“Let me handle everything. You’ll feel so much better after you know you look good. It always works for me. Now hand me those wretched goggles, and I’ll put them in my purse.”
Laughter flooded Eva’s thoughts, and she clenched her fists against the pain that followed. It rocketed through her head, making her stomach turn.
“Oh my God. Eva, your hand,” Bridget said, balling up the bed sheet.
Her eyes focused on the tenderness pricking her palm. She relaxed her fist, and shards of thick plastic clattered to the floor.
“My head. It hurts so bad.”
“Must be some headache. Open your hand all the way,” Bridget instructed, dabbing gently at the cuts. She reached behind the bed and pressed the nurse’s call button. “Someone will be here in a few seconds to clean this up and get you some pain meds.”
The nurse rushed in the room and to Eva’s side. “Looks like you’ve got a nasty cut there.” She snatched gloves out of her pocket and put them on with ease before hunching over to inspect Eva’s palm. “It’s deep. You might need stitches for these. How did it happen?”
“There was a shooting pain in my head, and I guess I squeezed my glasses really hard.”
Bridget handed paper towels to the nurse. “At least you’re already in the hospital. This is one of the best places to be if you’re going to get hurt.”
Maya folded the paper and pressed it hard against Eva’s hand. Eva flinched and tried to pull away.
“Sorry, I know it hurts. I’m applying pressure to get the bleeding to slow, and then I’ll have the doctor come in and take a look at it.” She pulled back the paper towels and the kind expression fell from her face. “What the—”
“What? What is it?” Eva straightened her posture and looked at her hand. Her breath caught in her throat.
“No way,” Bridget said, frozen in place.
Raw pink stared at Eva from several deep gashes in her palm. Tan skin rushed together to close the wounds. Panic gripped Eva’s body, and she yanked her hand back to her chest.
“I…I think I should call the doctor now,” Maya said, backing up slowly.
“Wait, no. I think I’m going to be sick. I need your help.” Eva jumped off the bed and pulled the nurse toward the bathroom with her. As they got to the door, Eva shoved the nurse in first and slammed the door behind her, keeping it shut with strength that surprised her. “I’m sorry,” Eva called out.
“What the fuck was that?” Bridget shouted.
“Keep your voice down!” Eva hissed. “And help me. I can’t hold this door for much longer.” Maya pushed against the inside of the door, and Eva’s feet slid on the tile floor as she forced her weight against it.
“What do you want me to do?”
“The bed. It has wheels. Push it over here.”
Bridget rushed to the bed and pushed it toward Eva. “It’s a lot heavier than it looks.”
“Just hurry!”
The nurse pounded against the door. Her shouts were muffled behind the thick wood.
Bridget slid the foot of the bed next to the door, and Eva grabbed it. “On three, I pull and you push as hard as you can. Ready?” Bridget nodded and Eva started the countdown. “One, two, three!” Eva pulled hard, and the heavy bed rolled into place in front of the door. “Now lock the wheels on your side.” They stomped on the levers and slowly backed away from the bed.
Bridget swept a shaking hand through her hair. “What is going on?”
“I didn’t know what else to do. You saw my hand.”
“Yeah, since when have you been able to heal yourself?”
“How the hell am I supposed to know? I just woke up! I wasn’t like this a few days ago.” Eva brought her hand closer to her face and rubbed her smooth palm with her fingers.
“And since when do we take hostages?”
“Do you have any idea what they would do to me if we let her go get the doctor?” Eva glanced at the door. It shook against the nurse’s escape attempts.
“Oh my God. Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit,” Bridget said, frantically pacing around the room.
“Bridget, you have to calm down. You’re not helping.”
“Calm down? How the fuck am I supposed to do that after everything that’s happened?”
Eva walked to Bridget and held her trembling hands in hers. “We have to get out of here. There’s no way we can explain any of this.”
Bridget took a deep breath and blew it out slowly. “But what about your headaches and this…” She turned Eva’s hand so her palm faced up. “Something crazy is happening. Aren’t you worried there’s something seriously wrong?”
“We need to go. I need to figure out what’s going on with me. I can’t do that if I’m locked up in a room, and there’s no way they’re going to let me leave after they see all this and talk to the nurse.”
Bridget thought about it for a moment before speaking. “Fine, but you’re not leaving without me.”
“Bridge—”
“Don’t try to talk me out of it. We’ve been friends for way too long, and I care about you too much to just abandon you. Besides, I helped you commit what I’m pretty sure is a felony. I’d say we’re already in this together.”