Apollo and Val: #5.5 (Luna Lodge Book 0) by Madison Stevens

Chapter One
     
     
    Val tapped her short nails nervously against the dark leather of the chair. She had always hated doctors’ offices. They were all the same. Sterile and impersonal. Even knowing the doctor treating her wasn’t helping much with her anxiety.
    She took in a deep breath until her lungs were filled as far as they could go, and she could feel a slight ache. Val slowly let out the air and closed her eyes.
    When she opened them again, the nervousness slightly lessened. The calming trick seemed to help. It had been a while since she’d had to resort to such measures, but it’d been something that had become increasingly common since coming to Luna Lodge.
    Of course, her stress wasn’t without reason. After the Horatius Group burst through the gate to snatch Rem, things had been a mad house. Not only did they have to put their wall back together, but they needed to fix the hearts of the people.
    A child had been murdered right in front of them, and there’d been nothing they could do. No way to stop the horror that unfolded.
    Dean was such a happy child. He symbolized the childhood that the older hybrids never had. The chance for more. Something normal. A life without fear. When he died, their hopes died with him, and a blanket of melancholy fell over them.
    It was something she struggled with daily, both the death and the aftermath.
    Val glanced at the clock on the wall, trying to distract herself from the feelings she had been trying to tuck deep inside.
    She jumped a little when the door to the office banged open. She turned to find a very angry Rachel glaring into the hall.
    “One more of you tries to bite me today, I’m getting out the pepper spray,” she said loudly and slammed the door.
    A wave of annoyance hit Val. The doctor’s projected feelings were always slightly different than what she portrayed on the outside.
    Val had found her empathic abilities, though mostly annoying, were helpful with people like Rachel. Through her abilities, Val was able to see the true depth of emotion the doctor felt. Somehow, it made her seem more human and less the control-freak bitch she sometimes came off as.
    The young doctor’s long, rich brown hair whooshed off her shoulders from the force of the air created from slamming the door.
    Absently, Val reached up to run her fingers through her short, pale blond hair. She’d always admired Rachel’s pretty locks and that the color was so rich and fit her perfectly. Val had inherited the same pale hair as her brother, and although it had been what led her to recognize him, she also wondered what she’d look like with a more normal color.
    Still scowling, Rachel stomped through the room and threw herself into the large leather chair on the other side of the desk.
    Val raised a brow.
    “I thought things were better for you here,” she said cautiously. The doctor, despite her amazing skills, had been known to use somewhat unorthodox methods at times. Granted, everything about Luna Lodge was unorthodox, so it was really hard to say how far out there her methods were.
    Rachel smiled widely, and for a moment, Val wondered if she’d missed the joke. A wave of warm happiness passed through her with just a twinge of annoyance.
    “Oh, they have,” she said, vaguely waving to the door. “But they still hate white coats, and sometimes I just have to remind them who’s in charge.”
    With a wry smile, Val shook her head. “Remind me to never get on your bad side.”
    Rachel laughed loudly. “Funny. You aren’t the first to say that.”
    Val didn’t really think she’d be the last to say that but decided against voicing that opinion.
    “So why don’t you tell me what’s going on,” Rachel said and laced her fingers together on the desk.
    One thing Val liked about the doctor was that never once did Val feel something from her when she talked medical stuff. Rachel was all business, and for someone with Val’s ability, knowing what she was feeling was key to