Chapter 10 Elena
CHAPTER 10
ELENA
Elena woke to pain and hushed voices arguing. The voices were growing angrier by the second, which only added to her misery. Her teeth chattered, and she tried to snuggle under the blanket to get warm. Except then she remembered there was no blanket, not even a bed. She wasn’t even able to open her eyes completely. Pain wracked through her body every time she coughed. Something cold swabbed over her forehead, giving her a temporary reprieve from this heatwave that cocoonedher.
“It’s okay,” a soft, female voice crooned. “You’ve caught a nasty cold. Just try to get some sleep. The doctor’s taking care of you.”
She tried to open an eye, but it felt like a bag of cement was placed on her eyelids. She tried again, more determined this time, and succeeded to glimpse her caretaker. It was a girl with soft pink curls that hit her shoulders. Then her eyes dropped closed again, and she could no longer move them.
Maybe the girl was an angel. Or maybe she had truly gone to heaven.
Then a gust of wind passed through her, cooling her body. A voice boomed through her head. Angry voices spat back at each other. Loud voices. For a second, she was worried about the pink angel.
“Fine. Fine.” The angelic voice sounded irritated. “I’ll get her a female doctor. Sheesh. Since when did you become such a prude?”
The voices disappeared in the background, and everything faded back to black.
***
The next time Elena opened her eyes, she found herself staring up at a baroque ceiling. Rays of sunlight shone through the blinds. Shivers wracked her body, and she started to cough. It took her a minute to notice she wasn’t in that dreaded cellar anymore. She was lying in a bed with a comforter thick enough to almost smother her. However, it did nothing to warm her up.
She pulled herself up until her back hit a bedpost. Then she threw her covers off, and her feet hit a lush carpet. Someone had put her into pink flannel pajamas with ducklings on them. Curious.
Another spasm of coughing overtook her, sending little jolts of pain through her body. Determined to make it out of the room, she hauled herself up. Swaying, she had to grab hold of the bedpost when another spasm of coughing overtook her.
“Damn you, Viking.” She added a few more choice words for good measure, then dropped her butt back onto the bed. It was either that or do a face-plant on the floor. The carpet might not break her face, but she doubted if she’d be able to get back up.
Someone cleared their throat, and Elena froze. She blinked and only then noticed someone was in the room with her. It was the pink angel. She was sitting before the vanity, brushing her pink-blonde hair.
“Uncle Vik can be difficult sometimes, but he’s a nice guy,” she chided, a reprimand in her voice.
Uncle Vik? A nice guy?
“That hasn’t been my experience, so far.” Elena winced at the tinge of pain that followed when she spoke. She eyed the girl while thinking of a way to escape. She looked for socks, shoes, anything that could aid her in her escape, when another round of coughing had her hunched over.
Nope. She wasn’t getting out of here anytime soon. She couldn’t even get off the bed without wanting to cough her lungs out. Might as well make the best of it. Feeling miserable, she crawled back into the bed and sighed in defeat.
Cold water was placed at her lips and she opened her eyes.
“I’m Katya,” the girl introduced herself. “Take little sips. You’ve caught quite a cold.”
She didn’t “catch” anything; it was given to her. By her Uncle Vik. Elena swallowed the words. The girl didn’t seem to hate her like every other person she had encountered these past few days. She could use a friendly face right now.
“Thank you.” She sipped the water. A disgusting-smelling cough syrup was next.
“Uncle Vik is downstairs, entertaining our guests.” The girl pulled a face. “He’s entertaining one in particular; Annika. She’s a snooty piece of work, just like her big sister, and my uncle normally wouldn’t give her the time of day. But, they’re engaged, so he has to spend some time with her.”
A nasty ball of venom dropped into Elena’s stomach. Viking was engaged?
“Of course, Annika isn’t as horrible as her sister, Anastacia.” Katya drew out the name. “That one has been trying to get her claws into Kristoff forever. Who even calls their daughter that these days, anyway? Men are so dumb. They can’t see what’s right in front of them.”
The girl looked menacing and sounded possessive, reminding her of…well, herself. Elena decided she didn’t want to get on her bad side.
Katya fluffed up the pillows behind her. “Lay back. You’ll feel better soon. The syrup is supposed to help within twenty-four hours.”
“Thanks, that’s nice of you. It’s refreshing not be thought of as a backstabbing bitch,” Elena said.
“Oh, I never said I don’t think you’re a bitch. I just never bought the whole ‘church bells’ story.”
“Church bells?”
“An Etta James song,” Katya explained as if that was supposed to clarify it. “Though, I like Beyoncé’s version better.”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Elena said carefully. She noticed the slur in her voice. The cough syrup must be working, making her drowsy.
Katya cocked a brow, looking surprised. “How can you not know? Everybody knows the story of how Viking saw you getting hitched to another man the day he was released from jail. And not to just any man, but his enemy. His heart turned into stone when he saw you leaving the church together. Ringing any church bells?” Katya winked.
Oh, God.
She didn’t know how to answer that. How to explain the darkest day of her life to this girl? Luckily, she didn’t have to because the drugs finally kicked in. All strength left her body, and she slumped back into the bed. Tired, she closed her eyes and drifted off into sweet oblivion.