Tangled in Moonlight: Unshifted (Ava and Lucas)

Chapter 407 Ava: Delirious Mutterings

Vanessa's coming.

Selene's sudden warning jolts me out of my I'm-not-that-tired couch nap. You know, the kind where you sit down and think, I'm not that tired, and wake up hours later? Yeah. One of those.

"Is it about Ivy?" My voice is more croak than words, but thankfully she's able to pluck the words straight out of my head.

I would assume so.

My muscles protest as I shift on the couch, stiff from sleeping in an awkward position. Selene's claws click against the wooden floor as she makes her way to the door, her silver fur catching the dim light. Only one lamp is on, which in hindsight might be why I fell asleep. It's too dark in here.

A sharp, quick succession of knocks rap against the door.

"Come in." My voice is still rough. A series of pops accompany my stretch. Relief floods through my spine, and I cough to clear my throat.

Vanessa opens the door, her hair pulled back in a messy bun. She smells like antiseptic, which isn't unusual for someone in the medical profession.

"Sorry to wake you." She steps inside, looking exhausted. "But I thought you'd want to know about Ivy's condition."

I straighten, my fuzzy brain slowly clearing. "Has something changed?"

"She's stable. Her fever's down, but still elevated. She woke up for a few minutes, but thought I was her mother." Rubbing her eyebrow, Vanessa settles into a chair across from me. "Halfway through our conversation, she fell back asleep. She asked for a strawberry birthday cake."

Not sure how to even respond, I can only stare.

The healer shrugs. "She's not oriented to person, time, or place."

"I see."

fever. Could be whatever this stuff is you're trying to hunt down. Her symptoms are too nonspecific, and our testing abilities here are

burn from exhaustion as I blink at Vanessa. Something's off about this late-night visit—she wouldn't trek through the snow just to tell me Ivy's fever is

aren't you telling

much longer she has to

straightens despite my fatigue. "What?" That sounds distinctly like she's

completely delirious." Vanessa holds up her hands. "She thought I was her mother, remember? She was asking for birthday cake. Whatever she's saying right now, we can't take

in out of nowhere. Fever dreams rarely

often do fevers talk about giving

she say

in her chair. "Her temperature

you felt it was important enough

my eyes. "Because while I agree she's not in her right mind, sometimes delirium reveals truths patients wouldn't normally share. I've seen it

antiseptic smell coming off her grows stronger as she leans forward. "I'm

Blood. Why would Ivy be

was five years old and liked strawberry cake?

like strawberry cake, and I'm an adult.

Does it matter? So sensitive about some strawberry

head are probably killer for

interrogate her. Selene bares her teeth. Wake her up.

proof of anything except that a very sick woman is having fever

too much into it. She also told me she wanted sprinkles on her cake and that her

gibberish or some sort

we can't ignore it,