14
Gummed-up eyes, cracked lips, scratchy throat, leathery tongue. Esther swallowed what felt like shards of glass and squinted. Pale pearl-grey light filtered through the venetian blinds. What time was it? Voices murmured somewhere outside her room.
Esther pointed her toes, wriggled each foot and jiggled each knee. Those parts of her worked. What about her arms? The right was fine. She moved her left elbow and stretched her fingers. No major pain, but she wasn’t about to stretch too far. Gentle exploration revealed she had a catheter, an intravenous line, and some drainage tubes. She was tethered to the bed.
As long as Esther lay still, there was no physical pain from the surgery, but no d**g on earth could dull the emotional pain. She was less of a woman than yesterday. How ridiculous
