Page 6

This person who was supposed to be me—he must have been like that too. When Damen had described Mu, long before I knew I was him, I’d thought he sounded fantastic.

How could that same person be me?

This must be why everyone wanted to keep me a secret. The realization hurt, but it was also a reality check.

I wasn’t stupid. If I wanted things to change, I would have to start with myself. I was going to have to prove everyone wrong.

But it was going to be so, so hard.

The short meadowgrass tickled my bare feet, and gray clouded the sky, making it difficult to tell the time. The air was heavy and stale; only my immediate surroundings held any color. Outside of that, a blank canvas stretched in every direction.

I was lonely, so lonely. The ache was a painful pressure against my chest.

“Mu.” A voice drifted to me. It was a feminine, husky sound, and so familiar. Yet recognition remained just out of grasp. “You’re finally waking up.”

Some part of me recognized she was talking to me in a language much different than English, yet I understood it without issue.

“We had an agreement,” she said, her tone a strange mixture of alarm and annoyance. “Do not forget. Otherwise, you’ll run out of time. You must remember.”

A strangeness settled over my body. I no longer felt like myself.

I responded, even though the words weren’t my own. “This is not for you to worry over. You need to trust me.”

The world moved, and color began to break through, swirling through the air. There was black, red, and so much green, but nothing further than that.

The voice that was mine continued, “Is it still love?”

After my question, the colors stilled, and the scene snapped into focus.

A woman stood in front of me. She looked tall, but for once, I didn’t feel short in comparison.

She was thin, with black hair that reached the ground.

It fell around her like a silk blanket. She wore an elegant gown that showed no skin, but her neck and head, and the redness of it matched her painted lips.

Her mouth pointed down as she looked at me, and her golden eyes flashed with annoyance.

“I don’t know. Human emotions are so strange,” she said, glancing to the side. “But I thought out of everyone, you would understand, considering. ”

My attention turned to our surroundings.

We were in a forest, and the trees arched over us. The space was secluded, and no one could find us unless I wanted it to be so. And that wouldn’t happen. Not even the others could know.

This meeting had to remain secret. They weren’t ready to know—I was hardly prepared. My actions were going to change the dynamics of our relationship.

But why?

“Where am I?” This time, when I spoke, it was under my direction. But the sound still wasn’t my own—the voice was light, and the tenor was too deep.

The woman glanced back at me, and amusement flickered in her eyes. “Where are you now?” she asked, tilting her head. “Are you here, or are you sleeping?”

What a strange question. I was here, wasn’t I?

But I also didn’t know where here was. “I don’t know.”

I didn’t know, although the scenery was inherently comforting. This place was old, and it was mine. I knew this, just as I knew her. At the thought, my heart began to race because slowly, trickling into my awareness, was reality.

I’d heard this woman before. This was the voice that’d once haunted my dreams. “You?”

I watched her as I pressed my hands over my pounding heart. Shadowed recollections flashed through my mind. And suddenly, this woman’s presence turned into a threat. Though, I was unable to pinpoint precisely why.

“You called me your imaginary friend.” Her smile was almost sad. “And here I thought our connection was so much more than that.”

Why was she here? “Why—”

Once again, the air moved. Without warning, the scene faded around me, leaving me with a sense of emptiness and longing.

“Don’t wait so long in between visits, Mu.” Her voice circled the air. “We’ve much to catch up on. ”

Her words still echoed in my ears as I sat up. My hands shook, and I clutched the sheets, bringing them to my chin.

It was her , the voice that Dr. Reed had asked me about. There was no way this was a coincidence. Even so, I couldn’t tell her it was back. Who knew what kind of things they’d do to me? And Julian, he was already so worried. If he really knew…

Well, there was no way they’d be all right with that. This was something I would need to figure out on my own.

A loud thump drew my attention to the door, and I pulled the sheets tighter around me, barely able to see through the darkness of my tiny room. “W-w-who’s there?”

The door opened, and light streamed in as a younger nurse entered the room.

“She’s awake,” she said, glancing behind her. She tucked her curly brown hair behind her ear as she moved forward. “Let’s get this over with so we can go on break. She’s already had her shower and reading time.”

“Fine,” came a deep male voice in response.

My heart was beating furiously now. Trepidation filled me. They’d taken away my books hours ago, saying it was ‘bedtime,’ leaving me alone in the darkness. With every breath, the room became increasingly out of focus.

Then someone turned on the lights. Spots filled my vision. When I blinked again, I saw two more nurses entering the room. There were three in total: two female nurses and a male, and between them, they were pushing a cart.

My thoughts still felt sluggish, and my body ached from the events with Daniel Cole, but I still had enough clarity to press myself against the corner of the bed opposite them. The bronze of the barred headboard felt cold under my bare arms.

But none of them addressed me even after they’d entered the room and locked the door behind them. Instead, they were focused on the cart between them.

“W-w-what are you d-d-doing?” I didn’t really expect them to answer—they never did. But I couldn’t help but ask anyway.

To my surprise, the redhead with a pixie cut peeked at me. She was the only nurse I’d seen in days who seemed to regard me with anything close to compassion. “We need to change your bandages.”

I raised my hand and touched my throat.

Really? That might not be so bad. But wasn’t it the middle of the night? I wished I had a window.

It was hard to keep track. “W-w-what time is i-i-it?”

“Geeze, don’t talk to her,” the brunette snapped. “Didn’t you read the memo? Nothing good will come from a conversation with the fae. They’d be the first to trick you and have you bartering away your future if you’re not careful.”

The redhead’s gaze moved back to me, and she stepped back.

I blinked, stunned by the strange remark. I’d known they thought I was bad—but there’d been a memo sent out?

I didn’t want to hurt anyone.

“I—I wouldn’t!” I tried to tell them, but no one responded.

The large male nurse closed in on me and grabbed my ankle, jerking me down the bed. My broken yelp echoed throughout the room, and before I could regain my bearings, my wrists had already been restrained.

“S-stop!” Adrenaline was burning through me. I kicked out as confusion and fear clouded my thoughts. “I’ll tell Julian! I—” Cloth was roughly shoved into my mouth, cutting off my plea. Darkness swam in the corner of my vision that had nothing to do with the fluorescent lights shining down on me.

“Knock it off,” the brunette said, frowning at me. “I’ve been here long enough to not let threats frighten me. There’s a reason you’ve been committed.”

She glanced at the others and warned, “Be careful not to let her enchant you. I’ve read that they can steal your soul.”

“Where did you read that?” the redhead responded in a soft voice. “She seems pretty harmless.”

“That’s part of their magic,” the first nurse responded. “Just look at Bryce Dubois, for example. He’s as hot as sin, and you might even think he’s nice. But those taken by him feel much differently.”

“It doesn’t matter to me,” the male said. “But if you’re so scared of the fae, why accept this assignment?”

“Well, some of us have bills,” she responded. “The hazard pay makes it worth it. Her people are loaded. Now shut up and move over; I need to do my job.”

Hurried hands loosened my gown, and my blood turned to ice as the bindings around my neck were removed.

I knew it’d be less painful to let them do what they wanted, but my courage failed with the remains of my calm. When a liquid cold dripped across my neck, pooling into the hollow of my throat, I couldn’t hold back my panic.

I lifted my knees, struggling, and crashed one into the glass bottle that the ringleader was holding. She cursed as she moved her hand from my chest to press against my arm instead.

“Here,” the brunette nurse said as she tossed a wet rag on my face, and I struggled to hear her over the resulting darkness. “Clean her up while I deal with the dressings. Kohler wants to see her in the morning.”

Someone responded—the other female—and before I could try to interpret what was said, water poured over my face, and the damp weight threatened to pull me under .

“Be careful!” This time, the not-so-mean nurse was louder now.

“I just tripped,” said the male, and his deep tones radiated through me. “Get a grip, these bowls suck.”

My lungs were screaming in panic before the rag was finally removed and rubbed harshly over my face and wounds, and even though I could hardly move, I tried to escape.

“Stop squirming!” the curly-haired brunette ordered, and her nails dug into my skin. She pushed against my shoulder, pinning me further into the bed, and the back of my shoulder jolted as I screamed through the gag.

“Maybe she’s in pain?” the redhead offered, but she was hesitant as she looked between the others. “Isn’t it time for her medication?”

“I suppose.” The brown-haired nurse huffed. She looked across the room. “I’ve premeasured the dosage already—you can give it to her.”

The other female picked up a syringe from the tray and looked at it. “That doesn’t look right—and she’s not prescribed the other.”

“Doctors don’t know shit,” the brunette answered. “Of course, it will be different—she’s not human. I’m a head nurse, and I’ve experience in these matters. Just give it to her.”

The red-headed nurse frowned. “I don’t want—”

The man stepped between them and took medicine from the redhead. “You’re cutting into my break,” he told her, then turned to me. I winced as he dispersed the medication through the IV.

A coolness began to spread through me, and my fingers tingled. My eyes filled with tears as the last semblance of control was stripped from me, and my tense muscles began to relax as my thoughts began to hum with numbness.

I was so tired .

I needed to breathe, but it was so hard.

Voices drifted around me, but nothing made sense. My ears buzzed as my thoughts drifted.

This wasn’t so bad.

It felt like my heart might burst, and as another wave washed over me, I gave in to the darkness.