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The doctor looked harried. “A pelvic exam in a natural part of this because you are a woman. I must make ensure you do not have cervical cancer.”
Sky hated anyone touching her down there. Memories of Vlad’s attack on her, roughly shoving his fingers up into her, tearing at her, making her bleed, made her cringe. She hesitated.
Allegra patted her gowned thigh. “Sky, I will be very gentle. This will take no time at all. I will just examine your uterus, check for fibroids or any other possible abnormalities. How long has it been since you had such an exam?”
Sky liked Allegra. She trusted her because she was a woman. “Well,” she stumbled, “not for a long time. I hate for a man to touch me…” The last time was when she’d endured a physical examination shortly after entering the Army.
Allegra nodded, giving her a softened look. “Well, then, let us just ease into this? The nurse handed her a form to fill out on a clipboard. “First, let’s just discuss your menstrual cycle. The time of the month it comes. It’s regularity? Any problems during menses? Clots? Excessive bleeding? Perhaps as I ask these questions, you will begin to relax a bit, eh?”
Nodding, Sky said, “I’ll try. I’m sorry. I’m just… well… sensitive about it, is all.”
“And Don Tobar was worried about your vomiting. You have thrown up seven times since you have arrived here. He’s concerned about that. Can you tell me if you have ever had ulcers?”
Sky shook her head. “No. No ulcers. When I get upset, really upset, I throw up. I’ve done that ever since I can remember.” She threw up a lot as a child.
“Ah, you are one of those unfortunate people who has a very sensitive vagal nerve response. When you get upset, do you first feel it in your stomach? Do you feel nausea?”
Sky rolled her eyes. “Exactly like that. I hate it, but I can’t control or stop it.”
Patting her arm, Allegra murmured, “You poor child. Of course, you can’t control it. Our vagal nerve connects to our stomach. If a person experiences any type of trauma, sheer terror, or a life-or-death situation, it is normal to throw up after it has happened. It is a human response to a dire threat.”
Sky chewed on her lower lip. The last two weeks had been a special hell on her. She felt as if she were teetering on the edge of an abyss where, if she fell into it, she knew she’d die. And she didn’t want to die. If anything, her strong sense of survival had kicked in and she wanted to get home to Cal. To love him. To care for him as much as he cared for her. She shrugged. “Stress will do it,” she quietly agreed.
“So, no gastrointestinal issues?”
“No… none.”
“Good, then this is nothing to worry about.” Allegra smiled a little sadly. “You are simply a very sensitive person, is all.”
“Lucky me,” Sky griped, giving her a grin, feeling the doctor’s sincere warmth and concern about her.
“Well, let’s move on, shall we?” Allegra said sympathetically. “Can you tell me about your period?”
Sky hated even talking about herself. She knew it was all going to be taped. She wouldn’t put it past Yerik to be in the video room, watching and listening intently right now. It made her skin crawl. She felt invaded. Again, as when Vlad had pinned her down on the bed, ripping her panties off her, plunging his fingers deep into her as she screamed, she had no control over the situation. That sense of helplessness snaked through her.
“I… well… six, maybe seven weeks ago, I think.”
“Do you skip periods?”
“When I’m under stress? Yes.”
Allegra wrote quickly. She looked up. “And you have been under stress the last two or three weeks, yes? You mentioned earlier you were?”
Sky deadpanned her expression. She’d like to tell Allegra she’d recently been drugged, kidnapped, and was now a prisoner of a sadistic monster who was listening to every word she said. That wouldn’t go over well on the video feed, however. “Yes, under tremendous stress,” she murmured, hoping Allegra wouldn’t push the issue and ask why she was so stressed out.
“Does this happen often? With stress, you skip a menstrual cycle?”
“All the time,” Sky answered, emotion in her voice. She’d been in the military. During helicopter training with the Black Hawk, she’d gone five months without a period.
“That’s very normal for a young woman of your age,” Allegra murmured, giving her a gentle look of understanding.
Sky wanted to suddenly cry. Allegra was so maternal and nurturing. She was genuine, unlike Yerik who hid the monster he was beneath that thin veneer of civility he showed to the outer world. She fought back the tears, hungrily absorbing each kind touch that Allegra would bestow upon her as she finished off the long list of questions.
“Well done,” Allegra murmured, handing the nurse the clipboard. “Now,” and she looked Sky in the eyes, “I would like you to lay down. My nurse is going to put a sheet across your waist and legs. As I gently move each of your heels into the stirrups, she will ENSURE you are completely covered. You will not be exposed in any way to any camera. I will not allow that to happen. Do you understand that Sky?”
There was a fierce protectiveness in Allegra’s voice. “Thank you,” Sky whispered unsteadily, afraid and vulnerable. Never wanting any man to see her helpless, laying on her back, exposed to their depraved eyes again, Sky felt Allegra pat her arm. The doctor was protecting her, and Sky had never felt so grateful as she did right now. It only took a few minutes, and the doctor had been good for her word, she was exceedingly gentle, and Sky eventually relaxed as she fully examined her. When it was over, the nurse ensured that Sky was protected from prying eyes as she sat up and smoothed the gown down across her legs.
“We’re done!” Allegra announced lightly, pulling off her examination gloves, dropping them into a nearby wastebasket.
