Chapter 150

Chapter 150 Curse of the mountain

BECKY

With how small Wild Crawler was in comparison to Anemond, I didn’t expect much in the way of entertainment and dining. But when Dic kson and I arrived at the restaurant just down the street from the clinic, I had to fight to keep my jaw from dropping.

It was a cozy little place with a large deck extending off of the building. String lights hung from dark wood beams and lit the entire place like stars. With the gorgeous, fragrant forest lands in the background, the atmosphere was immaculate, and I found myself in awe.

this smaller

Anemond had its highlights and its charm, but it had nothing on this Pack on the borderlands.

“Wow” uttered. If only Mother could see how beautiful this place was. Like me, she’d never left the capital city, and I often wondered what things would have been like if we’d ventured farther into Wegalla.

Dic kson smiled when he noticed my expression.

“It’s my f

my favorite place in Wild Crawler,” he noted with a gleam in his blue eyes. “Just wait until you try the food. It makes an extremely long shift at the clinic feel

worth it.”

A kind waitress with a beautiful smile escorted us to a table near the windows, giving us a good look at the gorgeous night surrounding us. She handed us a pair of menus, and I was surprised to see the sheer amount of delicious-sounding food. I struggled to make a choice.

“The burger is amazing,” Dic kson suggested.

“Then I’ll do that,” I decided.

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The wait was far less than expected, and the waitress delivered our burgers. They came with a pile of seasoned fries, and it was truly love at first bite. The food. was far more delicious than I expected, and I savored it slowly.

Dic kson seemed to be doing the same thing. We ate in silence for a little while,

and then he cleared his throat.

“So, Becky, I have to ask…why did you willingly come to Wild Crawler to conduct your research?” he wondered. “Most of the healers from Anemond turned on their heels when they got a good look at the circumstances. Why didn’t it bother. you?”

“It bothered me a little,” I admitted after I dabbed at the corners of my mouth with a napkin. “But not in the way you’d think.”

“Please explain,” he urged gently.

“Well, I knew it was going to be a challenging thing to come here,” I said. “I didn’t know the full scope of it, though, and that’s what took me by surprise. Marley didn’t mention how bad things had gotten.”

“I was worried about that,” Dic kson said quietly, and he let out an exhale.

“But no matter how challenging this environment might be, I want to uncover the truth behind the disease to help Cas sandra,” I continued. “I admire her determination to find a cure and if I’m being honest, I have an innate interest in it as well. It’s fascinating from a purely scientific standpoint.”

“Cas sandra Keller?” Dic kson asked in surprise.

I nodded. “Yes. She runs the clinic in Anemond.”

“I’ve heard plenty about her from Marley,” Dic kson confirmed. “And of course from the others here in Wild Crawler. I understand that she’s quite a capable healer. They miss her very much around here.”

“She’s the most talented healer I know,” I said with a smile. “She’s got the biggest heart and a very keen mind.”

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“She sounds wonderful,” he noted, and then he sipped at his drink. I studied him for a moment and then leaned forward.

“Dic kson, what are the real reasons you stayed?” I wondered. “I know it isn’t just for the money, despite what you were trying to convince me.”

He smirked at first and then laughed lightly. “I know. I didn’t mean it as anything more than a joke. To be honest, Becky, our motivations are pretty well aligned. I can’t bear to see patients suffer without proper care. It’s inhumane. Besides, the enigmatic nature of the disease intrigues me.”

I nodded and then began to eat again. As I grew closer to finishing my meal, I briefly contemplated whether or not to reveal to Dic kson that the disease may have some relation to poison, but ultimately decided against it. I remembered Cas sandra’s cautious approach when sharing information, and while Dic kson seemed trustworthy, I opted to keep things confidential for now.

After our meal, Dic kson escorted me out of the restaurant. We lingered outside for a second, and then the healer glanced around.

“I can accompany you back to the clinic,” he offered politely. “We were there. much later than I expected.”

“I’ll be fine,” I a*sured him. “It isn’t too far away. Thank you, though, Dic kson. This was really nice.”

“Of course,” he replied, and then he ran a hand through his reddish blonde hair. “I’ll at least walk you a little further down.”

“Okay,” I agreed.

We continued to walk into the night until we reached a crossroads.

“I’ll see you in the morning,” Dic kson said as he stifled a yawn. “Hopefully I’ll be

a little better rested. Are you sure you’re okay to be at the clinic alone?”

“Yes,” I a*sured him again. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

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We exchanged our goodbyes and then I continued my journey back to the

clinic.

Once I got back, I checked on a few patients before returning to the office to study the pile of medical records.

I set up shop at the large desk in the corner and carefully arranged some papers around me. I studied them for quite some time and took thorough notes in my journal.

The records documented the disease’s progression and as I studied the data, I noted that it seemed to advance more rapidly in recently admitted patients.

What did that mean?

Were these new cases a new strain of the illness?

I searched the pages for answers, but couldn’t uncover any additional clues. It would likely come to me in time. This was my first night here, after all. It would take hours of study to reach a conclusion.

I left the office after a while and decided to visit some of the patients before resting. It was late in the night, but there were still many patients awake in their

cots and beds.

I approached a pair of women conversing in the corridor. My intention was to advise them to get some rest, but as I got closer, I noticed they were crying.

“Is everything okay?” I asked as I walked up.

One of the women appeared to be my mother’s age while the other was likely no older than me. As they spoke to me, they revealed that they were in fact, mother and daughter.

They expressed regret for contracting the illness, believing they could have taken better care of themselves.

“It’s not your fault,” I a*sured them both gently. “The source of the disease.

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hasn’t been identified and its transmission is still unclear.”

“Still, I shouldn’t have visited the mountain,” the mother lamented as she rant her hands through her daughter’s long blonde hair affectionately. “That’s where the disease seems to have originated. I should have known better.”

“The mountain?” I repeated back in surprise. “How do you know that’s where it came from?”

The mother explained that she had friends who lived in the area and they told her all about it. One of her friends had also fallen ill, although not as severely, and she had visited that friend last week before contracting the disease herself.

“It’s the curse of the mountain,” she sighed.

While I knew as a healer that this was more than just a curse, I found the mother’s account interesting.

How was her friend so certain that the disease originated near the mountain when even the Alpha wasn’t aware of this?

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