Page 32 of A Storm of Nightmares

I’m halfway to Betty when somebody grabs my arm, stopping me in my tracks. “Excuse me, ma’am, I need to get you checked out.” I turn to face a woman in a paramedic uniform trying to steer me to the back of the ambulance. I pull my arm, but her hold on me doesn’t falter. “Please, come with me. I’ve been informed of your possible concussion. It’s crucial that I take a look at you to make sure you’re ok.”

I look at Betty again. Her blue eyes, now darkened by trauma, meet mine, and she weakly nods, telling me silently to go with the paramedic. I bite my lip to stop the emotions that I’m feeling from breaking through to the surface. I force myself to peel my eyes off my sister and turn to follow the paramedic.

I’m led to the ambulance, and as soon as I sit down on the back of it, I’m wrapped in a blue blanket and handed a cold bottle of water. “I feel fine, really. I hit my head two days ago. I don’t think I need to be checked out. It’s my sister who needs help.” The paramedic doesn’t say anything as she digs through a big duffle bag and starts pulling things out.

I roll my eyes and take the cap off the bottle to drink some of the precious liquid that I’ve been deprived of for days. I get half of the water into my stomach, and suddenly I’m not feeling fine at all. I double over myself and vomit onto the gravel parking lot.

The exertion of being sick is too much for my already weak body, and I just about fall off the ambulance. “Whoa, there,” the paramedic says as she grabs me and hoists me back into a secure, sitting position. She takes a little pen-sized light out from her breast pocket and flashes it into my eyes. Shaking her head, seemingly not liking what she’s seeing, she adds a finger to the mix. “Follow my finger with just your eyes.”

I try, I really try, but at this point, my body is not cooperating. The light and the movement of her finger right in my face is making me dizzy, and I can feel my stomach getting queasy again. My body shuts down and I pass out.

When I wake up, I’m lying in what I assume is a hospital bed. The walls are starch white, the linoleum floor shines under the bright lights, and the room smells like rubbing alcohol. I’m alone, and the sound of all the monitors at my bedside is driving me insane.

“Hello?” I call out, surprised to hear how raspy my voice sounds. I look down and find a button-looking thing sitting on the table next to me, and I figure it’s supposed to call someone in case I need help. I press it three times in a row, and seconds later, a nurse appears through the door.

She smiles warmly at me as she walks over. Her short brown bob and pale blue eyes put my mind at ease. She looks friendly, and I already feel safer. “I see somebody has woken up. How are you feeling, Katherine?” She doesn’t wait for me to respond before she checks the monitors and the chart at the foot of the bed.

“Um, I’m ok... What happened?”

“You’ve been unconscious for almost a full twenty-four hours, Hun. When you were brought here, you had a concussion, and you hadn’t had any food or water in days. Your bruising and cuts are obvious signs of recent physical abuse. You’ve been through the wringer. Your body just couldn’t take any more. But you’re safe now, and you’ll stay here for the next few days at least to give you a chance to recover.”

“What about Betty, my sister? She was worse than I was. Where is she now?”

The nurse gives me a sad, sympathetic smile. “Betty’s injuries were much worse, you’re right. It seems like she took quite a beating. She sustained two broken ribs and had some internal bleeding. She was rushed into surgery as soon as she arrived. I don’t want to get your hopes up, honey. Your sister is not out of the woods yet. She’s been put into an induced coma until things start looking up. We’re monitoring her condition very closely.”

My bottom lip trembles and I feel my eyes welling up with tears.Oh Betty, please be ok.“And the third girl that was with us?” I ask before I’m a complete mess.

“Jess wasn’t nearly as bad as the two of you. She was treated for a few scrapes and then released. Her parents picked her up a couple of hours ago,” the nurse tells me with a bright smile.

A tiny amount of relief rushes through me. Jess is alright. She’s back with her family. At least it’s not all bad news today. I open my mouth to ask about Keith when the door opens, and he walks in with a freaking purpose. He stares at me intensely, without a word, as he crosses the room and comes to a stop at my side. He gently takes my face between his hands and leans down to kiss me. I expect a sweet, quick kiss since the nurse is still in the room, but Keith has other intentions.

His tongue sweeps through my lips and dances with mine in the most delicious way. My insides melt. I’m kissing him back with so much intensity that I earn a deep groan from Keith’s throat, and I can tell he’s trying to hold it together. There’s not a doubt in my mind that if we had this room to ourselves, Keith would be on top of me by now. I silently curse the nurse for cock-blocking me.

Keith parts our lips and leans his forehead against mine, looking at me longingly. I giggle and feel my cheeks redden. The nurse politely excuses herself and tells me she’ll be back to check on me in thirty minutes.

“Are you ok, Kat?” Keith asks with his forehead still pressed to mine.

I nod and smile. “I am now.”

Keith lifts the blankets and slides into the tiny hospital bed, lifting my head to slide his arm under it. I snuggle into his chest and inhale deeply, feeling completely calm for the first time in a week. He absentmindedly runs his hands through my hair, and the gesture sends chills down my spine. I have missed this man so much. “I believe you promised me the details of your escape once we got out of that warehouse.” I feel Keith chuckle lightly underneath me and I hold him even tighter.

“I guess I did promise you that.” He leans down, gives me a peck on the lips, and then lays his head back on the pillow and licks his lips as he thinks.Ugh, swoon.That tongue, those lips... Stop it, Kat. Can this man not turn me on for two seconds? I’m in the hospital, for Christ’s sake, my body should not be reacting to him this way.

“After we slept together, which was fucking fantastic, I want to add, I guess we both passed out. When I woke up, I was in a big room with no furniture or anything. Just Dan and I in the dark. I didn’t even know it was him at first; captivity did not treat him well. Anyways, Rick came twice a day to deliver food. I knew he had to have you and the other girls somewhere close by, so I started thinking of a plan to get out and find you. The problem was Dan was really weak, so he was basically no help. A few days went by, and I could feel myself getting worn down, too. I felt slow and heavy every second that I was awake. It didn’t take long for me to figure out that Rick was putting something in our food. We stopped eating, and within two days, we had some strength back, even though we were fucking starving. One day we could hear one of you girls screaming bloody murder, and we knew we had to get out. Rick brought us dinner late, and he was weird. It seemed like he was on edge, I guess from losing his temper with one of you. He wasn’t paying attention when he bent over to put our plates down, so I rushed him. I got him pinned to the floor and just started swinging. I saw red, Kat. I wanted to kill that motherfucker. Dan finally pulled me off of him once Rick was knocked out. That’s when we grabbed his keys and came to find you guys. I didn’t think he’d recover so soon, though. I would have never left you alone if I had any idea Rick would get to you.” He shakes his head with regret, his voice heavy.

“It’s ok, turns out I’m a fighter. Who knew?” I joke, trying to lighten the mood.

“You are one strong girl, Kat, I will give you that. But you should never have to fight. You are so pure. I never want you to have to fight to survive, to be surrounded by darkness and terrified the way you were. You are everything good in the world, and I would rather die than see you in harm’s way ever again. I am going to spend every day for as long as I live making sure you feel safe and loved.”

A single tear slides down my face as I take in what Keith is saying. I’m lost for words. What could I even say after such a beautiful speech? Only one thing comes to mind. “I love you with every piece of my soul, Keith.”

I’m awarded a heart-stopping smile and an even dreamier kiss in response.

Chapter 22

A few hours have gone by, and Keith hasn’t left my room once, never taking his eyes off me. I can tell he’s worried I’ll disappear again if he leaves. He had to get out of the hospital bed, though, when the nurse came back in and scolded him. Apparently, I need space to recover from the physical and mental trauma I’ve endured. I assured her that Keith was fine in my bed, but she was not having it.

My parents came to see Betty and me as soon as they could. Needless to say, it was extremely emotional for everyone. Betty is still in a coma, but my parents were able to pop their heads in and talk to her. You always hear stories about people in a coma responding to their loved ones talking to them.

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