“Lilith. Hey.”
His voice.
I didn’t hear him come in, meaning he’s been here all along.
And if I didn’t notice him sitting beside me, who else might I have missed?
Her.
Shit. He won’t save me, then.
Fine. Fine. I’ll save myself. First, I need this mask off me. Need these tubes out of my veins and the morphine or whatever it is out of my system.
Pain would be better than this. Better than deluding myself that someone cares.
My fingers go to the crook of my arm, wrapping around the tube, about to pull it.
“Easy.” A warm hand covers mine. His face comes into view,his large body towering over me. “Don’t try to move.”
Beepbeepbeepbeepbeepbeepbeepbeepbeepbeep.
Help-help-help-help-help-help.
Get me out of here!
“If it’s the pain in your abdomen you’re worried about, the ultrasound came back clear.” A line forms between Alaric’s thick eyebrows as he watches me. “No internal bleeding. You only had a few lacerations and bruises.”
That’s great. Except I won’t stay alive for long unless I get away fromher.
“You passed out from the shock,” he adds when my pulse won’t settle. Then he pats my hand once before pulling away. “In simple terms, your body hit its limit. That’s all.”
Where is she?
Help me.
Since the words won’t come out, I gather what courage I can and tear my gaze from his, scanning the room for Mom. A broken gasp rushes past my lips when I realize it’s just him, me, and the curtains shutting out the rest of the world.
She isn’t lurking by the end of the bed. Isn’t about to charm, bribe, or threaten Dr. Lockwood to give me up.
My head understands.
My pulse hasn’t caught up. With the monitor still beeping, my doctor frowns, then presses the stethoscope to my chest over my hospital gown.
Just as the beeping starts to steady, the rustle of the curtain at my side sends it racing allover again.
Not her. Not her. Not her. Not her.
A quick glance confirms it’s a woman in scrubs. That I’m, once again, safe. A shuddering breath fogs my oxygen mask, my attention returning to the person I trust the most. Him.
“Yes?” Dr. Lockwood quips, his expression serious.
“Her heart rate jumped. Is she in pain?”
He doesn’t answer, just keeps listening to my pulse with his gaze trained on the wall. It’s like he’s doing his best to make me feel at ease.
Strangely, it does the job.
Until he looks at me again, his gaze dragging over my face, my hair, while he snarls.