The Virus Within: Third Wave (Book 2)

Chapter 22

The chain lock on my door twanged, followed by a thud as Nicky bumped her head on the suddenly stationary door. I snorted and shook my head, although I had heard her approaching footsteps long before she had popped the doorknob lock.

"When did you install a chain lock?" Nicky asked in perplexity, staring at the thin chain that was preventing her from barging in.

"This morning."

"Why?"

"Guess..."

"Oh! I bet it's to keep the cleaning staff out! It's so annoying when they move my stuff around to sweep the floor. I don't care about the blankets, but everything else is in a carefully chosen spot. The cleaning staff remind me too much of the nurses and janitors in the psychiatric ward. Can you unlock the door?"

With a heavy sigh, I got off the bed to unlock the chain. The cleaning staff had originally asked if I wanted them to clean my room or sweep the floor, and I had declined. They had never inquired since, and they had certainly never picked the lock on my door. Only one person ever did that.

Nicky bounded into my room and took her usual seat on the corner of my bed. She reached out and wiped some dust off the corner of my dresser. "No wonder you have to lock the door to keep the cleaning staff out. Maybe you should consider doing a bit of dusting in here."

The smell of cleaning chemicals had been potent as a human, and they were almost intolerable now. Besides, dusting was at the very bottom of the fun chores list, even with a water-dampened rag. If I couldn't write my name in it, it was fine. A light brown dresser just let me put off the dreaded task that much longer.

I snorted. "Dust is what gives a home that warm and fuzzy feeling."

Nicky snickered and leaned over to swipe her finger through another dusty section. "Well, it's definitely fuzzy."

"Why exactly did I let you in?" I asked the redhead.

"'Cause I asked. By the way, Nina is amazed you let me in here without killing me. Nightstalkers are supposedly quite territorial about their dens. The one that passed by in the early days couldn't even stand Daniel coming near the cave entrance. That's why neither of them have ever come to this floor."

So that was why they never came to my door. With a shrug, I said, "That's interesting, but that still doesn't tell me why you're up here at this time of day."

"Oh, I came to fetch you for lunch." She bounded back onto her feet. "Your sister seems to miss your presence. I offered to growl for her, but she said it wasn't the same. Let's go!" She skipped past me and out the door without waiting for my reply.

With a sigh, I exited my room and trudged after Nicky. By the time I got there, Jess, Nina, and Daniel were already at the table.

"I heard you missed me."

"Of course," Jess replied, giving me a strange look as I sat down. "Why wouldn't I?"

"We saw each other at breakfast," I replied logically. "Which leads to the question, what are you after?"

Her jaw dropped. "But- How-"

"I'm your sister. Your older sister. Now, what were you going to ask?"

She fiddled with her napkin. "Uh, I was going to ask if we could go looking for some herbs this afternoon. I'm having a hard time finding certain ones."

"And here I thought it was going to be something big." I leaned back in my chair. "Fine, but you better have an example to show me."

"Will dried leaves work?"