Caged

46

Third Person POV

Every hour, Caleb's condition deteriorated.

The pain that radiated through his head had intensified to the point where sleep didn't even offer an escape. He knew that there were more important matters to deal with especially since his sister was gone, but the aches that attacked his body had become unbearable. He'd tossed and turned all day in hopes that it would offer some sort of remedy, but nothing seemed to be working, especially when he was forced awake by a set of violent, cold chills and nausea that sent him running to the bathroom.

It was the second time he threw up blood.

The first time had been in Miami. He'd decided to dismiss it as something temporary. He'd told himself that he might have caught something from traveling, and it would pass. Ignorance was better than the one, terrifying word that was running through his head.

Now though, it was starting to become alarming, but he didn't have the energy to even speak. He'd felt tired in the past, but he'd been noticing that the last few weeks had been brutal. Exhaustion followed him everywhere he went; it weighed him down in every possible way.

Even as he treaded down the stairs, he had to grip the railing to steady himself.

Medicine. He told himself that he needed medicine to get rid of the fever and then he'd feel better. He'd taken some six hours ago, but it had only worked for a short period of time.

He was hoping that he could make it to the kitchen where he'd left the Tylenol without being spotted, but Kaiden and Ethan were in the living room and their attention instantly shot over to him.

Kaiden's brows furrowed in concern and he shot up from the couch. "Jesus, Caleb," Kaiden muttered, reaching Caleb in the blink of an eye. He put his hand up to his forehead and Caleb barely felt it. "You're burning up."

Caleb let his eyes flicker over the papers and laptops scattered over the coffee table once, before he met his brother's gaze. Kaiden scanned him once, and Caleb didn't want to know what he looked like.

He felt like shit.

"No wonder you look like shit," Ethan mumbled, cringing slightly from where he was on the couch. "I'm serious. You look like you're about to drop dead any second now. Did you even - "

"Ethan." Kaiden's voice was firm enough to shut him up. Ethan rolled his eyes and turned away again to get back to whatever he was doing on his phone.

Caleb rolled his eyes, already moving past Kaiden towards the kitchen. "I'm fine," he rasped, and didn't hear the response he received as he disappeared out of the room.

Instead of two pills, he decided to take three in hopes that the amount would help speed up his recovery. Or at least, get rid of some of the pain that was rendering him almost immobile.

After swallowing them down with a glass of water, he shuffled back out to the living room and took a seat next to Ethan, letting his head fall back against the couch.

"Did you eat anything?" Kaiden asked, coming back over. He returned to his previous spot in front of the laptop, studying Caleb worriedly.

Caleb shook his head. "Not hungry," he mumbled and gestured to the mess they had in front of them. "What's going on?"

Kaiden and Ethan exchanged a tense glance, and Caleb straightened, instantly turning alert.

"What is it? Did you find Izzy?"

Kaiden shook his head. "No, Elijah's close though."

"How close? Where is he?" Caleb questioned, glancing over at Ethan who suddenly seemed too interested in the laptop he had in front of him. He seemed to be purposely avoiding looking at all of them.