56
Scent of betrayal
Yuri
M y sister collapsed onto the dumpster.
The bags cushioned the impact. She seemed to have lost consciousness, and if Irene was right, I had lost her.
Could she have fallen in love with that damn Romeo? I wasn't sure. If she had, I was screwed and wouldn’t hesitate to fix it.
I descended quickly, taking only seven seconds to climb down to the first floor and reach the dumpster with a jump.
I shook her to wake her up. She didn't move an inch and was burning up. I debated whether to take her with me or leave her there. In this state, she was a burden, but if she was indeed pregnant, I might still find some use for her.
Going back to my car wasn't a good idea, as that meant re-entering the hospital. Capulet wouldn’t stay idle, so the smartest move was to flee in the opposite direction from the main entrance.
I quickened my pace through the alley. Luckily, my sister was lightweight. Her wearing a hospital gown might raise suspicions, so finding a fast vehicle was crucial.
Fortune smiled on me. There was a taxi stand five meters away, just around the corner. I headed toward it.
The taxi driver was busy chatting with another person outside the vehicle, so he didn't pay attention to Nikita's attire.
I swiftly opened the back door and shoved my sister into the seat.
The driver quickly took his place behind the wheel.
A shot rang out too close for comfort. I jumped in beside Nikita, slammed the door shut, and demanded the driver start the car, claiming it was a robbery and that I had seen the assailants’ faces.
The driver looked frightened. He believed my story and pressed the accelerator as bullets whizzed by.
I turned my head and saw Romeo's furious expression receding into the distance.
"Should I take you to the police station?" the scared driver asked. "Is your wife okay?" His eyes searched for the female figure in the rearview mirror.
"She fainted from the shock. Don’t take us to the station. I’ll pay you double the fare if you floor it."
"I could get a ticket."
"That’s much better than a bullet, don’t you think?" The man tensed up. "Take us to the port."
I couldn’t go back home, and checking into a hotel would ensure they found me. The best option was to go to the place where I had Cheng hidden.
"To the port?" the driver asked, puzzled. I gave him a menacing look.
"Your job is to drive, not ask questions. Save your breath because you're not a journalist, and I haven’t granted you an interview. Keep your eyes on the road and make sure we're not followed." My sharp tone put him on alert.
"Yes, sir," was his final response.
He didn't speak again until we arrived at the port to tell me the fare, to which I added the agreed-upon amount and a generous tip with a warning that it was best to forget this ride ever happened.
When I opened the door of the place, Cheng jumped out of bed, startled. I had caught her sleeping, and she was quite shocked.
"What's going on?!" she exclaimed, rubbing her eyes.
"My sister is sick," I said, laying her on the sofa.
"And why did you bring her here?" She groped on the nightstand for her glasses.
"The place is mine; I can bring whoever I want," I replied, not in the mood to explain.
The place was open-plan, sixty square meters with a double bed, a sofa bed, a full kitchen, a bathroom, a couple of pieces of furniture, a wardrobe, and a dining table.
There were no windows, just an exhaust vent and a ventilation system for air renewal. The floor was still the original concrete, and the four walls enclosing everything were painted white.
The fluorescent light did no favors to Cheng's nondescript features, making her look even paler.
The smell of dampness, salt, and lack of windows made me wrinkle my nose.
Cheng approached and looked at my sister, whose face was overly flushed. She put a hand on Nikita's forehead.
"She's burning up."
"You're quite the genius. Get some paracetamol and a glass of water. The pills are in the third drawer of the kitchen."
Cheng went to the indicated spot and brought me what I asked for.
"Kalinka, open your eyes. I need you to take the pill," I whispered, lifting her to help her swallow it.
A groan escaped her cracked lips. She might have hurt herself when she fell; I couldn't rule that out. A slight odor of garbage hit my nostrils.
"What smells?" Cheng asked.
"Betrayal," I muttered, pushing the pill to the back of her throat.
I placed the glass at her mouth and insisted she drink. I saw the reflex movement of her neck as she felt the liquid fill her mouth. She had swallowed it.
"Did your sister betray you?" Cheng's slanted eyes scrutinized me.
"It seems so."
"Why did you bring her here then?"
"Because I might need her."
"She's dangerous."
"Are you saying that because she tortured you?"
"I'm saying it because it's true." Her expression was serious.
"Who isn't in this world?"
"I don't like that you brought her; it puts us in danger. What's she wearing?"
"The latest hospital fashion." The Chinese woman snorted. I gave her a threatening look. "You don't get a say in this. You're lucky to have me, or you'd already be in China, married to the prince your dear father chose."
She crossed her arms, angry. She knew I was right. I needed to think and get rid of that smell of Brussels sprouts.
"I'm going to take a shower. Watch her in the meantime. I need to get her scent off me."
"Why don't you bathe her instead? It might help reduce her fever, and the place would stop smelling like a pigsty." It wasn't a bad idea.
I removed her gown and the bandage from her arm. I couldn't put her under the shower with it on. I had bandages, gauze, and iodine in the place. I would treat her wound after rinsing her off.
When I uncovered the wound, Cheng and I exchanged looks. We both knew the marks a gunshot leaves. She raised her eyebrows, questioning.
"It wasn't me if that's what you're wondering."
"Her husband?"
"Could be; only Nikita knows. We'll ask her when she wakes up."
"That's not a good sign." I started undressing.
"Why don't you read your Chinese horoscope for a while and stop bothering me?" Her cheeks reddened as she saw me without my shirt.
"What are you doing?"
"You don't think I'm going to shower with my clothes on, do you? Nikita needs someone to hold her, and I doubt you can manage."
"But are you going to strip completely?"
"If my full nudity embarrasses you, don't look," I replied, pants off. "Comparisons are odious, and your compatriots have a reputation for not finding it." Jing's daughter stayed silent as my underwear joined the rest of my clothes. I didn't care if she looked at my junk or not.
I took my sister in my arms, and once inside the shower, I asked Cheng to help with the soap. I had to hold Nikita since she couldn't stand on her own.
Cheng was reluctant to wash her, so I put her between a rock and a hard place. Either she did it, or we kept the pigsty smell.
She kept muttering in Chinese. I completely ignored her. When she reached the injured arm, my sister flinched.
"Don't scrub the wound," I noted.
"I wasn't planning to. You shouldn't have taken her out of the hospital."
"I wouldn't have if things hadn't gotten complicated. Her husband knows I'm alive and was right behind me with a gun." She looked at me, scared, and stopped moving.
"And where does that leave us? Does he know about our alliance? Did he follow you?"
"No, no one knows our secret, and he couldn't have followed us; I made sure of it." Cheng's expression showed she doubted my words.
"I don't like this situation!"
"And you think I do? I'd rather be on a beach in the Caribbean, but here I am, stuck in this place with you. It is what it is. Either suck it up and deal with it, or walk out that door. I'm sure your father will be thrilled to find you."
"If I could leave, I would have already."
"Well, then you know what to do. Are you almost done? My arms are going to cramp." She ran the showerhead over Nikita's hair to rinse out the soap.
"Your sister is ready."
"Perfect, grab a couple of towels. I'm going to carry her to the sofa, and I don't want to get the floor all wet." She ran to fetch the towels. "Dry us off a bit."
"Dry you?!"
"Either that or you carry her yourself."
"I'd rather mop the entire floor than touch your pale ass."
"Suit yourself," I replied, making a mess of the floor.
Cheng unfolded the sofa bed, and I laid Nikita on it. I asked her to dress my sister and take care of her wound while I returned to the shower. I needed to lather up and clear my head.
I had to come up with a new plan quickly before Romeo got the upper hand.