Leaning back, Dr. Mape looked out my window and to the other wing. "She should be commended for raising a child to the age of reason, not hunted down like an animal when an accident occurs. Did you know that until a banshee reaches about the age of five, anyone who touches her aside from her mother is considered a food source? Even her own human father."
"Is that so," I said, thinking Remus had held her without a slip of his aura being taken, when everyone around was being slowly siphoned. "Forgive me if I'm not all flowers and hearts over her predicament. That woman handed Holly to me, knowing she would kill me. That child very nearly killed Glenn. Mia herself has killed people, they just haven't tied them to her yet. I'm all for staying alive, but I don't kill people to do it."
Dr. Mape looked at me impassively. "Of course I sympathize with you and Mr. Glenn, but in most situations, banshees take only the dregs of society. I've seen much worse human-on-human predation, and what Mia did was for her survival."
"In whose judgment?" I said snottily, then forced myself to relax. This was the woman who was going to give me my work excuse.
Again, Dr. Mape was untouched, and she leaned over to put an elbow on her knee so she could study me. "My question is why you suffered significantly less damage than Mr. Glenn. Humans and witches have the same aura strength."
"Know all about us, huh?" I said, then bit my tongue. She's not the enemy. She's not the enemy.
"Actually, I do. That's why I took you as a patient." She hesitated, then added, "I'm sorry, Ms. Morgan. They won't allow you on the witches' floor anymore because of your demon scars. I'm all you've got."
I stared at her. Excuse me? They wouldn't treat me because of my demon scars? What did my scars have to do with it? It wasn't like I was a black witch. "But you'll treat me?" I said bitterly.
"I took a vow to protect life. The same belief that causes me to look upon that banshee mother with compassion is why I agreed to treat you. I'd rather judge a person on why they make the choices they do rather than the cold facts of what they choose."
I settled back, wondering if it was wisdom or a cop-out. Dr. Mape stood, and my gaze followed her up. "I know Captain Edden from when his wife was attacked," she said. "He told me how you got your demon marks. I've see what's left of your aura. And now I've seen your friends. Pixies don't give their loyalty lightly."
I frowned as she turned to leave. Turning back, she asked, "Why do you think you came in semiconscious and Mr. Glenn remained unconscious for three days?"
"I don't know." I really didn't think it was from the demon marks. If it had been, then black witches couldn't be harmed by banshees, and I knew that wasn't true. It had to be because I was a…a proto-demon, but I wasn't going to tell her that.
"Your survival of the Rosewood syndrome?" she questioned. "That's what my colleagues support."
It was too close to what I suspected, and I forced myself to look at her and shrug.
She hesitated, to be sure I wasn't going to say any more, then turned to leave.
"Hey, what about my catheter?" I shot after her, wanting some small part of myself back.
"I'll have a nurse come in," she said. "You'll be staying with us for a few days, Ms. Morgan. I hope you feel comfortable enough to talk to me soon."
My jaw dropped as she closed the door with a firm thump. So that was her game. She wouldn't release me until I satisfied her curiosity. Well, to hell with that. I had stuff to do.
The faint, familiar clatter of dragonfly wings drew my attention to the top of the tall wardrobe. "Jenks!" I said, warming. "I thought you were gone."
He flitted down, darting back and forth before landing on my knee. "I've never seen a catheter taken out," he said smugly.
"And you never will. God! Get out before the nurse gets here." But he only moved to the flowers and started to take the dead bits off.
"You're stuck here until you talk, eh?" he said. "Mind if Matalina and I borrow your jewelry box? We have got to get away from the kids for a while."
"Euwie, Jenks!" I didn't want to know. "I'm out of here as soon as I can stand up," I said as I tried to get the thought of Matalina with her feet among my earrings out of my head. "Six o'clock at the latest."
I stretched experimentally, wincing. One way or another, I was leaving. Al expected me for my lesson, and if I didn't show up in the ley line, he'd track me down. A demon in a hospital would do wonders for my reputation. 'Course that was one way to get out of here.
Jenks turned, his clever hands folding a daisy petal up to hold a handful of pollen. "Yeah? You think they're going to just let you walk out of here? Dr. Frankenstein wants you for her science experiment."
I smiled, feeling my pulse begin to quicken and anticipation warm my blood all the way to my toes. "Walk out of here is exactly what I'm going to do. I didn't spend my formative years in the hospital and learn nothing about how to sneak out."
Jenks just smiled.
