He gives a humorless laugh and rises to his feet. “And since the rest of our party’s due to arrive in about half an hour, and you’re gonna want a little time to . . . clean up . . . you need to decide if we’re gonna do this the fun way or if you’d rather make things difficult.”
By the time Lucas says that last word, he’s directly in front of me. There’s a faint hint of something on his breath. Whiskey? Rum?
My entire body tenses as his hand slides beneath my camisole. “Wondering if maybe you should yell? Go ahead. Like I told you, Timmons took a break. No other guards in this wing this time of night. So the only ones who’ll hear you are locked up in these rooms just . . . like . . . you.” He must be able to hear my heart pounding because he says, “Nothin’ to be afraid of. I can play nice and gentle, Anna. You want us to play gentle, don’t you?”
All I can see is this same face in my dream, holding me down. You’re the reason your mama is dead, you ungrateful little bitch. You think I wanted to kill her?
I somehow manage to nod, and I place my hand on his neck. At the same time, I reach around with my other hand to grab the mangled spork in my back pocket. This will probably get me killed. It will probably mean I can’t help Deo, that he’ll be stuck here, but I can’t do this. The memories from Molly are too strong and I just can’t.
Lucas isn’t fooled even for a second. He realizes what I’m doing, or at least that I’m planning something. As soon as I make my move, his hand tightens around my forearm.
He twists and I scream, kicking out. It’s no use—he grabs my leg and lifts me, by one leg and one arm, and tosses me onto the bed. I land hard, my shoulder connecting with the wooden headboard.
“Looks like you don’t want gen . . . tle.” Lucas pauses. Someone’s tapping on the door.
He curses softly and takes a few steps back from the bed as the door opens.
It’s the nurse from last night. Ashley. Except now she’s carrying a taser like the other employees.
“What’s . . . going on here?”
Lucas doesn’t miss a beat. “Came to fetch her for some additional testing down at the main lab. But she decided to put up a fight.”
Ashley flashes him a teasing grin as she taps the taser on her hip. “And that’s why even you big, burly types should be carrying one of these.” When her gaze shifts to me, the smile vanishes. “Miss Anna here is a handful, isn’t she? She seemed fairly calm last night, but I guess the drugs hadn’t worn off. Fought me like a damned wildcat when I came in during lunch.”
She puts her bag on the counter and pulls out a blood pressure cuff. “A bit late to be taking them for testing, isn’t it?”
Lucas shrugs. “I don’t schedule them. I just fetch when they say fetch.”
“Tell me about it. They hauled me out of bed at midnight last night when they brought her in. That’s why I’m back now. Standard protocol after anesthesia for someone with her medical history. Have to check her vitals every twelve hours for the first two days.”
She approaches the bed, holding out the cuff. “You’re not going to fight me again, are you, Anna? Otherwise, I’ll have to tase you like I did earlier and that wasn’t pleasant at all, was it?”
I don’t have any idea what she’s talking about. In fact, I think it’s almost as likely that she’s crazy as it is that she’s here to help. But I’d rather be tased by a crazy nurse than have Lucas touch me again.
“No, ma’am. I won’t fight.”
“Yeah, well I won’t be turning my back on you again, that’s for sure.” She puts one hand against the side of my neck “Son of a bitch. You had to go and get all pissy with him, didn’t you? Now your heart is racing like a rabbit in a snare.”
She glances over her shoulder at Lucas. “Go tell them I’m gonna need fifteen minutes, maybe twenty. I have to wait until her pulse slows down a bit or my supervisor will want to give the brat a full workup, maybe even postpone the tests for a few days. Which lab? I’ll have someone drop her off as soon as we’re done.”
“Lab 1.” He starts to go, then seems to change his mind. “But leave her here. I’ll come back in twenty.”
Lucas gives me one last look and backs into the hallway. I let out a shaky breath as the door clicks shut behind him.
“Relax, okay?” Ashley says in a softer voice.
“How did you—”
“Stop talking.” Ashley’s eyes flash a quiet warning and flicker almost imperceptibly toward the TV. “Sit here quietly for a few minutes. Take some deep breaths.”
I nod. As much as I’d love to know how she knew to burst in at that exact moment, I’ll have to accept that she did and be grateful. Maybe the medical personnel also have spying privileges?
Either way, I suspect that she’s put herself way out on a limb by lying about me attacking her earlier. That has to be really easy to check, if someone decides to investigate.
“Thank you.”
Ashley pats my knee and goes into the kitchen. “You can thank me by doing what you’re told for a change.” She opens the refrigerator. “Where is your medication?”