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"I'm just going to wish Clancy and the girls good luck before their performance.”
"You want me to come?" he asks, his gaze flicking around the warehouse still looking out for danger, a habit I don't think he'll ever break, especially not when it comes to protecting me.
"No. Stay. I won't be long," I reply, plastering on a smile. If he comes with me I might not be able to hide that I'm feeling off, and it'll only worry him.
Sensing my discomfort, Christy stands, catching my eye with a soft smile. "I'll come with you. I need to speak with Grim before she kicks off the fight anyway."
Zayn, satisfied that I'm not walking across the warehouse on my own, nods. "See you in a minute?"
"Give me five before you send out the search party," I tease, dropping a kiss to his cheek, before turning on my heel.
The noise levels drop as soon as we push through the door and head down the corridor towards Grim’s office, only to rise again when we get closer to the dressing room. The girls have always been a little raucous, and normally I’m happy to join in with all the fun. But tonight I wince, rubbing at the sudden sharp pain in my temple, maybe this wasn't the best idea after all.
"You alright, Pen? You look a bit off-colour," Christy asks, guiding me to a stop. She studies me with her strange eyes, and I feel my skin cover in goosebumps like it does sometimes in her presence.
"I'm fine. Seriously. Just work catching up on me."
"You sure?"
I cock my head to the side. "I'm not sure if you're asking me that question because youhaven'tseen something in my future, or you’re asking me that question because you have, and you're trying to work out if I know something that you already do."
Christy scrunches up her nose. "This is just a concerned friend. No visions, I swear."
"Then as a concerned friend, you wouldn't mind grabbing me a couple of headache pills from Grim's office, right? She keeps a stash in the top drawer of her desk. I’m not sure I can face the girls without at least trying to get rid of this headache first."
“You can come with me. I’m sure Grim would be glad to see you.”
“I’m actually desperate for a pee. Be there in a minute?”
"Sure thing,” Christy replies as I push open the door to the ladies, and she carries on to Grim’s office.
Breathing a sigh of relief at the quiet, I head into the stall to relieve myself. I don’t hurry to unlock the door once I’m done, instead, I flip down the toilet seat and sit down. The pain in my head thumps and I draw in a couple of breaths to try and deal with it, which only seems to bring on a sudden bout of nausea. I slam my hand over my mouth, trying not to retch.
Fuck, this is what happened to York when he started to get sick. I bet he’s given me the damn flu.
When I hear the door to the toilet open, I force myself to my feet, pulling open the door as I say, “Thank goodness, I really need those headache tablets,” stopping in my tracks when I come face to face with Cynthia, and not Christy.
“Hello, Pen, how are you?” she asks, throwing me a sweet smile, her soft Irish lilt oddly soothing.
“Oh hey, I didn’t know you were coming. Grim said that Faith hasn’t been well,” I reply, giving her a brief hug, and hoping I don’t throw up all over her. Cynthia is married to the Deana-dhe, the three Irish criminals who helped us deal with an issue we had a few years back, and they live off the coast of Ireland.
“She’s much better actually. That nasty virus took a while to clear out of her system. I didn’t think she’d enjoy the journey so soon after feeling so poorly, so her great Uncle Connall agreed to look after her for us.”
“I wondered where he was tonight,” I say, turning on the faucet to wash my hands.
“He was more than happy to spend the weekend doting on her.”
“Well, it’s really nice to see you here,” I add, shaking out the excess water, and patting my forehead, relishing the cool liquid against my skin. Fuck, I look really pale.
“It’s good to be here…” Cyn replies, her voice trailing off as she watches me. “How’s York? Is he feeling better?”
“So much better, thanks. That tincture you sent did him wonders. Literally the next day after taking it he was up and out of bed. You’re a wonder,” I say, patting my face with a paper cloth, and doing my best not to run back into the stall and throw up my dinner.
“Pen,” Cynthia says, resting her hand on my arm. “Are you feeling okay?”
“Just a headache, Christy went to grab me some tablets,” I reply, turning to face her and plastering on another smile. I don’t know why I don’t mention that I feel sick too. I guess I don’t want anyone fussing over me. Plus we have a show to perform in just over a week, and I do not need the guys forcing me to rest. Ineedthis performance. It’s important to me, to us. “Me and the guys have been burning the candles at both ends for a while.”
Cyn nods, her eyes grazing over my face as she regards me. “Work hard and play hard?”
