“We asked her to do it, Lon,” Adella said.

He didn’t respond. I wished I knew what he was thinking, but I supposed it had to keep. He wasn’t going to say anything in front of Adella, especially if he was pissed. And if he was? I understood, but I wasn’t sorry for stripping the transmutation spell. Just sorry that I lost control after it was done. I suppose I’d be a lot sorrier if I’d fucked her up enough to do some permanent damage, but that remained to be seen. I wasn’t going to jump the gun and start falling apart just yet.

When we got to the hospital, Lon strode away to find his friend, “Dr. Mick,” as Jupe called him. Moments later, I watched Yvonne’s body being rushed in, strapped to a gurney with Rose trailing behind the ER team. They wheeled her behind a swinging door, and that was all I knew for the better part of an hour.

Adella and I sat together in a mauve-colored waiting room, smelling that depressing antiseptic hospital scent, staring at the TV like zombies . . . watching other people wait for bad news. I finally couldn’t stand the silence anymore, so I returned the Solomon’s Seal ring and attempted a conversation.

“Thanks,” she said. “I’ll give it back to Mama.”

I nodded and took a deep breath. “Adella?”

“Yeah?”

“Did you see me out in the yard with Yvonne?”

She gave me a confused look. “After Lon yelled for us to come.”

Okay, good. She hadn’t seen my reptilian form, or whatever the hell it was.

“Does my halo look funny?”

She glanced up. “It’s a little brighter and jumping around the edges.”

At least the tail was gone.

“I’m not upset at you,” Adella said, eyes weary but kind. “I just want you to know that. Whatever happens with her, it was the right thing to do. You said you’d try, and you did. So thank you.”

I started to reply, but that’s when Lon finally made his way to the waiting room and gave us the only update we’d had: Yvonne was stable. He promptly left us alone again. I watched him walk away, and sadness crept inside my chest.

I hadn’t killed her. But God only knew if I’d turned her into a vegetable. All I could hope for now was that she could be healed. And even if she could, I might’ve unintentionally made her into a martyr—one who suddenly had everyone’s sympathy and attention. Exactly what she wanted. How beautifully ironic.

Adella got up and paced the waiting room while I buried my face in my hands, trying to regroup and focus. To push away all the dissonant thoughts clamoring for attention inside my overtaxed brain. Maybe I could call the Holidays again, check on Jupe. Last I’d heard, he was still asleep. No more vomiting. That was something, I supposed.

“Here.”

I flinched and looked up. Lon was sitting next to me, offering a paper cup of hot chocolate. I’m an admitted hot chocolate junkie and will imbibe it in any form. Lon’s homemade hot chocolate was probably one of my favorite things in the world. Even the watered-down powdery instant chocolate from the hospital vending machine was a welcome distraction.

And a peace offering.

His fingers brushed mine when he gave me the cup. I was so needy for his attention, the tiniest touch sent a wave of longing crashing through me. His eyes met mine for a moment, anxious and searching. I wanted to be alone with him. To talk about everything that happened and find out what was going on behind his impenetrable poker face. But even that small, arbitrary touch and momentary shared gaze was a kind of sustenance.

It was alarming how much better I felt when he was around. I wasn’t used to this level of emotional dependence. So I looked away in embarrassment, unwilling to submit to it for too long. When I glanced back at him moments later, he was focused on drinking his own hot tea out of a matching paper cup, blowing on the surface to cool it.

We said nothing. Several minutes passed. As I was starting to make headway on my drink, a tall doctor with dark reddish-brown hair and a bright blue halo strode toward us.

“She’s out of the woods,” the doctor announced with a calm smile.

I could practically feel Lon’s sigh of relief aligning with mine.

“This is her sister,” Lon said to the doctor as she strode back to over to join us. “Adella Giovanni. Mick Bright.”

The infamous Dr. Mick. Lon’s friend, and one of the best healers in La Sirena.

“I think we’ve met before,” he said, squinting at her.

“We did,” Adella confirmed. “You pumped Yvonne’s stomach when she overdosed on New Year’s Eve about ten years ago. She nearly died.”

The doctor scratched his ear and nodded. “Yeah, I actually remember that quite vividly. You’ll be happy to know that this is more hopeful news. She had a seizure. Thought maybe it was an aneurism, but I’ve studied all the scans and they’re clear. Looks like she did, however, suffer a concussion. She’s also severely dehydrated and has some bruised ribs, but nothing major. We’re going to keep her here to watch the concussion.”

“Did my mama tell you she can’t have any pain medication?”

“Yes, I’m very familiar with her medical history,” he said. “She’s resting. You can go talk to her if you’d like. Your mother’s with her now.”

He waved down a nurse to escort her. Adella thanked him and made her way back.

Mick turned to me with an outstretched hand. “You must be Cady.” He surprised me with a big, toothy smile and shook my hand with a slightly jarring amount of strength. “Wish we were meeting under better circumstances, but I’ll take what I can get. You’re even lovelier in person than in the photos I’ve seen.”