Page 75 of Dissection of Immortal Hearts (Hospital for Immortal Creatures #3)

Kathrine

Lost in thought, Kathrine didn’t notice the noise coming from the corridor. Not until Zacharia opened the door and limped towards her. As his eyes swept over her face, the coldness in his crystal-clear irises shattered. “What happened?”

Before she answered, his balance betrayed him, forcing him to sit on the bed.

“I just found out that the Earth is round,” she said, a bitter acid rising in her throat. “More like I realised it two days ago. Have they examined you?”

“I’ll be fine.”

“I’m sure you’d say that even if a train ran over you.”

He spread his long legs, anchoring his ankle boots on the floor to steady himself. Kathrine had heard many things about him. ‘A guard dog’. ‘A strange type’. ‘A cold-blooded killer’. What was really hiding behind those ice-cold irises?

He said, “I came to thank you for your help today, but I’m in too much pain to get up. Guess I’ll stay for a while. And since I have all the time in the world, you can tell me how you learned about the Earth being round two days ago.”

Kathrine couldn’t determine whether Zacharia was joking. “Are you sure you want to know?”

“I suppose.” He shrugged. “I’ve got no pressing matters.”

And she did feel like talking.

So, she settled at the far end of the bed and began her story, going back two days ago. Two weeks ago. Twenty years ago. Two hundred years ago.

***

Alex

By noon the next day, Alex sat by the pool, her feet submerged, her mind unable to settle.

She wasn’t a traitor, but she’d had enough of Viktor’s odd behaviour. Ever since they’d escaped the Hospital, her stepfather had been like a stranger wearing Viktor’s skin. He hardly spoke, spent hours meditating, and showed no interest in what was happening in the cabin – or in general.

And, while she’d once attributed these oddities to him still circling Vaka Hara, what he did during yesterday’s battle had no rational explanation. He’d disappeared for a while, then he’d returned pale as a ghost. Something was off with Viktor, and Alex was determined to look after him.

This was what loved ones did when you couldn’t cope on your own. They silenced your protests, tied your hands if they had to, and refused to leave you alone until you could stand once more.

Guilt gnawed at her as she remembered how she’d let Viktor disappear during the battle without following him.

But then again, Amelia had also escaped a little earlier, and being left alone, Alex had seized the opportunity to do something she’d longed to do…

Thanks to that, she now had another problem haunting her mind.

How she missed her twin! She hadn’t heard from him in weeks, and he would have known how to help Viktor.

Her focus shifted as Callan stepped out through the central door.

Alex jumped up and ran barefoot without putting on her trainers. The surrounding agents turned their heads as if she were a rabbit darting past them.

“Alexandra,” Callan greeted her with his earth-shattering smile, and her heart didn’t just flutter – it flipped. Callan alone called her by her full name, as though he believed he was the only one authorised to do so because she belonged to him.

And he belonged to her. Even if he still wasn’t aware of it.

“Can we talk?” she asked. “In private.”

Maybe he would offer some advice about Viktor.

His smile faltered. “Darling, let’s put that off for a bit. I need to talk to Amelia about what happened yesterday. Have you seen her?”

He looked around the yard. This was why he’d left the winery – to look for Amelia. Not for Alex.

Her jaw tightened with jealousy, but she didn’t show it. A lady never reveals her negative emotions. “She’s probably in the restaurant with Jasmina. By the way, she was asking for you.” Alex crossed her arms and waited for his reaction.

Callan gave her that special smile again – one that, she was starting to realise, more often left her feeling dismissed than anything else. “I’m sure it’s important. Should I find you in your room later?”

“Of course,” she said, but he was already making his way towards his precious Oracle.

She stayed, watching him walk away. He wouldn’t seek her out. He hadn’t even asked where her room was in the winery.

On the other hand, she had a pretty good idea of what he’d been doing for the past few hours.

***

Amelia

Amelia lingered on the rear veranda, a secluded spot with direct access from the winery’s restaurant.

The summer breeze tousled her hair, and the sun peeked over the horizon.

Mikhail, Presiyan, Viktor, and Jasmina’s voices drifted through the open door…

Occasionally, unfamiliar voices joined in – the agents of the Tribunal.

The more they spoke, the clearer Amelia saw the truth.

For now, they had run out of options. They didn’t have enough knowledge of the enemy, didn’t understand the Sacreds, and despite the victory over the harpies, her intuition told her they were merely a distraction.

The real danger wouldn’t fall from the sky like a flock of birds with severed wings.

Death. Death. Death.

“Hello.”

Amelia glanced over her shoulder at the door. The air around Callan still crackled with mystery, but somehow, his presence warmed the morning.

“Where have you been?” she asked.

He circled her and settled in the free chair beside her. Instead of replying, he raised an eyebrow. “Did you miss me?”

She could have answered in the same provocative manner, was tempted to, but the ghost of Mikhail’s teeth still burned on her lips. A strange mixture of tension and weariness coiled beneath her skin. “We’re allies. It’s only right that I ask where you’ve been.”

“I’ve been away from the cabin every day for hours, but not once did you ask where I was.”

“Because I knew you were in the forest.”

“So, Korovin didn’t tell you?”

Amelia stiffened, and the air between them became heavy. “Tell me what?”

“Mor and I returned to the cabin to see if anyone had cleaned up after the battle.”

Her concerns rolled off her shoulders like invisible pebbles. Betrayal. Secrets. ‘Catching up on lost time.’ None of that was true. No cryptic alliances being formed behind her back.

She had told herself she didn’t trust Callan.

Still, the idea of him hiding something had cut deeper than it should have.

At some point, she must have lowered her guard.

And Mikhail had seen that sliver of uncertainty, just wide enough to let doubt slip in.

He hadn’t lied, but he had wanted her to question Callan. And she had.

“And what did you find?” she asked.

Callan shielded himself from the rays of sunlight reaching the veranda. “Not a trace of the harpies. Someone cleaned up the bodies after us. The cabin was also turned upside down.”

It wasn’t unexpected. They had left the place as swiftly as possible, expecting a second attack. Her heart skipped a beat – she’d nearly forgotten Gea’s letter under the mattress.

She planted her feet on the edge of the chair and wrapped her arms around her knees. “There’s something I wanted to talk to you about.” Her voice was steady, although inside, the turmoil was unsettling.

“What is it?”

She glanced into the restaurant, where in the distance, she could make out Mikhail’s profile. He’d kept her in the dark about Callan, only to kiss her afterwards. Why? To strengthen his influence over her?

She said, “Shall we go to my room?”

***

Amelia

“The truth is, the Queen never trusted me enough to tell me about the Sacreds. Everything I know about them comes from a letter left for me by Gea, the previous Oracle. She wrote it while imprisoned in Antambazi. Over sixty years ago.”

Amelia was starting to recognise Callan’s tells. The faint darkening of his gaze, the tightening of his jaw, the subtle interest in the way his head tilted towards her.

“But she didn’t just write about the Sacreds,” Amelia continued. “She sensed a dark energy and warned me to be cautious of it.”

A slight crease appeared between his eyebrows. “Do you have any idea what she’s talking about?”

Amelia crossed her arms. How far should she go with what she’d started? “Until recently, I considered it was you.”

He smiled in a boyish manner. “But not any longer?”

“Now… I’m not sure what to believe.”

Amelia studied the features that had once taken her breath away in the portrait. She could understand why the Queen had been so obsessed with this man.

The silence stretched. A flicker of unease ran down her spine. She stepped back, cleared her throat, then lifted the mattress. Before she could change her mind, she pulled out the papers, handed them to him, and sat on the bed while he read.

When he reached the part they were discussing, Callan shook his head. “There’s nothing specific.”

Amelia looked at him with suspicion, unsure why. Was she expecting him to beat his chest and shout, ‘It’s me!’ and thus resolve one of her riddles?

He frowned. “These must be the activated Sacreds. The exact words of Galia explaining why we should never allow their activation: because they’ll release that dark energy they’ve been building up with their appearance.

The previous Oracle warned you to prevent the gathering of the objects, but she didn’t realise that the dark energy she spoke of is the Sacreds. ”

Amelia jumped off the bed. “Wait a minute! You said you’d never heard of activating the Sacreds.”

“Hmmm. Don’t you remember, Amelia?” His voice caressed her like velvet.

“Huh?”

He tilted his head. “You give, I give. That’s what we agreed during our first conversation.”

She snatched the letter from his hands. “So all this time, you’ve been hiding information because you knew I was hiding something from you?”

“Exactly.”

“Fine,” Amelia said. “You’re right. I hid the necrosis and the Oracle’s letter from you. No more secrets. Do you have any?”

Callan raised an eyebrow. “A dozen, at least.”

Damn. If her relationship with Mikhail was hot and cold, the one with Callan was like a game of chess.

“Any secrets that might help us understand more about the Sacreds?” she rephrased.

The smile faded from his lips. “Since your predecessor wrote about the dark energy, there is a much higher chance that the Queen will activate the Sacreds than I thought. Until now, I believed her goal was just to gather them.”

“But how will she activate them? Let’s assume she somehow steals them from us.” Amelia lifted the letter. “It says they emit a powerful energy. They should kill her.”

“Yes, but…” Callan rubbed his chin. “After reading this letter, I’m beginning to wonder if her humanid nature makes her more resistant.”

“Or she’s crazy enough to take the risk?”

“The latter is certain, but if she truly plans to activate them, you’d better start uncovering their names…”

Her body stiffened. “Are you suggesting that I activate them?”

“No, for heaven’s sake!” He grinned. “You’re expected to surpass Ana in mastering the Sacreds. You can’t control what you haven’t fully dissected.”

“And their secret lies in their names…” Amelia began pacing the room.

Callan’s hand on her shoulder made her stop. “You don’t need to do it right away. In fact, you’d be better off getting some rest. You haven’t slept all night, have you?”

She shook her head. Her muscles ached from exhaustion, but she doubted she’d be able to relax.

“We’ll talk after you’ve had some sleep.” He started to leave. The absence of his touch on her shoulder triggered a strange feeling of emptiness.

Callan was already by the door when Amelia said, “I have a question. Why did you trust me with your pocket watch?”

The surprise on his face seemed genuine. “Why not?”

“You suspected I was hiding something from you, but you never asked for it back.”

He smiled. “Because I hope you’ll give me your heart.”

This, she hadn’t expected. She forced a laugh to hide her confusion. “A watch for a heart? Seems like a pretty unfair trade.”

“Devilishly unfair. After five thousand years, you’ll soon understand why.”