Page 21 of The High Priestess

“We can’t say for sure,” the nurse replies.

I stare at Eleni, and my voice quivers as I ask, “But she’ll wake up, right? She’ll be fine?”

The nurse places her hand on my shoulder. “It’s better if you talk with Dr. Anthony. He’s on his way.”

Worry coils around my heart as I continue to look at Eleni.

“You should get back to bed,” the nurse mentions. “Too much strain on your body might slow the healing process.”

I shake my head. “I’ll be fine here.”

There’s a pause in conversation, then she says, “I’m at the nurses’ station if you need me.”

I nod, my eyes glued to my sister.

For a while, there are only the sounds coming from the medical equipment.

Suddenly, a wave of shock hits me so hard I suck in a sharp breath, and physical pain radiates through my body.

Kiki, Mom, Dad, Uncle George, Aunt Vasaliki… the guards.

My voice is thick with unshed tears as I ask, “How long has it been?”

“Nine days.” Knight clears his throat. “We only got you out of Greece after you were stable enough to travel.”

My tone is hoarse as I ask the dreaded question, “The rest of my family?”

“All dead. Santiago and Dominik made arrangements for everyone to be buried in Athens.”

Oh God.

The machines start to make distressing alarms, and it has my heart stopping in my chest.

The nurse comes running back into the room, and she shoves the chair Knight placed by the bed away before silencing the alarms.

In absolute horror, I watch as she starts to do chest compressions on Eleni.

NoNoNoNoNo!

I feel Knight taking hold of my arm, and his body presses against my side while his other arm wraps around my shoulders.

I barely breathe as I watch the nurse do everything she can to help Eleni.

The next second, Dr. Anthony, who I met on a previous occasion, comes running into the room. I watch them fight to save my sister, and I keep praying and holding out hope that she’ll pull through.

But then Dr. Anthony shakes his head while looking at me and saying, “I’m sorry.”

“No!” I cry as I pull away from Knight. “What happened?”

“She had a cardiac event because of the swelling in her brain,” the nurse explains.

The doctor comes toward me, and it has me taking a step backward and bumping into Knight.

“Her injuries were just too much for her body to handle,” the doctor says, giving me a sympathetic look. “I’m sorry, Miss Dimitrou.”

With my heart obliterated in my chest, I can only whisper, “Leave.”

The doctor and nurse switch off the machines before walking out of the room.

---