Chapter Fourteen

Hope.

I struggled underneath the layers of fog surrounding my head. I murmured a low protest when i opened my eyes. Awareness was not what i sought. The blanket of dark, of oblivion, was what I wanted.

There was nothing for me in wakefulness. My life was one black hole of nothingness. My name was all that lingered in the confusing layers of my mind.

Hope.

I searched for more. Answers i needed to questions that swarmed me every time i wakened. My past lay like a great barren landscape before me.

The answers dangled beyond me, taunting me and escaping before i could reach out and take hold.

I turned my head on the thin pillow, fully intending to slip back into the void of sleep when a firm hand grasped mine. Fear scurried up my spine until i remembered that i was safe and in a hospital. Still,i yanked my hand away as my chest rose and fell with my quick breaths.

“You must not go back to sleep, beautiful . Not yet.”

The man’s voice slid across my skin, leaving warmth in its wake.