Chapter
forty-nine:
Christy
followed Isaac towards the cafeteria in the hospital. He ordered himself a
coffee and asked if Christy wanted one as well.
She
politely declined.
The
thought of food made her nauseous.
Christy
wrapped her arms around herself, feeling as though she would be unable to stop
shaking, even if she tried.
“C,
I know you’re worried about Becky, but she’s fine now. The doctors said
everything will be ok.” He reassured, as they walked from the cafeteria. He
gently rubbed her back with the palm of his hand.
“I
know that.” She said.
Isaac
sighed, and led her into a small corridor, away from the traffic of the main
hallway. He set his Styrofoam cup of coffee down on a ledge and pulled Christy
into a firm embrace.
She
folded herself in his arms, without embracing him back. Suddenly, she began to
sob.
“C,
baby, it’s okay. Everything is going to be fine.”
“I
know, but… but that could have been any of us, Ike.”
“What
do you mean?” He asked, briskly rubbing her arms.
She
pulled away from him, and removed a folded letter from the front pocket of her
jeans and placed it in his hands.
Isaac
looked at her with confusion, and unfolded the note while she wiped her tears
away with her hands.
The
note was a plain white piece of paper, with the hotel logo stamped at the very
top of the page. Underneath was written in large bold letters, “Leave: or you’re
next”.
“Is
that… blood?” He asked in complete alarm.
“I
hope not.” She said, and broke into tears again, wrapping her arms around his
body and burying her face in his chest.
”It’s okay, C. I’m going to call the police, okay?
We’ll get this looked after…”
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Jenna
pushed open the door to Becky’s hospital room and hurried over to her bedside.
“Becky! I’m so glad you’re okay!” She hugged Becky gently. “How are you
feeling?”
“Sore…
A little sick.” Becky forced a smile.
“Oh,
honey, I’m sure they’re going to let you out of here soon…”
“I
know. I just hate hospitals. I hate doctors.”
“I
know you do… umm… guys, can Becky and I be alone for a
little while?”
“Yeah,
Come on Zac, lets go grab something to eat.” Luke suggested.
Zac
nodded and stood up, exiting the room behind Luke.
When
they were out of earshot, Jen spoke again. “Tell me what’s really going on.”
Becky
sighed. “Zac seems to think that I… hurt myself in order to stay with him. The
doctors thought the wound was self inflicted. The doctor wants me to go into
counseling. Do you believe this? I’m terrified to death of blood and they think
I can do something like this to myself?”
Jenna
hugged Becky again. “Don’t worry, okay? I’m going to talk to Zac, and I’ll talk
to the doctor and I’ll talk to whoever will bloody-well listen to me. And I’ll
sort all of this out, okay?”
Becky
nodded, sniffling back tears.
“Can
you tell me something? Do you think those people could have done it? Those
people who were sending us letters before.”
Becky
nodded. “I didn’t tell Zac, but I got a phone call yesterday. I was so scared
that I just hung up. And when… it happened, I felt someone grab me from behind,
and cover my mouth with something… alcohol or something… then there was this
pain in my leg…”
Jenna
nodded. “I know. Okay? And I’m going to tell everyone.”
They
were interrupted by a knock at the door, both girls
looked up to see Christy coming into the room.
“Hey,
can I come in?”
“Of course!” Becky smiled.
Christy
crossed the room and found a seat on the bed. “Umm… listen. I talked to Isaac,
and I showed him one of the letters that I’d been getting…”
“You’ve
been getting them too?” Jen asked in disbelief.
Christy
nodded. “I just didn’t want to say anything… But I spoke to Ike, and he called
the police. They’re outside, and they want to take your statement. The doctors
are going to let you go, with a prescription for anti-biotic and some medical
supplies for dressings and stuff…”
“Thanks
guys.” Becky smiled.