The pain was more notable when I woke. My face scrunched as I winced and started to reach up to my side. There was a tightness against my skin and I blinked. The fluorescent lights were above me. A hospital room, of course. No surprise there even as my brain was still groggy and catching up.

I looked down at my side, saw the tubing and cords running up my arm and under the gown. I lifted the thin material, seeing a drainage tube from my side with dirty brown liquid sitting in it. Somewhere at the foot of the bed was some contraption to suck the fluid out of the wound. I let my head fall back, determining if I needed to do anything. Right now, I couldn’t move well. I felt it in every muscle of my body, the chilly lethargy of bloodloss permeated me through and through.

Which part of the hospital was I in? I questioned. Did I need to flee?

Who… brought me here?

I did my best again to sit up a little. Not a lot, just enough to get a feel for the room. There were monitors hooked up to me, sticky pads stuck to my chest area. My breathing was regular, painless at least, even when the dull ache was constant.

Footsteps came into the room, timid and cautious. Mom’s voice murmured to someone, speaking too low for me to hear at first.

“... your sister. Then we can get something to eat, okay?” she was reassuring.

Henry’s voice, even quieter, answered, “What if she’s hurt more than they realize? What if she never gets up?”

“I always get up,” I mumbled, as a way of letting them know I could hear them talking about me.

And then the foot steps hurried and the curtain was pulled out of the way.

Mom and Henry and even Dad were there, concerned. Dad had a coffee in hand, worried but silent.

“I’m okay,” I said as Henry dropped next to the bed, staring in awe at me. 

“They said you got shot,” he said. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” I protested, then, as things settled. “Is Mia okay? Did they find her?”

“Mia was taken to the police station,” Mom informed me. “She was babbling about a lot the brief moment I saw her. Of course, the police are waiting to talk to you as well.”

I nodded and took a deep breath, actually feeling a twinge of more immediate pain from it. “I figured it would come to that,” I stated and stared back at the ceiling.

“Taylor… what happened?” Mom asked.

I blinked, feeling more burning behind my eyes. “I survived.” I left it at that even as the silence stretched.  When it got to be unbearable, I asked. “Where are the police?”

“They’re talking down in the lobby, I think,” Henry put in.

“Could you get them for me?”

They all looked confusedly at me.

“I’d rather get this over with,” I explained. “And I’m awake now.

“The police, though,” Henry emphasized. “If you did something they could take you to jail.”

“I know. But if that’s what I deserve then that’s what I deserve.” I sat up a little straighter, pulling the white sheets up with me in an attempt to conserve body heat. If I needed to defend myself through a long stay in prison, I would do so. I’d handled worse odds at this point.

Dad nodded and headed out the door again.

Mom and Henry dropped their voices. Mom held my hand, even as I let it go limp in her grasp. She asked soothingly how I was feeling, if I was in pain, did I need the nurse to deliver medication, etc. while Henry listened, watched and waited. 

The familiar, uncomfortable sound of jingling handcuffs reached me as the officers stepped inside the room. Neither looked enthused or hopeful. Just business. 

Mom and Henry left us alone, as was the protocol, and I prepared myself mentally as one got settled with his paper and notes and a cheap generic pen. 

And then the questions started.

It wasn’t an interrogation. It wasn’t even torture, but something in me broke.

I told him everything, and he scribbled away furiously, actually asking me to slow down at times because my brain was simply regurgitating everything that had been tied up so tightly inside me. 

The other officer had an eyebrow raised in surprise at my forthcomingness. He was one of the same ones that had first questioned me.

At parts, my eyes burned and my cheeks had warm drips slide down them, at others I wanted to hurl something across the room, and even now and then, I felt a fondness for my comrades and friends. They’d been my family after and before my birth family. 

When I was finished, the officer looked… confused. Maybe a little overwhelmed and then he and his partner took a few steps away and discussed thing in hushed voices. I heard ‘jurisdiction’ in there more than once. When they finally came back, they gave me a friendly farewell with a promise to keep me safe in this hospital room, and went out the door again, letting Mom and Henry and Dad come back in.

“Are you hungry, Taylor?” Mom asked.

I nodded. My throat was dry and strained more than anything right now, but food would be good too.

And so they brought me hospital food. I ate a mushy tuna wrap with potato chips while Henry was munching pizza. After, I said, “You guys don’t have to wait for me. I’ll be fine on my own.”

Mom looked at me maternally, making a strange feeling squirm around in my chest. “We’ll always wait for you, Taylor.”

It felt strange. Like she cared about me. Which she did, I knew logically but my brain still wanted to reject the idea that anyone would put my needs before theirs.

I laid back down and eventually fell asleep, waking up to a knock on the outer door. This time it wasn’t just police, but now a federal agent too, eager to listen to my explanation about the camp. 

I didn’t know exactly what happened to the others. They wouldn’t have stuck around long but just in case I avoided describing their physical appearances much. When the federal agent was done with me, I was left to rest until the next day when I was released. My legs still felt weak under me, but I could walk. There was a lot of medication, pain killers and anti biotics, I needed to take and pretty straightforward instructions about how to clean and dress the wound.

Mom stayed close as I lumbered out of the hospital, unsteady, but I trusted my strength and Mom’s.

Outside, Mia and I finally ran into each other.

She gave me this scared smile, uneasy, and then came over to walk next to me, starting to chat gently. 

And then, tenderly, she took my hand in hers.

Dad drove everyone in the car. I watched the world blur past until we got there and then I got out and stood in front of the house, staring up at it.

I was home again. I didn’t know if I’d even make it back here. But here I was.

Home.

SRFox

It has been a long journey and a lot has happened between the last update and this one. I apologize for the delay, considering, this was literally the last scene that needed to get written. I have decided not to write a sequel for this and will in stead be focusing on Flutter or Blood Fluke, depending on how life plays out over the next month.

Anyway, hope you enjoyed and as always, thanks for reading.