Total pages in book: 95
Estimated words: 85183 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 426(@200wpm)___ 341(@250wpm)___ 284(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 85183 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 426(@200wpm)___ 341(@250wpm)___ 284(@300wpm)
"Do you know how long you were you gone?"
I frown and try to think, to remember, but everything is a blur. "I don't know, days, weeks." I shrug. "Why does it matter?"
"It's routine to give every female patient a pregnancy screen, Miss Pearson—" Oh, God!
"No." I shake my head. I'm going to be sick. "No, no, no," I repeat to myself. I drag my hand through my hair. This isn't happening.
The doctor walks to the bedside. "Miss Pearson..."
"I want it out!" I shout at him.
"Please, I understand this is difficult, but please calm down for just a moment."
I jump off the bed, yanking the IV lines out of my arms. Blood trickles down both wrists.
"Miss Pearson!" he shouts as he steps back to open the door. "I need help in here," he yells to the nurse's station.
I turn my back to him and rip the hospital gown down my shoulders, exposing my back. "How many brands are on my back?" I scream hysterically. There's silence. "How many?!"
"Six," he whispers, his voice breaking. Only six? I felt like I was there for months, and yet, I remember every brand being burned into my skin. One a day.
I brace my hands on the bedside table, my breathing ragged. It's not Joe's, which means... I turn back around to face the doctor, and Jude is standing in the doorway, his expression a mixture of pain and anger.
Six brands, one for every day Jude didn't get to me, isn't that what Joe said? Two nurses step into the room, and the four of them stare at me as though I'm a wild animal about to bolt.
The doctor tries to calm me. "Miss Pearson, you need to..."
"Leave." My voice is a broken rasp, but he stops and nods before leaving the room. One of the nurses moves to my side and tries to treat my bleeding wrists. "Leave!" I shout at her.
She flashes a nervous glance at Jude, then back to me. Eventually, she nods and leaves. Silence fills the room, and I can feel the tension humming off Jude from here.
"Sorry," he says quietly.
I lay down on the bed and curl onto my side. Blood stains the sheets but I don't care. I can't process this, so I choose not to. I shut it down and push it from my mind. I close my eyes. I'm so tired. I wish I could fall asleep and never wake up.
"Sleep, Tor." I'm vaguely aware of Jude's hand stroking my hair as I fall asleep.
She's out. And the longer I stare at her, the more helpless I feel. I'm about to lose my shit in here; I can't be fucking still. I keep getting up and down and pacing the room. Some nurses quietly come, eyeing me as they change out her IV, and I excuse myself, pulling my cigarettes from my pocket as I make my way down the white hallway.
The glass doors slide open. The sudden breeze causes my skin to prickle. I flick the lighter, pull the first drag deep into my lungs and wait for a small piece of this tension to undo itself. I lean against the brick exterior, and I draw in puff after puff. I close my eyes to shut the world out, and as soon as I do, all I can see is her. All I can see is how fucked up she has become because of me. I never asked for her. I never wanted her thrown into my life but... one day she just was, and once she was there I had no control over what happened. I never in a million-fucking-years intended to love her, but fate is a motherfucking sadistic bitch. I watched her fucking break against my will... I watched her morph into something she didn't deserve to become. She tore into those empty, dark crevices of mine no one should venture into. Tor made me fucking feel. She reminded me there was more to life than murder and money and revenge.
My phone dings, and I open my eyes, taking a long drag from the cigarette. I glance at the screen, and find a missed text from an unknown number. It's obviously Joe. I know I shouldn't read it, but I tap the screen, blowing out a steady stream of smoke as I read over the words: I let you find her. I left her like that just for you. I'll be coming for you soon, but until then... I see an attachment and open it.
The blurry video slowly comes into focus. I see Tor laid on a desk, covered in blood with her clothes ripped. Someone shoves Caleb in front of her, and my entire body sinks.
"You will fuck her, and I'm going to film it. I'm going to send it to Jude," Joe's voice rattles over the speaker, and my blood heats.