Cat's Out - Book 2

Chapter 13 - visiting hours

If I weren't a little scary myself, I might be terrified to walk home alone. Especially after another lurching man joined the first as he passed by the Frosty Freeze. Neither looked in my direction. I considered following them, but decided that I'd done enough recon for one week and needed some time to think.

The uphill climb back to my mother's house feels good. Despite my nocturnal wanderings, my legs need a good stretch. But when I walk into our kitchen to see my mother nursing a glass of wine at the table, I know my night will be anything but restful.

"Mom?" I stop in the doorway. "Something wrong?"

She turns her reddened eyes up to me. How many tears could this woman shed in two days? "Yes, sweetie."

I drop into a chair. "Is it Star?" What a stupid question. Of course she's still upset.

But she shakes her head. "No...no, it's Jacqueline. She's back in the hospital."

"What? Why?"

"She ran a high fever and slipped into unonciousness." She sips her wine. "I'm sure it's just a reaction from..."

If I'd been paying attention to all I'd seen and heard, I might have reacted more quickly. But the neurons are firing slowly these days. "Where'd they take her?"

"Beaumont. But we can't...it's late. They won't let us in."

And I can see my mother is in no condition to drive. Something nags at me. The pieces of the gigantic puzzle I'd been puzzling over begin to fall into place. The druggies who are practically zombies. Their addiction to The Dark. The demons that stalk Jack.

Shit.

"I don't feel well," I said. "I'm going upstairs to lie down."

Thank God my mother is several sheets into the wind. If she'd been fully sober, she may have wanted to talk about it for a while. She only nods and stares into her glass.

I don't go upstairs, but head straight back out the front door. I consider changing into the cat, but that may make it more difficult to get into the hospital. I'm pretty sure their "no pets" policy included large carnivores. But running in human form would take over an hour. My car keys press into my thigh. Time for plan C.

Before I even turn over the engine, I'm concocting excuses for the dressing down I'd surely get when I got back. Hopefully, it would be soon, my worries proving to be nothing more than silly paranoia.

By the time I reach Beumont, following the directions of my Waze app, I count six more of the zombies lurching down the sidewalks. This does not help my anxiety level. I park the car in a doctor's spot and slip into the quiet building. Getting past the empty front desk is easy enough, but I know that, once I step off the elevator, things might get hairy. No pun intended.

The elevator. Oh crap. I don't even know which floor she's on. I stare at the signs next to the elevators. Where would they take a girl with a high fever? After ruling out oncology and pediatrics, I decide on ICU. I hop on the elevator and punch the button for the sixth floor.

As soon as the doors open, I know I'm in the right place. The smell of rotten eggs is overpowering. But more than that alerts me. Nurses are running through the hall and yelling at each other. A young Asian doctor is frantic at an open door to a patient's room.

I already know before I race through the hall, ignoring the shouts at me from the nurses. I reach the doctor and peer into the room at an empty bed.

"My friend," I say, "Jacqueline...is this her room?"

The doctor nods slowly. "You shouldn't be here."

"But I am here. Where is she?"

He squeezes his eyes shut and takes a trembling breath. "She's gone."