“It’s Dr. Alessia,” I said with a smile at Eloise.
I wasn’t foregoing a formal title just to be on familiar terms with my new community. It was more complicated than that. When Eloise’s mother had asked for my last name, I realized with a startling jolt that I simply didn’t feel like giving them one.
Before I’d been whisked away to The Isle, I’d been mere minutes away from acquiring a new last name. Smith. I would’ve been Allie Smith had the wedding gone through. It was the most standard of American names, and I hated it. Maybe because I didn’t like Simon, and he was the reason I was becoming aSmith.Or maybe because I now realized I preferred my real first name,instead of the one my mother had seen more fitting for me.
Either way, I hadn’t become Allie Smith. Before Simon, I’d been Allie Wells. Doctor Wells had always been my father. I’d never felt like that name fit either: the Allieorthe Wells. Neither had been mine.
Here, on this island, I finally felt like I’d reclaimed a little piece of myself. A piece that was true only to me—for no other reason than I liked it.
Alessia. Last name TBD.
Eventually, I’d probably go with Wells because what else made sense? But for now, I liked having complete separation of the now from the past. I’d been under the Wells Rule for long enough. I was under my own rule now.
“Dr. Alessia.” A voice broke through my thoughts. “Can you look at my mother? She’s been having these episodes for a while now, and we can’t figure out what’s causing them.”
And so forth it went. For hours. Hours and hours.
“I’m so glad you stuck around.” A pretty blonde made her way to the front of the line after waiting all afternoon beneath the warm sun. “My name’s Poppy. I’m a vampire, and I’m blood intolerant.”
I did a double-blink. “Huh?”
“I’m a vampire, but I really don’t like blood, so my cousin Lily—the Mixologist—crafts this potion thathelps take care of the bloodlust and all my nutritional needs. They’re called Vamp Vites, but I’ve gotta tell you—they’ve been giving me terrible heartburn lately. Is there any chance you might have something to help with that?”
I just stared at Poppy for a long moment. Then muttered that I would get back to her, as Millie shooed this bubbly, blood-intolerant vampire along so someone else could show me their weird-looking bruise.
Apparently everyone on The Isle had an ailment they needed looked at by yours truly. Everything from loose teeth to suspected Alzheimer’s to the common cold. It didn’t take a genius to figure out that most of these people didn’t have any issues at all, except for a burning curiosity to meet the new human doctor.
I’d just given a diagnosis of athlete’s foot to one very grumpy gnome named Chuck along with instructions for proper care when Millie finally waved her hands and cut off the line.
“That’s it for today! We need to let the good doctor get some rest,” Millie announced. “Shoo, everyone. Yes, you too, Chuck. I see you eyeing the pasta salad—take it and scram. And fix your foot fungus while you’re at it. Lily’s given your wife cream at least three times, and you keep refusing to use it.”
Chuck tucked the pasta salad under his arm, then turned his tomato-red nose in the other direction and stomped out of the cottage garden.
The guests slowly cleared out. As the last partygoer left, I turned to find Silas—hoping he was leaning against the fence where I’d last seen him a couple hours ago.
But once the guests had all vanished, it was clear Silas had vanished along with them, leaving me and Millie alone in the garden. I tried to ignore the wave of disappointment that cascaded through me at his absence. There was no reason to feel disappointed. I barely knew Silas. Had I really expected him to stick around holding up a fence post for—how long had I been seeing “patients”?—four hours at least?
“Good job, Doc.” The voice came from behind me. A low rumble of thunder.
I turned to find Silas sidling out of the kitchen. His hands were shoved into his pockets, his dark eyes landing on me.
“Very impressive.” Silas’s brows flicked up with amusement. His words were gentle and playful as he teased, “Curing foot fungus must make you feel like a hero.”
I crossed my arms. “It’s a good thing I spent all that money on medical school.”
“You know most of them didn’t have any real ailments.”
“I’m the doctor,” I said. “Of course I know that.”
“They just wanted to see you. They need something to feel excited about.” Silas shoved his hands in his pockets, his voice softening as he spoke of his fellow islanders. “They’re curious about you.”
“So I gathered. Dr. Alessia—the new exhibit at the Zoo of Odd Humans.”
“Hey, at least you’re the good kind of odd.”
I cocked my head. “Is that a compliment?”
“It didn’t sound that way?” Silas’s eyes glimmered. He stepped closer, furrowed his brow as he studied my face. “You’re exhausted.”
