I was in the infirmary. Looking down at my body, I was naked save from a pair of boxers, my body a complete fucking mess, and no memory of why I was here or what the hell had happened to me.
The gray-haired lady stood beside my bed, hands clasped in front of her and she smiled, she reminded me of a school nurse. Her hair was clipped into a neat bun, and her face wrinkled yet soft.
“Hello, dear. How are you feeling?” She asked, pressing the back of her hand to my forehead.
I took deep breaths and sat up straight, a flash of pain ripped through my chest and stomach.
“Take it easy there, hon, you've got broken ribs.”
“What the fuck happened?” I grumbled, looking for some water.
Sensing what I needed, the woman handed me a tall beaker of water with a straw inside. I ignored that and downed the fluid in one; my mouth was like fucking sandpaper.
“You have no memory of that night?” She asked, sitting in the chair at the bedside.
I placed the cup down and tried to think back. What was the last thing I remember? Shit, it was just...blackness.
There was in person I did remember, though. “Where's Ella?”
“If you give me a moment, I'll explain, but you need to remain calm, hon. You're still pretty banged up, and this is the first time you've been awake properly in over a week.”
“A fucking week?” Jesus.
She nodded. “Yes, so, as you can imagine, this may be a lot take in, given as you can't remember anything either.”
“I just wanna know she's okay,” I said, wincing at the pain.
“Mr Murdoch, I can't answer that without explaining everything.”
I sighed and gestured with a weak hand for her to continue, talking was only scratching my throat and hurting my ribs.
“You, Ella, and Benny attended the funeral of Amy Blackburn, hon. Do you remember that?”
Image after image of that day bombarded my minds' eye. Fuck. Had that been a week ago? I remembered how Ella had looked, her meeting my folks and Carter, the storm, the motel, and making love to Ella. I closed my eyes and saw it all again. Fuck. She loved me.
“I take your silence as you remembering this?”
I nodded.
“Well, you were beaten, quite badly, the details surrounding this are a bit hazy, Mr Murdoch.”
Marco. The jagged piece of glass piercing his throat. The blood. The gargling. “As far as it stands, you were attacked near the motel you sought shelter at.”
“I-I'm sorry, I don't remember.”
The old lady leaned forward in her chair and took my hand, surprising me. She patted it a few times and smiled, before lowering her voice to a delicate whisper. “I know it was Marco, Mr Murdoch, that left you in this state. I may be old, dear, but I see and hear a lot more than people give me credit for.”
“Who are you?” I asked, suddenly worrying that I was in a coma and dreaming of this woman.
She chuckled. “Just an old lady who's been here for many years, my dear.” She sat back in her chair and regarded me for a moment. “So, are you going to tell me what happened?”
“As thankful as I am for your help, you can understand why I may be a bit fucking reluctant to?”
“Of course, and you're under no obligation to; however, Ella is very dear to my heart, and I've seen the way she looks at you. I've heard hushed conversations between you both when you thought no-one was around, and if I'm going to help her leave this place for good, then I just need to know that the man she's leaving with can be trusted. Can be true to his word, if you will.”
I stared at her, my heart stuttering as her words sunk in. She knew. She fucking knew, and this didn't sit right with me. She may have looked the look and talk the talk, but I didn't trust one single person in this place.
“How can you help her?” I asked.
“I can't yet,” she replied. Her hands dug into her apron pocket, and she pulled a necklace from it. She let the chain dangle from her finger to show me. “Do you recognize this?”
My eyes studied the wings, the blue stone, the chain. “No.”
“Mr Murdoch, you must remain calm while I say this. Can you promise me that?” She put the gaudy necklace in my hand.
I frowned. “Er, yeah, sure.”
She raised an eyebrow.
“Fuck, I promise.”
“The night you arrived home, Ella was badly beaten. I haven't seen her since.”
Forgetting my promise, I swung my legs over the bed, yelling in agony as fresh pain shot through my entire body.
“Mr Murdoch, please! Remember your promise. You must listen to me!” The lady said, jumping to her feet to block the door.
Doubled over, I clutched at my rib cage, and the entire fucking room was spinning, the room swaying in my vision as I blinked back furious tears.
“I have reason to believe she's still here!” She said, hoping that would calm me down.
It didn't. “What goddamn reason is that?”
“Jaxon, please get back on the bed, you're in no state to be up on your feet yet. I'll tell you all I know, okay?” She put her small hand on my upper back to guide me back to bed. I let her, too exhausted to argue. I wanted to know where the fuck my bird was.
After an extraordinary amount of effort, I was back on the bed, and the older woman was in the chair.
She waited for me to stop grunting in pain before continuing. “Before the attack, Ella gave me this necklace, she made me promise I'd leave it somewhere you'd find it.”
I shook my head and opened my hand to study it once more. “I've never seen it before in my life.” I flipped it over and over again; there was nothing strange about it. Not that I could see. “What makes you think he hasn't fucking killed her?”
She sighed, her lips pulling into a thin line. “Because he wouldn't live without her. He's always been sadistic, Jaxon, and one of his favorite things to do is push that poor sweet child to the brink, only to bring her back. There have been countless times when one minute I saw her around, and the next, she would be gone. He keeps her somewhere, Jaxon, and if you love her like I think you do, I beg you to help me find her. I don't want her to die here, never having experienced real love. She deserves the world.” She wiped away the tears from beneath her eyes. “She deserves you and what you can give her.”
I slumped back on the bed, pressing my fingers to the bridge of my nose as a stabbing pain throbbed at my temples. “Fuck,” I groaned.
The lady got to her feet, there was the shuffle, the sound of drawers being open and closed, and then her hand and two pills on top of it was in front of me. “Take these, hon, they’ll help with the pain. They may make you drowsy, though.”
I swallowed them down dry. I'd never felt agony like it, and worst of all, my fucking heart broke for my bird. “What the hell do we do?”
She shook her head. “I have no idea, and we need to find out why this necklace is so important as well as find where he takes her.” She paused for a beat. “Vladimir is hosting a party Saturday, and if she's not back by then, it'll be the best time to snoop around, he'll be distracted.”
“But he'll expect me to work, and I can't let you do it by yourself.”