Hell Flower

||14||

The door to the sleeping compartment swung open as Liz came in. "I brought you some water and something to eat." She held a water bottle in one hand and a bag of strawberry Pop Tarts in the other.

I narrowed my eyes at her. "I'm not hungry." My stomach immediately growled in betrayal, giving away my lie.

Liz raised an eyebrow at me. "I find that hard to believe. You barely ate anything yesterday."

I shimmed myself into a sitting position, blowing a strand of stray hair out of my eyes. "Fine. I'm starving. But how the fuck am I supposed to eat or drink anything with my hands tied behind my fucking back like this?"

Liz eyed my hands, and she bit down on her lower lip. "I guess I could . . . feed you."

"Fuck no," I said. "You didn't even feed me the bottle when I was a baby. Dad did that."

"How do you remember when you were a baby?" she asked.

"Oh, so I was right!"

Liz opened her mouth like she was about to say something, but nothing came out. "I fed you sometimes, too," she finally said.

"Just untie me and let me eat and drink myself," I continued, "and then you can tie me back up or whatever the hell you want to do. I'm in a moving vehicle." As if on cue, the bus went over a bump, sending me flying an inch into the air. My head nearly slammed into the bunk above me. "It's not like I have anywhere to run anyway."

Liz sighed. "Okay, fine. But only your hands, and just while you eat."

I nodded.

She set the water bottle and bag of Pop Tarts down on the bunk behind her. I turned my back, holding out my hands for her so she could reach the knot to untie them. The relief as the binds loosened felt amazing. I wished I had ice to run over my raw wrists to soothe the burn.

"Thank you." I faced her again.

Liz turned from me for a second to retrieve the water and Pop Tarts.

The idea of catching her off guard and fighting her down tickled the back of my mind, but I pushed the tempting thought away. I had to be smarter than that. I needed to convince everyone that Alex was wrong about what he heard. Attacking would be the opposite of getting them on my side. Not to mention Liz would probably kick my ass if I tried to attack her. Even if I somehow did get the best of her, I would be no match for the entire pack of wolves waiting on the other side of the door.

"Here." She handed me the water bottle and Pop Tart.

"Thanks." I took the water bottle with my left hand. I reached over to the top with my right, but I still had no feeling in it. My numb hand slipped pathetically over the plastic cap. I let out a frustrated growl. "When is this stupid sedative going to wear off?"

"The numbness will probably last for another hour or so."

I continued to struggle with the top, eventually trying it with my teeth.

"Here, let me." Liz took the water bottle from me and twisted the cap off easily.

"I loosened it for you," I grumbled as she handed it back. I quickly chugged half of it, soothing my dry, sore throat. I hadn't realized how thirsty I was until it hit my tongue.

"I still can't feel my hand, and my arm is numb," I complained once I had finally caught my breath after chugging the water. "I didn't know tranquilizers did that."

Liz opened the bag of Pop Tarts for me. After peeling back the foil, she handed them to me. "That wasn't a normal sedative," she said.

I took a bite. I wished they were blueberry, but strawberry would do. "If it wasn't a sedative, then what the hell was it?" I asked.