Love Bites & Bullet Holes

Drowning in Sorrow

Present

We were in a staring match. I was sitting up, my back braced against the head broad and my arms folded across my chest. He stood at the foot of the bed, his arms mirroring mine but his stance much more menacing. The doctor had left half an hour ago after informing me that I was banged up a bit and had lightly sprained my ankle, but would be back to full health with another week of bed rest and three weeks of minimal walking for my ankle. Mentally? I couldn't remember a thing. Not my name, age, where I was, what I was doing at the time of my injuries or who the hell these men were. The doctor didn't seem too worried, saying it should only be temporary and was a common side effect of experiencing head trauma. Apparently, I had been out for two days.

"I'm gonna ask you one more time and this time you will answer. " he gritted out. I huffed and threw my hands up in frustration. "I told you! I wasn't lying! I really don't remember anything!" I blurted before he could ask again. We had been at this since the doctor left and I was getting pretty damn annoyed. He was silent, his eyes drilling into me as if searching for the truth. A knock sounded on the room door and without breaking his stare he uttered a gruff, "voyti" (enter). The door opened and a man stepped in, his gaze brushing over me briefly before moving to my interrogator. "Gavriil, Ivan's back with an update." Gavriil I repeated his name a few times in my head. He looked reluctant but he finally broke his gaze and strolled out of the room. I heaved a sigh of relief and glanced around again. This was clearly not my home if this man, Gavriil, didn't know who I was. So that left the question, how did I get here? And more importantly, was anyone looking for me?

* * *

I really shouldn't be doing this. In fact, this was downright crazy...I continued to advance forward grimacing with every step as my ankle protested the pressure I was forcing it to bare. I crept towards the bedroom door and gave the doorknob a tentative twist. It was open! Slowly pulling it open all the way, I peeked out into an empty hall. Well. Call me lady luck. Glancing down at my attire I hesitated slightly.

I was wearing a white silk button-down shirt that clearly belonged to a male and not much else. I wiggled my bare toes that were already cold on the tile floor and regretted it as the action sent pain shooting up my injured ankle. I swallowed a hiss of pain and took a minute to weigh my options. I could stay and get possibly raped and murdered by these men that were clearly not related to me or anyone I knew, or, I could brave the elements and the unfamiliar area in a shirt, barefoot and injured.

I liked my second option better. Slipping out of the room, I pulled the door shut quietly behind me and started my way down the hall. A few doors lined the right side of the wall so I slowed down every time I passed one, listening for any movement on the other side. I was almost at the end of the hall when voices sounded ahead, causing me to freeze in terror. My heart was creating a steady cacophony in my head making it hard to think.

I couldn't even understand what they saying. It was more of that damn Russian! Looking around wildly I realized I was too far away from the room I'd left behind and there were no corners or crevices for me to duck into. With no other option, I opened the room closest to me and slipped inside. My eyes squeezed shut. Seconds ticked by as the voices got scary close and then slowly began fading again. I breathed a sigh of relief and sagged against the door. Thank God.

Opening my eyes, I turned around and screamed before slapping my hand over my own mouth. There, in all his naked glory, stood Gavriil. Oh shit. Oh, shit big time! He looked slightly surprised and then the expression morphed into annoyance and suspicious. "H-hi!" I squeaked out, pressing myself against the door despite the fact that the bathroom was the size of a master bedroom and left enough space between us for at least ten other people. When he didn't say anything, just continued to stare, I swallowed and gave him a shaky smile. I was having a hard time keeping my gaze trained on his face when all I wanted to do was glance down and satisfy my curiosity.