Page 146 of Elven Shadow

The simple thought of having that kind of control over any shifter and Maxwell in particular sent a thrilling rush through her. Only now did it fully occur to Rebecca how much he must have despised this new shift in the power dynamic.

He’d disliked her and suspected her from the very beginning, and now there wasn’t a damn thing he could do about it, because she’d just become his boss.

Maybe this whole Shade-commander thing wasn’t as bad as she’d originally thought.

And thanks to this latest reminder of Hector Faad’s apparent connection with the Azyyt Ra’al, a few other ideas had already begun to percolate in her mind.

Before the office door finished swinging all the way open, she called out, “Zida.”

Her voice cracked a little at the end, and she swallowed before shaking her head to try clearing it of the dizziness seeping back in like an obnoxious adversary she just couldn’t get rid of.

Kind of like Maxwell, now that she thought about it.

Shuffling footsteps echoed in the hall before Zida appeared in the open doorway, her arms folded over her round midsection.

“You called?” she asked blandly.

“Shut the door.” Rebecca slowly pushed herself off the edge of the desk supporting her.

The second she heard the office door click shut, her wobbly arms gave out, and she staggered forward, her balance completely obliterated by another wave of dizziness and the pounding headache returning.

Now it felt a hell of a lot like she might collapse to her knees and start puking up an empty stomach any second.

“Whoa.” Zida hurried toward her at a snail’s pace, her crooked, stunted legs moving as fast as they could but not quite fast enough.

Rebecca did crash down to one knee before reaching out to slap a hand down on the corner of the desk and hold herself upright. That gave the healer enough time to finish waddling toward her, then Zida’s clawed hands were all over Rebecca, lifting her, tugging her back up to her feet.

“I thought we had you set up in the damn chair.”

Rebecca grunted. “We did.”

“What the hell are you doing climbing around on top of a desk, then?”

“I got bored.”

Zida snickered. “You got cocky. How many times do I have to remind you that no matter how you feel, you’re notactuallybetter?”

Once Zida had helped Rebecca back into the nauseatingly green armchair, Rebecca let her body weight sink against the chair’s frame and closed her eyes with a sigh. “I need another one of those vials.”

“Very funny. I think Hannigan was the last of your new supplicants for the day, so lucky you, I can take you right back to the infirmary now, if you—”

“It wasn’t a joke.” After another long, deep inhale to try to steady her body and her mind, Rebecca opened her eyes, blinked until her vision cleared, and stared at the old healer already scowling at her. “I need another one of those vials.”

“I don’t know about that…” Zida looked her over from head to toe, then tsked. “It’s really not a good idea, kiddo. I’ve probably given you one too many as it is.”

“Are you serious? Just a few hours ago, you were advocating for one more and one more, just to keep me on my toes.”

“I know. But it’s different when you’re practically begging for it.” The next second, Zida’s clawed hands were on Rebecca’s face, tilting her head from side to side. She even pried one eyelid open, presumably for a better look at the elf’s pupils, but Rebecca jerked away from the woman’s grip and her inspection.

“You can’t take it back,” she said. “I get it. These things help. And I need another one, so hand it over.”

“I still don’t think that’s such a great idea,” Zida warned. “Honestly, the things aren’t supposed to be used the way we’ve been using them.”

“What the hell does that even mean?” Rebecca croaked.

“They’re not intended for a stacked effect!” the healer blurted. “Keep using them like this, one right on top of the other, and… Let me just say there’s some serious danger continuing that way, all right?”

Rebecca swallowed a groan. “Likewhat?”

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