Eliona's War 1: Hesitant Healer

Chapter 34

Seth jerked awake when someone yanked off his blanket. His warm cozy cocoon vanished in an instant, leaving a rush of cold air to assault him.

"Wake up, kiddo!"

The voice was familiar, but Seth's groggy brain had trouble placing it. He grumbled and rolled over, snatching a pillow to cover his head with. Maybe if he drowned out the voice, it'd go away and he could get back to sleep.

The pillow was also yanked away. "Seth Veregin!"

Hearing his name in a raised voice was just as effective as bucket of ice cold water to the face. He gasped, sitting up and eyes snapping open as a couple of interesting facts blossomed to life in his brain.

He was not alone in his apartment.

A certain old lady towered over his bed, scruffy gray brows inching up her forehead like caterpillars. She held the pillow she'd snagged from him.

Seth failed to stop his jaw from dropping. "What—what are you doing?"

Never mind that, how did she even get into his apartment? He had the only key, and he always made sure to lock the door.

Laughter danced in her dark eyes. "You're late," she said matter-of-factly. "It's almost noon. Get dressed, unless you want to flash your cute penguins around town."

"Late for what? What are you talking about?" He glanced down at the ratty t-shirt and the shorts he usually slept in. His face flamed instantly. Oh no. Just like she mentioned, his shorts were the penguin ones. Again.

He grabbed the blanket and yanked it up to his chest. "Why are you here? How did you get in?"

"I just told you." A very unlady-like snort came from Mrs. Beakor, before she turned away. "I'll wait by the door, kiddo. Hurry up." He heard her chuckle as she left his bedroom and disappeared into his apartment.

Ugh. He pressed his hands against his face. Heat radiated from his skin and ears like a furnace. It was too early in the day to deal with this.

He managed to scrounge up a pair of jeans and a long-sleeved shirt that smelled okay and didn't have any visible stains. After he quickly washed up in the bathroom and got dressed, he cautiously ventured into the living area of his apartment.

Mrs. Beakor was sitting on the coffee table, rifling through the newspaper he'd found outside his door a couple of mornings ago. He stood in awkward silence, not sure what one was supposed to say to an intruder. It was a little alarming to find her in his apartment out of the blue, never mind dragging him out of bed.

Yet one look at her, browsing the newspaper as if she were in her own place, and he couldn't bring himself to tell her to leave. He could only stand helplessly, and hope she said nothing further about his penguins.

"Ready?" She glanced up, her wiry hair bouncing about her head. Her face was perfectly composed, showing no sign of whatever she was thinking. Yet her eyes seemed to laugh at him.

"For what?" There were so many questions whirling in his mind, making him feel a little nauseous. His dropped his eyes to the phone he held in his hand. He'd checked it first thing to see if there were any new notifications, but there wasn't. Not that he expected any. Lydia had said it'd be a few more days.

"Your furniture is at Ivan's," she told him, putting the paper down. "We'll pick that up, and then there's another place I want to take you to."

He frowned, not liking the sound of the last thing. "Where?"

"It's a diner. Nothing scary, I promise." She stood, and went to the door. He followed, though it was more like being tugged along in the currents left in a speedboat's wake.