Page 87 of What Comes Around

I screamed and fought, twisting, kicking, clawing, my voice raw with panic. I could not see who it was. I could not hear anything over the ringing in my ears and the sound of my own breathing.

“It is okay. It is okay. You are safe.”

The words finally broke through.

I froze, chest heaving.

The man holding me loosened his grip and stepped back, lifting his hands slowly as if dealing with a frightened animal.

I blinked up at him.

He wore a security badge.

“You’re safe,” he repeated, softer this time.

The adrenaline drained out of me so fast my knees buckled. He crouched with me as I sank to the ground, sobbing now, my body shaking uncontrollably.

He stayed with me, speaking quietly, grounding me with calm instructions.

Breathe.

Stay awake.

You are okay.

Help is coming.

Chapter 28: I Got Away

Five minutes later, the police and ambulance arrived. By then the tears had slowed, leaving me shaky and hollow. The guard stayed close, giving his statement while keeping an eye on me.

The paramedics helped me into the ambulance for a check up. The guard climbed in after them, saying he would ride along so I would not be alone.

I nodded, unable to speak, my throat tight and dry.

Fear clung to me like a second skin, impossible to shake.

The ambulance ride felt unreal, like I was watching myself from somewhere outside my body. The paramedics kept asking questions, shining lights in my eyes, checking my pulse.

I answered on autopilot. My face throbbed, my head pounded, and everything felt distant, muffled.

At the hospital they moved fast.

A nurse guided me into a small exam room, helped me sit on the bed, and started checking my vitals. Another nurse gently cleaned the dried blood under my nose and along my cheek.

The doctor arrived a few minutes later.

He examined my face carefully, pressing lightly along my cheekbones and nose while shining a small light into my eyes.

“You took a hit to the head,” he said. “I want to run a CT scan to rule out any internal bleeding.”

I nodded.

“Your nose is bruised and possibly cracked,” he continued. “We’ll know more after imaging. For now try not to move it too much.”

I nodded again, my throat tight.

“We’ll take you for scans in a few minutes,” he said. “Once we have the results, we’ll talk about next steps.”