Page 32 of Death

The thought is fleeting before my vision blurs, and I lose consciousness.

Chapter 10

SANTIAGO

The past week has been a long, uphill battle. Every time Dr. Pires decreases the sedative, Ciara becomes hysterical, and the doctor has to give her something to calm down again.

Whatever Ciara’s been through seems to have broken her, and it’s going to be a long battle to help her heal from her trauma.

But I’ve dealt with this kind of situation before, so I know how to handle it.

My men are still looking for any leads on who held her captive.

I’m standing out in the hallway because Ciara showed signs of waking up, and Dr. Pires wants to see if my little ray of sunshine will respond better to being alone with a woman.

Through the open door, I listen as Dr. Pires says, “Hi, Ciara. I’m Dr. Pires. You’re safe in the hospital.” There’s a long moment of silence before she continues, “Can you tell me how you feel?”

More silence follows the question before I hear Ciara whisper, “Nolan.”

“Who’s Nolan?” Dr. Pires asks, her tone patient and kind. A few seconds later, I hear her curse, “Shit. Santiago!”

I hurry inside, and it has Ciara stopping in the middle of the room the instant she sees me. She glances wildly around, then runs toward the bathroom.

Before she can shut the door, I grab hold of her from behind, quickly locking my arm around her upper body. I press my other hand to her forehead, pinning her to me so she won’t hurt herself.

When Dr. Pires hurries to get an injection, I say, “No. No more. Leave the room and lock the door.”

“Are you sure?”

Ciara struggles with all her might, and it has me snapping, “Leave.”

Dr. Pires hurries out of the hospital room, and when I hear the door shut and the lock engages, I quickly let go of Ciara and step away from her.

She darts away from me, and coming to a stop on the other side of the room, she wildly glances around before dropping down and crawling beneath the bed.

Christ. My heart.

I move backward to give her space, then take a seat on the cold floor before leaning against the wall. Tilting my head, I look at the frightened woman.

“You’re safe, Ciara. No one is going to hurt you.”

She nervously glances at me, then curls into a small ball, pressing her face to her knees and wrapping her arms around her shins.

“I’m Santiago Castro,” I say again because I don’t think she’s retained any of the information I’ve given her the past week. “I have a big property here in Peru where I’ve created a village for people like you. People who have suffered too much and have nowhere to go.”

We sit in silence for a long while, and every few minutes, she peeks at me before hiding her face again.

“Carmen, one of the women I saved, gave birth to a son three months ago. Thiago is so cute. I think you’ll love him.” The corner of my mouth lifts. “He loves sleeping in my arms.”

She peeks at me again, but this time, her eyes flick to the bathroom as well.

“Do you need to use the bathroom?” I ask.

Slowly, she nods, her movements jerky and tense.

I’ll just have to break down the door if she locks herself in there.

Hopefully, it doesn’t come to that.