Page 28 of Marek

There is something about it that calms my soul in a way nothing else does.

It brings a joy to me, and for a single second, I forget about the situation I’m in.

That is until a burning sting on my leg has my mouth opening and a silent scream rips out. Reaching down, I frantically slap my leg, as if that will do anything to stop the fire like burn radiating through my body. Water fills my lungs and I begin to cough, scrambling with my arms and legs as I attempt to get myself to the surface.

I don’t know how I manage, but I drag my body onto the shore, pulling myself up just enough to faceplant the sand before rolling and letting out a piercing scream. I’ve felt pain in my life, but nothing like this. Not even close. It’s as if someone has rolledmy leg in acid and lit it on fire. Managing to push up with my elbows, I look down at the red welts forming on my leg.

“What the hell happened?”

Marek’s angry voice fills my ears, but I don’t turn to look at him, I’m too busy bellowing in pain as I claw at my leg. I’d rather rip it off then to feel this pain a second longer. Dropping to his knees in front of me, Marek lifts my leg and stares down at it. “Stupid girl. This beach is full of stingers.”

Moaning, I close my eyes as tears roll down my cheeks.

“Hurts,” I croak.

“Fuck. I know. Come on.”

Scooping me into his arms, Marek pushes to his feet and strides with purpose back toward the camp. By the time we get there, someone already has a medical kit. I guess they heard my wails coming through the trees. Marek takes me to the closest tent and shoves it open, laying me on the ground as he lifts my leg into his hand and inspects it.

“Get me fine tweezers,” Marek orders, “there are tentacles still on her leg.”

Someone disappears, rushing back in with a knife. “It was all I could find.”

“It’ll do,” he growls, then I feel the blade scraping against my skin as he removes what he can.

My crying has died down to hiccupping sobs, but the pain is still borderline unbearable.

“Give her something, for the pain,” Marek orders, washing my leg down with something that smells awful.

I’m handed a pill only moments later, and I don’t think about what it is, I just swallow it down. Closing my eyes, sweat trickles down my face as Marek puts a soothing cream on my leg and begins inspecting the rest of it to make sure he hasn’t missed anything.

“Keep an eye on her for a temperature. Some of the stingers out here are bad news. If she gets hot, call me immediately.”

A woman’s voice responds, forcing me to flutter my eyes open so I can see her. She isn’t familiar, and I wonder if she owns the ship we came in on, or maybe she’s part of the crew. Either way, she’s probably closer to Marek’s age than my own, and is very pretty, with long red hair and startling green eyes.

“Will you never learn, Ellie Mae,” Marek murmurs, as he stands and stares down at me.

I try to focus on him, but my vision blurs.

What did he give me?

“What...what did you give me?” I croak.

“I can’t have you running from me,” he murmurs, reaching down to swipe a strand of wet hair from my face. “You’re mine now, why can’t you understand that?”

He drugged me?

“F-f-f-fuck you,” I manage, before my words feel too slurred to escape.

“You did this to yourself.”

He knows how much I didn’t want to be drugged, and he did it anyway.

He is fighting for control, resisting the urge to give in to me because I know part of him wants to.

There is a little good in Marek, and the closer I get to finding it, the more he pushes me away.

He’ll pay for this.

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