Chapter 246
Julian’s POV
As Aunt Kathy and Penny entertained Alice, I stepped to the side, needing a minute to catch my breath after all
of this. Alice was safe, taken care of by her dear aunt and cousin, so I knew now was the opportunity to just step
to the side, look out the window, and center myself.
Besides, I was still within hearing distance if Alice made any sounds of distress.
Really, I just needed a moment alone, so I was annoyed when Tony approached me. But, at the same time, if he
was bothering me, he was away from Alice.
He’d acted okay today, but I hadn’t forgotten his initial reaction to Alice or the other things he had said.
That meant I was happy to have him away from Alice, but I couldn’t be outwardly rude to him. As family, I felt
inclined to give him the benefit of the doubt, especially since he apologized.
“I don’t understand how you did it,” he said.
“Did what p>
“Kept Alice’s condition a secret all this time,” Tony said. “Surely this can’t be the first time the wolf lashed
out p>
“It’s been happening for most of her life. Whenever she gets too emotional, the wolf breaks free to protect
her,” I said.
Guilt weighed heavy on me. Amber had been alone in trying to help Alice all this time, but no longer. From now
on,
the three of us were a team determined to find a cure.
“It’s very painful for Alice,” I said, frowning. “With some serious searching, Amber was able to locate and
purchase a magical necklace that kept Alice’s wolf contained. But after a recent… accident, the power of the
necklace had diminished. Amber and I are going to find a cure p>
“The websites I researched said there are no cures,” Tony said.
“Not yet,” I corrected. “No cures yet. p>
Tony nodded, then looked out the window, as I did. There was big oak tree out in the yard. It’d been there for as
long as I could remember, the trunk wide in diameter, the roots large and solid.
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Chapter 247
+29 BONUS
“I want to help,” Tony said after a minute, surprising me. I turned to look at him. “I’m not a Healer, but I do have connections. If there’s another necklace out there, or some other lead, then I can help find it p>
“I appreciate that, Tony, but you don’t have to. This isn’t your responsibility p>
“Alice is family,” Tony said. “And I owe it to all of you for acting like such an asshole. Please, Cousin. As a more substantial apology, let me help in this. Alice deserves the best chance at a normal life that she can get p>
He seemed genuine, but as someone who hung out at the theaters a lot, he could just be a good actor, having picked up some tricks.
I didn’t know if I could trust him at all, but if he wanted to do some of the legwork trying to help, I wasn’t really in a position to turn that down.
Truth was, without any idea really where to start with a cure, Amber, Alice, and I needed all the help we could get. And Tony, even if he was being disingenuous, might accidentally uncover something that could get us
going.
I hoped he was honest though. Alice really deserved everyone’s help. She shouldn’t have to suffer this pain
anymore.
“Alright,” I said. “Thank you, Tony p>
“Yeah, don’t sweat it,” Tony said. “The thanks can come after we cure the kid p>
Amber’s POV
“If this report is accurate, and I’m sure it is, then it’s likely our patient is still being poisoned, even here at the hospital,” I said.
“It seems so, yes, ” the supervisor said. “Which means that that the family are our primary suspects. Unless we want to throw suspicion on the staff… ”
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