by Juniper Hart
“What happened?” Malik demanded. Shawna shook her head, and Arden stared at him, fear and concern etched in his face.
“We don’t know yet,” he murmured. “But we need to get her out of here.”
Shawna gaped at Arden, shaking her head furiously. “How can you say that? She was bleeding out of her nose—”
“Keep your voice down,” both men snapped at her in unison. Malik turned to Arden, confusion overwhelming him.
“How did this happen?” the agent demanded, pulling Arden aside. “What were you doing?”
“Nothing,” he said. “But…”
“But what?” Malik growled. Arden shook his head again, unsure of what he was trying to say.
“I’m not sure, but I feel like she…” He stopped, trying to collect his thoughts.
“Arden, what are you saying?” Malik insisted. “What?”
“I feel like she healed me somehow. I don’t feel sick anymore. It’s like she… it’s like she took my illness upon herself.”
Malik stared at him blankly. “How is that even possible? Even if she was a demon, she couldn’t heal you.”
Arden shrugged miserably. “All I know is that when they get her lab results back, she’s going to be outed as some form of Enchanted creature, and we need to get her out of here before that happens, Malik.”
“Why did you call an ambulance at all!” Malik exploded.
“I didn’t, obviously! Shawna did!”
“Shit.”
They looked around as if plotting an escape, but there would be no easy way out. When they went to sit back with Shawna, a serious looking woman approached.
“Are you Ms. Averson’s family?” she asked. Everyone nodded in unison.
“Yes.” Arden stepped forward. “Is she awake? Can I see her?”
The doctor nodded and gestured for him to follow. They approached the inner doors of the intensive care unit, and Arden felt himself tensing. Who knew what position Gena would be in when he saw her?
What the hell happened to her? Someone turned her, and I didn’t even ask her about it. Now she’s the one in trouble. The guilt was almost insurmountable.
“Gena,” Arden croaked when his eyes fell upon her finally. At least she was awake. He rushed inside, and the doctor looked warningly at him.
“Don’t get her riled up, and you only have a few minutes,” she instructed. “We don’t want Gena to get tired out.”
Arden nodded, wishing the intern away.
“Are you okay? How are you feeling?” he demanded, perching at Gena’s side to take her hand. “What happened? What did the doctor say?”
Gena shook her head, her hazel eyes slightly glazed as she met his.
“What’s happening to me?” she whispered. “Do you know what’s happening to me?” Shame almost drowned him.
“I have my suspicions,” he said quietly. “But nothing we can discuss here. We need to get you home.”
Instead, her eyes filled with tears, and she shook her head.
“You brought me to your place because you knew something was wrong with me,” she mumbled. “Isn’t that it?”
Arden choked on the lump in his throat.
“No,” he murmured, brushing her matted blonde hair away from her cheek. “I brought you home with me because I wanted to protect you, but I think you ended up protecting me.”
She stared at him dubiously. “What are you talking about? How did I protect you?”
He stifled a sigh and offered her a small smile.
“I’m dying, Gena.” The look on her face was exactly what he would have expected, but before she could respond, he continued. “Or, rather, I was dying, but I think, somehow, you healed me.”
The look on her face was a combination of scorn and amusement. “They aren’t giving me good enough drugs for this story to make sense, Arden. What are you talking about?”
“I will explain everything to you when we get home, but we have to do so before the bloodwork comes back.”
“I’ll go as soon as the doctor says I’m good to go.”
Arden gritted his teeth and shook his head. “No, darling. You need to come with me now. When they find what’s in your blood… well, let’s just say that they won’t let you go anywhere.”
Gena blinked several times as she tried to make sense of what she was being told.
“What’s in my blood?” she asked, her voice catching.
“You’re not the same person you were a few weeks ago, Gena. Did something happen to you recently? Did someone bite you?”
Consternation overcame her face, and slowly, Gena sat up.
“Millie Aldwin… that devil doctor…” she gasped. “It was real!”
Prickles of alarm flooded Arden’s body.
“Millie Aldwin. You met a woman named Millie Aldwin? What devil doctor?” Gena suddenly threw the blankets off her body, and Arden stepped back to help her up. “Easy there,” he muttered.
“There’s no time to take it easy,” Gena breathed. “I believe you. Let’s get out of here before they come back.”
Arden watched her as she struggled to dress, and a sense of déjà vu flooded through him, his heart beginning to race. She looked exactly how he remembered her the very first day he had laid eyes upon her.
Life has beaten her up, probably harder than it has me, and she still pulls that anger from somewhere. She thrives, rises above, and fights. Where has she been all my life? Why am I only meeting her now? This isn’t fair. We have so much time to make up for. An entire lifetime. An immortal lifetime.
“Marry me,” Arden said, cutting her off in mid-rant. Her mouth dropped open, and she stared at him.
“Are you trying to be cute?” she snapped. “Because this really isn’t the time.”
“Marry me, Gena Averson. Please marry me.”
She blinked and stared at him, her thoughts clear in her beautiful eyes.
“Gena? Will you marry me?” Arden pressed, his full mouth pulled up slightly in a loving smile. She gulped back the remaining words threatening to erupt from her throat and began to nod.
“Yes, Arden. I will marry you,” she said softly, slipping her arms around his neck. Sweetly, their lips met, and Gena felt the anger she was bathing in dissipate to deep bittersweet love.
“Now we’ll really give them something to write about,” Arden laughed. “They’ll have no idea what to make of this. But we really do have to get out of here, because right now, the paparazzi are the least of our worries.”
As Gena had expected, the turkey vultures had returned outside the hospital, and she idly wondered which nurse had sold them out.
“We should go out the underground,” Shawna mumbled, but Gena shook her head. For the first time since she could remember, the press did not intimidate her. Their presence suddenly seemed no more important than a bunch of pesky mosquitos on a camping trip.
Why did I ever let them beat me down so far? What is wrong with these people? There is so much more happening out there than this tripe. I pity them for wasting their time.
“Gena, what are you doing?” Arden hissed as she marched toward the horde before he could stop her.
“Hey!” she called. A few reporters glanced at her curiously, not immediately recognizing her as the elusive Gena Averson. “Hey! I am Gena Averson. I thought you idiots were reporters!” she yelled again. A silence fell over the dozens of people, and suddenly, a swell of questions flooded forth. “Shut up!” she snapped. “You have successfully ruined my life and reputation in Apple Orchard, so I think it is only fair that you afford me a couple minutes to say my piece. Do you think you can do that?”
“Gena—” Malik growled, grabbing her by her arm, but she ripped herself from his grasp. The reporters waited expectantly on the cement barriers, snapping pictures with their microphones poised for comment.
“So, you ruined my life so effectively with this story that I lost my job and my house, but I gained a family. I just wanted to thank you for all your hard wo
rk. That’s all.”
I gained so much more than a family, she thought, her eyes locking on Arden’s. I just have to learn how much more. She waved at the crowd and allowed herself to be led into Malik’s waiting BMW.
“I thought you were going to say something else,” Malik exhaled.
“Like what? That he’s dying?” Gena asked. “Or that we’re getting married?”
“What?” Shawna choked. “He’s dying?”
“You’re getting married?” Malik demanded simultaneously.
“No,” Gena said. “He’s not going to die. Not on my watch.”
Arden met her gaze and shook his head, the awe he felt toward her glimmering in his eyes.
“But yes,” he concluded. “I am most definitely marrying this woman.”
“What is it, Luke? I have a plane to catch,” Shari told the editor-in-chief, who stood angrily at her door. She barely looked at him, searching through her desk drawers for her plane ticket. She flipped through files, her brow furrowing deeply. “Where is it?” she muttered. “I know I had it here yesterday.”
Luke Hawthorne strode forward and tossed the Los Angeles Times on her desk. “Wanna talk about this?”
“What is it?” Shari asked, annoyed, but she still did not acknowledge him.
“Look at it!” Luke hissed. His tone caused her to glance up, first at him and then at the paper on her desk. Shari eyed the headline and stopped, her heart racing.
“Wh-when did this happen?” she demanded, anger coursing through her blood. Oh, Helena, when I get my hands on you, you’re cooked goose. How could you not have told me about this?
“So, you don’t know anything about this?” Luke asked, slamming his fist onto the desk furiously. Shari shook her head but turned her frigid eyes on the editor.
“I am literally on my way to British Columbia right now,” she told him. “I’ll get to the bottom of this—”
“Get to the bottom of what?” he exploded. “The story already broke! You dropped the ball, chasing after some sordid crap when the real story was under your nose the entire time. I have given you too many chances when I should have canned your ass a long time ago.”
Shari laughed and folded her arms across her chest, smirking at her boss. “Canned my ass? I have given you the best stories this crappy outfit has ever seen. Physique would have been dead in the water years ago.”
“No, you self-righteous wench, Physique would have actually been a legitimate news magazine and not a trashy sub-news source.”
“Oh, please. You—”
“Just shut up, Shari! You’re done here. I doubt anyone else will touch you when they realize what you have done to that poor girl and Arden Morrow now. You have dragged the name of a dying man through the mud, besmirched an innocent girl’s reputation, and for what? Because you made up some story without fact checking. Get out.”
Shari stared at him in disbelief, recognizing the anger in his eyes. I don’t care what anyone says. That girl is not innocent, and neither is Arden Morrow. I am still going to Apple Orchard, and when I am finished investigating personally—
“Oh, there’s just one more thing,” Luke said before leaving the office.
“What?” she spat back.
“Arden Morrow and Gena Averson have filed lawsuits against you personally for slander.”
“So what? I was still employed here when I wrote those pieces,” she retorted cockily. “You have insurance for that.”
Luke smiled coldly. “For an investigative reporter, you sure don’t listen very well, Jespers. It reflects in your work glaringly. They aren’t filing against Physique. The lawsuits are against you for harassment, slander, and some other gems, but don’t let me ruin the surprise. They aren’t the least bit mad at Physique. In fact, they gave us an exclusive interview.”
“Who? Who did they give the interview to?” Shari demanded, heat rising to her face, but something told her she knew the answer before Luke said the name.
“Helena Spitzer.”
Malik looked at Gena as she replaced the receiver and hung his head.
“Are you sure this is what you want to do?” he asked again. “You don’t have to give that exclusive interview if you don’t want to, you know?”
“I know, and honestly, I’m not sure I want to,” she said. “But you seem to think Spitzer is the best one for the job.”
“I didn’t say the best one,” Malik protested. “I said she doesn’t seem as corrupt as some of the others.”
“Like Jespers?” Gena asked coldly, the mere thought of the fake redhead churning her stomach. I hope that one day, that evil witch gets exactly what she deserves. How can people who are kind and loving like Arden be diagnosed with awful diseases, and horrible women like Shari Jespers can run amok, spreading poison to anyone who can read? How is that fair in any universe?
Malik stared at his unlikely new ally and sighed deeply.
“What is it?” she asked quietly. “You’re worried about Arden, aren’t you?”
“Gena. I trust you to do the best for Arden,” he told her genuinely, and Gena nodded, grasping his dark hands in her pale ones. “But there is still so much you don’t know—so much we don’t know. Your ability to heal doesn’t make any sense, nor does the fact that you were bitten by a demon and survived. You are an impossibility.”
“So is Arden,” Gena reminded him. “He’s an immortal who is dying.”
“The Rumple virus existed many, many years ago. It was thought to be obsolete. But never has anyone ever been turned into a demon.” Malik paused and forced a smile, noting the stricken look on Gena’s face. “This really isn’t anything Arden hasn’t told you before, anyway. We’ll just have to go with it and see what happens.”
Gena feigned a smile of her own and nodded.
“I guess that’s what we’ll have to do, won’t we?” she replied, patting his arm gently. The intercom at the gate buzzed suddenly, and Gena jumped at the unexpected sound. “You expecting someone?” she asked, raising an eyebrow. Malik shook his head.
“I think it’s safe to say it isn’t a reporter,” he chuckled, but his laughter was short-lived, as Arden bolted into the kitchen where the duo was standing, his face twisted in sheer panic.
“We have a problem,” he choked, his green eyes huge. “A big problem.”
Gena’s brow furrowed as she looked at him, but before she could ask anything, Shawna appeared. “Mr. Morrow, you have visitors.”
“Who is it?” Malik asked. The tone of his voice told Gena that he already had a suspicion.
“They call themselves the Council,” Shawna replied. Suddenly, Gena understood the magnitude of the problem.
18
By the time Theo Veriday and Lane Aldwin, the Council’s witch, appeared in the foyer, Arden’s heart hammered so loudly, he was sure even the mortals in town could hear him.
“Welcome,” Arden croaked, ushering the pair inside. “If I’d known you were coming, I would have tidied up more.” He knew he was babbling in his nervousness, but even a look from Gena couldn’t silence him.
“If I’d known you were dying, I would have come sooner,” Theo snapped, plopping unceremoniously onto the sofa. “Imagine my surprise when I had to hear about it in some Hollywood rag.”
Lane wandered through the room, her long, pale fingers trailing along the furniture as if she was committing the pieces to memory.
“But he’s not dying, are you, Arden?” she asked quietly before the bear could respond. Her eyes fixed on Gena with so much intensity, she was forced to look away. “You’re Gena.”
Gena nodded, not trusting her voice.
“She has nothing to do with this, Lane,” Arden promised. “Neither does Malik. I kept my illness a secret because I knew what it would mean. Please, just let them go.”
Theo snorted and examined his fingernails before exchanging a bemused look with Lane.
“Actors,” he scoffed. “So dramatic. Does this look like they’re under duress, Arden?”
Arden didn’t know how to answer, but he could not shake the uneasiness in his gut.
“You seem to think you’re in trouble, Arden,” Lane said, spinning so that her long, red strands fanned around her tiny frame. “Why would you be?”
“I knew you would come to kill me if you learned I was dying,” Arden answered bluntly.
“But you’re not dying,” Theo reminded him. “Didn’t you hear Lane?”
Arden looked uncertainly at her and then to his fiancée.
“Are you sure?” he murmured. “I-I’m cured?”
“Thank gods,” Malik sighed, also sinking into a chair.
“No,” Lane said sweetly. “Thank Gena.”
Gena raised her head and shook her head in disbelief.
“I-I didn’t do anything,” she said quickly. “Honestly. I didn’t.”
“But you did, my dear,” Lane said, reaching out to touch Gena’s face with her fingers. “You saved Millie and possibly the Enchanted with your quick thinking.”
Gena’s brow knit in confusion. “W-what do you mean?” she asked, flustered. “I really didn’t do anything.”
“Didn’t you stop Helios from biting Millie Aldwin?” Lane asked.
“Well, yes, but—”
“You were kind to my cousin in her last days, I’m told,” Lane continued. “She trusted you.”
Gena stared at Lane in disbelief. “She never knew I was around!” she protested.
“She knew. She is an Aldwin. We know more than you might realize.” Gena didn’t know what to say and decided to stay silent. “She trusted you enough to enshroud you in a veil of protection when she sensed Helios coming for you,” Lane went on. Gena cast her lover a bewildered look.
“W-why did he attack her? What is a veil of protection?” There were clearly more questions she wanted to ask, but she knew that bombarding the Council with queries wasn’t the best idea.