Alarica

  Down the hall, just past the lull of shift change, Alarica strolled through the hospital corridor with patient files tucked under one arm. Through the narrow glass panels, the city glowed. Uptown towers rising against a winter sky, pressing down gray and heavy. Shoe scuffs and low voices floated around her.

  Fluorescent light caught on her hazel eyes, reflecting brief flashes of gold as she glanced at the clock.

  Hm, I’m due for a nail appointment. I’ll book on Saturday.

  Then she saw him.

  The thought barely formed before a voice tore through the air: “Clear the halls! Incoming!”

  Files slipped from her hands, scattering. She backed against the wall, eyes locking onto the figure being wheeled past her.

  Even battered and raw, his face was unmistakable. Everything fell away; only the pounding in her chest remained. And just like that, Alarica wasn’t in the hospital anymore…

  It always started with his eyes. Cold, unreadable, and far too calm. Alarica remembered the grip on her neck, reminding her she had nowhere to go. His breath at her ear. His smirk.

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  “You do as I say, or you’ll regret it.”

  It haunted her dreams.

  She squeezed her eyes shut, then opened them, focusing on the papers scattered at her feet.

  Breathe. Pick them up.

  How could the sight of him, , unravel her this fast? Alarica started walking down the corridor once more, her feet dragging.

  At the nurses’ station she caught the name.

  and a few murmured details. Maternity wing. Emergency delivery. Complications.

  Room 407.

  She didn’t need to ask; she already knew the man who might have put her there. Alarica opened the door without knocking.

  Selene stirred. “Hello?”

  Alarica’s eyes flashed as she shut the door. “Selene, get away from Adrian. As soon as you can.”

  Selene’s voice cracked. “What? He’s my husband. He almost died.”

  Alarica’s voice dropped, urgent. “He isn’t who you think he is.”

  Her eyes narrowed. “And exactly how would you know that?”

  “Because men like him don’t change. They just find new places to hide the damage.”

  Selene crossed her arms. “So what? Were you sleeping with him?”

  The question landed like a slap.

  Alarica didn’t answer right away.

  Not anymore. Not ever again.

  Alarica leaned closer. “I’m trying to keep you safe.”

  Selene scoffed. “Get the hell out of my room.”

  Before she could push further, the door burst open, the doctors flooded in.

  Alarica leaned close. “Please, be careful.”