Chapter 5 - The Awakening
The soft, rhythmic beeping of the heart monitor was the only sound in Emma’s room. It was 5:00 AM.
I sat beside her, holding her hand, when I felt her fingers twitch.
I sat up straight. “Emma?”
Her eyes fluttered open again. This time, they were clear. The drug was finally clearing her system. She looked at the ceiling, then slowly turned her head to look at me.
“Nathan…” she whispered, her voice incredibly weak and scratchy.
“I’m here, baby. I’m right here,” I said, tears of relief finally spilling over my eyelashes. I kissed her forehead, her cheek, her hands. “You’re safe. You’re in the hospital.”
She closed her eyes for a moment, a tear escaping and running down her temple. “The tea… Marianne brought the tea. I drank it, and then… everything went cold. I couldn't move, Nathan. I could hear everyone. I heard the paramedics. I heard the doctor say I was gone. I was trapped inside my own body.”
She clutched her stomach. “The baby… is she…?”
“She’s alive, Emma. She’s kicking,” I said, placing my hand over hers on her belly. “The doctors say she’s a fighter, just like her mom. She kept kicking to let me know you were still in there.”
Emma let out a ragged sob. “My own mother, Nathan… my own brother. How could they do this?”
“Because they are monsters, Emma. But they are done hurting you,” I said, my voice hardening. “I’ve found everything. The money, the offshore accounts, the bribes. They think they can still slip in here and finish what they started, but we are going to set a trap.”
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She looked at me, fear in her eyes, but also a deep, growing trust. “What do we do?”
“We let them think their plan is still on track,” I whispered.
