Page 30 of Kristoff

“Magdalena, answer him.”

I flinch at the harsh tone, but it gets me moving. “Yes. He’s Kristoff.”

“Very good.”

“No, he’s not good,” I whisper and lean back against the pillows.

Silence stretches out across the room and I wonder if I’ve made him mad.

“I’m going to give you an injection now. It’s going to numb you, so the stitches won’t hurt.” I look down the length of my body to where the doctor is holding a syringe.

“Will it make the pain inside go away too?” I ask.

The doctor shares a quick glance with Kristoff before answering me. “No, but I’ll give you some other medicine to take care of that.”

“Okay.” I nod and lay back, staring up at the ceiling.

“I heard your father mention Maksim,” the doctor says just before the pinprick of the needle digs into my sensitive, swollen flesh.

“It’s not going to happen,” Kristoff says with as much confidence as I’ve ever heard him use.

“He’s not kind to his girls,” the doctor presses on. I don’t feel anything other than his presence. I can tell I’m being touched, but it doesn’t hurt.

“I said it’s not going to happen.”

“You’ve taken to this one,” the doctor says. I can feel the tension building in Kristoff and I close my eyes, not wanting to see his anger.

“She’s mine,” is all Kristoff says. But if I was really his, would those other men have taken me? Touched me and forced me the way they did?

When I peek at him, I see a sadness. He looks down at me, his dark eyes full of remorse and worry. There’s a deep crease in his forehead.

If he dislikes me so much, if he would hurt me so easily why is he looking at me with so much guilt and concern? The last time he’d been with me, before the men took me, he’d been almost sweet. He’d offered to find me something to do to pass the time while he was away doing work. He hadn’t forced me since that first time, he’d been demanding, hard, and unrelenting in his authority, but he hadn’t hurt me again. Not like those men.

It’s then I realize Kristoff had been kept from me. He wouldn’t have allowed it to happen if he’d been here, if he’d known. He would have kept them from hurting me. He would have protected me if he had been aware. It’s why his father didn’t include him, didn’t have him in the room. Kristoff would have protected me.

I reach my hand out and wrap my fingers around his, letting the warmth of his touch fill me. Closing my eyes again, I hold onto him while the doctor finishes his work.

He squeezes my hand when the doctor finishes and my legs are closed again. The movements hurt but are dulled by his touch.

“Here’s the cream for her back. I’ll let you do it. Make sure you watch those welts, so she doesn’t get an infection. I’ll check on the stitches in a few days and should be able to remove them. She can’t be used until then, Kristoff.” The last sentence is firm.

“No one will touch her,” Kristoff declares and lets go of my hand to pull fresh covers over my body.

“It will take her a little time,” I hear the doctor say, but I’m not sure what he means. I close my eyes again, trying to find that little corner where I can hide. I don’t want to think about the pain, or how it came to life, or where I am, or where I’m going.

“She’s stronger than she thinks,” Kristoff states and a door is closed. A bolt slides in place.

Kristoff walks over to the side of the bed again and sits down. “I have to rub this on your back. It’s going to sting,” he says, showing me the tube of ointment the doctor gave him. He sounds sorry already and he hasn’t touched me yet.

“Okay,” I nod, but he keeps staring at me.

His lips crack into a gentle smile. “You have to roll onto your stomach, Magdalena,” he says.

Right. I knew that.

I manage the feat without causing more pain to my aching muscles and sink into the pillow once I’m face down.

The blanket is pulled down and I fist the pillows. I jump at the first touch of his finger to my skin.

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