Chapter 31

CHAPTER 31

P aige's eyes fluttered open, then immediately closed as bright light seared them. Her heart pounded hard against her ribs as she tried to orient herself.

One minute, she'd found her mother in a chamber under a Mexican ruin, and the next, she'd felt herself falling.

Had she dreamt of finding her mom? Had she died?

Her heart raced faster. Yes, she'd died. That was it. That stupid werepanther scratched her and poisoned her. Dewey said she had twenty-four hours to live. It figured she'd succumb to it before that.

"Well, this stinks," she murmured.

"Paige?" The voice floated in her mind.

"Must be St. Peter. I wonder if I'll go to heaven?"

"Paige, snap out of it. Open your eyes."

Paige wrinkled her nose. St. Peter sounded strangely like Dewey.

She opened her eyes a slit. "Dewey?"

"Yeah," he said as he hovered in front of her. "Open your eyes. "

She let them open a little more, taking in her surroundings. "Where am I?"

"Paris Library," Dewey said with a nod.

"How did we get here?"

"You're not going to believe this story," Dewey said with a shake of his head as he settled on the edge of her bed.

Her eyes went wide. "Why? What happened?"

"You passed out shortly after we found your mom–"

Her heart thudded faster. "So we found her? That wasn't a dream."

"We found her." Dewey raised his chin.

"And then I passed out?"

"You did. And then…" Dewey pressed his lips together. "I went into full-blown panic mode. Like major panic. I'm thinking…how am I going to get both of these ladies out of here? I'm tiny. Paige is way heavier than I am. Though Reed…she's a little lighter than you but still…"

"Thanks, Dewey. Really appreciate the weight comparison."

"Well, anyway…you wanna know how I managed to rescue you both?"

"How?" she asked.

"Drucinda showed up and did it."

"All of that for you to tell me Drucinda showed up?" Paige rolled her eyes as she shook her head. "Honestly, Dewey…"

She tried to push herself up to sit, but her hands felt strange. They must be bandaged to treat the gashes she sustained. But why both?

"What's wrong with my hands?"

Before she could lift them to study them, Dewey batted them down. "Uh, well, you sustained some injuries."

"I know. I remember the werepanther scratching me, but why are both my hands bandaged? "

"Eh, neither is bandaged. I healed the wounds entirely along with saving you from the poison."

"Oh, good. So, why do my hands feel so weird?" She tried to lift them again, but he stopped her.

"Why are you doing that? Stop holding me down."

"The thing is, Paige, I had to…do some quick thinking to save your life."

"Yeah?" she asked.

"And, uh, well, I did it. You're alive. And you're cured."

"Yeah?" she repeated. "Why are you saying it like that? What happened?"

"There was a teensy, tiny blip in how the serum worked to save your life."

"A blip?" She shook her head. "What does that mean? What are you saying?"

Dewey poked a claw in the air. "Just a second."

He retrieved a mirror from the table next to the hospital bed. "Now…when you first see this, it may be a shock, but–"

"Just hold up the mirror," she grumbled.

"Okay. Don't say I didn't warn you." Dewey positioned the mirror in front of her face.

She stretched her neck to see into it. Her eyes went wide at what stared back. She raised her hands to her face as her jaw flopped open. Black fur covered her from head to toe. Pointy ears poked from the top of her head.

"What happened?"

"I…accidentally made you part Panther." Dewey shook his head. "I'm sorry. When I cured you, I…turned you into Panther Paige."

Paige stared at her cat-like reflection. "I…I can't believe this."

She glanced down at her body, pulling back the covers to reveal the fur now covering her arms and legs. "I'm part cat. Will I always be part cat? "

"Ehhhh," Dewey said, his lips tugged back into a grimace, "still not sure. I don't think so. But…I'm still working on a cure to turn you back into normal human Paige."

"I mean…are there any side effects that are…bad?"

"I've heard the hairballs can be a real problem. We'll get you on a hairball-controlling diet to help with that in the meantime."

"What? You get hairballs from licking your fur. I'm not going to–"

"Groom? You're not going to groom at all? I mean, let's face it, Paige, you're not going to hop in the shower anytime soon."

"Well, I'm also not going to wash my face by licking my hand…paw…whatever, and raking it over my cheeks."

"Don't forget behind the ears," Dewey said.

Paige let her furry shoulders slump. "Why does this happen to me every time? You're supposed to be an expert at potions or whatever, and every single time, something gets messed up."

"It must be your weird blood. Your mom has it, too."

Paige's heart skipped a beat at the mention of her mother. "How is she? Is she awake?"

"Nope. I told you, she's in a Twilight Trance. Drucinda has been searching for answers on it, but not easy cures."

"Why would there be," Paige said with a sigh. "Well, at least she doesn't have to see me in feline form. But…can I see her?"

"Sure. You're completely healed." He wrinkled his nose. "You may have to get used to walking on those jointed back legs, but…"

"Jointed…" She pushed the covers down further to stare at her cat-like legs. "Oh no."

"On the upside, you'll be an explosive runner, and a pretty good jumper for the time being. "

"A fact that you may need," Drucinda said as she strode into the room. "Hello, Purrrrrrfect Paige."

Paige shook her head at the greeting. "Just rub it in, why don't you?"

"Sorry, I find it a little too humorous. The good news is…you're alive. And so is Reed. The bad news is… she's dying. And we're going to need to pool all our resources to save her."

Paige sucked in a breath as she faced the words. After being separated for all those years, she'd finally found her mother, only to learn that the woman was dying, and she may not have a chance to get to know her at all.

"I'll do whatever it takes," she answered with a firm nod.

"As will I." Drucinda's fingers curled into fists. "And to bring whoever did this to her to justice."

"I'd like to see her," Paige said as she got used to the feel of her new legs, dangling them over the side of the bed.

"First, there's someone who'd like to see you," Drucinda answered.

Devon stuck his head into the room with a grin. "Hey, Paige."

Her eyes went wide. "Devon!"

A thwack from behind startled her, and she whipped around to find a long black tail poking in the air. Her jaw dropped open. "Is–Is that mine?"

"Yep. And, ah, just a little caution," Dewey murmured as he floated closer, "tails can be a dead giveaway on emotion, so…you know, just…watch yourself."

She glanced at it, desperately trying to stop it from moving. Devon strode close to her with a grin. "How are you feeling?"

"Furry…ah, fine, I mean," she answered.

"I think you look cute. I mean…I miss the old Paige, but th e new Paige is…also nice." He reached out to scratch the top of her head.

"Aw, she likes it," Dewey said with a chuckle.

Paige twisted to find her tail wriggling in the air. With a sigh, she shook her head. "Stop doing that and help me stand up. I don't know how these legs are going to work."

"Sure." Devon reached for her hands, now more like paws, and clamped onto them as she slowly rose.

She balanced herself before she shifted her weight from side to side. "Hmm, not too bad. I thought it would be much harder than this."

Devon started to pull his hands away when she latched onto them. "Ouch, watch your claws."

"Oops, sorry," she said, her tail flicking with irritation. "I'm still getting used to this."

She tottered around the room, still clinging to Devon, as she got used to how the cat-like legs worked.

"These work fairly well," she said after a few paces back and forth. "I really thought this was going to be worse."

"Try running," Dewey said. "Go into the hall so you can really get a long stretch."

She nodded, finally letting go of Devon's hands and making her way to the hallway. She crossed to the end before she stretched and set off down the long corridor.

"Wow!" she shouted as she sped along faster than she'd ever run before.

When she reached the end of the hall, she leapt forward, springing off the wall, and bouncing onto a nearby gurney. She raced across it and leapt down to continue running in the opposite direction.

"Someone's got the zoomies!" Dewey said as she sped past.

She skidded to a stop, her nose wrinkling. "I'm just testing it out. I don't have the zoomies. "

"Yeah, right. That's why you leapt onto the bed like a crazy woman."

"I just wanted to try it!"

"Someone's enjoying their new body," Drucinda said as she arched an eyebrow.

"Well, I may as well make the best of it. I'm stuck with the dang thing until we find a solution. And it could come in handy. My speed has increased, my jumping skills have increased, and I can defend myself more readily." She flashed the claws in the air.

"Also, it puts off the transition to vampire since we're not certain you can be a feline vampire," Dewey answered. "So, it's really win-win-win."

"Let's hope it helps us in some way. Now, where is my mom?"

Dewey landed on her shoulder and waved a hand toward the elevator. "Critical care unit. Top floor."

Paige crossed to the lift, all traces of clumsiness gone. "Wow, as a cat, I'm not klutzy anymore at all."

"Maybe I cured that," Dewey said.

"I guess we'll see," she answered as the doors whooshed open.

She stepped inside with the others, and Drucinda pressed the button for the top floor.

If Paige had palms, she imagined they'd be sweaty. She rubbed her paws against her hospital robe as she swallowed hard. The sudden urge to lick an itchy spot on her arm swept through her. She resisted the urge to actually follow through, refusing to groom herself.

The doors opened with a ding. Her heart began to thud harder against her now-movable rib cage. Drucinda led the way toward a set of double doors at the end of the hall, flanked by guards .

She swiped in with a keycard. "You'll get one of these, too. We're keeping her under maximum security, just in case."

Paige bobbed her head, both pleased and worried over the words.

A soft beeping filled the antiseptic-tainted air as she stepped into the room, her eyes falling on the form in the bed. At least she wasn't hooked up to tubes or machines, Paige thought.

"Hey, Paige," Ronnie said, rubbing her arm. "You did well bringing her back. And we're doing everything we can to find a solution to save her.

"Thanks," Paige answered, feeling self-conscious about her new form. "I'll do anything that needs to be done, too. As best I can with my new…body."

Ronnie offered her an awkward smile. "Yeah, that was…a surprise, but at least we didn't lose you. You were in rough shape when you came in. Dewey worked a miracle, though it came with a little bit of a price."

"Aw, thanks, buddy. You didn't tell me how bad off I was."

Dewey's teal cheeks turned purple with a blush. "I'd do it all over again, too…er, except I'd tried to avoid the panther bit."

Ronnie patted her paw. "Go see your mom. We'll give you some time."

"No, no," Paige said with a shake of her head. "Everyone can stay. You all loved her, too. And she needs as much support as she can get."

Ronnie pulled her into a hug before she stepped aside to allow her access to the bed.

Paige crept closer, staring down at her sleeping mother. She didn't look like she was dying at first glance, but as she leaned in to study Reed's pale skin, she noted the odd blackening of the veins beneath it and the paleness of her lips.

Paige swallowed hard as she stared at her, sliding a paw around her mother's hand. She firmed her jaw and her resolve. "Whatever it takes, Mom. I'm going to save you."

The End

To be continued…