The Plague Doctor (The Paranormal University Files: Skylar Book 4) Read online

  He was cool, but I was honestly surprised he and Pilar got along so well. They were such opposites and Holden was, well…tacky.

  But he was fun. He cranked the music up along the way and didn’t lose his cool when Holly asked if he could stop at the local blood dispensary for her to get a pint of her preferred flavor. Vegan blood apparently tasted sweeter.

  “Sure, girl. No problem.”

  He swung around at the next intersection and took us back a couple blocks to the nearest dealer, a place called Bathory’s. A pair of vampires stood outside, smoking and chatting. The place had dark windows and a gothic vibe.

  Three girls exited with translucent cups filled with bright red liquid and black tapioca balls. “Is that seriously bloody bubble tea?”

  “Ew,” Pilar said.

  “Hey. It’s just food,” Holden replied.

  She quieted and her distasteful expression melted.

  What the fuck magic spell had Holden cast on her? Later, I’d have to find out if he really was a bear wizard casting secret Pilar-Be-Good charms.

  Maybe they were boning and he had a magic dick.

  Holly didn’t take long, but something had dampened her mood by the time she hopped back into the van with her drink.

  “What’s wrong? They all out of vegan and you’re stuck with cigarette smoker?” I teased.

  “No. I…” She gave a long, angry suck on her straw then looked back up at me. “Victor was there with his girlfriend.”

  Pilar, Liadan, and I all said “ohhhh” at the same time.

  “Damn, that sucks,” Holden said as he pulled into traffic again. “If it makes you feel better, she’s just after his cash.”

  “Huh?” My head swiveled around to face the driver’s seat. “How do you know that?”

  “Who doesn’t know that, Sparkle-toes?”

  “But Victor is so much more than his money!” Holly blurted. “He’s…he’s nice. And funny. He’s good to his friends.”

  “Yeah, but you dumped him, sweetheart, and now he’s got something to prove. Guys are dicks.”

  Holly frowned. “You’re a guy.”

  Holden took a long drink from his enormous Monster can. “Yeah, but I won’t date a gold digger to stick it to my ex. I’d just ask her to take me back and man-up if she didn’t.”

  “I’m sure he’s not doing it to hurt Holly,” Pilar said as she flicked Holden in the shoulder. He didn’t even flinch but he did cast a chagrined smile Holly’s direction.

  “Look, only advice I can give is either forget him or talk to him,” Holden said. “You can’t score a touchdown if you don’t intercept the ball, ya know?”

  We laughed at his awful analogy and spent the remaining ten minutes of the drive chatting about the plan for the hospital. Pilar’s doctor had a surgical residency to complete, and Lia’s nurse worked on the maternity floor. Their plan was to divide and conquer, then meet in the middle during the pair’s break since Lia and Pilar were guiding them into a relationship.

  “You sure about pulling me into the Twilight?” Holden asked. “I don’t mind waiting in the lobby if you’re cool with it, Tinsel.”

  Holden had nicknames for all of us. I kind of liked it.

  “I can handle it. How can I improve if we do not practice?” Pilar asked.

  “All right then.”

  “While we see to our wards, perhaps you should harvest some fairy dust, Skylar.” Pilar smiled at me, her expression filled with the maternal warmth I’d expect from Lia. Not her. “It will make you feel better.”

  “Maybe…”

  “If you do not mind my suggestion, there is a premature newborn in the NICU ward who has been touch-and-go since his birth two weeks ago. The mother rarely leaves his side. Liadan and I put a little magic into him and his caregivers last week, and earned back far more than we took.”

  I frowned. “I’m on it.”

  “Get it, girl. Told you she’d be down for it.” Holden fist-bumped Pilar, like they’d made a bet or something.

  Maybe.

  Holden pulled into the assigned parking lot for staff—he had a pass—and we all filed out into the Chicago evening to head inside.

  Sycamore Hills had to be one of the nicest hospitals I’d ever visited. Marble floors stretched across a lobby that more closely resembled a museum exhibit than a place of healing. Glass display cabinets held all sorts of antique medical tools and even a few tablets and scrolls.

  “How did they manage to get Egyptian canopic jars here?” I asked Pilar in a hushed voice.

  “The family who founded the hospital are old money,” she replied. “One of the original thirteen great families, I believe. The Nichols family.”

  “Like Trevor Nichols?”

  “Yes.”

  I whistled and followed them through the lobby. As a group, we stuck out and drew attention to ourselves. Holden was well over six feet tall, a big dude with a football player’s build and tightly curled blond hair the color of honey contrasting his darker skin. I figured he was probably a grizzly bear, like Rodrigo. He and Pilar split off and headed toward the elevators on the west side of the lobby while Holly, Lia, and I took the stairs. In an empty hall, all three of us passed into the Twilight. Bringing Holly across wasn’t hard, especially because she was a mage and had been trying to learn the spell herself.

  “Want me to show you over to NICU?” Lia asked. “She’s in the east ward.”

  “I can find it. You go see your charge.”

  It wasn’t far from the maternity ward to the NICU. The golden glow of happiness dimmed a ton, though. In this part of the hospital, I sensed stress and worry, but there was hope too. I just needed to see if I could fan that little spark into something brighter.

  The mother Pilar suggested to me sat in what I silently dubbed the meadow hall, due to everything being decorated in soft pastels and floral watercolors. Eight “rooms” lined each wall, with the floor between them wide and open for the nurses, who had a desk at either end. The semi-private spaces had a recliner for parents to sit in and a small desk that folded into the cabinets.

  My objective waited in the area at the end on the right, slumped in her seat with her head held between her hands. Her baby boy slept peacefully in his bassinet. I took a moment to peer into his destiny, which I was certain both Pilar and Lia had done countless times. The poor tyke’s web was full of possibilities, both good and bad, but it seemed like the good ones were in his favor. I sensed Pilar’s energy tied to the cheerier outcomes, and traced them back to the doctor she watched over.

  Assured, I left the boy, but not before adding my own little sprinkle of faerie dust over him.

  “Sleep tight and be strong,” I told him, leaning down to kiss his curly black hair. Then I stepped over to his mother and laid a gentle hand on her shoulder.

  “You’re doing great and none of this is your fault,” I whispered in her ear. The tired mama lifted her head, unable to see me, and looked at her sleeping child. “He’s beautiful and he’s strong. Don’t lose hope.”

  Her son made a quiet little sound and stirred. She jumped up and moved to him, then, careful of the various monitors and tubes, touched one finger to his hand. He grasped it and she smiled. A nurse wandered over and stood at her side.

  “He’s doing good today, Tasha. Would you like to try nursing again?”

  “Oh, I don’t know—I mean, what if he won’t latch again?”

  I moved off to let them speak alone. Only three other babies occupied the ward, and I paid each a brief visit. Thankfully, all of them looked like they’d pull through after some time. Of all the jobs in the hospital, I admired these nurses and doctors the most, because seeing deathly sick kids everyday would have been too much for my poor fae heart to bear.

  With Lia and Pilar busy doing their own thing, I took it upon myself to wander through the hospital. To soak up whatever happiness I could find, I headed to the labor and delivery ward. Celebrating new babies always made everyone happy. From there I made my w
ay to the recovery rooms and lingered around the nurse’s station.

  Hospitals wouldn’t exactly be my first pick for faerie dust harvesting. Most people were grumpy or stressed. Still, there were a few people who radiated joy and there were plenty of people who needed a little pick-me-up, which was still good for fae like me.

  I leaned close enough to sniff the vase of flowers on the counter. The smell was plain and ordinary, muted, like all mass-produced flowers grown without love. Bored, I picked up a sparkly pink stapler to check out the stickers on it.

  “Hey Carla, did you see where I put the stapler? I could have sworn I left it right here,” a nurse said.

  Crap. I glanced down at the stapler in my hands. I put it back.

  “Girl, it’s right there. Are you blind?”

  “What the hell?”

  Determined not to cause any more trouble, I moved on to the staff lounge to sneak a cup of coffee. There, I ran into two nurses eating Chinese takeout.

  “Who is Doctor Hoffman dating now?” an older woman asked. “I swear that man never keeps it in his pants.”

  “Some nurse in labor and delivery. Uh, Margaret, I think,” her younger conversation partner replied.

  “The little blonde one who used to dance ballet? With the big tits?”

  “Yeah, I guess he has a type. You know how his people are. If you’re not perfect, you’re not good enough for them.”

  The other nurse snickered. “Are they actually even people, Karen? I mean, I overheard Ramirez confirming to Hoffman that there was no need for them to get the vaccine they’re pushing on the rest of us. They can’t catch it.”

  Karen sighed. “They’re people, all right. They just aren’t human people.”

  Ouch.

  I did not sprinkle any faerie dust on the Bitter Bettys gossiping.

  Maybe visiting some doctors would be good. I could hit them with some confidence, give them a second wind, and remind them to be patient and compassionate—because everyone got snappy approaching the end of a twelve-hour shift.

  A near-collision between a doctor and an orderly caught my attention. The two men managed not to crash into each other, but the doctor’s frown made me follow after him. Along the way, I patted the orderly on the shoulder and told him to shake it off.

  Doctor Gregori was the name on the door placard. I peeked in and hesitated on the threshold, trying to recall why the name was familiar. Then I remembered a chat with Lia and Pilar when they were discussing their charges. They’d mentioned that Gregori brought in cookies whenever someone on staff had a birthday.

  He looked up suddenly and squinted in my direction, almost like he could see me, or at least sense me. Crap. Probably a mage. Lia mentioned there were four on staff.

  He blinked and rubbed his forehead, then looked away, and I relaxed. He hadn’t seen me, but he sure as hell had come close.

  Still, I dared to venture inside and take a look at what he was doing. Gregori pulled out a small leather notebook and started writing in it. Too curious for my own good, I moved around and peered over his shoulder.

  He had names with addresses, unfamiliar numbers, and blood types written next to them. One guy, Vaughn Saunders, had a notation by his entry that said he lived alone. Beside the name of a woman farther down the list, it said caretaker visits 4pm to 5pm daily.

  Not unusual. When my human grandfather went to the hospital for a coronary bypass, his doctor had wanted to guarantee he’d go home to someone who could help him through the recovery process.

  “What are you up to, Dr. Gregori?” An older woman in the doorway asked the question burning on my tongue. She had a kind face, with deep laughter lines around her eyes.

  The doctor slipped the notepad into his lab coat pocket. “Planning the discharges for tomorrow morning. Why?”

  “Well, that patient in room 304 wants to know when she can go home.”

  “Miss Georgia?”

  “Yup. Swears she doesn’t need to be here any longer and feels like herself again.”

  Dr. Gregori nudged his glasses higher on his nose and chuckled. “Tell her I’ll be right there. I’ll make sure she has someone to pick her up this time so we don’t send her home in a cab again.”

  What a nice doctor.

  Reassured the incident in the hall was just that, an incident, I let him be and made my way back into the hall. The next office had the door open as well, the placard reading Marc Hoffman, MD.

  I stepped inside the tidy office and noted the two leather arm chairs sitting across from his desk, which was one of those old-fashioned, heavy things that screamed money. The window view was pretty, but would have been better if his window planter had healthy flowers growing inside. His petunias had seen better days.

  But the doctor himself was out, and since I wasn’t so low as to snoop through his things, I moved on, passing through the wall into an office that hummed with magical energy. Trinkets on the shelves, the desk, and the windows called to me. Some sparkled with subtle enchantments when I glanced at them from the Twilight, and others performed magical sparkles in the real world.

  Hm. An outed wizard. The others appeared to be hiding their magical nature.

  He sat at the desk, dark-haired and non-traditionally handsome. The kind of average guy you’d date because he made an impression, not for his looks. He wore white mage robes—brave of him, wearing that much white in a hospital—over a collared shirt and trousers. The placard on the desk read Doctor Edgar Ramirez, Chief of Staff.

  “I know you’re there, so you may as well come out.”

  “Shit.” I stepped out of the Twilight and gave him a bashful smile. “Sorry. Was just cruising around.”

  “It’s quite all right, but try to avoid doing that in private areas, young lady. Are you one of the fae assigned to godmother our staff?”

  I shook my head. “My friends are. I’m just here for moral support.”

  “And to snoop?”

  “Guilty as charged.”

  “One of my NICU nurses is sensitive to paranormal activity. She mentioned an unfamiliar fae had passed through this evening to look over a young child. Was that you?”

  I nodded.

  “Well done. I suspect he’ll be here just another few weeks before he’s released, what with all the magic you young ladies have lent him since his birth. Thank you.”

  “It was my pleasure.” I bit my lower lip. “Really sorry for snooping, I just couldn’t—”

  “Help yourself? Yes, I know. My wife is a half-fae.” He chuckled. “It’s in your nature. But go on. Don’t let me keep you. Enjoy the hospitality of our medical center.”

  I smiled. “As long as I stay out of the private areas?”

  “As long as you stay out of the private areas.”

  After our exchange, I kept my ass out of the private areas and spent the rest of my time on the inpatient rehabilitative therapy level before visiting the NICU again.

  The little boy I’d kissed was wide awake, alert, and nursing like a pro. And his mother had tears of joy streaming down her cheeks. I’d have to report that to Lia and Pilar that our little dude was going to be okay.

  16

  No Supervision Required

  In the week since Ama’s disappearance, Gabriel may have gotten a grand total of five hours sleep. Yesterday, his brother Samuel arrived, promising their father would be up that weekend if she wasn’t found by then.

  That’s how I knew shit was real. Relatives were flying in from out of state to help with the search. Even his grandfather called from Japan to offer his advice and ask if they needed his help.

  For my part, I made more flyers and posted them all around the suburbs, including shelters, a couple dozen veterinary offices, and pet shops. The weather was warm, dry with the occasional summer drizzle, but otherwise comfortable, and Gabe was positive she’d be well fed. Ama was a terrific little huntress of insects. I’d seen her devouring some of the hitchhikers brought over with our plants from Tir na Nog.

  I
n my down time, and sometimes during classes when a particular professor droned on and on, I shared her photograph around different Facebook groups local to the area.

  That morning, Mr. Fujimoto sent me a message on Facebook, asking me to up the reward amount to five grand.

  They really loved her. Ama was as much their family as one of the shifters born to them.

  Just as I was dozing on the couch, unable to enjoy the quiet Thursday afternoon without looking at the silent black cage in the corner of our living room, my phone rang. I snatched it off the table and hit the green button.

  “Hello?”

  “Hi, is this the number to call about a missing bird?”

  “Yes!” I jolted upright. “A sun conure.”

  “Well, I’m no good at identifying breeds but this bird here is bright yellow and orange with pretty green wings.”

  “You see her right now? Where?”

  “She’s sitting in this tree branch directly above me, but I’m afraid if I move, she’ll fly off. I’m at Navy Pier by Bubba Gump’s outdoor seating.”

  “How will I know you?” The voice sounded almost familiar, like someone I’d chatted with before.

  “Look for me in a pink dress.”

  “Oh my God, I’ll be right there. Thank you!”

  I hung up the phone and hurried into a pair of sneakers.

  Technically, fae required supervision to leave the grounds. I was an unusual case, however, and the campus administrators had all agreed I could leave the campus on my own during daylight, guaranteed nosferatu-free hours.

  Lacking a car, I opted for the next best thing, freed my sylph form, and discharged my powers. One whoosh of those powerful wings lifted me from the ground. I hurtled through the sky toward Chicago at eagle speed.

  Along the way, I phoned Gabriel. When all three calls went directly to voicemail, I left a quick message. I called Sam next, without any luck.

  Just in case he was with Jada—my stomach did an awful sort of twist at the thought of him spending so much time with his ex—I sent her an e-mail with the address of the Ama sighting.