Jaz apologized to her for her outburst at the site and Skye acted like she'd forgotten all about it. From that moment on, Jaz felt protective of her, like she was family.
Thanks to her friends, Nik stayed out of her mind whenever she was with them. It was at night time she thought of him.
She'd sworn off reading Lora's diary because she saw how wrong it was to invade someone's personal, intimate thoughts even if they were gone- but most of all because it made her think of Nik. In intimate and needy ways. Constantly reminding her of how envious she felt of her dead sister, which made her feel like the most disgusting person on the planet. And she still wasn't sure whether those feelings were even real. She didn't know what she felt about him anymore.
That Tuesday, four days after her narrow escape from death, Skye told her she needed to get some supplies from the pharmacy. Jaz had never seen it before and although she still had to limp everywhere, she asked to tag along. Skye was so happy that Jaz seemed to take an interest in her job, she didn't mind supporting her as Jaz hobbled all the way there.
The pharmacy was west of the main building; they passed the barbecue area on the way there. Seeing it made Jaz relive the feud with Fraya. She then thought back to the night in the woods, running for her life from the merciless Beast. Maybe it was her? she thought with trepidation. She pictured the dark brown Beast, inches from tearing her throat out before being pummelled by the black Beast, and shuddered. God, I hope not.
After twenty minutes of hobbling, Skye and Jaz reached a row of ski shack-like buildings. One was a butcher's, the other a dentist, along with other various small stores. There were eight buildings in all.
Jaz spotted the pharmacy on the far right. The front was quaint and picturesque with hanging flower baskets filled to the brim with pansies in vibrant colours. There was a welcome mat by the glass, framed door. A dark green plaque with bold white letters labelled the odd building 'The Pharmacy'. Only the plaque suited the business she imagined inside. But when she entered, it wasn't how she'd imagined it at all.
'The Pharmacy' -which was more like a botanics shop- was stocked full of wild flowers and herbs harvested from the land all around them, though some had been imported too. All the plants had been prepared for their particular use and placed neatly in jars, smaller sized tubs and squeezy bottles arranged beautifully in woven baskets.
The shop owner, Skye's Uncle Egor, was a middle-aged man with reddish hair thinning at his temples, a crooked nose, pleasant smile and bright, youthful grey eyes. He greeted them both warmly, inviting Jaz to look around whilst he dealt with Skye's order.
As Jaz looked more around, she saw he also had homemade teas, pastes that were probably used externally as a cream or mask -like the one Skye had put on Jaz's feet and sliced palm- and a selection of bottled drinks and freshly packaged cakes and bars that Jaz suspected were pumped full of good stuff.
She rubbed the faint line on her palm absently with her other thumb remembering what she'd heard the others say: people here rarely ate junk food or anything processed, packaged or microwaveable, looking after their bodies like sacred temples. Although apparently, they still indulged in the occasional treat. But Jaz had yet to see it for herself.
God, what I wouldn't give for some chocolate, she thought longingly. She had a soft spot for rich, dark chocolate, especially with a bit of chilli. Her parents would always pulled a face of displeasure when she ate it in front of them. She cut off thoughts about them immediately.
She continued to gaze around at all the products on sale whilst Skye stocked her bag full with medicinal creams and teas and things Jaz had no idea what they were. As she scanned around the room once more, she spotted a jar on a shelf packed with them. This one in particular caught her eye. She didn't recognize the plant inside but the name on the label grabbed her interest.
It read, 'Hemlock'.
When Egor went in the back to fetch something, Jaz caught Skye's attention and Skye walked over.
Jaz then pointed to the jar. “What's this for? Isn't it poisonous?” she asked in a low voice.
“Yep, but in small doses it's not harmful to us,” Skye explained, hunching her shoulders.
“What do you use it for?”
Skye leaned in to whisper, “I don't personally. It's for Pack members who go undercover outside for a long period of time, just in case they feel the need to Change in a risky place.”
“What? You mean they take this and they what... don't Change?”
Skye bobbed her head side to side. “Sort of. It basically suppresses it for longer but it's really dangerous and is only used in an emergency, by someone who is fully capable.
“I heard of one guy who used it to control his shakes on a mission. He took too much and died. It's a taboo drug really but my uncle is careful about it.”
Then Egor came back and the conversation was cut short.