Page 90 of Thrall
“…Beg pardon?” Laurentius said.
“I mean, not forever, obviously,” Lucy said. “But I just don’t know yet, so—I’d like to extend my decision timeline a bit. And stay like this, for now.”
Lucy would have thought it impossible, a few days ago, that Laurentius’s usual scowl could hold a touch of concern. “I don’t think I need to remind you that ‘like this’ means all the weaknesses of a vampire and none of the strengths. The sunlight will still be a burden to you. You’ll continue to need blood to live, though perhaps not as often as a true vampire would. And considering the number of times Ivan fed from you, the infection will be slow to fade. It may take months.”
“Well,” Lucy said. “Good. That gives me plenty of time to weigh the options.” At Laurentius’s sharpened stare, she said, “Sadie said something interesting, back in the tunnels. She was curious about what kind of monster she’d be without Vanya. I guess I’d like to figure out what kind of monster I am, too. And now that you two are staying, there’s no more rush for me to decide.”
Hiro lightly nudged Laurentius with his elbow. “That’s a lovely idea, Lucy.”
“It’s wishy-washy nonsense,” Laurentius said. Though Lucy knew him well enough by now to know that she’d won. “But…my offer will remain on the table. As you said, I’m not going anywhere. And neither, it seems, are you.”
“What a shame for Rollins, though,” Hiro said with a sly smile. “Your appetite likely won’t be normal for quite some time. Does that mean they’ve traded one bloodsucking fiend for another?”
“Oh, don’t worry about that.” For the first time in days, Lucy felt a warmth that seemed to come from herself. From her own blood. “I only terrorize a select group of people.”
By the time Lucy put her mother back on the shuttle to return to her hotel, she was already running late. She took her time, though, walking the now-familiar path to the campus radio station. The quicker she reached the studio, the more she would have to pack.
She swiped in, and even all the way at the door, she could hear laughter coming from Athena’s suite. “—think we’re just going to have to carry the cushions,” she caught Natalie saying. “They’re not going to fit in a box. Why are these so big?”
“I got them from some Swiss site,” Athena said. “Maybe that’s why? Like how different continents have different standard paper sizes? Ah, maybe we should leave them here, though. Just in case—”
“Just in case of what?” Mila’s voice. It was enough to make Lucy finally pick up her pace. “I hope you’re not thinking of studying in here. Terrible environment for concentration.”
“I wasn’t thinking I’d work in here…exactly,” Athena said. “I just thought…”
Lucy took pity on her and peeked around the door. “What’s going on now?”
“She’s trying to go back on her decision,” Mila said.
“I’m not going back on anything,” Athena shot back. “What I wasgoingto say was that, now that Dr. Horne’s let us back on the air, maybe I should stay on for a few days, just to help with the transition.”
“Ah, yes.” Lucy grinned. “And if those few days turn into a few weeks—”
“Exactly what I said,” Natalie declared as Lucy hugged her from behind. “Hello, my love.”
“Hi, babe.” Lucy’s smile broke open as she looked to Mila. “Hi to you, too, I guess.” Mila smirked, and bowed her head in a faux-courtly gesture.
“Anyway,” Natalie said as Lucy released her. “She’s trying to give us the slip. Except instead of trying to escape, she’s trying to stay forever.”
“Not forever,” Athena said weakly. Mila knocked their shoulders together—a tiny, bolstering gesture. It made Lucy smile wider to see it. “I just…don’t feel as if I’ve done enough.”
“Thena,” Natalie said. The nickname was new, and Athena still seemed pleased by it. “You lifted that manhole cover and you burned him up like a little ant. And then Mila shot him.”
Mila saluted at that.
“I know. I do know he’s gone, I swear, I just…” Even through all her fear and doubt, Athena had never once looked helpless to Lucy. She looked helpless now. “Sadie and Addison are still out there. And…who knows who else. I’m not sure I know how to believe that the worst might be over.”
Lucy nodded. That wasn’t dissimilar to how she felt herself. “Well. I think my mother would remind us here that we’re never actually safe.”
“Oh,” Athena said flatly. “Thank you.”
Lucy laughed. “What I was trying to get at is—this campus had dangers before you. It’ll have dangers after you. But that doesn’t mean you’re the one who has to be on duty all the time. Go live your life. We’ll be here.”
“If we need you, it’s not like we’re not going to see you just about every other day,” Mila said. “And if we need you sooner than that, we know where you live. Which I gather is actually a real dorm now, right?”
Athena cast a heavy look around the studio. Maybe the other day, in the height of her infection, Lucy would have looked at Athena and known exactly what she was feeling. But a few days of rest later, that clarity was gone. She couldn’t reach it anymore. She was back to listening to the beats of Athena’s heart, and taking a guess.
“Well,” Athena finally said. “Maybe Dr. Horne was right. Maybe there’s still time to do a thesis.”
