Page 68 of Hospital for Immortal Creatures

And then there was chaos.

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A knock on the door pulled Amelia from her thoughts. Hadn’t Mikhail said he’d be gone a few days? She wondered who it was, if not him.

Dave’s presence on the other side was a pleasant surprise. “Hi, Amelia!”

“Dave! I’m so glad to see you!” The unexpected warmth in her chest made her smile.

The boy glanced to the side, a shadow running through his lively eyes. His gaze returned to Amelia. “May I come in?”

Was that fear on his face?

“Of course.” She urged him in and closed the door. “Dave, what’s wrong?”

He exhaled a long breath, jabbing a finger over his shoulder, in the direction of the entrance. “That’s some serious security team you got there. Are they protecting you from the Tribunal?”

So he was afraid of her guards.

“Yep,” she said.

Dave’s expression relaxed, reminding her once again of her brother. “So cool! Although”—he leaned closer to her, his voice quiet as a whisper—“let me tell you, hybrids give me goosebumps.”

“Hybrids?”

Dave inspected the closed door as if to make sure they couldn’t hear him. “Don’t tell anyone, but I’ve seen them in the halls. The twins. They say they’re hybrids, but I call them shadows. They’re almost invisible, like ninjas, and they move fast… It’s just… creepy. And you know what they say about hybrids…”

Amelia took a wild guess. “That they’re very dangerous?”

“Among the most dangerous creatures on the planet!”

“Right…” She had sensed that the women were more than just regular bodyguards, but ‘among the most dangerous creatures on the planet’… Why would they be guarding her?

Unperturbed, Dave settled on the couch. “Mikhail said I could come visit you.”

“I’m glad you did.”

“Don’t worry. I won’t tell anyone I came here or who I visited. I know you’re hiding from the Tribunal and it’s important you stay hidden.”

“Thank you, Dave.” She wondered if she could offer him a snack.

Her brother Sammy used to love chocolate chip cookies and Coke. Unlike most children, Amelia had never liked chocolate, so she’d always given him her share as well. But here, the food came at certain intervals and it was usually salad, fish, sometimes beef and fruit. Over the last week, she’d had so little appetite, she hadn’t paid attention to what she’d eaten.

Before she could figure out what to offer him, Dave said, “Did you hear on the news about those two billionaires who were hiding in an alcohol factory close to Sofia, when everyone thought they had escaped abroad?”

She shook her head. “I’m sorry, but I don’t watch TV.”

“I heard that the Tribunal is hunting them, too. You’ll never believe it… they’re immortal!”

“Why is the Tribunal hunting them?”

“Because they’re criminals. But in the human world.”

“Hmm…”

“Mum says that on the Day of Judgement, every creature pays for its sins and since we live longer, we always have a bigger debt to pay than humans.”

For some reason, his words stung her. If Judgement Day was the day for paying for one’s sins, why was she atoning for hers much sooner?

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