Already, my spirit was longing to go back. But the wary look in Arthur’s eye made me hesitate to ask again.
I couldn’t fathom why our fae ancestors had left home. I knew we’d more or less been kicked out by the gods by our incessant fighting, but why couldn’t the fae just get along? Seelie or Unseelie, nothing was worth losing home. A land of your own was a terrible trade for war.
Bapa saw the concerned look on my face and seemed to read my mind. “Fae are violent creatures, Emma. We fight, we mislead, we manipulate, and we kill. It is what we were made to do.”
“It seems cruel that the gods would make us that way.” Was it really our fault we’d been banished from such a beautiful land?
“Perhaps,” Bapa said, and he puffed on his pipe. “But do you ask a lion why he acts like a lion? No. This is who we are, and we cannot be told to be different. We aren’t human. We never will be. The best we can do is control our worst urges, and tame the beast inside.”
Bapa chewed the end of his pipe. “Though no matter what we do, it will always run wild.”
When I got backto school, Odette bounced up to me. Delmare and Kiara were in her wake.
“Ooh, Emma, there’s a new holistic shop opening up in Dolinska,” Odette gushed. “We want to go!”
I was interested in holistic medicine, and holistic magic. I wasn’t very educated on it yet, but Babcia said that Unseelie were particularly practiced in holistics, and so, I wanted to learn more about it.
“I’ve got to pick up my meds from the pharmacy,” I said. “Then we can head there right away.”
“We’ll come with you,” Delmare offered. We climbed the stairs up to the student pharmacy. I waited in line, then gave the pharmacist my name and date of birth when I got to the counter.
She scrolled through the computer. The pharmacist frowned slightly, and said, “I’m sorry, but there’s nothing here for you.”
A bit of anxiety ate away at my gut. It had to be some sort of mistake. “Can you check again?” I asked. I’d never had trouble getting my medication before.
The pharmacist did. As she scrolled, her eyes widened. “I apologize. There is a notice in the system,” the pharmacist said as she leaned closer to her computer. “It says your insurance coverage ended as of January sixth of this year. You’re no longer covered.”
My mind raced. January sixth? I couldn’t fathom what—
Then it hit me. That was the day after Ethan’s trial. As his mate, I’d been on his insurance after universal healthcare in Malovia was terminated. I’d been receiving medical care as a part of the royal family.
Ethan no longer had a title. He wasn’t covered by insurance.
And neither was I.
“It says a letter was sent to your student mail notifying you of the decision,” the pharmacist said, like I was stupid. “You should be checking your notifications.”
My hands clenched. I hadn’t received a damn thing. This had come out of nowhere. “So, this means I no longer have health insurance?”
“I’m afraid so. If you don’t have insurance, you’ll have to pay for the medicine outright,” the pharmacist said. “We take checks.”
“How… how much is it?” I asked, already fearing the answer.
“Two-thousand Malovian dollars.”
“For one week’s worth of treatment?” I yelped.
“I don’t make the rules.” She glanced behind me. “If you can’t afford to pay, please, get out of line. You’re holding people up.”
“Ineedthis medicine,” I pleaded. “Without it, I’ll die.”
“I’m sorry, but that’s not my problem.” The pharmacist’s look was cold. I was convinced she truly didn’t care.
Delmare shoved her way beside me and slammed her hand down on the counter. “This is bullshit! I swear to the gods, I will hex this place to the ground if you don’t fix this!”
“Ifyoudon’t remove yourself from the area this instant, I’ll call the police,” the pharmacist snapped. She reached for her phone, like she was going to do it.
We couldn’t afford another run-in with the Arcanea Alliance. We were already under suspicion for helping Ethan with his vigilante business. They couldn’t prove we were involved, but I bet the police would love to pin something else on us.
