Page 78 of Tangled in Knots

The two of them leave while I look up popular drink recipes, and people trickle in as I work.

“Are you such a drunk that you need to be looking up recipes while you’re here?” someone asks as they sit next to me. “Do I need to ask Aurelia for a twelve step program for you?”

“What?” I ask, glancing at the red head next to me. She has a cruel sneer on her lips as she gazes at me, and I shake my head. “No, I’ve never had an alcoholic beverage in my entire life. I want to get a bartending job, but I don’t have any experience at it.”

“Oh,” she says, her face blanking. “I assumed wrong. That’s actually a really smart idea.”

Ignoring her because I don’t need her approval, and she seems like a bitch, I continue working on memorizing different drinks and their substitutions.

“Adira, she’s here,” Aisling says as I glance up. Nodding, and appreciating that she didn’t announce that I was waiting for the nurse, I close out of my browser tabs.

Standing, I walk out of the room with her, noticing that it’s a lot more busy in the outreach center. There are women talking to case managers, there appears to be a lawyer talking to someone, and my eyes widen at the increase of noise.

“This is why Wren limits how much she comes to theHaven,”Aisling says. “I don’t mind the hustle and bustle of it all, and I have an office to hide in when I need a break. We work within our boundaries. It doesn’t mean we’re not as valued.”

“I think I needed to hear that,” I murmur as I follow her down a hallway where a door is propped open.

It is a storage closet that’s been semi converted into a clinic. It’s been cleaned out, there’s a sitting area, and a nurse is waiting for us.

“Hi,” she says with a smile. “I’m tucked in a corner so I can leave the door open in case tight spaces bother you. It’s rare,but it happens. It also gives us some privacy. I’m Laurell Price, a nurse working on some practice hours to keep my license up to date.”

Appreciating how transparent she’s being, I nod. “I’m Adira,” I murmur as I step inside. “Tight spaces don’t really bother me, though.”

“Good. I understand I’ll be looking at a gunshot wound that’s healing?” she asks.

“It’s on my shoulder blade,” I explain. “It’s about three weeks old, but I lost the bandage yesterday.”

“No worries, come sit,” she says quickly. I’m still weaving a little, and hope I’m able to deal with the long hours on my feet as a bartender.

I just want to feel normal again.

Sitting, I give a small sigh of annoyance at myself.

“Can you tell me why you’re so weak?” she asks.

“After the gunshot wound, I was sedated against my will for three weeks,” I explain. “I feel really weak still, no matter how much I try to stay on my feet.”

“Hmm,” she says. “Let’s see what the blood tests tell me. Have you lost any weight because of it?”

“I haven’t been on a scale, but I feel as if I have,” I say. “I wasn’t eating very much during that time.”

Pulling out a few vials and needle to do the blood draw, she nods. “This isn’t going to make you feel much better, but it’ll hopefully give us some answers,” she says. “It’s normal to feel weak or dizzy after a blood draw. I think some juice will help if you haven’t had much to eat today?”

“I tried to eat,” I say with a shrug.

“I wouldn’t have wanted to eat either,” Aisling reassures me. “Talking about sad things has a way of taking away your appetite.”

“Perfectly fine, let’s help mitigate how you’ll feel after this because of that,” the nurse says with a nod.

Aisling disappears for a moment to find a glass of orange juice, and the nurse begins to swab my arm.

“You’re probably not a fan of needles after being shot, huh?” she asks. At my small head shake, she nods. “The blood is going straight to the lab to process, and then I’ll be back in three days to tell you about what it says. You won’t be waiting long.”

The nurse tells me about how she’s going to test my blood for levels of nutrients, a STD panel, and a few other things that will give me insight into my health. I figure without her telling me that this will also help me determine the likelihood of having a heat next week.

Aisling comes back as the nurse walks me through what’s happening, right up until the blood draw. I don’t have a chance to feel anxious, and after I take a small breath of relief.

“That didn’t even hurt,” I murmur.

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