Suddenly, nausea rolled in my throat as my heart beat rapidly in my chest as I saw the hyenas and Emily. She stood with her arms wide. A bleeding scrape marred her right cheek. A small child hugged her hips as she made loud noises to seem bigger and scarier. However, I didn’t think it worked since the hyenas stepped closer. Normally, these beasts would run off with all the commotion, but perhaps they were hungry enough and the scent of blood drew them in. Their grunts and cackles made Emily shake. I raised the gun and slipped a dart into the chamber. Once I hit one, the others would hopefully leave her alone.
Suddenly, a massive tan body stepped in front of Emily and the child. The male lion. He roared and the hyenas paced with more grunts.
“Oh shit,” Emily cursed and took a step back, the child moving with her. She couldn’t outrun them or fight them off. I fired, taking down one of the stunned hyenas. Within seconds, I had the next dart loaded and hit another. Without questioning how, once the hyenas started dropping, she grabbed the kid and ran. Good girl.
Once the hyenas were all asleep, I aimed at the lion. He glanced to where Emily had run off and grunted. I hit his shoulder twice and knew the crisis was over. The zoo could get the animal back to safety. I set the gun and tranquilizers next to the melted animal house and searched for Emily. As I neared the front of the zoo, I wondered if my stunt had changed anything other than saving a few lives. This was my future now. No other me was in this city in this time, so I didn’t need to jump and match up.
“V! You’re ok. Oh my god, I was so scared.” Emily squeezed through a group of frantic people and wrapped her arms around me. I sighed and hugged her back so tight I wondered if we’d become one.
“I heard what you did, E.” I tucked my head against hers. She tensed and I wondered if she thought I’d yell at her. While it wasn’t a smart decision, Emily was a protector. She cared about everyone and would always try to help others. It’s who she was. “You are so brave, and I’m in awe of you.” She shook in my arms, and I held onto her until an ambassador of the zoo interrupted to let us know everything they could about the incident and where to receive full year passes and first aid services.
“I’m so glad everyone was ok and the animals weren’t hurt,” Emily said with her hand in mine. I don’t know when we started holding hands, but I wasn’t about to let hers go. I nodded and kept my thoughts to myself. Something else happened here, and for the life of me, I couldn’t recall hearing anything about it on the news in my past. My hero senses tingled and I doubted it was a simple accident. Thankfully, no one was injured.
“I know you said you wanted to talk, but I think the adrenaline is wearing off. I wanna find Selene, make sure they’re ok, clean up, and take a nap. Unless it’s important.” She yawned, and while I had been intending to tell her about my powers, it could wait. I wanted to get home to my timeline and see what actually happened today.
Chapter Fourteen
Emily
“I know it’s hard, but trust me, a shower will help. Just focus on one step at a time, nothing else, ok?” I assisted the young Ms. Collingswood out of the hospital bed, her fingers limp on my arm. She’d been admitted for severe depression. Her family found her lying on the couch. She hadn’t moved in days. No eating, no drinking, nothing. She didn’t want to exist, so she tried to stop.
“One step,” I whispered with every bit of kindness I possessed.
“You just want to change me,” she whispered back, her voice cracking with each word. She’d been so weak when they brought her to our wing. I held onto her and we took a step.
“I want you where you are. If you’re not feeling ok, then that’s where you are and I’m here for you. You don’t need to be happy for me to care.” While it was my job to care, there were plenty of nurses who didn’t. Most of the time, the patients were able to maintain their mental health. Some weren’t, which sucked, but that’s life. I was glad I got to be a small light in their dark for even a brief moment.
Her hand squeezed and my body warmed. She felt my words.
“You remind me of my mom. Like when I was sick. Like I could drip boogers all over her, and she’d wipe me up and snuggle close.” I turned on the shower and pulled the curtain between us for privacy.
“Boogers aren’t that scary,” I teased then got back to instructing her.
“If you feel faint, let me know, Ms. Collingswood.”
“Call me Kate, please.” I smiled. This was a step forward, and I was glad I was a part of it.
“Alright, Kate. Let’s get you cleaned up, dressed, and I’ll snag something from the vending machine for you. Any preferences?”
“A cinnamon bun.” She sounded lighter.
“Oh, that does sound good.” I groaned thinking about food. I hadn’t eaten yet, with the hope Vincent would join me for lunch. Which sort of churned my stomach because I didn’t know what I was doing anymore.
Truthfully, ever since we met, we’d grown closer. We pretended our compliments meant nothing and that each touch wasn’t a full need to connect. I wanted him, and I wanted him bad. Which twisted my gut every time I thought of him and me in those futures I saw through Phillip.
“I’m done,” Kate announced, and I blindly handed her a towel. I’d been so caught up in Vincent thoughts, that I forgot where I stood. Kate was my priority right now.
Once she dried and stepped into her fresh clothes, I snuck down the hall to grab us snacks, and Kate blessed me with a white-teeth grin as I entered the room again.
“I feel safe here,” she murmured as I opened the package and set it on the rolling table on her right.
“You are very safe here. We’ve got guards everywhere and the best doctors and nursing staff in the state. Plus, our kitchen is pretty amazing. No food poisoning from our hospital.” It was safe to say I liked where I worked. Kate grinned and shook her head.
“No. With you. I feel like I don’t have to be ok. That I’m safe to be as I am. Vulnerable.” She nodded to herself, then picked a piece of the cinnamon bun and ate it gently.
“I’m glad you feel that way.” I reached out to touch her hand, and my skin warmed against hers. She sighed and grabbed another bite, a bigger one. I was glad she liked the snack. It wasn’t on the approved list, and while I might get in trouble for the treat, I felt she needed it.
“It reminds me of my girlfriend in high school. We were each other’s safe havens. I simply was, and she loved me. There wasn’t anything I could do that would push her away, and I never tried to. It was nice to have that safe place in someone else you know.” The bun in my hands stilled inches from my mouth. Besides Selene, I didn’t know. My dad had been a place for a short time, but then he married Chastine’s mom and well… I retreated inward. Those years were the worst. I had no one. No one to help me as I struggled to shower, to find the will to live.
