Page 79 of Healer’s Betrayal

I feel a chill run down my spine. “What does that mean?” I ask. This time, I know I don’t imagine it when Jackson moves closer to me. We were already close, but now, there’s not a centimeter of distance between us.

Garrett watches me intently. “We’re still figuring it out.”

“How old were you when you started to heal, Kayla?” Sage asks. “You said you were young, right?”

I nod. “I don’t know when the power developed exactly, but I know I was able to heal by the time I went into high school.”

Sage nods, looking thoughtful. “Sherese healed early as well.”

“If they were given something back then, it could explain why Sherese and Kayla both healed early,” Paul say, looking past us. I can tell he’s thinking.

“You think the vampires were targeting girls even back then?” Emma asks quietly with an awful expression on her face.

I frown. “Don’t all the healers heal young?”

Sage shakes her head and explains, keeping her voice low. “No. I didn’t manifest healing powers until after I was eighteen.”

“What about Ava?” I ask.

“Ava and Rose were different.” Her voice is so soft, I have to lean forward to hear her.

“How so?” I ask. She glances at Paul a moment, and I try to read the situation. “You don’t have to tell me.”

“No, I know they wouldn’t mind me telling you because you’re one of us. It's just a hard story to tell.” She looks like she’s going to cry, and I regret asking.

“It’s fine,” I tell her.

It’s Paul that continues the story. “Rose and Ava were both captured by vampires and kept at one of their facilities. They were given vampire serum. The vampires at that time were trying to turn females into vampires. They failed miserably and lots of females died. Rose and Ava survived and became healers because of it. We’re still learning how it works; I’ve done a ton of research. We know that Sage was created, but the other healers were formed. We think it has to do with the type of blood, combined with genetics. We’re not really sure, but when that combination is met with the vampire serum, it creates a healer. That’s the only reason Rose and Ava survived.”

I swallow, feeling like I’m going to throw up. “I got injected with that, or something like that.” My words are barely a whisper.

Sage reaches across the table and takes my hand in hers. “You did, but we knew how to save you. That’s why Jackson—”

Jackson coughs loudly. “I think that’s enough for now.”

Silence falls over our group, and I look up at him. His face is set in an unreadable mask. When I look over at Sage, she has a guilty expression on her face. She gives me an apologetic look. “It’s okay,” I reassure her. “I wanted to know.”

She nods and then glances at Jackson again. There’s a stern expression on her face, and it confuses me. I look up at Jackson, but he doesn’t look at me. I look back at Sage and cross my arms over my chest. “Tell me what I'm missing.”

Her eyes widen, and she glances at Jackson again. He growls low in his chest, and I elbow him lightly. “Stop that.”

“I suggest you find another outlet for your aggression than my mate,” Paul says in a tone that surprises me. Gone is all trace of the gentle doctor; he looks downright scary right now.

Jackson picks up his trash and looks like he’s about to stand. “Wait.” He stops moving and looks at me. There’s a wariness in his eyes that I don’t like. “You said you’d tell me anything,” I remind him.

He takes a deep breath. “I did, and I will.”

I lift an eyebrow. “So?”

“Not down here.” He stands and picks up my plates and his. I watch him go drop them off and look across the table at Sage.

She gives me a soft smile, but I can see worry in her expression. It makes my gut tighten. “Just remember, he didn’t have a choice, Kayla,” she says softly.

“Sage,” Paul warns.

“I’m just saying; she was going to die.”

“Sage, Baby,” Paul says gently. Her face falls, but she reaches out and squeezes my hand. “Come find me if you need to talk. I understand; believe me.”