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I heard him go back to the bathroom. More water running. Suddenly I was very sleepy. I can just take a nap before he comes back. That’ll be okay. I laid back on the bed, my legs still over the side. I vaguely remember him coming back. He pulled me upright and took my clothes off. Then I was in the air, adding to the floating feeling from the painkillers, then I was being submerged in warm water.
My eyes were barely able to stay open, but I knew I was in his arms. I just snuggled close to him, and I didn’t care about anything else. I felt the vibration of his laugh as I drifted off to sleep.
I had no idea what time it was, or what day it was when I finally woke up. It was completely dark in the room, so I couldn’t tell if it was day or night. I checked the bed, searching for Adrik. No luck. Just me.
I vaguely remembered not being able to stand up before, so I slowly moved to the side of the bed. I swung my legs over the side of the bed and sat up. The room was stable so far. This was a good sign. I stood slowly. My legs felt weak, but I could stand up. Okay, I can do this. I took a few steps toward the bathroom. So far so good.
I had my arms out in front of me as I couldn’t see the bathroom door very well. I found the wall and felt my way to the door. I found the light switch and flinched when I turned on the light. That was a bad idea. I squinted to find my way around the bathroom and do what I needed to do. I stood in front of the mirror. My face was bruised, as I expected it would be, but it wasn’t nearly as bad as I thought it was going to be. I took inventory of my body. Adrik had put one of his shirts on me. I pulled it up. My body was multi-colored. I had bruises around my ribs and down my left side. Pretty.
I left the bathroom light on, so I could see in the bedroom. I found a pair of panties, a bra, and a pair of shorts, and threw those on. I did everything at a snail’s pace, but I could manage. I only felt a dull ache in my head as I moved around the bedroom.
When I opened the bedroom door, I could hear voices. I walked down the hallway, walking close to the wall to help steady myself. When I got to the end of the hallway, I could see Adrik and all the guys sitting on the couches. Adrik saw me and rushed to me, picking me up immediately. “Solnishko, what are you doing out of bed? Are you okay?”
“I’m okay. I feel better, somewhat. What time is it?” I asked, settling into his arms as he walked me to the couch.
Misha, with his wide smile, said, “More like what day is it.”
I looked at him, confused. “What do you mean?”
He looked at his watch. “You’ve been asleep for thirty-six hours now. You slept through the entire day, then most of the next one.”
“Shut up.” I thought he was playing a trick on me.
“It’s true, solnishko,” Adrik said as he kissed my cheek. He looked at me, brushing my hair from my face. He still had a look of concern on his face.
“What was in those painkillers?” I said, scratching my head. They all laughed at me.
Misha asked, “Are you still hungry? You said you were starving in the hospital. I promised to get you food once we got back here, but then you passed out for a day and a half.”
I thought for a minute. I really wasn’t hungry. My stomach did not feel right. I must’ve made a funny face, thinking about not wanting to eat because Misha laughed. “I’ve never seen you turn down food before. What was in those painkillers?”
Ivan had gotten up to go the kitchen. He came back with water for me. He handed it to me and said, “Start with this first. If you can handle water, then you’ll be able to eat soon. If water is too much, then you need to wait a little longer for the drugs to leave your system.”
“Thank you, Ivan.” I took the glass and took a sip. Okay, I was really thirsty. I took a big gulp and Adrik pulled the glass from my lips.
“Easy, love. Go slow or you’ll definitely puke it up.”
I pushed my bottom lip out but didn’t fight him on it. I hated to puke, so I would do whatever was needed to avoid that.
“Can you remember what happened, princess?” Ivan asked me.
I thought for a moment. I nodded my head. “Mostly, I think. We had just left the hotel and Mr. Turner. There were lots of people on the sidewalk like all at once. I remember Misha glanced at me and then the next thing I knew he was going one way and I was going the other. I hit the ground hard, but so did the guy that jumped on me. He kind of faltered and his grip on me loosened. I flipped him off me, like Viktor taught me. As I was getting up, I saw Misha get free from the guy that was on him. I remember being really pissed. I jumped on the guy and started hitting him. There was something familiar about it that I still can’t place. Misha pulled me off him and you guys know the rest.”
“Familiar how?” Viktor asked. “Familiar in how he acted? How he smelled? How he sounded?”
I thought back to the guy. “He didn’t look like he was entirely with it when he attacked me. Like, it was too easy for me to get him off me.”
Misha sat up. “I had the same thought. When I got the guy off me the first time and he came back for more, he looked like he was unsteady. Like he was high.”
Ivan said, “If they were high, that would explain why neither one of them has woken up yet.”
My eyes went wide. “That’s what it was! My uncle used to have the same look when he was high on pills and would beat the shit out of me!” I realized too late what I had just said in front of all of them, my hand flying to cover my mouth. Adrik knew, of course, but none of the guys knew about that yet.
They all looked at me, then looked quickly to Adrik. He nodded and pulled me closer. “You can show them, solnishko. They won’t look at you differently either,” he whispered to me.
I slowly stood up and raised my shirt up high enough that they could see most of my scars. I heard a few of them inhale sharply. I dropped my shirt and sat down next to Adrik again. He wrapped his arm around me again, pulling me to his side.
I took a deep breath and gave them the abbreviated version. “I was sent to live with my uncle when my mom died, as he was my only family, and I was only 15. He had a drinking problem that later turned into a pill problem. He started to beat me when he started on the pills. I would leave the house for hours when I knew he was high, waiting for him to pass out. That’s how I started running. Sometimes he wouldn’t be passed out when I got back, and he would catch me and beat me. Most of the time it was just his fists and he’d kick me, but the last night he used a whip on me.”
