~Layla~
We sat in the doctor’s house. The wood was dark, with black blotches here and there, and nobody thought to add a lighter color. There were no lamps or electricity, but the many candles he had lit illuminated the house. The doctor’s small frame was running between drawers and tables. He opened latches and scrambled for glass beakers and vials.
The way he took out old rusty knives and tongs looked very Einstein-ish. I gulped; my hands were so sweaty that they slipped on the leather table. The more I watched his nervous jittering, the more difficult it got to sit still. I followed his every move, his hairy finers poking into the cabinets and his head following suit because his arms were too short to reach. His lips tugged up in a smile, and he whistled as he giddily gathered all his things in a basket.
“Here we are. Let me just see,” he said and put the basket down. The doctor took out a napkin from his pant pocket and wiped the saliva that dripped from his mouth as well as his runny nose.
This was by far the least sterile hospital I’d ever visited, and it wouldn’t surprise me if my health worsened after leaving here.
“All righty then!” the doctor said and chuckled. He pressed his foot down on a pedal on the floor, and the bed flew down so that I was at eye level with the doctor.
I gasped and held on to the edge. The doctor didn’t waste any time, and once I was down far enough so he could reach me, he leaned in and flashed a light in my eyes.
I gasped. My heart skipped a beat, and I jerked back when he touched me.
Nathaniel stepped out from the corner. My eyes locked with his, and his arms that were previously crossed over his chest relaxed at his sides as he watched me, his eyes conversing a silent warning. I looked back at the doctor.
“Layla, don’t let him do this” Clara said. The desperation in her voice was astonishing, but what caused me to shiver was the fear underlining her words.
“I’m sorry, but what are you checking exactly?” I asked the doctor without turning to Nathaniel. If I was going to go against him right now, I needed to do it fast and without seeing him, or I’d back down out of fear, an all-consuming fear constantly eating me up inside.
“Oh dear, I’m just looking for any abnormalities that could cause these symptoms you’re having,” he said and nodded his head. He put away the light and took out a vial. He removed the wooden cap and pushed it under my nose.
My hand flew up to cover my mouth as the stench made me hurl. The doctor quickly shoved a bucket into my hands as I threw up.
“Hmm, curious,” he said and tapped his chin with his index finger. He put away the vial and looked in his basket. He moved things around, and the sound of metal and glass clinging was causing my heart to beat out of control.
“If you don’t handle this, I will” Clara said.
“Maybe it’s this,” I said and pulled my shirt down to expose my chest.
The doctor’s eyes widened, and his jaw dropped. His fingers spread, and the syringe he held fell to the floor. Nathaniel’s eyes were turning obsidian, and his jaw clicked. His shoulder went up to his ear, and he took one big step toward us.
The doctor chuckled and glanced at the side to see how close his king stood.
“No, dear. No, that’s not the cause of your symptoms,” he said and shook his head. He turned on his feet and bumped into Nathaniel, who was standing rigid and fuming.
“My king, th-that’s the Nortail spell,” the doctor stammered.
“It is,” Nathaniel said calmly and lifted his head.
“Is that a problem?” Nathaniel asked and rolled back his shoulders.
Both the doctor and I knew that his next words could very well be his last.
“No, no, not at all,” he said and violently shook his head.
“What is wrong with her?” Nathaniel asked. His demeanor was cold and calculating. He awaited his answers, and if he didn’t get them, I feared what he might do to the doctor.
“Well, I have a hunch, but I will run just one more test,” the doctor said and gulped. He slowly spun on his feet and walked back to me. He held a stethoscope, put the earpieces in, and held it abasing my chest. His eyes were on mine the entire time, and I saw the fear that brimmed in his depths. He moved it further down, my brows furrowed, but his only sunk the further down he got.
“Oh dear,” he whispered.
“What is it?” Nathaniel asked.
The doctor was quick to remove the stethoscope, and his hands trembled.
“My king, she’s—”
My claws extended. Clara took control in a second, and a loud growl rumbled through the house as I reached and slit the doctor’s throat. His hand reached up, and he began choking on his own blood. His small body fell limp to the floor, and I fell back with my hands covering my mouth and my eyes nearly popping out of my head in pure disbelief at my actions.
What did you do…
“What you couldn’t”
I grabbed the edge of the bed and forgot for a second how to breathe. The doctor lay dead on the floor of his own house, his king staring at his lifeless body and me. I knew that these would be the last breaths I drew. Not only had I defied him, but I had killed one of his pack members—an important one at that.
Nathaniel drew a deep breath. Exhaling, he allowed his shoulders to fall and walked over to me with heavy steps and not a single glimmer of life in his eyes.
“I do hope you know what you’ve done because whatever happens next is now on you.”
It took a long moment for me to gain control of my body and turn my head.
“I’m so—”
“Shh,” he said and grabbed my waist as he pulled me up on my feet. “I’m going to give you exactly what you want. You have a hard time making the tough decisions because you’re always thinking about the people who love you.” He nuzzled his face into the crock of my neck and inhaled my scent. “So I’m going to take them all away.”
My eyes widened, and I pushed back to face him, but my words wouldn’t form. The only thing I could do was stand there with my lips parted as the sharp pain of the needle puncturing my skin and ejecting its poison caused my body to shut down.
“You’re about to enter into a world of pain. I’ll see you there.”
