Mission Cure

CHAPTER NINETEEN - M:FAC/1 - Jace

JACE

He shouldn't have said anything. He should have just let things be the way they were, instead of admitting his feelings for Dreary and making her all uncomfortable. Now, she'd never look at him the same way. She might even start avoiding him. But how was that even possible? Didn't she feel what he felt? Wasn't it an obvious progression? They couldn't spend more than a few hours apart, they were content together, they were complete together - weren't they?

Maybe he'd been reading the situation wrong.

Staring at her now, he could see the blush under her freckles. She was talking to Adrian and Charlie and Clare, but she was clearly still affected by their conversation. And every few seconds, she would sneak a glance at Jace.

"She's barely bleeding right now," Clare was saying about Roslava. "But it could get worse. I need Pitocin."

"I will get it," Adrian said, already heading for the door.

Clare shook her head. "It's on Ship Three. Somewhere in Dr. Moore's office."

Adrian didn't even pause. "Fine."

"Didn't you get Spencer's text?" she asked him as she reached for his arm to stop him from leaving. "There are more of them. They're on every ship now. And a lot of them... are residents."

"I have dart gun." Adrian showed her his gun.

Clare shook her head. "That's not enough."

"I have one, too." Jace went to stand by Adrian. "I'll go with."

Clare paused. "Plus, you're injured," she finally told Adrian who scowled at her like she'd just exposed his secret to the world.

"It is little scratch," he growled.

"It's probably a fracture," she argued. "If you walk on it, you might make it worse. And you certainly won't be able to run."

Dreary took a seat on the sofa and pulled Anni into her lap. The other kids were hopping around on sugar-highs, oblivious to their dilemma.

Jace watched her and wondered if someday it would be their little girl sitting in Dreary's lap. Then he shook his head, trying to focus on the situation.

"I don't need to run - I have dart gun," Adrian reiterated.

Clare looked frustrated. She sighed and ran her fingers through her blonde hair, pulling it all to the front of one shoulder. "You need to stay with your wife, anyway. I'll go." She went to grab Adrian's gun, but he held it out of reach.

"Nyet," he told her, taking a step and wincing in pain.

Dreary set Anni on the floor and told her to go play. "Adrian can barely walk, and Clare needs to stay with Roslava, just in case. I'll go."

"You have to stay with the kids," Jace told her firmly.

"The kids are fine," Charlie told them all. "Beth will be back any second with the pizza."

The conversation stopped.

"Why is Charlie tied to the chair?" Clare whispered.

"He is bit," Adrian answered dryly. "But Jace says he is fine."

"We're also gonna need another cake," Charlie added. "Everyone will want a piece, and the one Beth got isn't big enough."

Clare's eyes widened. "Yeah, he sounds fine."

Dreary reached out and grabbed Adrian's dart gun. He was trying to balance on one foot and didn't even try to stop her. "I'm going," she stated firmly, the threat of tears in her eyes. "I have to leave. I have to go. I have to-"