“I know it’s not your fault. I want to hear you say, ‘This is not my fault.’”
A slight smile formed across her lips, and she said, “This is not your fault.”
“Would you quit being difficult?” I asked her.
She shook her head. “I don’t think that’s possible.”
Once she had washed the blood from me the best she could, she used the other washcloth to wipe the soap off of me. Then, she dried me.
Luka was very gentle and tried not to hurt me. Unfortunately, even breathing hurt.
“Now, we have to get you off of the bloody blankets and get you tucked into bed. Again, I will try to be as gentle as I can be, but I suspect this is going to hurt like the dickens.”
She pulled back the sheet and blanket on the other side of the bed that I was not occupying. Then, she grabbed my legs and slid them over to the sheet.
I couldn’t help but moan loudly. A million knives shot through me all at once. It was enough to make me want to throw up.
“I’m sorry. I don’t know how else to do this. I need to move the rest of your body to the other side of the bed.
She got on the bed and slid her hands under me. Luka half pulled and half dragged my upper torso to the clean side of the bed. I tried to help her with my good arm.
My entire body screamed in agony. I cried out as the pain overwhelmed me. I felt her covering me with the top sheet and the blanket as the darkness consumed me once again.
When I woke up, I could hear the washing machine and dryer going. Then, as I managed to open my eyes to tiny slits, I saw Luka standing by the window, staring out at the stars and the moon.
She sighed.
“Luka,” I croaked out.
She turned and rushed over to me.
“Hey, baby. I’m glad you’re back.”
She didn’t ask me how I was feeling, as I suspected she knew that was a stupid question.
“Thirsty,” I managed to say.
She picked up a small ice chip and put it in my mouth. “Suck on this. I don’t want to give you water for a while. I don’t want you to be sick. If you hold these down, in an hour, I’ll give you water and even some broth if you want it.”
I smiled weakly at her and then shivered violently.
Luka pulled out a thermometer that went in my ear.
“Drat. Just as I suspected. You have a fever.”
She came back with a couple of pills and a bottle of water.
“Sip. Just take enough to swallow the acetaminophen,” she instructed.
She held my head up just a little bit so I could drink and then laid it gently back down. She left and returned again with a bowl of cold water and a washcloth.
Luka got the cloth wet and wrung the excess out. She placed it over my forehead. I couldn’t seem to stay awake, and soon I fell back into oblivion.
The next time I woke up, the sun had come up. Luka was pacing the room, wringing her hands. A deep frown cut into her face. Huge purple bags created half-moons under her eyes.
“Luka,” I said.
“Gage,” she exclaimed, rushing over to me. She rubbed her hand across my forehead. “You still have a bit of a fever, but it isn’t nearly as bad as it was.”