The Librarian's Daughter The Story of Abi VanHaven

by M.M. Gavillet

  Chapter Ten

  I was surrounded in warmth and the puffiness of a soft blanket. Visions of Victoria, Grace and Kelan floated through my thoughts like rolling fog. I slowly opened my eyes to see Kelan sitting in a chair to my left sleeping in what looked like an uncomfortable position. I looked around the small room with an open window showing the view of some of the buildings of Chicago.

  I pushed myself up realizing something was wrapped around my wrist. From a thin tube glittery black liquid flowed from a much larger container into a vein on the inside of my wrist. I gasped as I could see tiny grey lines that absorbed the substance.

  “Kelan!” I yelled with no response. “Kelan!” I yelled a little louder and threw my pillow at him.

  Groggily he opened his eyes. “Abi,” he said a little disoriented at first. “What’s the matter?”

  “Look, what the hell is this? And get it out of me!” I started to pull at the tape and even though I hated needles, I planned on yanking the thing out.

  “Abi, it’s alright.” Kelan got up and grabbed both of my shaking arms pulling me close to his smiling face. His blue eyes searched mine and slowly I calmed down. He had a mysterious way of doing that.

  “Where am I Kelan?”

  “You’re in the Guardian Oracle Building and as you can see, the infirmary,” said a man wearing a long black coat with shockingly puffy, red, hair and eyes to match. He smiled making his round cheeks bulge. “I’m glad to see you’re up and when that’s all gone you can go.” He pointed at the sack half full of liquid black glitter. I cringed at the sight of it. Suddenly, loud music came from his pocket. “Excuse me,” he said lifting a finger and pulling out a cell phone.

  I looked at Kelan as he smiled at me. The man answered with a lot of “uh hums” and “yeses”.

  “Well another emergency. I will send a nurse in about an hour to let you go.” He then went out the door. “Oh, and you’re fine… just a case of exhaustion…take it easy the next week!” He yelled going down the hallway.

  I looked at Kelan with opened mouth. “What the hell was that?” I could feel my empty stomach fill with acid.

  “That’s a doctor here at the headquarters for guardians,” Kelan said with a smile.

  “A doctor? Really?” I looked again at the black liquid. “You guardians let bozo-the-clown be a doctor? Not to mention he looks like a clown from a horror movie instead of a kid’s show.”

  Kelan only laughed. “No, he’s certainly not a clown.” He then took my hand and rubbed his fingers over mine. “He’s what you call a sprite—kind of like a fairy but from another realm. And he’s one of the best here and you needed one of the best Abi.” Kelan’s voice dropped almost shaking his words out.

  I rubbed his fingers gliding my grey-tinged veined hand over his. I looked at my sickly looking skin. “Tell me, am I going to be grey for the rest of my life?”

  Kelan smiled letting an amused chuckle out. “No, it’s to restore the energy that your mother gave you. It’s something that’s a part of you now, something that you can’t live without.” His eyes met mine.

  “You mean like organs and stuff.”

  “Kind of,” Kelan nodded his head. “It’s a gift that saved your life, but also a burden of responsibility. It’s something that you have to use carefully.”

  I drew in a deep sigh and rested my head on the bed. Kelan leaned closer stroking my hair from my face in soothing repeated movements. I could feel my limbs relax and my eyelids grow heavy. I fell into a peaceful, dreamless sleep.

  “Well the mess wasn’t as bad as I initially thought,” Jack said with his hands on his hips.