Her First Mistake

Chapter Sixty-Four: And Do What, Exactly?

   I felt like I was going to vomit, but Tate got what he wanted. Every bit of that food tasted like ash. Not only did the taste made me gag, but my stomach protested fiercely. It'd gone so long without food that it wasn't interested. 

   My knees trembled as I stood upright. Tate put the box back into the fridge. Slipping the key card into his pocket, he opened the door. I gritted my teeth and locked my legs. My muscles were stronger than yesterday, but my joints still felt like jelly.

   By the time I was past the bed, one of my knees buckled. I tipped sideways, planting a hand on the bed. Tate's expression didn't change, even as my cheeks burned slightly with embarrassment. I can't even walk. Leaving the door to shut silently, he reached forward, offering a hand. I debated before giving myself a mental slap. Get over your pride, Rox, he's just helping.

   I grabbed his hand. Tate pulled until I was upright. His other hand went behind my back -- not quite supporting, but hovering just in case I needed the help. I steadied myself before taking a step. He opened the door when I got there, keeping it open with his foot until we were through.

   The door beside ours opened before we arrived. Erlan heard us coming, because he wasn't surprised to see us there. His eyes slid over my hand gripping Tate's and his arm. Without commenting, the elf stepped aside.

   In the room, Zain sprawled out on the armchair. Jennifer and Karen sat on the bed. Caze sat on the edge of the couch. Gene was no where to be seen. Zain grinned as we came inside. "Look who's on her feet."

   Tate didn't respond. He helped me to sit down beside Caze. The shifter scooched over for me. Erlan looked at Zain, puzzled. "I thought you heard them open their door."

   Zain shrugged. Caze stared. "You have elf blood, so why bother pretending you didn't hear them?"

   "It's more fun this way."

   Jennifer crouched in front of me suddenly. I blanched. She studied my face. "I think you could use one of those walnuts." She slipped her hand into her pocket and produced a small walnut. If I didn't know the context, I'd be wondering why she was walking around with nuts in her pocket.

   Caze glanced at me. "What all is damaged?"

   "Oh, I don't even know," I muttered. "My nose was punched a while ago, I got shocked with electricity which marked my arms up, hit with a mall bench, scratched by that hybrid, and punched in the ribs multiple times."

   "And that's mild compared to what we were dealing with earlier," muttered Tate.

   Jennifer softly tossed the walnut to me. My hand came up too late. The walnut hit my thigh. Golden magic burst from it. Warmth spread rapidly throughout my body. A breath whooshed out of my lungs as I felt my ribs seal. One had definitely cracked. My nose popped as it shrunk down to its normal size.

   "That'll fix your wounds, but not your hunger or dehydration," said Jennifer. She stood back up. 

   "Thanks," I said quietly.

   "Can you explain what happened to you?" asked Erlan. 

   I looked around the room. Everyone was looking at me. Even Karen, who hadn't said a word yet. She watched me, almost forlorn. I grimaced. "There's not much to explain. She had me trapped."

   "And your arm?" asked Caze softly. 

   Right. None of them had seen the mark yet. It had been hidden under my sleeve. I refused to look at it, my jaw tightening. "It's not new. I've had the mark for roughly five months."