“You did well, Matt.” The Asian man patted him on the shoulder with praise.
“I just wish that I’d gotten there sooner,” Matt said, with a darkness returning to his eyes. My heart beat faster.
The doctor turned her attention back to me. “Do you know her name?”
“I think he said it was Eloise or Elena. I think it's Elena,” Matt said.
“Elena, can you hear me?” she asked, shining the light thingy into my eyes. Dark spots danced across my sight, which blinded me for a short period. I hate that.
The woman repeated my name. Each time she became more anxious.
“Constance?”
“No, Master Longwei,” the doctor said. “I’m not giving up. She's too young and she has barely lived. I will—”
“You can’t save them, Constance. Their minds don't perceive our reality. She needs─”
“No! I won't give her the serum. Her mark is dark; we should try to get her back! Elena, please?” She had tears in her eyes as she pleaded with my immobile body. “Just one blink. It’s all you have to do.”
Blink, Elena, the voice in my head demanded. I didn't want any serum, but for the love of blueberries, I couldn't blink.
She waited a couple of minutes and then she yelled my name.
The Asian gawked at her, stunned by the sudden outburst.
I finally blinked. I did it multiple times, afraid that they hadn’t seen.
The doctor started to laugh as she wiped the tears from her face with the back of her hand.
Matt took a deep breath.
“What can I do, Constance?” asked the Asian, who I assumed was the Master.
“Nothing at the moment just let her rest. She's been through enough for one day.”
My eyes opened, and I found myself lying on a small bed in an infirmary. Every limb in my body worked again, except my arms. They moved without my control as they clawed and pulled at the IV bulging from under my skin. Liquid squirted everywhere. The machine connected to the syringe made a crazy pitching sound.
As I looked around I noticed that the rest of the beds were empty. I sat up straight as I desperately searched for Dad. Haven't they found him?
“Everything is going to be okay.” The doctor's voice came from right next to me. It made me jump. Our eyes met, and I ended up staring like an idiot. Her light gray eyes, with dark spots inside the iris, started to calm my nerves.
Her warm hands pressed gently against the back of my jaw. Next, I felt the cold metal disk of her stethoscope. Goose pimples blossomed everywhere on my skin, as she moved the metal disk around to my back.
“Breathe,” she ordered, authority filling her voice.
I took a deep breath. The question of my father's fate scorched the tip of my tongue as I struggled to take another breath. Tears lurked in the corner of my eyes as different scenarios played around in my mind. The stethoscope went back around her neck when she finished.
“Where's my dad?”
The corners of her mouth dropped and tears filled her eyes.
I knew with what had happened last night that the chances of him being alive were slim. “Is he . . . dead?” It scarcely came out as my chest contracted with barely contained emotion.
She nodded.
“No,” I said in a soft whisper, and a tear rolled down my cheek, landing on the white linens of my bed. My throat closed up, and I struggled to breathe. Constance carefully helped me into a sitting position, dangling my bare feet over the edge of the bed. She put an oxygen mask over my face and air filled my lungs once more as she ordered me to take deep breaths.
A shattering pain went through my heart, breaking it into a million pieces. I couldn't hold back the tears anymore, and I let them run angrily across my flushed face.
“Sweetheart?” The doctor cupped my face in her hands and crouched in front of me. She hugged me and waited for me to calm down. It was only when my sobs turned into heaves that she spoke again. “My name is Constance. You came to us two days ago. Do you remember?”
Two days ago? I nodded as my teeth dented the inside of my mouth. My jaw muscles tightened. “How did he die?”
“The dragons killed him,” Constance said.
My lower lip quivered, and I tried to force back more tears.
I listened to how Matt caught me right before I hit the ground. It must have been Matt who collided with the red dragon. One of his co-workers went to look for any survivors, but they had found none. Every dragon was registered, except for us. Her explanation raised more questions than it gave answers. Questions I couldn't answer.
She poured a glass full of water. “Elena, why were the dragons after your father?”
“I don’t know. I didn’t even know he was a dragon!” I said honestly as I took the glass from her hand.