Page 49 of Lose to Win: Lost Trilogy: Part 3
“You’re okay, pretty girl,” a woman’s voice tells me. I panic and my eyes snap open. I don’t even have time to be relieved that I can actually open them as I take in my surroundings.
“It’s my room,” I whisper in wonder.
“It sure is, honey.”
My head almost swivels as if in a horror movie when I try to locate the owner of the voice.
“Arlene?” My voice comes out raspy, and it hurts a little when I talk.
She looks a bit hesitant. “I hope it’s okay that I’m here with you?”
“Uh, yes, of course.” I bring both hands to my head and try to regroup. “I have no idea how I even got here. Was I in the hospital?”
“No, Jon had someone come here to look you over. How are you feeling?”
“My head hurts a little,” I admit. “It’s as if someone hit me with a bat, you know?”
“I’m so sorry, honey,” she tsks. “Here, have some water. We need to keep you hydrated now.”
“What about the baby?” My hand goes protectively to my belly. What did I do to my baby?
Arlene presses a bottle of water to my lips. I grab it from her and start drinking like I just walked in the desert for miles.
“Emily.”
I almost spit water all over the place when I hear dad’s voice calling my name.
“Dad,” I gasp for air. As I struggle to breath, I suddenly start crying. I can’t believe what’s happening to me. The need to inhale my medicine is so strong, making my eyes search for it.
“Emily, stop,” dad orders me, but I can’t. I am so out of sorts, I can’t think. I need my inhaler or I am going to die.
“Jon,” Arlene calls out to him, obviously in distress. “She’s going to hurt herself.”
Heavy arms wrap around me, seemingly out of nowhere. The smell is familiar and comforting. Puck.
“Shhh,” he whispers in my ear. “You’re okay. Stop fighting me, babe.”
“Puck,” I struggle out of his arms, then blindly reach for him. “Puck,” I gasp again when he allows me to turn and burrow my face in his chest. “The baby…”
“What did I tell you about taking that shit, babe,” he murmurs against my hair, sounding like he is almost in tears. “Didn’t I tell you not to touch it, huh?”
“Puck,” that’s the only word coming out of my mouth over and over again.
“She’s in shock,” dad talks over everyone in the room, not sounding much better than Puck did only seconds ago.
“I’m gonna find out who he works with. I’m gonna kill them all,” Puck promises. “I don’t care if I get caught or not.”
“No,” I scream into his chest. “No! Why are you doing this to me?”
I push myself away from his chest and drop back on the bed. I can’t stop the shakes that have taken over my body. My teeth are chattering, and I am not able to stop any of it.
“Emily,” dad tries to pacify me. “You need to calm down, baby.”
“I did it all for nothing,” I whimper. “For nothing.”
“What did you do for nothing?”
I take a deep breath in, then release it slowly. My head feels stuffy and my eyes hurt like I have glass in them.
