Warmth

chapter 7 : harry potter

One week later.

" " are you sure you are doing alright? " Carlota asked, her voice reflecting how genuinely worried she was.

" I am doing completely fine, I found a house, i have and even better, I have no close neighbors so it's all peace and quiet for me, " Astrid said with a small smile, picking a tin of corn from the rack and putting it into her basket before walking to the line to pay for it.

" it's OK if you say it is " Carlota sighed " it,s god that your doing alright, everything is going crazy over here especially a certain someone's distraught father "

one Carlota's words fell, Astrid winced, transferring the phone from one ear to the other, it had finally reached her turn so she paid for her goods and left the supermarket. purposely taking her time, she decided to wander a bit before going home so she pulled an icecream cup out of her shopping bag, slurping the peanutbutterflavoured icecream quietly as she watched the gentle wind blow.

" How's my dad doing? " She finally asked, the question she'd been avoiding since she got to Colorado finally making its way through her lips, it's not that she didn't care for him, the exact opposite was the case, she cared for him so much that any bad news about him would brake her so call her a coward but she'd rather avoid it all together since the probability of hearing bad news was depressingly high considering what she just did.

She could hear Carlota sigh deeply over the phone making her twiddle her thumbs while holding unto the now empty ice cream cup , she always ate ice-cream when he was nervous and nw, she'd slurped down the whole thing in seconds.

"Carlota? " She asked as she finally noticed a trash can in a corner, she was just in the middle of avoiding another puddle of rainwater so she could reach the trash can when she realised this paticular puddle was a little red, no, very red.

Blood?

The thought made all her hairs stand on end " umm, Carlota, I'll call you later, " she spoke into the phone before switching it off and tucking it in her back pocket despite knowing that judging from Carlota's silence, she probably had news for her but for some reason chose not to divulge it, Carlota was anything but a lier so she'd just keep quiet when you ask her something she didn't want to divulge.

now back to the horror movie like scene befor her.

Any other person, scratch that! Any sensible person would turn on their heels and run away but Astrid couldn't help but use the flickering street lights that made the bloodied puddle look more like the surface of a Ruby to trail the faint trail of blood.

She did walk for a while, it seems whoever it was didn't want to be found as he seemed to have made a consscious effort to hide But It didn't take long before she saw him, and the sight of him was absolutely grotesque.

She didn't know how much of it was his blood but he was covered in an alarming amount of it from head to toe, the Ruby red drops died his blonde hair red, dripped down his forehead and unto his eyes before dropping from his long eyelashes unto his lips.

She couldn't help but let a gasp escape through her lips. she could already feel her brain short circuiting at the severity of blood surrounding him, he looked like a barely living fountain of blood.

She looked left and right, twiddling her thumbs even harder, he was alive, the slight rise and fall of his chest proved that, but if she didnt help him, it wouldn't be for long.

'Yes! I should call the police` she thought, pulling out her phone, her hazel- painted nails tapping against her phone as she wondered how on wear the this happened to her.

C'mon, it's not like she was living in a novel?!

[A/N; ahem! Ummm, you really are ]

"Don't ... " his hoarse voice rang out before her shaking fingers could even Dail the number correctly, her fear somehow made her keep typing in '199' instead of '911'

" you just talked " she screeched, kneeling to his level so that she can hear him, she felt so happy that he was alive.

" please, don't call the police " he mumbled out, blood spilling out of a cut on his lips.

" are you bonkers? You'll die! " she whisper screamed, almost flicking his forehead before reminding herself that he was not Asta.

" plea -se " he mumbled, and just like that, he went out like Christmas lights after December.

" hey! Don't pass out on me! " she was screaming by now, but it was futile, he looked like even if he managed to stay awake, he wouldn't be able to muster strength to lift his eye lids.

At this point, she wasn't even sure she was happy that he was alive anymore, what on earth was she supposed to do?! Wave a magic wand and 'abracadabra ' him out of this bloody mess?!.

Well guess what? Unfortunately, she's not harry porter!

She stood up, running her fingers through her hair in frustration, thoughts entering her mind and dying down so fast that it was like flicking the pages of a book. she couldn't take him to the police so obviously she couldn't take him to the hospital either because they'll definately want a statement seeing how thoroughly he was tortured.

" OK, OK, ... you can do this! " she said, giving herself a mental fistpump, but.... do what?!

She had half a mind to turn around and walk away but she wasnt about to leave with her consciousness hunting her down till she looses her mind, she'd have to do something and fast!

Suddenly, it was like a light bulb went off in her head, a stupid light bulb, yes, very ridiculous, yes, but it was the best her half fried brain could come up with. She took in a deep breadth before running to the streets like a crazed woman, she flagged down a cab with all her might to the point she was actually chasing down the cabs until finally, one with an old gentle looking man as the driver pulled over.

"Where to? Madam " the man gave an almost toothless grin, she would have shuddered if not that she just saw much more a shudder-worth view some seconds ago.

"Umm, " she breathed deeply again, her resolve hardening with the thought of the dying man ' sorry old man, but your about to meet the best actor in the world ' seems like it was time to put her completely non existent acting degree to test. " my husband, they got my husband! My poor darling, his friend owed a debt to some gangsters and they beat bloody hell out of him for it, he wouldn't tell them where his friend was, " she said, forcing out tears wasn't that hard considering she had cried a lot the past few months.

As expected, the driver bought it hook line and sinker " Oh, what a tragedy, those fuckers need to be taken to the police, but first, we must save this husband of yours " he said, the man removed his seatbelt and got out of the car, Astrid hastily pointed him to the Alley and with his help, she got him into the car.

" should I take you to the nearest hospital? " he asked, driving as fast as he could.

This, my dears, was the hard part.

" n-no sir, I'm... umm... I'm a nurse myself so taking us home would be convenient. " she said, there was silence for a while as the driver digested her story but thanks to either God or the fact that he half his brain was already covered in white hair, he swallowed it hook line and sinker. she let out a sigh of releif once the old man sprang to life and drove her home and even helped her carry the guy up the first few steps before leaving and rejected her money.

She struggled with him before dumping him on the floor as the bed would not be best considering how much blood he had seeping off him, on second thought, she removed her extra clothes before running into her bathroom. She flicked on the shower than spent her life's worth plus all her extra calories pulling him under the shower.

Once the blood was gone, she realised a fair bit of it wasn't his but enough, more than enough was seeping out of holes and cuts made throughout his body. She didn't dwell on the sight instead, grabbing he extra large first aid box that Carlota forced her to carry along (the s**t could probably be used for a full on operation with the amount of things Carlota packed in there ), she knelt down beside him.

Now, time to get to work!