Tainted Happiness {Formerly Returned} (Book 4) (Completed)

Chapter 7

Laura POV

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My best friend was gone. Well, not completely, but for lack of a better term, she was gone. No one knew what happened to her and no one knew why. Our ride to the Royal Court was a very silent and somber one filled with lots of emotion and curiosity. What had happened to Kait? Why? Would we ever get her back? These were the questions that we hoped to have answered there.

"Profe, er Melanie, whose truck is this?" I asked, thinking it was Cory's.

"Rosa's. I'm the only person she trusts to drive it besides herself. She feels like it has too much power for anyone else." She answered.

"How long has she had this truck? The last car I remember her having was that red car she had in high school." I replied.

"About three years now, I think. She got this truck custom made when she began to get rich. It's a one of a kind, there's no other truck like this one out there."

"What happened to her car?" I asked.

"I think she still has it, but never drives it because something in it is broken. I'm not exactly sure what happened to it, but she would never give that car up. It was too special to her." Melanie explained as we heard a phone ring through the blue-tooth in the truck.

"Who's ringing?" Rose asked from the back seat, waking up from a nap.

"It's Dimitri and Jacob calling from wherever they are." Melanie replied, answering the phone through the truck.

"Hey, we just got to an Alchemist headquarters." Dimitri said when he heard us answer the phone.

"Did you call first to set up a meeting with someone?" Rose asked.

"Yes. We're meeting Sydney Sage here in about ten minutes."

"Good, she should be able to help you more than anyone else there." Rose replied.

"Well, thanks for letting us know, and good luck! We're about two hours away from Court right now. Call us when you get out of the meeting." Melanie said.

"You're welcome. We'll be sure to call right away with any information we receive. Good luck to you guys, too." Dimitri said, hanging up the phone.

"Let's hope Sydney can find something." Melanie said, resting her hand on my shoulder.

When we arrived at the Royal Court, we were immediately rushed over to the queen's palace and placed in a meeting with the Council and Queen Dragomir herself. News always traveled fast around the Moroi, so it was no surprise that everyone knew about Kait's strange condition. I was no expert, but from the way we were treated, it seemed like the Strigoi Viu were considered gods and goddesses around the Royal Court. So naturally, Kait being the first Viu, was treated almost better than if this had happened to the queen herself. Her still living, but almost comatose body was placed onto the table where the Council met for everyone to observe. I could only imagined how she would have felt if she was actually here with us. She was never someone who enjoyed lots of attention and most of the time kept to herself. She wouldn't have liked this at all, being placed onto to a table for everyone to see and discuss. I had a strong urge to let them know, but I knew that if we didn't do this, we might never see her again.

"Ladies and gentlemen, her royal highness Queen Vasilisa Dragomir." Someone announced as the queen entered.

Everyone rose from their seat and bowed as she passed them. I always thought that tradition was a little nuts, I did it anyway.

"So, let's kick this meeting into gear here. Besides the obvious corpse sitting on the table, what brings you guys here today?" Vasilisa said as she sat down.

"Well, it's actually hard to explain. It's almost like Kait is in a coma. Her fiancé was killed, and she collapsed into a heap on the floor. She's breathing and her heart beats normally, but she's completely unresponsive to anything." Melanie explained.

"I have never heard of anything like this. I cannot speak for the council, though." The queen answered.

"I think we need to speak with Ekaterina." The Ivashkov representative called out.

"I know Kait is a Spirit user. Is she bonded to anybody?" The Zeklos representative asked.

"She's bonded to me, but our bond goes two ways." Melanie said in reply to his question.

"And you are a spirit user as well, is this correct?" The Conta representative added.

"Yes, I am." Melanie responded.

"Did you try to heal her?" The queen asked.

"Yes, I have. I am also unable to enter her mind. Well, I can but there's nothing there. It's like she isn't there at all, almost like the thing that makes Kait to be Kait is completely gone, but nothing has replaced it."

"I think I understand the situation at hand now. However, I can be of no help to you because I do not know what needs to be done in order to help her. What I can tell you is that you have one month before her body dies. Someone needs to keep a close eye on it at all times. If you want, we can keep her in the hospital here at Court or we can have her transferred to another hospital." Vasilisa said.

"Could you have her transferred to Princeton Plainsboro Hospital in Princeton, Ohio?" Melanie suggested.

"Why there?" I asked, confused.

"She works there on a team of doctors. The head doctor is the best Viu expert that I know of among Humans." Melanie explained to me.

"Well, you know her best, I guess." I stammered.

"I'll send for a helicopter to take her directly there. I suggest that you three begin your drive over there now. She will be in good hands, Melanie. I won't let the first Viu pass on." The queen stated.

We then exited the room and began our journey back to Ohio in hopes that Dimitri and Jacob had found something.