Salvation

Salvation #17

Janie leaps from rock to rock, curving the soles of her bare feet over the wet stone. "Hello Ella," she trills.

"Oh crap," I groan, hiding my face in the palms of my hands, "Where am I?"

"You're sleeping silly," she giggles, shaking her head.

Her blond hair is damp and tousled with salt. "No I'm not. I-I'm not," I stammer.

"Of course you are. What else would you be doing here?" she beams.

"No I'm not! I'm not sleeping!" I scream.

Janie's features sober and her gaze turns steely. "You're sleeping," her voice is colder, poisonous.

"Then why can't I wake up?" I shout. Janie hesitates and stares at me with vacant blue eyes.

"Y-you're sleeping. Remember?"

I shake my head, "No I'm not."

"You are," Janie persists, "You're in the basement. Sleeping."

"Will you stop?!" I snap. The sound of my voice echoes across the beach. It's loud and violent, like we're trapped inside a snow globe. The glass holds the sound captive, drowning me.

"I want to wake up!" I sob.

Janie shakes her head stubbornly, "No. Y-you can stay here with me."

Groaning I collapse onto the sand. I drag my legs into my chest and burrow my face in my knees. Janie leaps off of the rocks and wanders over to me. She gently runs her hand over my auburn hair back, "Can you hear him?"

The giggly, drunken tone that normally fills her voice is hushed by a more serious, tender one. "Hear who?" I choke.

"Nate." Janie sits down beside me, brushing my hair back.

"No."

"He's worried about you," she sighs.

Her blue eyes flicker over the pallid sky. "He keeps telling you to wake up."

"Y-you have to let me wake up."

Janie shakes her head, "I can't."

"Why not?!" I demand sharply.

"Because you're dying."

The violet coloured sky rapidly fills with dark clouds. Thunder swarms around the both of us and the beautiful beach is torn up by fierce waves.

"What?"

"You're dying."

"No...no!" I yell. Salty spray whips up around us.

"Ella you're dying," she murmurs.

Rain pelts down around us, soaking into the sand. It pours over my skin, splashing over my face. The beach comes crashing down around us, falling into the storm. Darkness envelopes me and drags Janie away.

***

I gasp for air and my eyes flash open. Blinding light pierces through my vision. Overwhelming pain swells against my skull. My shallow breathing rips through my chest, whistling over my frail heartbeat.

"Come on Elle. Please," panic unevens Nate's voice.

"Nate," I rasp.

"Shh," he soothes, smoothing my hair back. My eyes dart around the small bedroom.

Sunlight spills over my body splayed over the bed. Cooper leaps off of the bed and hovers beside Nate. Icy sweat clings to my skin. The crumpled dress clings to my clammy body.

"Hold on. You're going to be OK," Nate breathes. His hand moves gently over the side of my face. A slight smile flickers across his face, tugging at the corner of his lips. "You're going to be OK."

"It hurts," I whimper.

"Shh. I know. You're going to be OK," Nate murmurs. Carefully he wraps the thick blankets around my body. "He's gone. I'm not going to let him hurt you," Nate says.

My head tilts into the palm of his hand and a sob catches in the back of my throat. "I thought I was dead," I choke, "I-I thought I was dying."

"No Ella I'm not going to let that happen," Nate promises. He tucks my hair behind my ear, tracing the side of my face.

Tears glaze my eyes and trickle down my cheeks. "You went into shock," Nate murmurs, smearing the tears away with the edge of his thumb.

He lies down beside me, sending a rush of his warmth coursing through my body. Instinctively I curl against him, resting my head on his shoulder. "Shh," he soothes, cradling me against his chest.

I bury my face into the hollow of his neck and sob. The tears come easily, streaking across my face. Mixtures of exotic types of pain swirl inside my skull, churning like the storm in my delusional dream.

He tightens his gentle embrace around my battered body. "I'm sorry," he whispers, bowing his forehead against the top of mine. His breath is warm against my skin, caressing my face. Wincing I burrow into his chest, wrapping his t-shirt around my fist.

I close my eyes and listen to the calming thud of his heartbeat. It sounds so certain, a pulse of life inside his chest. "Ella I'm sorry." His smooth voice washes over me and his strong accent tilts the edges of his words.

"It's OK," I mumble drowsily. Our limbs tangle together amongst the soft blankets and my hair spreads over his shoulder. "It hurts," I cry quietly.

"Where?" he asks calmly, holding me tighter against him. "Ella where does it hurts?"

"My head," I choke.

Carefully he tilts my head back against the palm of his hand, brushing my hair away. The auburn curtain reveals a raw, bloodied gash ripped through my flesh over my temple and just above my ear. Sticky blood clings to strands of my dark hair, dripping over Nate's fingers.

"Mierda," Nate draws in a sharp breath. He slides out from beneath me, softly moving my head to the side. His fingers move rapidly, tucking my hair away from the wound.

Cooper whines, shifting his weight from paw to paw. His glassy brown eyes stare at me with curious intensity.

"What did he do to you?" Nate sighs.

"H-he hit me," I whimper.

"Mierda," he mutters, "Mierda."

My head falls against the palm of Nate's hand. "W-what does that mean?" my voice is frail and broken.

He frowns, "What?"

"Mierda," my voice stammers over the word. It sounds awkward inside my Australian accent, "What, what does it mean?"

Nate hesitates, staring at me. "Um...it's in Spanish."

"You're swearing," a weak smile tugs at the corner of my lips.

"I'm not," Nate breathes.

"Yeah you are," a husky tone rips through my voice.

"It's not exactly swearing," Nate sighs, rocking back.

"So what is it then?"

"Are you still trying to argue with me?"

I shake my head, cringing against the wash of pain. "You need to rest while you can," Nate murmurs. I nod, dragging the blanket tighter around my body. "Thank you," I whisper before slipping away.