Immortal Ever After(9)

“I can manage,” Valerie assured her.

“I’m sure you can, but it will be faster with help and I’m concerned about you pulling your stitches.”

Since the stitches in her back were already tugging a bit painfully, Valerie didn’t protest further. The moment she lowered her arms, the pulling eased so she supposed it was for the best.

“I meant to ask earlier,” she said as Leigh finished dampening her hair and squirted on some shampoo. “How are the other women? Did they all make it out all right?”

Leigh was silent as she finished lathering her hair, then sighed and admitted, “I’m afraid one of the women was dead when the men arrived. Another died during the first night.”

“Bethany and Janey,” Valerie said, her mouth tightening. If she were walking down the street and ran into any one of the women from that house of horrors, she wouldn’t even recognize them. She only knew them as voices in the dark, but those voices had helped keep her sane. They’d all encouraged and given each other hope in that hell. However, Bethany and Janey had grown quieter each day she’d been there. Janey had fallen completely silent the second to last night there, Bethany that last night. Valerie had feared the worst and it seemed her fears had been well founded.

“The others are all right though,” Leigh continued encouragingly as she started to rinse out the shampoo. “One or two were pretty weak, but bounced back after a few good meals and a couple nights’ sleep.”

“A couple nights’ sleep?” Valerie asked with a start and instinctively tried to turn her head to look at her, but jerked her head down again when she got a face full of water.

“Sorry. Are you all right? Do you want a towel or something to dry your face?” Leigh asked.

“No, it’s all right.” Valerie wiped the worst of the water away with her fingers. She then asked, “How long have I been here?”

“I’m sorry, I should have said,” Leigh muttered as she rinsed her hair. “This is the third night that you’ve been here.”

“I’ve been here three nights?” Valerie asked with disbelief. “I don’t remember any of it until waking up here today.”

“You wouldn’t,” Leigh assured her. “Dani cleaned the wound and gave you antibiotics the minute she got to you, but it was too late. Infection had already set in. You were feverish until this morning. There. All done,” Leigh added and quickly turned off the water. “Hang on, I’ll get you a towel for your hair.”

Valerie remained bent over the tub and wrung out her hair as Leigh set the showerhead back in its holder and moved away. The woman was back at her side a moment later with a towel in hand.

“Thank you.” Valerie took the towel and wrapped it around her head before straightening.

“Better?” Leigh asked as Valerie turned to face her.

“Much,” she said and meant it. She already felt a hundred times better. After something to eat and drink, Valerie was sure she’d be almost completely back to normal . . . well, except for some aches and pains and a healing gore wound in her back, she acknowledged wryly to herself. But she was used to aches and pains. Valerie had taken martial arts since she was five and had been in competition since shortly after she started. Bumps and bruises were the norm for her.

“One of the men is going to fetch clothes for you from your house, but for now I’m afraid you’re stuck with this,” Leigh said, picking up the fresh nightgown she’d brought for her.

Valerie peered from the nightgown to Leigh and asked carefully, “How do they know where my house is?”

“It was on your driver’s license. They found your wallet the night they raided the house. No purse though, just a wallet and some keys in the pocket of a coat in your cage.”

“I didn’t have a purse,” Valerie said, relaxing. Smiling faintly, she added, “So you didn’t need me to introduce myself earlier?”

“No,” Leigh acknowledged. “But introductions are always a nice way to start a conversation.”

For some reason that drew a small laugh from Valerie. Shaking her head, she took the nightgown Leigh was holding out. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” Leigh said, and then glanced toward the bathroom door as a knock sounded from the other room. “That will be Anders. He’s the Enforcer who found you at the house. My husband assigned him the task of keeping you safe until they catch the rogue who kidnapped you and the other women,” she explained and then grinned and added, “He’s here to guard your body.”