Total pages in book: 70
Estimated words: 67975 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 340(@200wpm)___ 272(@250wpm)___ 227(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 67975 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 340(@200wpm)___ 272(@250wpm)___ 227(@300wpm)
She spits at me.
I look to Merleigh, who has a tear running down her cheek. "Cova," she tries. "I know you're scared, but I'm here, and I'm not going to leave your side, do you understand me?"
"Go to hell!" Cova screams.
This isn't going well.
At all.
I TURN AND STARE AT the back of the truck, where Cova is sitting, hands tied in front of her, seatbelt on, sitting next to Merleigh. She's glaring at me like her only thoughts are to murder me in my sleep. I know that's not what she's thinking, but I also know that she's not doing the best right now, and it's going to take a lot longer to get her past this.
We stayed at the hotel for the first three days of them both coming down from the drugs. They were hell on earth. There was so much screaming and crying, and a lot of vomiting and sweating. It was horrible to see. It made me realize just how bad things were. Just how many drugs had been pumped into their systems. Merleigh took it like a champ and only moaned and whined a few times. She was strong, so damned strong.
Cova took it as an opportunity to scream to the point we had to go to a different hotel, one that had separate rooms so that nobody could hear her screaming. Eventually, she tired of screaming and went to sleep for twelve plus hours a day. That's when we decided it was safest to take the trip home. The sooner we could get them back to the club, the quicker we could get them clean. They needed a safe space, and we had to show them we had one.
So far, the trip has been quiet. Alarick has been driving, and I've been in the front. Bohdi came along and sits between the two of them in the back seat, mostly to make sure nobody tries to make a jump out of the car.
They both look terrible, and it breaks my heart to know they're going through so much right now. I've been trying to research as best I can on how to get drugs out of one's system, but I'm not an expert. Alarick called a close friend of his who knew a doctor, and we got some tips on helping them through, but it was suggested both go to rehab for a few months.
We called around and found a really good one, but the problem right now with Cova is that she has only one thing on her mind, and that's finding a way to get home. Putting her into rehab could be dangerous because if she escapes, we're not going to get her back. We can't take that risk, which means, for now, we have to try and do this on our own.
Some carers can be hired to come around, and therapists who will do home visits, so we've done as much as we can for that so that they're able to help them from home. Other than that, we're doing all that we can to help them get through this. It's going to be a long, tough road, but it's one I'm willing to ride on with them the whole way.
They deserve to get better.
"How are you both feeling?" I ask them.
Merleigh looks at me and gives me a weak smile. "I'm alive, that counts for something."
I give her a soft smile in return. "You're going to get through this, I promise you."
I glance at Cova, and she scowls at me. She doesn't want anything to do with me, and I understand that. Her mind is all over the place, she's living a twisted reality, and right now I'm the monster of the show, the one who is making things harder for her. The one who is bringing her down. She's not going to trust me anytime soon, but I hope with time she will.
"Don't look at me," she snaps. "You're a god damned life snatcher. Leave me the fuck alone."
Okay, so she's not feeling any better.
"You should be fuckin' careful how you speak to her," Alarick growls.
"It's okay, Alarick," I say, reaching over and squeezing his arm. "She doesn't mean it."
"Oh, but I do mean it. I can't stand you. You're not my family. You've taken me from everything. I'll find a way out of this, mark my words."
Cova's voice is a low hiss, and I feel bad for her because she honestly believes what she's saying right now.
"Watch it," Alarick growls. "This girl right here has gone through hell and back to get to you. Her mother lost her life trying to find you. Her sister lost her life trying to find you. Everyone has fuckin' lost so much tryin' to find you and your actin' like a spoilt fuckin' brat. You were a god damned captive, does that not resonate with you?"