Superior

Chapter 31

Chapter Thirty-One

Caleb

"Caleb?"

The whispered word pulled me out of a deep sleep. I blinked myself into reality, opening my eyes to see two blurry faces staring down at me. I opened my mouth to speak, but was overwhelmed by a thick, sweeping pain that swallowed my body and flooded my head, making it pound. I grunted as the wave passed, leaving me cold.

Gradually, the faces before me swam into focus—a sharp, defined focus. I saw every thread of hair, every grain of skin, every fleck of color in the eyes. It was strangely disconcerting, and I knew instantly that the sensation was new to me. What my sight was like before—whenever that was—I had no idea, but this was incredibly different.

One of the figures was familiar, and her name escaped my lips in a scratchy breath. "Miracle."

She smiled, and I couldn't help but smile as well. She was so stunningly perfect.

"Hello, Caleb," she responded in a voice that I could hear with astounding acuteness. I hung onto her words, to the fact that she was speaking to me.

I pushed myself into a sitting position, and looked around, hearing my neck crack as I did so. I was lying on a plain white cot in what looked like a hospital room, though I knew I wasn't in a hospital. And that was one of the few things I knew for sure.

The man beside Miracle leaned toward me, examining me with wild brown eyes shielded by thick, wire-rimmed glasses. He frowned, tapping his chin, and reached toward my face. I flinched back immediately.

"Good, good," he murmured, "reflexes seem to be in order."

I frowned at him. "And who are you?"

The man didn't seem to hear me, so Miracle hastily answered, "This is Dr. Leary. He—ah—helped you."

"Helped me with what?" I questioned warily.

Miracle's lips pulled down into a pout. "Do you know where you are, Caleb?" she asked gently.

I closed my eyes for a second, remembering, then said, "The Capitol?"

Miracle beamed. "Very good," she praised, then hesitated. "You see...you were in a terrible car accident. You've been unconscious for nearly three days." At the horrified expression that I knew was on my face, she held up a hand. "Don't worry, though. Dr. Leary fixed you right back up, good as new."

When I glanced at him, the doctor was examining me with a furrowed brow. "You've had some memory loss, I'm afraid," he told me in his sly, breathy tone. His eyes seemed unable to focus on one place for more than a second. "However, I have been able to save your body. There is no external damage visible."

"Well...thank you," I said, narrowing my eyes. Something in my gut told me that I wasn't supposed to trust this man; something itched at the corner of my brain, but I couldn't take hold of it.

Shaking my head, I swung my legs over the side of the hospital bed and tried to stand, but was instantly overcome by a whirling feeling of dizziness. My head felt like it was turning inside out, and my body didn't feel like it was the right size. Everything was nauseating and confusing and off.

Dimly, I felt the gentle pressure of a hand on my arm, guiding me back into a sitting position.

"Not so fast," Miracle soothed, coming around to sit beside me as my state returned to normal. "You've just woken up, after all." She patted my arm.

"Right," I murmured, thoroughly distracted by her touch. My skin felt bare after her fingertips left it.

"He's healing quickly, though," Leary informed absently. He peered at me through his spectacles. "Much quicker than usual." He and Miracle shared a pointed look. I didn't think much of it.