flashes:
“I call it ‘zingzest.’ It’s an elixir to boost energy,” Wynter declared, shoving a vial of shimmering orange liquid into Viri’s hands. “The name works twofold: increased vitality and a citrusy taste. Zing and zest—get it?”
“What’s wrong with coffee?” Viri asked, swirling the vial suspiciously.
“When I say energy boost, I mean boost,” Wynter emphasized. “No coffee in the world will hit you as hard and fast as this will.”
Despite herself, Viri was intrigued. It was dangerous to hunt reapers with depleted energy, but sometimes unavoidable. An elixir like this could be the difference between life and death.
Even so…
“How long does it last? I want to get some sleep tonight, Wyn.”
“I’m still refining the formula, but it should fade fast,” Wynter assured her. “It’s only meant to be a quick hit, like for a surprise attack. Swallow this, and BAM! An instant shot of adrenaline straight to the veins.”
Viri had trusted her friend and downed the vial, with Wynter’s words proving true almost immediately—both the citrusy taste and the violent awakening of every nerve in her body.
Pure energy had slammed into her, making her believe she could take on all the reapers in the world without breaking a sweat.
However, while it did fade after a few minutes, as promised, Viri had been left with a jittery feeling for hours, her heart beating rapidly, her head pounding, her body shivering and feverish, almost like a drug withdrawal.
Her symptoms had eased with just enough time for her to manage an hour of sleep before she’d had to leave for dawn training.
And to add insult to injury, Wynter’s only comment upon Viri bursting furiously into her bedroom that morning had been, “Interesting. I’ll adjust the formula for the next time you try it. ”
Viri had wanted to throw something at her. Instead, she’d stormed off to meet Meera, fueled solely by irritation, but that had long since burned away, leaving her barely conscious as she sparred sluggishly with her mentor.
On the plus side, they were only practicing unarmed combat today, so she didn’t have to worry about bleeding out from a stab wound. A small mercy.
“If you were going to waste my time, you could have at least had the decency to tell me beforehand,” Meera said when Viri failed to dodge another easy attack—a quick leg hook behind her knee that sent her sprawling onto the mat.
“Time is a construct, so ‘waste’ is subjective,” Viri panted from the ground, wincing when she realized she was semi-quoting Reeve, of all people.
She winced again at the look on Meera’s face.
“I mean”—Viri scrambled back up to her feet and hurried to correct her mistake—“you’re right. I’m sorry, I’m not at my best today.”
Meera’s hard expression softened a fraction. She didn’t renew her attack, but instead squared her stance and crossed her arms. “Talk to me. What’s going on?”
“Nothing. I just didn’t sleep well.”
“Is this about you being stuck on desk duty?” Meera asked. “If we’d been alone yesterday, I would have been more lenient.”
“It’s fine. I get it.”
Meera continued as if Viri hadn’t spoken. “You’re one of my best hunters—I’d much rather have you out saving lives than cooped up with paperwork. But the Underlock falls within Darik’s purview as captain of the Nox. My hands were tied.”
“I know that,” Viri said, though she didn’t have to like it. “It’s tedious, but no one has ever died from boredom. I doubt I’ll be the first.”
“Then what’s bothering you?” Meera pressed, her jade eyes pinning Viri in place. “You’re not just tired—you’re distracted. I know the difference.” She cocked her head to the side. “Is it Ashton?”
Viri gave a slight jerk, and Meera pounced on the reaction.
“I didn’t push you to talk yesterday when Darik was with us, since you’ve always been a little scared of him—”
Viri spluttered. “I’m not scared of him!” She just didn’t like him, and only because he didn’t like her.
“—but you and I are close enough that you can be open with me. Argue all you want, but I know it must have been hard confronting someone so loyal to your parents’ killer.”
“Of course it was hard,” Viri said, still smarting over Meera thinking she was afraid of Darik. “But as unpleasant as it was to talk with Ree—Ashton, that’s not the thing about yesterday that’s bothering me.”
The words left her before she could stop them, but that didn’t make them any less true.
Her sleepless night had given her time to mull over the hours she’d spent in the archives, specifically all the missing children she’d tried to convince herself weren’t a cause for concern, despite her gut telling her otherwise.
“I’m listening,” Meera said, settling her weight back in her heels.
Viri hesitated, not having planned to say anything yet. “It’s probably nothing.”
“Let me be the judge of that.”
It was enough of a command that Viri blew out a breath and shared, “Something happened in the archives yesterday.”
Meera blinked in surprise—and disbelief. “Now I know you’re lying.”
The dry retort coaxed a reluctant smile out of Viri. “I didn’t say it was something exciting. Just…something.”
Meera’s attention sharpened. “Go on.”
As succinctly as she could, Viri told her mentor about her sorting task, explaining the color and number allocations and the growing pile of red threes, especially in the last six months.
“Like I said, it could be nothing,” Viri repeated. “Thornton was adamant that the Nox have looked into all the cases, but something he said came back to me overnight, and I can’t get it out of my head.”
Meera’s face was impossible to read, as it had been the whole time Viri had been talking. “Tell me.”
“He said that for every case, the Nox ‘either resolved it or ran out of leads,’ ” Viri recounted. “Those are two very different outcomes.”
“They are,” Meera agreed, still giving nothing away, though there was a furrow in her brow. “Did he say anything else?”
“Only that the disappearances can’t be connected to reapers, because reapers don’t abduct kids, they kill them outright.” Viri scratched her jaw. “He’s not wrong.”
“But you’re still worried?” Meera asked.
Viri looked down at the mat, uncertain. “I don’t know. Maybe? I know the Nox are always diligent, just as I know those kids are probably all back with their families, their cases closed. But I have this—this feeling I can’t shake.”
“Your instincts have never failed you before,” Meera stated, her mental voice filled with reproach. “Don’t start doubting them now.”
Viri’s eyes shot back up. “What are you saying?”
“Are you a hunter or not?” Meera sent her an arched look. “Most of your job is investigation. So, investigate.”
“But—my punishment—the archives—”
“You have breaks, don’t you? And there’s always after hours.”
“Do you think there’s something in this?” Viri’s stomach flipped at the thought.
Meera considered her reply. “Normally, I would say no. If there was a concern, surely Darik and I would be aware of it.” She shuffled her feet, her leather boots leaving indents on the spongy mat.
“But I chose you as my protégé for a reason, Viri. I trust your intuition. So look into this, if only to give us both peace of mind that there’s nothing to worry about. ”
Viri nodded, heartened by her mentor’s belief in her and relieved to have a plan, even if it—hopefully—led to nothing.
Agreeing to keep Meera informed, Viri left the sparring chambers to freshen up and visit her favorite bakery for breakfast before heading to the archives.
The ellixen wards wreaked havoc on her fatigued body, making her stumble after Thornton to her office, the mountains of paperwork waiting for her seeming even higher than yesterday.
With a sigh, Viri got to work, her hours passing much as they had the previous day, with the only difference being the plummeting feeling she experienced whenever she found a new red three from the last six months.
She soon became jittery enough that she took an early lunch to follow Meera’s advice, using her break to visit two of the addresses on the files—where both families quickly confirmed their children were safe and sound.
False alarms, the parents claimed, embarrassed that they’d bothered the Nox for no reason.
Viri felt a weight lift off her shoulders. She knew better than to give up after checking only two addresses, but it was nevertheless reassuring.
The next day continued in the same way: training, filing, and visiting more families, all of whom reported that their children were no longer missing. Viri even met some of the kids, witnessing for herself that they were alive and well.