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  She scaled over the pile of rocks, pushed herself roughly through the opening at the top, and slid down the other side. She ran at breakneck speed back up the tunnel, bursting through the rotting planks covering the entrance. She blazed by the belongings she’d brought with her – they didn’t matter. All that mattered was getting back as quickly as she could. She ran for all she was worth. Back to the village, back to Selaine, back to Alexander. If she ran hard enough – she might still have enough time.

  Nora raced down the now-empty streets through the darkness. Lights lit up a few windows, but most of the homes around her stood empty. Turning a familiar corner, she found herself staring at Selaine’s shop. A pale light appeared from the upper window.

  Nora burst through the side door. She consciously slowed her movement, but still took the stairs three at a time and ran into the upper room, swinging the door open violently. There, she found Selaine sitting behind her desk, eyeing Nora calmly.

  “You came back fast, girl.”

  “I hitched a ride,” Nora lied.

  “Did you find what you were looking for?”

  “No,” Nora said. “But I found something else. Something you did not tell me of.”

  “Everybody finds what they need underground,” Selaine answered cryptically.

  “What does that mean?” Nora demanded. Then, realizing the most obvious question, added, “Have you seen to Alexander yet?”

  “In such a wild rush,” Selaine said smoothly. “Strange, for a girl to be so out of breath if she hitched a ride to town.”­

  Nora didn’t have time for the riddles. Why couldn’t Selaine just give a straight answer? “I want to know about Alexander. Have you tended to him?”

  Selaine smiled. “Always so independent, as well. No regard for her elders. Not even a simple ‘hello’, or ‘how are you.’”

  Nora walked up to the desk. “Look,” she said heatedly, “you promised you would take care of him while I was away. Have you had time to prepare the herbs, or not?”

  Selaine reached under her desk, and pulled out a small glass flask. Inside was a small amount of a thick, dark brown liquid. The flask was held closed by a cork stopper. “I have what you need, Nora,” Selaine said. “The question is, do you?”

  Nora sighed with relief. At least the herbs had been prepared. She ignored Selaine’s question. “Have you given it to him?”

  Selaine smiled again and waved the flask in front of Nora’s face. “This is what I have, girl. It is up to you to administer it to your friend. He is in luck, it seems. It was getting late, and I had thought to wait until morning, but with you here, you can give it to him tonight.”

  “You thought to wait?” Nora asked incredulously. “You said he was dying! You said without it he would die!”

  “I said that, yes,” Selaine mused. “But while you were gone, I also took the liberty of visiting your friend once. He is strong, like I said, and has been fighting the poison with all he’s worth. So well, in fact, that I think he may have gained a slight edge. I do not know what did it, but I know that while he was in grave condition before, he is more stable now.”

  “Oh.” Nora relaxed. A bit. “That’s…good.” She reached out to take the flask from Selaine’s hands, but Selaine pulled back.

  “Nuh-uh,” she said provocatively. “I won’t give this to you until you give me what you went to search for. The mushrooms?”

  “Oh. No, I…” she cleared her throat, and continued with a stronger resolve. “I didn’t find them. But like I said, I found something else. A doorway. Or…something. It was carved with various designs and strange letterings. I tried to get past it, to open it, but I couldn’t. I was hoping you might know of it.”

  “A doorway?” Selaine asked, raising an eyebrow. Although she did not sound surprised. “Tell me, was it made of grey stone? Did the surface feel like lacquered tile?”

  “Yes,” Nora nodded. “You do know of it!”

  “It is written in the histories of our tribe that such a place exists. Although… I was not aware it had been discovered in the mines. Foreigners, those who know nothing of the history of the native peoples, were the workers there. They would not have recognized it for what it is.”

  “And what is that?” Nora asked.

  “An ancient archive,” Selaine replied smoothly, “protected by the spirits of earth and fire. It was put in the care of our ancestors long ago. It is said, in the legends, that powerful beings entrusted the people of this region with the safeguarding of the archive. Entrusted it to the native tribes that called this place home, before the westerners came. But knowledge of it has faded as generations passed. Save for the circle of chiefs of the Inuksuk people, I believe I am the only who would recognize it today. But tell me, child, how did you come across it?”

  “The pathway split,” Nora explained. “There were three tunnels. The way was blocked down two of them. I could not get past. It was only once I went down the third, in search of the mushrooms, that I came across it.”

  “The paths were blocked?” Selaine replied, the corners of her eyes tightening.

  “Yes,” Nora said. “The roof had collapsed, in one. And a…a wide fissure developed, in the other. There was no way through.”

  “And the third way…it led to the doorway?”

  “Yes.”

  Selaine leaned back and exhaled deeply. “An unfortunate finding. Without the mushrooms, your friend…he will not survive the week.”

  Chapter Twenty-One

  ~To Heal Again~

  Nora stepped back in shock. It felt as if she’d been punched hard in her stomach, and all the breath escaped her lungs.

  She was no fool. She knew in the back of her mind that without the mushrooms Alexander’s fate was already sealed, but hearing Selaine say it out loud made it so much more palpable. So much more real. There was no hiding from the knowledge anymore.

  She felt trapped within a horrible void, a life-numbing and soul-sucking void of despair and anguish.

  “But the archive,” she began desperately, “you said you know of it! You must know how it operates, how to open it! Tell me, I will go there again!”

  “Calm yourself, Nora. When fate stares you straight in the face, you do not cower in fear. Rather, you welcome it with open arms. And when the time comes…you must be ready to embrace your fate.”

  “How do I get inside?” Nora repeated, not hearing what Selaine was saying.

  “That is a question that has been asked many times.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “It means,” Selaine replied calmly, “that the doors are said to open for some, but not for others.”

  “For who?” Nora demanded.

  Selaine spread her hands. “If I knew, I would tell you. But I do not.”

  “So do you…” Nora swallowed, “…do you mean there is no hope for Alexander?”

  “There is always hope, child, but sometimes it is like a piece of string when you’re drowning. It is simply not enough to get you out by itself.”

  Nora stared at Selaine in disbelief. Was this the end for Alexander? Had she failed him so completely? “What hope is there?” Nora asked despondently. “If the way is blocked, it means you…you cannot make the antidote.”

  Selaine sighed again. “There is nothing for me to say that will ease your worries. And that should not be my intention in either case. But for now, you can give him this.” She pushed the flask across the table to Nora. “Give it to him tonight, and come see me tomorrow. We will recoup then. The herbs I put together should ease his suffering. But it is not a cure, only a mask. We will see how long it holds.”

  “Okay,” Nora said. “I will.” If the brown liquid in the small flask was her last string of hope, she would grip it with all her worth.

  “Place two drops on the wound,” Selaine instructed, handing Nora the flask, “and give him the rest to swallow. The taste is vile, he may fight when he feels it against his tongue, but you must ensure he gets every drop.”<
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  “Every drop,” Nora repeated to herself. She turned around, holding on to the small glass bottle as if her life depended on it.

  Alexander’s life did depend on it.

  She ran down the stairs and rushed outside. Pushing the door open with one shoulder, she was startled when she came face-to-face with a tall, dark man with shoulder-length hair. He looked just as surprised to see her, his hand frozen in place where he had started to reach for the door.

  “Excuse me,” Nora muttered, brushing by. Right away, she could smell him – smell the human essence that breathed life into him and made him whole, the tangy-sweet smell of human blood. It should have called to her, but it didn’t. Her mind was set on getting the remedy in her hands to Alexander as soon as possible.

  Absently, she wondered who the man was to visit Selaine so late at night. It didn’t matter. All that mattered was getting to Alexander.

  She started jogging down the street, then, seeing that nobody was around, picked up her pace and ran. It wasn’t far, going at her speed, but every passing second pressed down on her shoulders with the weight of a thousand boulders.

  She sped down the streets, crossing intersections and flying by buildings, until she was at the very edge of town. Just when she could see the barn in the distance, she stopped dead in her tracks. She looked back over her shoulder. The man she brushed against outside Selaine’s shop – he had that distinct human smell. Yet, compared to Selaine’s smell, it was so much more potent, so much more vivid. Maybe Nora was just imagining it all, but it occurred to her for the first time that Selaine’s smell was…just a little bit off. Dulled, a bit, perhaps. But the urgency of getting to Alexander made her press forward instead of dwelling on the discovery or turning back.

  She ran to the barn entrance. Somebody had propped a large, rectangular piece of plywood against it, making a semblance of a door. Nora squeezed by it and went inside.

  Immediately, her eyes found Alexander. He was in the same spot he had been when she left him, but a cot had been made for him, complete with wool blankets and pillows. A few candles that were nearly burned out stood around his bed, providing a weak, flickering light that Nora didn’t need. His body was under the covers, and a damp rag lay on his forehead. She reprimanded herself for getting impatient with Selaine – by the looks of it, she had tended to him much better than Nora ever had. Still, Nora all but ran over to the makeshift bed, sliding to her knees beside it.

  “Oh, Alexander,” she whispered, lifting the rag on his head and carefully flipping it over. He was still hot, though not as bad as before. He looked so peaceful with his eyes closed. It was as if, like Selaine had said, he had embraced his fate. No. Not yet. You can’t leave yet!

  His breaths came slower than before. They were more shallow. No matter what Selaine told her about him fighting off the poison, it was clear to Nora that he was nearing his last stand.

  Carefully, slowly, she rolled down the top of the blanket that was pressed up to his neck and revealed the sickening wound. She winced. The actual wound seemed slightly tighter, more constricted at the edges, but the discoloration of the skin had spread to a much wider radius around it. Alexander’s entire shoulder and nearly half of his upper-chest were now a nauseating black-stained yellow. The contrast against his otherwise perfectly-white skin only emphasized the severity of his condition.

  Two drops on the wound, the rest for him to swallow. Taking great care, Nora twisted off the cork stopper. As soon as it popped open, a vile, horrific stench stained the air, catching Nora off guard. The smell permeated deep into her nostrils and clung to the top of her throat, its harsh edge uncompromising and stinging all at once. It soiled her clothes and scratched at her eyes.

  She started to cough violently. Her eyes watered, and she kept coughing. Despite her best efforts, she couldn’t stop the coughing fit that overtook her. She turned away from that vile stench, to breathe in the cleaner air around her. That made it a little better.

  Slowly, the initial shock of the smell started to wear off. Slightly. She dabbed at her eyes with one hand, wiping them clear, and pulled her shirt over her nose to avoid smelling the brown liquid in the flask. She couldn’t imagine what the ingredients of it were for it to smell that bad.

  Gathering herself, she looked over at Alexander again. She picked up the small bottle, gripping it tightly by its neck. As she carried it over Alexander’s still body, she realized her hands were trembling, her breath ragged.

  Two drops on the wound, and the rest for him to swallow.

  Nora took a deep breath and tried her best to stop her hand from shaking. Slowly, she tipped the flask over directly above Alexander’s wound. She watched as the liquid started to pool together near the edge of the rim. She waited, tilting the flask a hair-breadth’s more, for a drop to form out of the pool. It did, slowly, and Nora watched as it grew larger, dangling precariously as it gained weight and was beckoned down by gravity.

  It broke away and fell down through the air to make contact with Alexander’s wound. Immediately, the liquid started to sizzle violently, like an egg dropped on a too-hot frying pan. As it bubbled, it seemed to thin itself out, and either Nora’s eyes deceived her, or that single drop began to expand, growing large enough to thinly cover the entire wound. Bubbles rose from the edges, but the sizzling died out.

  Again, Nora tilted the flask with deliberate care to pool out a second drop. It fell and landed perfectly on the same spot as the first drop. However, instead of bubbling or sizzling, this one only started to react with the layer the first drop had created. It changed the consistency of the coating. Nora stared in amazement as the deep red of the wound shifted to a more natural, softer red. And the skin around the wound slowly lost some of its harsh edge, regaining a bit of the tone of Alexander’s natural skin color.

  Alexander groaned and shifted to take the weight off his shoulder. His jaw was clenched, and his eyes shut tight.

  Two drops on the wound, and the rest for him to swallow.

  Gently, she lifted Alexander’s head and brought the flask to his lips. Then she poured the liquid into his mouth.

  With a gasp, Alexander’s eyes shot open. They were wide, but not seeing. Vainly, he tried to push away the bottle held at his lips, but Nora kept it there. He struggled, thrashing against her grip, but she held him tight. Maybe a quarter of the liquid had already made its way into his mouth. His eyes closed, and he fell back, dropping away from the flask.

  Again, Nora brought the flask to his lips, and again poured it into his mouth. This time, she was ready for his struggle, and she pushed herself over his upper body to keep him still. He fought against her again as soon as the remedy touched his tongue, thrashing every which way, but Nora held him down. He twisted his head away, and she followed him with the flask, forcing the mixture down his throat until all of the liquid was gone. After the last drop had come out, Nora leaned back, relieved that it was over.

  Alexander coughed weakly. Spasms ran across his entire body. Nora watched, worriedly, as wave after wave overtook him.

  Had she done something wrong? His entire body convulsed, again and again, and all Nora could do was watch.

  Just as suddenly as the onslaught started, it stopped. And his eyes slowly fluttered open. He turned his head weakly toward her.

  “Madison?” he asked uncertainly.

  “No,” Nora answered, saddened by the pain in his voice and the conflict in his eyes.

  He turned his head to look back up. He squeezed his eyes shut and then opened them again. He tried to shift his weight up, to move up into a sitting position, but his body was too weak to listen. He closed his eyes again, and his jaw clenched.

  “I won’t let you go,” Nora whispered. “Not like this.”

  Again, his eyes came open. But this time, when he moved to look at her, she saw recognition in his gaze. “N…Nora?”

  “You know me,” she breathed, joy overcoming shock. “You remember!”

  He furrowed his brow and shoo
k his head. “What…what are you talking about? Of course I know you, Nora.” His voice was barely above a whisper.

  “Yes,” Nora said. “I was so worried about you.”

  “Worried…? Why?” He coughed. “I’ve been so far away. So far from everything…” His eyes started to glaze over.

  “No!” Nora exclaimed, gripping his hand. “Stay with me.”

  “It’s calling to me, Nora,” he muttered, barely moving his lips. “The sweet embrace of death. The final end. The release from this world. It’s…calling me.”

  “No,” Nora said again, heat entering her voice. “You can’t go!”

  “…the release…” he said softly, as he exhaled, closing his eyes.

  Nora strengthened her grip on his hand and held it tight. She saw his face, saw the pain he was in, and her heart went out to him. “I will keep you here,” she promised. “For Madison.” The words felt dirty to say, after all the pain Madison had caused her. But if it was what Alexander needed…

  “Madison?” His eyes opened, and Nora saw recognition again. And…relief. “She is here?”

  “Not yet,” Nora whispered reassuringly. “But she will come. Soon.” It pained her to lie to him.

  He looked at her. His eyes slowly sharpened, until she could feel his gaze on her face. “I see you, Nora,” he said.

  “I see you too, Alexander,” Nora whispered. Tears started to build up behind her eyes, and she blinked quickly to hold them back. Her heart felt heavy. “Don’t fade away.”

  “You are…so beautiful. Your transformation…it has made you so much stronger. Keep that strength, Nora. Your youth, granted to you forever.” He coughed again and looked away. “Madison was right,” he said softly, “we shouldn’t have split up. But I insisted on it, dammit! We had to protect you.”

  “What?” Nora couldn’t understand what he was saying. Was he delusional again?

  “Hunter. He…cares for you. Do not doubt that.”

  Nora smiled sadly and took Alexander’s hand again. “No,” she told him gently. “He left me in the woods. All I have is you.”