Lily knelt down and put her hand on my cheek. “Is she gonna be okay?”
“I not know.” Phoebe smoothed back my hair. “She have fever.”
Lily shook her head, causing a cascade of strawberry blonde curls to fall into her face. “It’s been three weeks. They need to stop drugging her. It’s, like, gonna damage her brain or something.”
“Guys,” I mumbled. “I’m fine.”
“No,” they said in unison. Phoebe cast her eyes to the ground. “Addie,” she said gently. “You sick. You not feel it because of drugs.”#p#分页标题#e#
I nodded. She was right, and I knew it made sense. After my failed attempt at running out of the house, Nate locked me in the closet for three days. If it wasn’t for Lily and Phoebe sneaking me food and water, I might not have made it.
When Nate finally let me out, he strapped a house arrest anklet on me and shoved a pill down my throat. As the grainy pill disintegrated, he told me that the anklet would alert him if I tried to take it off, and it had GPS. Even if I got out of the house, they would find me. I had begun feeling fuzzy as he spoke. It wasn't long until I was pulled into a drug-induced haze. I was too out of it to protest. I was too weak to run.
That had become my new routine. For the last three weeks, I was drugged, dragged upstairs, and chained to the bed. Once my work was done, Zane brought me back down to the basement. If Lily or Phoebe were there, they would help me eat, shower, or lay down until the drugs wore off. Then I’d have a few hours of being sober until the day repeated.
“She’s shivering.” Lily pulled the quilt over me. “Should I get her water?”
“Addie, you thirsty?” Phoebe asked.
“I think so,” I answered. My throat burned. Maybe. I couldn’t really tell. I still felt numb. Lily scuttled away, returning with a cup of water. I struggled to push myself up onto my elbows.
“Ugh,” I groaned. I hated not being able to easily move. Phoebe took the cup and put it to my lips, slowly tipping it so I could slurp down the cold water.
“You almost ready?” Rochelle called and clomped down the stairs.
Lily shot up and scrambled over to the vanity. Her green eyes widened with fear, looking like she just got caught doing something she wasn’t supposed to be doing. “Yeah,” she said right away.
“No you’re not!” Rochelle stopped at the base of the stairs. “You don’t have any makeup on.”
“She doesn’t need any,” I mumbled.
Rochelle ignored me and strode past. She sat Lily down on the stool in front of the vanity and started caking foundation over Lily’s flawless skin. “Come on, Pheebs.” She cast a look over her shoulder. Phoebe set the cup down and hugged me.
“Rest as much as you can,” she whispered. “We go on two day trip. See you later.” I collapsed back onto the bed and closed my eyes. I tried staying awake by listening to the girls getting ready but it didn’t work. When I woke up, they were gone.
But I wasn’t alone. Nate and Zane stood next to the cot, both dressed in formal suits. They both looked handsome. Inhumanly handsome, at that. I wanted to vomit.
Nate narrowed his eyes and looked at his watch. “I have some business to attend to.”
I blinked and swallowed. Yes, my throat was definitely sore. “And I care because?”
“It’s out of town,” Nate continued.
“I still don’t care,” I told him and wished my voice wasn’t so scratchy.
“You’re not going.”
“No shit, Sherlock,” I spat and hid the fear. Nate was up to something, as always. Why else would he be downstairs?
Nate sighed. “You just won’t break, will you?”
“I never will.” I said each word slowly and stared Nate right in the eyes.
“You know what they do to horses that can’t be broken?” He shook his head. “Never mind.” He turned to Zane. “Put her in the closet.”
“No!” I screamed. Not again, not in the dark. Not alone.
“Stop the antics,” Nate said, sounding bored. “I’m not leaving you to your own devices while I’m away on business.”#p#分页标题#e#
Zane picked me up. The drugs weren’t as strong, but I wasn’t at full strength, and even if I was, being sick put a damper on my ability to fight off anyone, let alone Zane. He carried me like a rag doll and flopped me down into the closet. He kicked me in the stomach for good measure and dashed out, slamming the door.
I didn’t get up. What was the point? I hadn’t been able to get out before, and now I was weak. Tears filled my eyes. Nate was lying. He had to be. He really wouldn’t leave me all alone for two days, would he? My lip quivered. I had been in there for three days before, and Nate had no problem with it.