Page 99 of Firestorm
At this point, I was all but positive that Wyatt would be on my list of Links. Would I have to switch counselors if that was the case? Maybe that was the real reason why he was being so hesitant about committing to me. Maybe he didn’t want to rely on Lauren’s money anymore and make some of his own. Starting a relationship, even with an adult student, surely had to be against the rules.
I almost rolled my eyes. I was about to pull a muscle with how far I was reaching to justify his shitty actions.
“Actually, I’m seeing him later today. Can you just send them to me?” I asked, keeping my tone even.
“Sure thing, suge. Have a good rest of your day. Go eat something before you get a headache.”
“Thank you,” I said, holding out my hand to shake.
Dani grinned, took my hand, then stilled. I went to pull back, but her hand tightened on mine.
“How?” Her eyes widened. “How’d you get past the testing center?”
My blood chilled.
“What do you mean?” I asked shakily.
Dani stared at me hard for several seconds before letting go of my hand. She cleared her throat slightly. “I took the Healer’s Oath,” she said. “I’m only here to help people. If you need something, come directly to me. Understand?”
“What else would I need?” I asked with a nervous laugh. I backed away slowly, inching closer to the door.
“Anything,” Dani said seriously. “I took theHealer’sOath, Skye. Do you understand what I mean?”
I blinked. She was trying to tell me something, panic was just keeping me from understanding.
The Healer’s Oath was what every doctor and nurse took when they entered the medical field. It was an homage to the affinity of healing, long suspected extinct. I knew firsthand that suspicion wasn’t true, and the way she emphasized the word…
I stifled a gasp. My eyes met Dani’s, and she nodded with conviction, confirming my realization.
Dani was a Healer. But…how did she know…
“I have more than one affinity,” she explained gently.
“You’re a Sensor?” I whispered.
“No,” she said slowly. “I…it’s hard to explain. I can see truth.”
I nodded, though I didn’t understand at all. The important thing was that Dani was hiding something, too. She couldn’t reveal me without revealing herself.
“Anything you need,” she said as she typed away on her laptop. “You come directly to me. Got it, suge?”
I nodded, then took my paperwork and left the office, somehow feeling lighter than I had in weeks, even while confused over the interaction with Dani.
As I entered the campus convenience store, I couldn’t help but reach out to Zephyr.
How’s it going?
There was some silence before I felt Zephyr become aware of me. I scanned and paid for an orange juice and a croissant before leaving and heading out into the courtyard.
All good here.After a few seconds of silence he sent through an image of the café, bustling with people. A younger kid was at the register, smiling at the customer while he took his order. Everything looked great aside from the dwindling pastries in the display case.
Wow, it’s not a shit show. Good job, bro!
Har har. What are you up to? Anything interesting happening?
I blew out a deep breath, taking a bite of my croissant.
There was an issue with my Link-testing. I just had my blood redrawn. I uh…I met someone.
