CHAPTER EIGHT
924 Words
RINA'S POV
I woke up with a terrible headache.
It was like someone was using a hammer to hit my cerebrum repeatedly and had no plans of stopping anytime soon.
I had vomited throughout the entire night and if I threw up one more time I genuinely felt like my intestines were going to come out.
I was running a temperature. You could actually boil water on my skin.
I tried to sit up.
It took me several seconds just to drag myself upright and rest my back against the headboard. By the time I managed it I was panting like I had just run a marathon.
My body was on fire and freezing at the same time.
I had the blanket wrapped around me completely and it wasn't doing anything. The cold was coming from inside not outside and there was nothing to do about that.
The mosquitoes had finally won.
Those f**king mosquitoes.
I needed help. I needed medicine. I needed a hospital or I was going to die in this basement and nobody would find me until it was too late.
I didn't know if the chef would come soon. I didn't even know what time it was.
The worst part was that I had felt this coming for days. I knew. I could feel it building... the slight cough first, then the headaches, then the sore throat. All the signs were there and I ignored every single one of them.
I didn't want to seem weak.
I wanted to be strong for once in my life.
And where did that get me?
Almost dead in a drug dealer's basement before I turned thirty.
I tried screaming. Maybe someone upstairs would hear me.
My voice came out barely above a whisper. Scratchy and broken and completely useless.
God. Was this really how I was going to die?
I wasn't even thirty yet.
Kayla had always told me that Reggie would be the death of me. She said it as a joke every time. Every single time.
She was right. So f**king right.
And the sad thing was if I died here nobody would give me a proper burial. My body would probably be fed to dogs. That's what happened in drug dealer movies and I was literally inside one of their houses. Not just any drug dealer. The boss.
I was so angry.
But also grateful, which i hated.
I had food three times a day. Toiletries. Clothes. Snacks and fruits in the mini fridge. More than I had in my own apartment some weeks.
Yesterday the chef had brought pads and tampons without me asking. She said she didn't know if I was a pad or tampon girl so she brought both.
She brought both.
A stranger. In a drug lord's house. Thinking about whether I preferred pads or tampons.
I didn't know what to do with that.
The only thing driving me completely insane was the silence. The boredom. Try going a week without talking to a single person and then come back and tell me how that felt. I had started talking to myself. Full conversations.
I was losing it.
That was when I heard the knock on the wooden door.
Finally.
She walked in with a tray of food properly covered. Apron tied at her waist. That same smile she always had.
She stood there waiting for me to come and take it.
I tried to push myself to the edge of the bed.
I failed.
I tried again.
Failed again.
I was panting just from trying to move.
She looked at my face and the smile disappeared immediately.
"Hey — are you okay?"
She put the tray down on the floor and rushed over.
"I'm si—" My throat screamed the moment I opened my mouth. I winced and stopped.
She held me and looked at my eyes properly.
The worry on her face was real. It was genuine.
I couldn't understand it. A stranger worrying about someone she barely knew in a place like this.
"Shhh. Don't speak. Just rest. I'm going to get help. I'm coming back now."
She let go and headed for the door.
I waited.
And waited.
And then the thirst hit me.
I looked at the mini fridge across the room.
I knew cold water was a terrible idea. I knew it. But my throat was burning and I couldn't wait anymore.
Getting up was a whole struggle.
First I pushed myself to the edge of the bed. Then I planted both feet on the floor. Then I tried to stand and my legs immediately reminded me that they were not interested in cooperating today. Every muscle in my body ached in a way I hadn't known was possible, deep and heavy like my bones themselves were tired.
I limped across the room wincing with every step.
I slowly opened the fridge. The cold air hit my face immediately.
Water. Fruits. Canned drinks.
I reached for the bottle water and closed the fridge.
My vision was already going slightly blurry but I ignored it because I was thirsty and I couldn't think straight.
I staggered.
Then found my balance.
With my shaky hands, i opened the lid.
Took one gulp.
The cold hit my throat like a punishment. I gnashed my teeth. The brain freeze hit me immediately.
This was the worst decision I had ever made.
My vision blurred completely.
The last thing I saw was the monster walking through the door.
And then the darkness took me.
- Writer
