Rock Chick Regret(11)

“All better,” she said.

“Not even close,” I replied.

There she was, bitchy Ms. Townsend rearing her ugly head.

Daisy’s teeth bit her lip and her eyes sparkled with tears.

“Sadie, sugar –” she started but before she could say more the door opened and Hector walked in.

Really, no more, I got it. I was the daughter of a Drug King, a bad man who probably destroyed many lives. But seriously, how much penance could a daughter do for her father’s sins? I mean, I didn’t sell heroin to school kids for goodness sakes!

I’d had enough.

I picked up the call button thingamabob and stared at it, found the button for the nurse and pressed it.

Then I saw Hector’s belt buckle and abs by the bed.

Darn.

“Sadie,” Hector called.

I kept my head down and hit the nurse call button again.

“Sadie,” Hector repeated.

My head came up and I looked at him.

“Why are you here?” I snapped.

He opened his mouth to speak but before he could I turned my head and looked at Daisy.

“And why are you here?” I asked her.

“I thought I’d –” Daisy started.

“No, actually, I don’t want to know,” I interrupted, reached out and grabbed my IV stand thingie. Then I threw back the covers and scooted to the side of the bed, rolling my IV with me. It hurt but I did it anyway and I didn’t even wince.

“Sadie, get back in bed,” Hector ordered but I had my legs over the side and I stood up.

I walked two steps, wheeling my IV stand thingie with me (the IV stand thingie kind of bit into my bid for Queen Ice but I’d just have to work it).

I turned to them, hand on my IV stand and stood my ground.

“Both of you, leave,” I demanded.

Daisy’s eyes slid to the opposite side of the bed where Hector was standing. My eyes went there too. He didn’t look happy.

“I’ll ask you again, mamita, get back in bed,” he said.

“That isn’t asking, that’s telling,” I retorted.

“Then I’ll tell you again, back in bed,” he shot back.

“No,” I replied.

He started walking around the bed… toward me.

I wondered, in the nanosecond before I started retreating, why he seemed completely unaffected by my Chill Factor. Everyone else went into deep freeze.

Not Hector.

I had, of course, noticed that his body was preternaturally hot. Maybe that was it.

“Hector,” Daisy said softly as Hector advanced.

Something in her tone must have reached him because all of a sudden he stopped. So I stopped too.

Hector and I squared off and went into stare down mode. While we were doing this, Daisy came forward cautiously but didn’t get too close to Hector or to me.

“Sadie, we’re here –” Daisy started.

Again I didn’t let her finish, my eyes broke from Hector’s dark ones and cut to her.

“I know why you’re here.” I motioned to Hector. “And I know why he’s here. You wanted to get a good look at how the mighty have fallen.”

Daisy’s body jerked like I hit her at the same time I saw her flinch.

Hector didn’t flinch. His eyes narrowed, his face went dark and let me just say, it was scary.

Nevertheless, I was on a roll. I was beyond Ice Princess. I was Sorceress of the Antarctic and a bitchy one at that.

It hurt me to do it. It hurt more than my body hurt. But I had to.

I didn’t know why they were there and I didn’t care. It started like this, people being nice, doing nice things maybe trying to be kind.

It never ended like that. Never.

I went on, “Well, you had your look. Now you can go.”

Totally ignoring my order to go, Hector took a step forward. I took a step back.

He stopped. So did I.

We went into stare down again.

Finally he said, “The police are here.”

That surprised me but I covered before it could show.

“Why?” I asked.

Then Hector answered, “So you can swear out a warrant so they can go after –”

At his words, Sorceress of the Antarctic disintegrated, melted in an instant and I lost it.

Utterly.

“No!” I shrieked so loud and shrill I was surprised the TV screen didn’t burst.

He couldn’t say it. Not out loud. Not to me.

I retreated again.

“Oh sugar,” I heard Daisy say, her voice trembling but Hector was coming at me and I kept my eyes on him.

His face wasn’t dark anymore, there was something else there, something I didn’t want to see.

I closed my eyes to block it out, lifted my hand to ward him off, all the while wheeling my IV stand thingie and walking backwards. My back hit the wall.

“Mamita,” Hector murmured gently when I stopped. He didn’t touch me but he was close enough I could feel his heat.