shook my head. "You're not only a doctor, are you?"
"He's half practitioner," Noah piped up. "We're lucky to have him."
Dr. Barrett bowed. "You're very kind," he said in his smooth accent. "Well, I must get back to work." He started for his lab, and then stopped. "As soon as you find your answers, you will let me know, won't you?" he said over his shoulder before continuing on.
I stared at the books in my hand. Most practitioners had more intuition going for them than your average person. Some went beyond that into psychic abilities, though they were rare. Like Noah, most people were thrilled when they found one. As for me, psychics tended to make me squirm. What if Dr. Barrett realized what I was?
The sooner I got all of us out of here, the better, I decided, remembering something I wanted to check into.
"Where can I find Rosalind this time of day?" I asked Noah as we left the library.
"She usually reports to Alpha Ryker after breakfast."
"Then I think it's time I paid my respects."
He swallowed and his eyes went wide. "But—"
"With or without you, kid." Because there was a flaw in Rosalind's incarceration policy where Cooper was concerned and I was very interested in pointing it out to her. If I could do it in front of his brother, even better.
* * *
I found my way back to the breezeway without too much trouble, giving me hope that I might actually learn my way around this maze someday. Deg spotted me when I stepped out onto the stairs and sprinted toward me at Were speed. He blocked my progress halfway to the third tier and glowered down at me, his fists clenched.
"Sorry Deg, no time to embarrass you in front of your friends again." I sidestepped around him, but he crossed in front of me again, his face nearly purple with fury. Behind me, I could feel Noah's fear amping up and I hoped he had the sense to turn around and make a fast getaway before things went ugly.
"I'm going to kick your ass," Deg snarled.
I looked him up and down and then met his gaze. A smart-ass comment tried to push past my clenched teeth, but I held it in. There was a time and a place for everything and right now I was on a mission to help Cooper. "Yeah, okay," I finally said when he kept glaring at me.
He stared at me harder, his breath coming faster. I swear, he looked like he was about to explode.
"And now you win?" I guessed.
Stepping down, Deg brought himself level with me and leaned in. "If you're in the infirmary less than a week I'll be disappointed."
"Um...okay." What the hell was this mountainous loser talking about?
"The training ring. Five o'clock." And he stomped down the stairs.
Noah crept up to me, rubbing his hands on his jeans. "Oh man. Oh man," he whispered.
"Did I just get challenged?" I asked, watching Deg stalk across the grass and back to his friends.
Noah shoved his hands in his front pockets and bounced up and down on the balls of his feet. "Uh, huh."
"What's happened to good manners? I ask you."
"You shouldn't have kept staring at him."
"I'm human." Kind of .
"If you'd dropped your gaze and groveled a little, his pride would've been saved and everything would be okay."
"Then I guess it's a fight, because I don't do groveling." I started up the stairs again. Noah hurried after me.
"Please don't confront the Captain too," he squeaked.
"It's my moral obligation to do exactly that. You see, I've become aware of a serious discrepancy in Rosalind's penal system of a prejudiced type nature."
"Huh?"
"She's not treating her prisoners fairly." I reached the top breezeway and stomped toward the extra elaborately-carved door at the end. Hauling it open, I marched into the cool interior of a long hall and continued toward the only door and the two guards posted outside of it. Looked like I'd come to the right place.
The guards' beady Were eyes landed on me and then slid off to lock onto a point beyond my shoulder. The irritation in their expressions compressed into anger. "He had
"He's half practitioner," Noah piped up. "We're lucky to have him."
Dr. Barrett bowed. "You're very kind," he said in his smooth accent. "Well, I must get back to work." He started for his lab, and then stopped. "As soon as you find your answers, you will let me know, won't you?" he said over his shoulder before continuing on.
I stared at the books in my hand. Most practitioners had more intuition going for them than your average person. Some went beyond that into psychic abilities, though they were rare. Like Noah, most people were thrilled when they found one. As for me, psychics tended to make me squirm. What if Dr. Barrett realized what I was?
The sooner I got all of us out of here, the better, I decided, remembering something I wanted to check into.
"Where can I find Rosalind this time of day?" I asked Noah as we left the library.
"She usually reports to Alpha Ryker after breakfast."
"Then I think it's time I paid my respects."
He swallowed and his eyes went wide. "But—"
"With or without you, kid." Because there was a flaw in Rosalind's incarceration policy where Cooper was concerned and I was very interested in pointing it out to her. If I could do it in front of his brother, even better.
* * *
I found my way back to the breezeway without too much trouble, giving me hope that I might actually learn my way around this maze someday. Deg spotted me when I stepped out onto the stairs and sprinted toward me at Were speed. He blocked my progress halfway to the third tier and glowered down at me, his fists clenched.
"Sorry Deg, no time to embarrass you in front of your friends again." I sidestepped around him, but he crossed in front of me again, his face nearly purple with fury. Behind me, I could feel Noah's fear amping up and I hoped he had the sense to turn around and make a fast getaway before things went ugly.
"I'm going to kick your ass," Deg snarled.
I looked him up and down and then met his gaze. A smart-ass comment tried to push past my clenched teeth, but I held it in. There was a time and a place for everything and right now I was on a mission to help Cooper. "Yeah, okay," I finally said when he kept glaring at me.
He stared at me harder, his breath coming faster. I swear, he looked like he was about to explode.
"And now you win?" I guessed.
Stepping down, Deg brought himself level with me and leaned in. "If you're in the infirmary less than a week I'll be disappointed."
"Um...okay." What the hell was this mountainous loser talking about?
"The training ring. Five o'clock." And he stomped down the stairs.
Noah crept up to me, rubbing his hands on his jeans. "Oh man. Oh man," he whispered.
"Did I just get challenged?" I asked, watching Deg stalk across the grass and back to his friends.
Noah shoved his hands in his front pockets and bounced up and down on the balls of his feet. "Uh, huh."
"What's happened to good manners? I ask you."
"You shouldn't have kept staring at him."
"I'm human." Kind of .
"If you'd dropped your gaze and groveled a little, his pride would've been saved and everything would be okay."
"Then I guess it's a fight, because I don't do groveling." I started up the stairs again. Noah hurried after me.
"Please don't confront the Captain too," he squeaked.
"It's my moral obligation to do exactly that. You see, I've become aware of a serious discrepancy in Rosalind's penal system of a prejudiced type nature."
"Huh?"
"She's not treating her prisoners fairly." I reached the top breezeway and stomped toward the extra elaborately-carved door at the end. Hauling it open, I marched into the cool interior of a long hall and continued toward the only door and the two guards posted outside of it. Looked like I'd come to the right place.
The guards' beady Were eyes landed on me and then slid off to lock onto a point beyond my shoulder. The irritation in their expressions compressed into anger. "He had
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