Page 61 of Lost In The Dark

“Sleep, sweetie. We’ll go home soon,” he told me and seconds later I was out.

CHAPTER 19

ADDY

It was getting dark outside by the time the doctor walked into the room and declared they had all of the test results back. In the meantime, over the last few hours I’d been taken for several other tests they had decided they wanted to carry out, including a cardiac CT.

I had tried to rest in between, as all of the guys kept on telling me to, but my anxiety was just too high in that place, with strangers coming in and out of the room. I was barely keeping it together, and as the hours passed, the guys seemed to realize that.

For the last hour I had been sat in Jordan’s lap in one of the chairs which had been brought in for the guys earlier. I was straddling his thighs, facing him and had my head rested on his chest, listening to his heart rhythm in an attempt to keep as calm as I could. It helped that he had both arms wrapped around me, making me feel secure.

Before that I had been in Adams arms, sat across his lap as he held me and kept me warm. It should have felt confusing with my feelings for them both, and for Kane – who had remained outside the room despite Asher asking him if he’d prefer to sit with us – but it didn’t because I was just too highly strung and panicked to think of anything but how safe I felt in the arms of the two hot brothers. My feelings for them were a mess, butthere was no denying I was starting to feel more soothed with the pair of them than I did with Asher and Eli. I didn’t know what that meant, but I really needed it.

I sat up reluctantly at the sound of the doctor’s voice. I turned my head to face her, but I refused to move from Jordan’s hold. I had no idea what the doctor was about to reveal and I was afraid. What if something had happened to me in the last two years which had left me permanently affected? Or the other fear running through my mind – that she would say I had the same debilitating condition my mom had suffered with for so many years before she died.

“Breathe, princess. Whatever she says, you’re not alone,” Jordan whispered into my ear before placing the softest kiss right behind it. It served as a great distraction for a few seconds, little electric zings running through my skin where his lips had touched me.

When I looked up again I saw Adam watching the both of us and I instantly felt terrible. I had almost kissed him too and now he had seen Jordan kissing me in a pretty intimate way. I expected to see anger on his face, but instead he just smiled warmly, like he was happy with what he saw. That just messed me up even more. What did that mean?

“Addy?” I looked up to Eli as he said my name and realized he and Asher were both looking to me with concern.

“Huh?”

“You okay, shortcake?” Eli asked as he came closer and crouched before me.

“Just tired. Sorry,” I laughed a little and he relaxed and stood again.

“It’s fine. The doctor just wanted to talk to you, okay?” he said as he nodded to where the doctor stood in the doorway with a tablet in her hand. I nodded and looked to her.

“You got the test results back?” I asked, remembering her saying that before I had zoned out.

“We did. They have proved conclusively that what you suffered today was a heart arrhythmia,” she told me. I instantly looked to Asher to see how worried he looked, since I had no idea what that meant.

“Something’s wrong with my heart?” I panicked as Jordan gripped me tighter.

“An arrhythmia simply means your heart starts to beat out of it’s normal rhythm. In your case it slowed down and you suffered what we call bradyarrhythmia’s. Your heartbeat slowed so much that it became ineffective and not enough oxygenated blood could make its way around your body. That’s why you blacked out.”

“What was the cause though? We were just out walking,” Jordan questioned, and I wanted to know that too.

“Bradyarrhythmia can be triggered by a whole host of things. Caffeine, exercise, stress, lack of sleep. The list goes on and on,” she replied.

“So this can happen again then?” Eli asked.

“It’s possible,” the doctor nodded. “But we will be starting you on some meds, which will help.”

“And the underlying cause? Addy says this has never happened to her before? Why now?” Asher asked.

“That’s why we needed the cardiac CT. As we suspected, it showed some damage to the heart tissue. I see in your notes that you were a victim of kidnapping. Can you think of anything that happened during your captivity that could cause damage to your heart, Miss Brooks?” The doctor looked to me and tears were already filling my eyes as what she was saying hit me. My heart was damaged because of what had happened to me in the years I had lost; because of the monsters who took me, held me, and destroyed me.

“Addy doesn’t have many memories of the years she was held captive. They’re returning in pieces,” Asher stepped in.

“Hilton,” I whispered as one of the few memories I had gotten back so far played out in my mind. I gasped as I pulled myself from it, knowing I wasn’t strong enough to go back there again.

“Easy beautiful. You’re okay. I’ve got you,” Jordan soothed as he pulled me even closer against his front. I took a deep breath and looked up to the rest of the room, all of whom were waiting for me to go on.

“He…the monster who bought me…I remembered him p-putting me in a metal cage and he…he hooked clips to it. I th-think he electrocuted me…and I don’t think that was the first time. I knew wh-what was coming…I was so scared,” I explained through my tight throat. I was beginning to tremble again and I was grateful when Adam stepped closer and placed his warm hand on my back supportively.

“Why didn’t you tell us about that, sweetheart?” Asher asked as he looked to me with a pained expression.

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