New Host

18 - Relocation

Mark continued stroking my wings all the way home, lulling me into a calm rest despite the aching in my stomach that refused to go away. He helped sneak me inside without drawing Celest out from her room. As we moved across the living room, a heart-wrenching sob sounded down the hall.

"I don't know if I can do this anymore." Celest's voice trembled. "Seeing her face every day, it- it's more than I can bear."

I froze just short of the hallway. I knew it. I knew she didn't want me around. She might've even asked Dr. Swanson to leave the portal room open yesterday, in the hope that I would leave. Why hadn't she just told me to go? She knew I wanted to leave at the beginning, and I didn't know why she would have any reason to believe I'd seriously changed my mind.

Celest sobbed. "I can't abandon that poor little girl. She didn't ask for any of this. Can't- can't you let her stay with you, just for a while?"

The front door slammed shut, and Celest fell quiet. Mark must've opened and closed the door to let her know we were here. Now she would see what a mess we were and be so worried. She didn't deserve to worry even more than she already had. I rushed for the door.

Mark caught me in his arms. He'd taken off his shirt and jacket, presumably to hide the odd hole over the chest. The bite mark on his scales was hidden beneath what Celest could've assumed was my blood. "Don't worry. I'll talk to her. You go shower."

"You don't have to-"

"You're back early." There was a quiver in Celest's otherwise cheery tone.

Mark turned me to face her. "Don't worry, she's fine. She just fell and broke her nose. I healed it, but I think we'll stay away from heels from now on. I'll let you know how everything went while Elva cleans up." He nudged me toward the hall.

Celest watched me with a horrified expression as I slipped around her. I rushed into the bathroom and saw what had made her so horrified. There was a stream of dried blood down my face and the front of my dress. After locking the door, I quickly undressed so I could hop in the shower.

I washed as quickly as I could and darted out of the bathroom wrapped in a towel. I wasn't exactly sure what I expected to find, but Celest crying into Mark's bare arms wasn't it. He caught me staring and tilted his head toward my bedroom. I disappeared inside.

After dressing, I sat on the bed to wait.

A long while later, there was a knock on the door.

"Come in."

Mark came in and closed the door behind him. "As you can probably guess, Celest is finding it difficult to see Leah's face every time she looks at you, but she doesn't want to throw you out. I told her I would take care of you until she's ready to see you again. You should pack everything you'll want for at least the next three weeks."

"Oh. Okay." It was a better outcome than I'd expected--arguably better than I deserved. "Where are you going to take me?"

"A hotel in Sandy. It's not far from my house."

"I haven't gotten a credit card yet. I have some cash Celest gave me, but-"

He shook his head. "I wasn't lying to Celest. I'll take care of you."

"You can't be serious."

"El, I'm getting sick of saying the same thing over and over. If you can't accept my answer, you have to accept that there are some mysteries you can't solve."

"I attacked you."

"You were drugged, and I'm fine." He gestured at his chest, which was unmarked except for a scar that roughly resembled a three-pointed star. "I'm going to let Ethan know what's going on. Start packing." He slipped out of the room.