Chapter 14
Stitches and Strange Torture
A/N: This is the most often I have ever switched P.O.V. Again, thank you all for the reviews! :) I love you guys!
Zane P.O.V.
"Thing will sting so hold this if you feel pain," Pixal hands me a small, green pillow. I twist my neck around, not all the way so I don't creep anyone out, and see her dabbing cotton ball on some disinfectant. I turn back and squeeze the pillow as she dabs the stuff on my wound.
I gasp, holding in a cry from the sharp sting. She was not kidding. "How long will it take for the stitches?" I ask.
"Not too long," she responds.
"Did you learn to sew people up or were you programmed to?" I ask curiously.
"Neither, but I do know how to do a no-show stitch. I scanned everyone else's skills and no one can."
"Oh," I say and bite my lip again from the lingering sting while Pixal ties three knots before threading the needle. I don't know if this is a good idea.
"You up to this?" Cole asks.
"Yes," I tell him.
"Are you sure?" Kai confirms.
"I'm sure," I reassure him, though I'm not exactly confident about any of this. I hope getting stitches isn't as bad as getting the bullet out. Fat chance.
Suddenly I start feeling dizzy as the room spins round and round. Something pricks my skin, sending a sharp pain in my body and I lean back, knocking into something cold. Everything starts to blur and refocus, blur and refocus, over and over again. "Zane, you okay?" Jay's anxious voice starts to dull.
"He's losing too much blood," Nya says, "Hurry up and stitch him."
"I'm on it," Pixal tells her and I feel more sharp pricks and my skin pulls tightly. I stifle a cry and squeeze the pillow tighter and tighter until it freezes. The cold feels good on my hands and my breathing slows a bit, calming me down.
"Is he going to be okay?" Melissa asks.
"He should be as long as he doesn't lose a lot more blood," Marcy responds.
"Are you saying he could die?" Jay exclaims.
"Jay!" Kai reprimands him, abruptly yanking my arm back and I flinch, crying out from the more unexpected pain that takes over.
"Sorry Zane!" Kai apologizes and touches my forehead before turning to Pixal. "He's burning up."
At that moment, Lloyd walks in front of me and he gives me a cold stare. His voice speaks to me, though his lips aren't moving and we communicate somehow.
"Go to sleep," Lloyd tells me in a creepily soft voice.
"No!" I scream in my mind, unable to say anything out of it.
"Go to sleep, Hawthorn" he repeats.
"No! What have you done with Lloyd?"
"You will find out soon, so go to sleep."
"No!"
"Go to sleep."
"No!"
"GO. TO. SLEEP."
"You…will…never…get…away…with…this," I mumble before everything turns black.
"Zane? You okay?" Jay's voice booms in my ear.
"Leave him alone. He needs sleep after having gone through all of that pain," Nya says, sounding a bit harsh, but she's being considerate.
I don't want to get up. I just want to sleep in peace for a long, long time and have some rest, without thinking of all of the disturbing incidents that have happened recently. I start to drift off when I hear a scream and cries that bring me back and open my eyes to meet blinding light. I adjust and see Nya leaving the room, bouncing a crying Emma in her arms. I roll my eyes before wincing in pain. I'm lying on my back, on my wounded shoulder, of course. Okay, perhaps I am getting too grumpy and I need to lighten up, but how can I?
"Did I wake you up?" Jay asks.
"It was Emma."
"Sorry about that. How are you feeling?" Kai asks me.
"Better. How long have I been out?" I inquire.
"For a day at least."
"What time is it?"
"11:30 A.M."
"I guess the morphine didn't help with your pain," Lloyd comments.
I stare at him for a moment before I say, "No. The effects must have worn off before I was shot."
"Do you need anything Zane?" Pixal kneels by the bedside and takes my hands in hers.
I smile at her and respond, "Just you."
"Zane's blushing!" Kai points at me and I pull on a straight face.
"Kai, who's blushing?" I ask rhetorically before bursting out laughing, though I don't know why. I wince again and request, "Will you help me sit up?"
"Of course," Pixal responds and helps me up into a sitting position.
"Were you following me?" I come straight to the point.
"Oh no. No, we didn't." Cole responds a little too quickly.
"Yeah, we were just sitting here worried sick about you!" Jay adds in.
"So…what happened to you both?" Melissa asks.
"Don't tell them anything," Lloyd says to me in my mind, but his voice sounds…different. I don't know what he sounds like, but he's not my brother.
"Why should I listen to you?" I demand.
"If you want Lloyd to live…then do as I say. I can have my woman snap his bones right now."
"How can I believe you?"
"Well, because I can do it to you."
My shoulder had a dull throb, but is now starting to feel as if it's on fire and the pain increases significantly. "Lloyd's" green eyes turn bight red and blind me before I hear another voice, remote, yet drawing near.
"Hello? Anyone home?" Jay asks, snapping me out of my thoughts and now I can finally move.
"Ah!" I gasp, clutching at my wound.
"No, not again," Jay mutters, but raises his voice enough that he supposes I can now hear, "You okay?"
"I think-ah," I feel my pain increase and I wince, biting my already hurting lip again.
"Are we clear?" Lloyd asks me in my head.
"No!" I shout.
"Then don't blame me."
My breath is sucked away and I put both hands to my throat, gasping for air as his voice comes back into my head again.
"Are we clear?" Lloyd repeats.
"No!"
My throat tightens enough I can't do anything except gasp for air.
"Zane, what wrong?" Kai asks.
"Get someone!" Jay exclaims.
"Give him air!" Cole shouts.
"Can you do it?" Melissa asks Pixal.
Pixal puts her lips to mine and blows breath in, but I think my windpipe is shut. I'm not receiving any air at all.
"He's not breathing!" Kai shouts, rushing out of the room.
"Are we clear?" Lloyd says a third time.
"No!" I repeat.
My vision blurs as I try to get air, but only find pressure in my chest, feeling my bones bending or something like that. I hear a crack.