60
Let's negotiate
M y body still ached a bit, but I no longer felt so heavy.
I stretched my arms and legs, and a slight pull reminded me of the wound on my arm. I blinked to focus my vision and noticed that I was in an unfamiliar environment. It was almost claustrophobic, with no natural light and a fluorescent lamp that gave no indication of whether it was day or night.
Next to me, I saw an IV drip connected to my hand. I remembered my fall and the darkness that followed.
"Finally awake," murmured a female voice.
Seated at a table, with a steaming cup between her fingers, was Cheng, staring at me intently.
"You?" I coughed; my throat was dry.
She set the cup down on the table, went to the kitchen to pour a glass of water, and brought it to me.
"Here." I looked at her distrustfully; at another time, I would have thrown the glass in her face and used the shards to cut her throat. Now, I couldn't do that, or at least not yet. I needed to assess the best option and understand where I was. "Relax, it's not poisoned," she insisted. "If I wanted to kill you, I would have done it while you slept."
I had no doubt about that. I drank and felt relieved after a minute.
"I need to go to the bathroom."
"Let me take out the IV. The doctor said you needed to stay hydrated until you woke up."
"Are you a nurse now? When did you get your degree? I can do it myself. You know it's not safe to be near me when there are needles around."
I carefully removed the IV and the line and tried to stand up. As soon as I made the attempt, my legs trembled, weakness overtook my body, and I fell back onto the sofa bed.
"You're still weak..."
"I'll decide that. Move aside if you don't want me to turn you into a pincushion like last time."
"You only have one."
"One is more than enough."
I took a couple of deep breaths, and this time I managed to stand. My muscles felt sluggish, and a slight tingling swept over me. I moved slowly towards the bathroom under her watchful gaze. I realized I was wearing an oversized short-sleeved shirt and sweatpants.
"Was there nothing more horrible to put on me?" I asked irritably.
"You and I don't share tastes or sizes, so it was either that or the hospital gown covered in rat filth and decay." I felt a wave of nausea at the mention but managed to control it.
I opened the bathroom door and held onto the handle. I was already tired and had only walked a few meters.
"Do you need help sitting on the toilet?"
"If I need you to wipe my ass, I'll let you know." I needed a minute alone to gather my thoughts.
I had so much fluid in me that I was sure I would weigh three kilos less after emptying myself. I washed my hands and face, and when I saw my reflection, I almost screamed. I looked like a strange fusion between the Corpse Bride and a bird's nest. For the love of God, how much time had passed? Where was my brother? Why was there not a single window in this place?
I needed to get out of here before Yuri returned. The problem was that, with the strength I had, I wouldn't even make it to the corner bar, if there was one, which I doubted.
I had lost a lot of weight and looked deplorable. It was better not to look in the mirror.
The first thing was to be a bit more cordial with the Chinese woman. If I wanted information, I couldn't keep going for her jugular with every answer. I needed allies, not enemies, and I had some information about her that I could use to my advantage.
First, I had to understand the situation and see what I could do to escape quickly from this place.
I poked my head out and continued studying the area. There was only one way in and out, a door that I had no idea if it was locked or unlocked.
Cheng had returned to the table and was sipping from her steaming cup. Her gaze was scrutinizing.
"What time is it?" was my first question.
"Four in the afternoon. Do you want to eat?" I should have, but I had no appetite. I shook my head. "I imagine you have several questions."
"You imagine correctly."
"Go ahead, I have nothing else to do." I cautiously approached and took a seat in one of the chairs.
"Why am I still alive?" She forced a smile.
"I suppose because your brother doesn't want you dead and because you haven't put my life in danger. If you did, I wouldn't hesitate to kill you regardless of the consequences."
It was a logical reasoning.
"You said a doctor visited me."
"Yes, you fell from a second floor into a dumpster. The impact was considerable; if it hadn't been for the cushion of trash, you might not have survived."
"Saved by garbage," I noted.
"Also, you had a nasty infection, a high fever, and with the baby, we didn't know what to give you, so we had no choice but to bring in a doctor."
"Am I still pregnant?"
"It seems so. You haven't bled, so initially, baby Capulet is still in your womb. The doctor recommended rest due to the fall. He examined you and didn't think you'd broken anything. We bought what he prescribed and have been giving it to you. You've been unconscious for three and a half days."
"And you've been taking care of me?"
"Your brother has also helped."
"Where is he?"
"I suppose he's figuring out how to make everything make sense again. Our plans have fallen apart."
"And that's exactly why it's impossible for you to put it back together. By now, Romeo and his family must know your intentions; they aren't fools."
"Our intentions? You mean our intentions."
"I'm not with you in this."
"Yuri told me you were."
"Did you believe him? My brother isn't with anyone in anything," I muttered, disappointed. "He just uses everyone around him to get what he wants. He's a leech, a parasite who doesn't hesitate to fake his death or force his sister to marry the enemy to get his way. He pointed a gun at me to make me climb down a window against my will. If he could do that, do you really think he will share any of his glory with you? Neither you nor I are important to him. The sooner you accept that he's using you, the better." Her head moved from side to side, and she set the cup down on the table.
"He said this might happen."
"What?"
"That you'd try to convince me he was going to betray me because you've fallen into Capulet's net." I laughed.
"Do I look like an anchovy? I don't fall into anyone's net; I'm not a damn fish. It took me a while to realize who my brother is, but nothing more."
"Koroleva, you're a smart woman; your arguments are very weak."
"Rather, they are real. Yuri told me why you allied with him, to escape an arranged marriage and avoid having your rightful place taken from you. Deep down, you and I are very similar. We were born into a world dominated by men where gender matters more than worth. Our president doesn't want to look bad with your father. Yuri will betray you because my brother can't partner with anyone. He wants it all and won't settle for half."
Cheng stared at me in silence, evaluating whether what I was saying was true or not. It was hard to believe she would trust me. The only time we had met, I tortured her, and now I was asking for her trust and to break her alliance with the person protecting her.
"I can't take that risk. Besides, I don't know what you expect me to do. We're trapped."
"Do you have a phone? Let me make a call; we'll be out in half an hour."
"I don't have a phone."
"I don't believe you. A woman like you wouldn't risk being locked up with no way to escape."
"Do you seriously think I'm going to make a deal with you? Why?"
"Because women like us can see beyond. We understand that it's not enough to blow heads to gain territory. What's important is forging alliances that allow you to keep your kingdom, and that can only be achieved by making deals with the right people."
"And you think you're the right person?"
"I am a woman of my word, which is more than I can say about my brother. I only need to look you in the eyes to sense that we speak the same language. I want to negotiate, I want us to reach an agreement, I want you to count on me to prove to your father that you have everything he needs, and I want you to help me prove to my husband that he's wrong about me. The competition between women is the greatest triumph for a world dominated by men."
She exhaled and sat down in the chair next to me. I knew I wasn't wrong about Cheng, and if I could find the right key, we could join forces.
"Talk, I'm listening. For now, that's all I can offer you."
"Let's talk."