Page 2 of Magic and Medicine

‘Did you just resurrect on me, like Lazarus, or maybe Jesus would be more accurate as nobody here helped you? What the fuck are you, a zombie, vampire, or something else that sparkles?’ My rambling question made the very alive man laugh.

‘Yeah, or something. Now, be a darling and give me the dagger. It still wants my life, and I see you are keen to give in to the temptation.’ He commanded, looking into my eyes as if trying to reach into the depths of my soul, but his five minutes were gone. My anger broke through the shock of the situation. Now he faced a very focused woman with a powerful urge to tear him a new one… newer than the one that brought him here, anyway.

‘Pack it in, Romeo. First, the dagger is evidence, and second, I’m not your darling, so you can stop trying to make puppy eyes at me. I’ve seen this constipated look far too many times. That is borderline creepy. Who, or should I say, what, are you?’

One thing I was sure of was that he looked human, but apart from his looks, there was nothing human about him, and even this external glamour faded when I looked closely. Besides, no one called me darling or tried flirting when I was poking a gaping hole in their chest. The conclusion was simple. Either he wasn’t human, and all the strange things I saw in the shadows were real, or I’d been hauled to the psych ward and pumped full of powerful drugs. The reasonable part of my brain would bet on the latter, but everything felt so incredibly real. When my shift finished, I would be searching for answers. Proper answers to the questions I had blissfully ignored for years, but now was not the time. He was still staring at me, and I’d read too many awful romances to fall for the charm of a wounded stranger.

I knew I was rambling, but I had to stall for time. I couldn’t stab him. That clearly wasn’t viable from a doctor’s perspective, not to mention it hadn’t killed him the last time it was used. Hope that my staff was calling for help started fading as the lack of alarms or codes called over the tannoy system began sinking in. This strange calm left a chill running down my spine, kicking my body into action. I hit the stranger’s hand with the hilt of the dagger, freeing myself from his grasp. Jumping back, I tried to bolt through the doors just as they opened, and my body bounced off something… someone, who grabbed my arms, saving me from falling unceremoniously to the floor, his large frame not even affected by the impact.

When I looked up and saw my saviour’s face, I must have been gaping like an idiot, as a man I could only wish lived in my wet dreams held me tight to his chest. With a slightly annoyed grimace, he released me, and I staggered back, trying to regain my balance.

‘Who… who are you?’ I stuttered, but he didn’t even look in my direction, his gaze fixed on my miraculous patient. It reminded me of Kosovo when a warring party came to the hospital to finish the job. My instincts kicked in, and, like the last idiot, I positioned myself between the arsehole on my table and the coiled danger in front of him.

‘Whatever you came here for, you won’t finish it here. He may piss you off, and I’m betting that’s what happened, but he is still my patient. You will not fight on hospital grounds. Leave before I call the police.’ I said, pointing the dagger in his direction.

I attempted to look in control of the situation, ignoring the part of me screaming in terror, berating me for making a terrible mistake. The careless arrogance of the man before me didn’t change, even when I pointed a deadly weapon at his chest.

Instead, the corner of his lips lifted in smug amusement as I pointed the eager dagger at his heart. His green eyes lit up with swirling gold, and a tingle of power washed over my skin. For a second, I didn’t see a man standing there dressed in a tailored three-piece suit but something monstrous, barely clad in breeches, with a golden torque around his neck and smoky tattoos that glinted with burnt umber and gold over his skin while fireflies danced between his antlers.

Antlers? The vision was gone as soon as I concentrated, but my yearning for the beast remained, and with it, the electrifying feeling that washed over my skin with the tidal wave of power. Whatever I believed didn’t matter anymore, the damage was done. I was afraid. No, I was terrified by the strangeness appearing in my life. My scientific, ordered world creaked and shattered, and just like the mirror earlier, I was left to collect the pieces. The pragmatic part of me realised the life I knew and loved had ended, but under the fear was something more. What did it mean for me if these monsters existed, if corpses could rise from the trolley and a man with antlers could walk into my Emergency Room?

My heart was pounding because, deep down, I wanted this to be real. I wanted my nan’s stories to be authentic. I wanted this beautiful savage monster to be real. My bedtime stories and lullabies that soothed a child terrified of shadows were so vivid when she weaved them. My crazy, scorned grandmother talking about the magical guardians and lurking monsters, who I now realised must have seen them, too. Relief washed over me. I was not crazy, but what the fuck was I and why was I the only oneseeingthis?

Chapter two

‘Surrender.’ The simple, softly spoken word carried so much power that my hand lowered, and the sudden urge to stab him disappeared. The dagger lay dormant, its tension subdued. Then, as if it was the most natural thing to do, I handed it over to the stranger. What the actual fuck, I thought, but without the burning need to kill, it was easier to reassess my situation.

The raven-haired man on the gurney, handsome as he was, paled in comparison to the work of art that commanded my compliance. He looked close to forty, tall at just over six feet, with broad shoulders, a short beard, and rich auburn brown hair with hints of the burnt umber of his imaginary tattoos, but what made him stand out from the crowd was the aura of command. This man was born to lead, and I could easily see him in a general’s uniform. Maybe he is an undercover police officer? As soon as this thought flashed through my mind, I dismissed it. He was a leader, but I doubt he ever followed an order. He was precisely the type I always fell for, and after the initial fascination was gone, that left me bruised and hurt, searching for a more docile lover. The man in front of me was perfect, or, I should say, perfectly intimidating. His strength spoke to me on a visceral level, and he clearly knew some… magic?

As I stood there appraising him like a prime side of beef, for a split second considering asking him for help with my visions, the object of my unwanted desires opened his mouth, and all my physical and scholarly interest departed to where the sun didn’t shine.

‘Adam, really? Out of all of them, you got yourself loaded into the ambulance? And then you let this woman get hold of Czernobog’s dagger? Did you lose your mind completely, or did it temporarily land in your pants?’ He said, and just like that, my interest nosedived. He might be handsome and have the knowledge I needed, but I wouldn’t fall for this honey trap again.

Too often, I fell for men who made my pants wet and messed with my head, and after my fling with Kamil in Kosovo, I promised myself the next man who walked into my life would be different. I was attracted to danger, and the man before me was a walking red flag summarising all my lousy relationship choices. Whatever he did prevented me from doing something I would later regret, but this idiot talked over my head, and nothing cooled hot flushes better than misogynistic bullshit.

I huffed angrily, finally gaining his attention, but not for long.

‘Get yourself off this thing. The rest of the hospital is clear. There’s only this one to bespell, and we can leave.’ He said, and his dark green eyes dismissed my presence like a stubborn cockroach.

‘I tried,’ said Adam, his voice sparkling with amusement, ‘but she resisted my compulsion, then ripped the dagger from my chest. You can sort this one out yourself. Forest magic might work better on the stubborn wench, especially since you’ve already broken through Czernobog’s spell.’

‘No one will sort me out, and if you’ve hurt any of my team, I will have you dragged into court and hung out to dry.’ I said as the tall man approached. I took a few steps back, but the resuscitation table blocked my escape. Without a word, he grabbed my arm and sank his gaze into my eyes, whispering something. A peculiar feeling spread through my body. Time felt like molasses. I wanted to please him. I tried to forget like he wanted me to. Instead, the touch of his mind awakened a strange, untamable desire. I knew I wanted him, but why did I feel I belonged to him? I stroked his beard impulsively, trailing my hand along his neck. His skin was warm and surprisingly soft, and I pinched it gently, enjoying the texture between my fingers.

‘You have such a beautiful vein. I’d love to touch it,’ the words escaped before I realised, my other hand joining the mutiny and playing with his jugular. My voice dropped to a breathless purr, but part of me resisted. What the fuck am I saying? His vein? Suspicion rose in my mind, shielding it like a fortress. It wasn’t right. I never flirted in the workplace, not even facing the man who spoke to the very depths of my soul. I shook my head, then jerked in his grip, and he stepped back with a shocked expression. Whatever he was trying to do hadn’t worked as planned. I knew the moment he finally looked at me properly when his lips twitched, and the narrowing of his eyes told me he was confused and curious.

‘What the hell was that? Hypnosis? If you were hoping a smouldering glance would earn you a kiss, your technique needs work.’ I said, hoping they couldn’t see my embarrassment, and Adam started laughing.

‘I didn’t think it would work on her, but seeing the great Forest Lord fail was funny.’

His mocking was a catalyst, and the man he called the Forest Lord grabbed my arm harder, a mask of anger replacing the curiosity.

‘What are you?’

His grip on my arm made me hiss in pain, and I punched him, or I would have if he hadn’t grabbed my fist and pulled me closer. His pupils widened when he pressed me to his body. I could feel his breath quicken,

‘Fuck. What are you, woman?’ he murmured, inhaling deeply. I knew my arm would bruise, but the worst part was the feeling that he saw me and he liked what he saw. Atavistic fear returned and burned inside my chest, giving me the strength to break free from his hold. He released me when I jerked backwards. I was free, but I’d had enough of my mixed reactions and their attitude, so I hit the panic button on the wall for the first time in my life.

‘I’m the doctor that will kick your arse so hard you’ll never be able to find it. Now get the fuck out of my E.R. before the police arrive. I don’t know what happened here, but I have a department to run, and you just made my life more difficult. So off you go before I rip that dagger from your hand and put it back where it came from.’

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