Chapter 412
Etsuko's fever dropped off later that night, and by the next evening she said she felt fine. Sorino insisted they leave immediately unless they wanted to "arrive after sunrise and spend the day in the plane."
When Micah complained about feeding, Sorino snapped, "You can eat on the way and the humans can get food at the airport. Now, let's go."
Katelina packed her bag and the last bottle of water. Ume locked everything and plunged into the jungle, the others behind her. Katelina paused at the edge of the trees and gave the camp a final look as Verchiel shut off the generator. The lights flickered out and it took her eyes a moment to adjust. The camp had a sudden air of abandonment, and she wondered if its occupants would return or if it would lay empty until the poachers got brave enough to loot it.
She carried Etsuko's flashlight and picked her way behind the vampires. The image of the fire ring and the log seats stood clear behind her eyes, as if she was leaving home behind. It was interesting that they'd only been there a few days and yet there were already spaces she'd claimed for herself, as if by sitting in the same spot night after night she'd left behind some piece of herself that gave her the right to claim ownership.
Until she'd met Jorick she'd moved through the same spaces her whole life. The same town, the same buildings, the same streets. Even the bathrooms were familiar. There was a memory on every corner, as though she and the pavement shared a common ancestor. Then, she'd left and ever since she'd drifted from place to place, with nothing but her memory to prove she'd ever been there.
Compared to the jungle, the plane was a welcome sight. Sorino's pilots were ready, and Jorick used his usual tricks on the airport security so they passed through with no trouble. It wasn't until they lifted off that Katelina noticed Etsuko's pained expression. "Are you okay?"
"Thank you, Katelina-san, but I am fine. Only a little tired."
"Yeah?" Micah asked and leaned on the back of her seat. "Then why is your nose bleeding?"
"I assure Micah-sama thatoh!" Etsuko touched her nose and brought her hand away with blood. "I-I must apologize," she said quickly and scrambled for the bathroom.
An hour later she lay on the couch nearly insensible. Oren poked her uncomfortably, his brow creased. Katelina stood next to him, waiting for a pronouncement, though she doubted he knew more than she did.
"Well?" Micah asked. "She gonna live or what?"
"I assume so," Oren snapped. "Jorick, come look and see what you think."
"I know less than you," Jorick said from his seat. "Ask Katelina."
Oren's amber eyes zeroed in on her and she shrank a little. "I don't know. Maybe she got something from the water?"
"Ask the human," Oren repeated sarcastically. "She's a fount of knowledge." With a final growl he stormed back to his seat and savagely threw himself into it. "Your human is useless!"
Katelina bristled. "I'm not a doctor! Maybe she'd be well now if we'd taken her to one instead of hiding out in the fucking jungle, or sleeping in abandoned buildings in subzero temperatures."
"Then you should have said she needed one!" Oren snarled.
"That should've been obvious when she started throwing up."
Oren was on his feet. "How am I supposed to know that? Humans do disgusting things with very little cause! When I was human we didn't send for a doctor because someone had a fever!"
Jorick sighed and rubbed his forehead. "Oren, there's no need to shout."
"I'll shout at your stupid human if I want to!"
Jorick's pained patience slipped into anger. "Katelina isn't stupid. I understand you're worried but"
"I'm not worried!" Oren shouted. "Trust you to stick up for her. Are you afraid she'll refuse to warm your bed if you don't?"
The slap was loud and sudden. Oren laid a hand to his injured cheek, snarled, and stormed to the bathroom.
Sorino said sarcastically, "It's always interesting to travel with you."
Katelina took a seat near Etsuko, though she had a hard time with the fear of contagion. Just because she thought she was immune didn't mean she was. The blood hearkened back to the Ebola virus and the traumatizing monkey disease movie. They'd been in the jungle after all. With monkeys.
Torina roused her from her thoughts. "Oren is an ass."
Katelina looked up quickly. "Yes he is."
"He's worried about the stupid human." Torina crossed her arms over her chest and stared at Etsuko with a mixture of disdain and anger. "I doubt he's realized it."
Katelina thought about the conversation she'd overheard in the jungle and looked away quickly, for fear Torina would pluck it from her mind. When she looked back Torina had returned to her seat and was artfully flashing her upper thigh at Micah.
So much for her momentary glimpse of humanity.
They'd been flying for four hours when Etsuko woke. She muttered in Japanese, and Katelina couldn't get her to focus. She was burning up and Verchiel helped Katelina get some aspirin down her and put a cold rag on her head. She kept the pills down for a few minutes and then threw them back up all over her kimono. Verchiel lugged Etsuko to the bathroom and Katelina tried to get her out of the ridiculous outfit. The sick woman flopped limply and moaned. The space was too small. And there were so many layers and ribbons and knots!
Etsuko woke long enough to throw up again and Katelina, who was crammed under the sink like a pretzel, burst into frustrated tears. She'd faced killer vampires, certain death, and untold horrors, but none of them made her feel as helpless as this.
Someone knocked on the door and Katelina sobbed out, "What?"
Torina asked, "Do you need help."
Katelina battled a sudden surge of pride. "That would be nice."
