Page 7 of Aftershock
Heat gathers behind my eyes, a humiliating burn that makes me want the ground to swallow me whole.
I’m a wreck of a kid, barely able to move. With swollen eyes and a busted lip.
With Mom’s finger marks around my throat.
And then there’s the bald spot on my head. Mom tore out a chunk of my brown hair when I tried to escape. I don’t know why, out of everything, this is what hits the hardest, but it does.
“She’s awake and…” His voice snaps me out of the spiral. Any sign of anger has been wiped off his face. There’s no pity or disgust in it either. None. He’s simply…there. “Anxious, I believe. Is that it, Lilith? Anxiety? Blink once for yes, twice for no.”
I desperately want to blink twice. Want to open my mouth and tell him—just him—that it’s more than a simplecase of anxiety. That I fear for my life. That he has to keep his word and save me from Mom.
Problem is, we have company. I don’t trust that nurse.
I don’t trust anyone but him.
So I blink once.
“That’s good.” A hint of warmth settles on his face.
“You know, we can take care of Miss Rayne here, in the ICU. You can go back to trauma, Doc.”
Please, don’t go. Please, don’t leave me alone with them. Please.
“She’s my patient.” His harsh tone has a tear rolling down my temple. “I’ll stay a while longer.”
“Okay, then. Hit the call button if you need me,” the nurse whispers. “Sleep tight, honey.”
The curtain slides closed.
We’re alone.
Alaric and I.
His eyes cut to the monitor as the beeping slows.
He nods to himself before meeting my gaze. “I’m going to remove the mask, okay?”
One blink.
Once I’m mask-free, Alaric stares at me for a long beat. While he does, he cracks his knuckles almost angrily.
“Where’s Mom?” I croak. I have to know. Have to plan ahead.
“Your mother…”
Then—oh, shit. He’s turning to the side.
Is he about to call her?
Did she get to him? Did she threaten him too?
Did she force him to keep the injuries out of my records?
No. No.
No.
The all-consuming panic subsides, just barely, when instead of getting Mom, he grabs a cup of ice chips from the table by my bed and offers it to me.
