Queen of My Immortal Heart

Chapter 21: Nicole

Nicole awoke slowly. Her body felt heavy and the room seemed to spin. There was also a burning pain in her right shoulder. What had happened to her? She opened her eyes and looked around slowly. The room was dark except for the dim glow of a small fire burning in the fireplace to her left. She was in a huge bed with a heavy, velvet blue comforter and soft light blue sheets. The pillows behind her head were soft and plump. The four posts of the bed were delicately carved to look like angels with their wings folded behind them. She slowly turned her head to her left again and saw a man lying on the other side. Her heart pounded. Why was she in bed with this strange man? Who was he? Most importantly, where in the hell was she? She moaned and tried to sit up, but the burning pain in her shoulder intensified and she fell back down on the pillows with a loud moan. “Ah good, you are finally awake, your highness. We were afraid we were going to lose you there for a while.” A deep voice said from beside the bed. Nicole looked up and saw a tall, thin, handsome young man with short blond hair and clear blue eyes, sitting in a chair next to her. He was wearing a long white lab coat, khaki pants and a green polo shirt. He stood and poured a red liquid from the decanter on the bedside table into a small glass and offered it to her. She took the glass slowly and he helped her sit up to drink. Before the glass ever touched her lips, she could smell the rich aroma of the blood it held and her fangs sprang out of their own accord. She drank it down slowly, savoring the coppery taste of it on her tongue and the gentle way it coated her dry, sore throat. After she’d finished the glass off, she handed it back to the young man and he helped her lay back down. He sat the glass back on the table and put on his stethoscope and listen to her heartbeat. “Where am I and who are you and who is that man lying in bed with me?” Nicole asked all at once. The man finished listening to her heart before answering her. “You are in Tuscany at the home of King Gabriel Rossi, King of the Italian Demons. You were hurt in a fight with Lucard Satan and stabbed. The man next to you is Luke Sangre. He brought you here with the help of his father, Gabriel, and two of Gabriel’s men. He was also injured with a large gash in his thigh. I am Doctor Christian BloodRaine. I was called in to take care of you both.” he explained to her. He checked her pulse and poked at her right shoulder lightly, causing pain to shoot down her arm, which made her cringe and hiss. “I’m sorry to cause you pain, your highness, but I must check your wound to ensure it is healing properly. I shall give you a little morphine to relax you and take the edge off the pain.” he explained and pulled out a small needle and a tiny vial of clear liquid from his black bag on the table. He drew up a small amount into the syringe and dropped the vial back into his bag. He flicked the syringe with his thumb and forefinger a few times to remove any air bubbles and leaned over her arm. “You will feel a slight pinch and a slight burn as the morphine goes in, but then you should feel the pain slowly subside and more relaxed.” he said and gently pushed the needle into her upper arm. Just as Dr. Blood-Raine had said, she felt the slight pinch as the needle pierced her arm and a burning sensation as the clear liquid was pushed into her muscle. Once he removed the needle and turned to put it into a small, red, plastic sharps container that was in his bag, she began to feel funny. She was relieved to have more information and know where she was and what had happened, but now she was concerned for Luke. He'd been hurt by Lucard! Was it severe and the doctor was just trying to keep her calm by not telling her how bad it was? She turned her head toward Luke and saw that he was breathing deep and slow, obviously in a comfortable deep sleep. No doubt from the same morphine she had just been given. All of a sudden, Nicole felt like her whole body was slowly melting away and her spirit was all that remained. She could see, hear, and smell all that was around her, but she could barely feel anything. She felt like she was floating outside of herself and the pain was slowly leaving her body and she began to feel much better. She was still concerned for Luke, but something inside her seemed to tell her things were going to be just fine and she could relax. She heard the sound of scissors cutting through cloth to her right and slowly turned her head to see them cut through the final bit of cloth and watched as the doctor put them back in his bag and pulled away the cut bits of cloth. Her head felt like it was swimming and everything around her took on a surreal, dream-like affect. That morphine was a very strong medicine. She looked down as the cloth was pulled away and noticed a small line of about five stitches lining her skin right above her armpit. Why did she have stitches? She was a vampire and should heal in her death sleep. She said to herself in her head. “You were stabbed by Lucard with the Silver Blade, your highness. It will not heal in your death sleep, but on its own with proper care. It is looking great, though. Only three days and you are ready to have the stitches removed. You are healing very quickly. A few more days and it should barely be a scar.” Dr. Blood-Raine said and smiled down at her. Ok, so she had said it out loud when she’d thought she’d only been thinking those questions. This morphine was so powerful, she couldn’t even tell when she was speaking or just thinking. Damn, this was some good stuff! She heard Christian chuckle. She must have said that last part out loud too because he looked very amused. “Just relax now, your highness and I will have these stitches out in no time.” he reassured her and set to work with a tiny pair of scissors. Nicole could hear them cutting the tiny threads, but couldn’t feel anything. She felt herself drift into a light sleep as she relaxed and let the handsome doctor do his work. The last thing she heard before she drifted off was the sound of the bedroom door opening and closing.