“What do you mean she’s not gonna make it through the night?”
She drops her hand from Lucas’s chest and walks over to Aspen’s bed again. “I said I’m not sure if she’s gonna make it, not that she won’t. She is really sick, Lucas. Her body is weak, but you know me. I’ll do everything I can. I got the fever to come down, so that’s good. I’m running tests on her liver and kidney function, but from what I can tell just by examining her, it looks like her organs are failing.”
“Fuck! Okay, I’ll call her parents.” Lucas nods, his face suddenly pale. “Keep me updated.”
He leaves, and the doc sits down by Aspen’s bed, taking her hand into hers and simply holding it.
“Come on,” she whispers. “You need to fight. You are too young to die.”
The words slowly sink in. Aspen could… she could actually die…
I’m no stranger to death by any means, but this feels different. Most people think, me being who I am, I must have killed people before. But the truth is, I haven’t. I’ve seen people die. I’ve beaten people up, tortured them for information, but I’ve never actually killed someone.
If Aspen dies, it will be partly my fault. I knew she hadn’t been eating or at least not well. I watched her leave the cafeteria empty-handed. I saw how skinny she was, but instead of offering her food, I held on to that information as a bargaining chip.
If she dies today, her blood will be on my hands.