Gabal

Chapter 12

Aoifa let out a long, drawn out sigh of relief as she stepped under the flow of steaming liquid. Water may not be her element but it sure did smooth her soul. The stress from the past few days began to melt and flow down the drain. Never before had Aoifa been so personally invested in the outcome of a job. She wasn't even sure if she should call this a job. This would be her home, her new life, her people. All of these individuals were counting on her to make a difference and pull through.

The lack of progress over the past two days was disheartening. Several people were working on a list of potential curse triggers, several more went out every day and checked any suggestions on the lists. The first day they were practical, the new shipment of nonperishable produce, a beautiful collection of jewelry for men and women that many of the pack had tried on, the supply of toothbrushes the pack dentist handed out every month. The second day, after all the practical options had been exhausted, the list had almost any import they could think of, including little girls shoes, jockstraps, and a singular tin of chewing tobacco. Needless to say, today's list was even more disparaging.

Pushing it from her mind she focused on the feel of her nails on her scalp and the beat of hot water on the sore muscles of her shoulders. Another deep sigh out and Aoifa leaned against the wall, finished but unwilling to leave the solace of softly falling heaven.

Things between Gabal and Aoifa had remained strained. There was an unspoken distance that Gabal seemed set on maintaining. Something she could not overcome. It pained her to have him constantly pull away or avoid her at night. She understood the stress and burden he faced, more than he could know. And she wanted to help him whatever way she could, but drawing away from her would do the opposite of keeping him focused. Goodness knows she couldn't concentrate on anything while he was away. But Aoifa also knew that a lot of her frustration stemmed from her inability to simply fix the problem.

There were few illnesses she couldn't fix with the wave of a hand and a thought. Illnesses of the mind were often more complex, but the body was her domain. For her to visit them, suspended in pain, to see their loved ones mourning their loss as they spend day after day watching them slowly die, and then to leave after doing nothing... She would give anything, any amount of money, any one of a kind item, any form of currency or exchange someone desired to save these people here and now.

She stopped the shower and got out slowly, allowing herself a moment of wallowing before she had to go out and put on her game face for her match and her pack. Bracing herself, she dried and wrapped the towel around herself, shaking her jeans straight to put with her other dirty clothes. A pingin clinked against the tiles, bouncing twice before the coin rolled in a neat circle on its side, coming to a stop against her big toe.

She froze, a sudden thought coming to mind. Scrambling, she made a mad dash for Gabal's office here in his home. It was on the ground floor, the door right at the bottom of the stairs. She tore out of the master bedroom and took the stairs in two big leaps. At the bottom she ripped open the door and ran inside, chest heaving.

"Has anyone checked the money," she called to Gabal, who sat at his desk looking over her dripping, towel clad body in shock. "Gabal," she demanded. "Has anyone checked your currency?" Snapping his attention to the matter at hand had never been so difficult. They had only known each other for a few short days but his need to claim was overwhelming. Still, for the betterment of his pack, he drew his need within and collected his wits.

He grabbed the lists and gave them a quick once over. No one had written down or checked the money. An oversight that would be handled. "Coins? Bills?" Gabal was quick to begin questions, jotting things down and making a mental list of applicable personnel to handle the task. If his Match was this excited about the new lead then he was confident they had found their trigger.