A/N: Did any of you guys experience any difficulty with the website lately? I couldn't access my profile since yesterday, but thankfully it started working again and I'm sure the next chapter will make it to you no problem. :)
Chapter 29
Ella Pov
Ella woke up in a panic, struggling in someones grasp as she gasped for air.
She had been dreaming that she was being strangled to death, and once she opened her eyes, the feeling didn't stop. She felt like she was being choke – her throat felt sore and swollen and she was unable to catch her breath as if it were closing.
The arms holding her gripped her tighter, their voice loud and desperate, trying to get her to calm down.
"Ella! Ella, it's okay! I've got you."
Murphy.
She stopped struggling and he wrapped his arms around her arms and waist, pinning them down to her side, his head falling to rest on her shoulder.
"Just breath," he whispered.
She took a few calming breaths, deep and slow, letting the air fill her lungs until her heart stopped beating furiously in her chest.
Her neck and throat hurt and her entire body felt weak. She could hardly remember anything that had happened in the past twenty-four hours, the last solid memory she had being her and Murphy alone sitting under a tree in camp.
Ella swallowed a lump in her throat, this causing her even more pain, feeling like she was trying to swallow a baseball.
Her senses were coming back enough for her to realize that Murphy was shaking, his arms were still wrapped tightly around her, the muscles in them tight though she could tell that he was trying not to crush her in his strong embrace.
Ella opened her mouth to say something, but no words came out, only a ruff, scratching feeling in her throat and the sensation that the baseball was trying to come back up. It made her cough harshly several times, this setting her throat on fire.
Murphy jumped at the sound, then quickly let her go to lean over the side of the bed and pick up a water bottle.
That was when she realized that she was in her tent, wrapped in two blankets, and with Murphy no longer holding her up, falling back onto two pillows.
She didn't even try to stop herself from falling, much to weak to do anything but lie back on the soft pillows.
She wonder for a moment where the extra pillow and blanket had come from, but it didn't take her long to recognize the pale blue of the blanket and it wasn't hard to come to the conclusion that the pillow was part of its matching set.
They were Murphy's, he must have brought them over for her.
"Sorry," he said quickly in a shaky voice when he noticed that she was unable to hold herself up. "Here."
He held the bottle to her mouth and she took a drink, the liquid making her feel sick after a while even though it tasted so good after being deprived of it for so long.
"You're dehydrated, so it's going to take you a while to get use to it. You're going to have to start slow."
His voice was still shaking and he shoveled a hand through his air, making the strands stick up in every direction.
She wanted to laugh at how insane he looked, though she knew that if she did it wouldn't do anything to help the pain in her throat, which was just starting to go down after soothing it with the cold water.
Ella tried to reach out her hand to his arm to reassure him, but she frowned when she was unable to lift it herself.
Murphy looked like he wanted to cry when he saw her struggle to lift something as simple as a hand and that look scared her more then whatever was happening to her. She had never seen Murphy this upset about anything. Not even when he had lost both of his parents.
What was happening?
Why couldn't she remember anything?
She looked at him questioningly and saw him try to regain his composure, though his voice was still a bit unsteady when he spoke.
"You don't remember anything?"
She shook her head, taking a lot of effort to do so.
He nodded. "Maybe you should rest, you've been through a lot and I don't think that you should be excited right now.
Ella looked up at him pleadingly, his words only making her want to know all the more.
He huffed. "We found you in the middle of the woods. You were tied to a tree," his voice broke here. "Your head was bent down and your skin had lost all its color... I though you were dead."
He stopped then and dropped his head to her stomach, and she could feel his pain. He was so shaken up by this and it wasn't until then that she realized how much she really meant to him – how even the memory of almost losing her was too much for him to bare.
"Shh," she soothed, using all the strength she had in her body to lift her hand enough to run it through his dark brown hair.
He looked up at her at the light touch.
"Did you see who did this to you?"
His eyes took on a dangerous look that almost frightened her.
She shook her head and he laid his back on her stomach.
"I'll find him. Their going to get what's coming to them."
Murphy had gotten angry many times in his life and Ella was always able to sooth him enough before he did something stupid and reckless. But, something in his voice told her that this wasn't one of those times. She didn't think that if Murphy did end up finding who had done what he said they did to her that she could stop him from doing something reckless – or fatal.
Just then, Clarke came in looking for all the world like she was going to fall over from exhaustion.
Her hair was pulled back in a loose ponytail, something that she not often wore, with almost all of it falling out. Her cloths were covered in dirt and blood and something black that looked to her like soot. There were dark circles under her eyes and they were starting to droop closed as she came over to stand beside her and Murphy.
Murphy straightened up as soon as she came in, his face becoming an expressionless mask the way it always did when he didn't want to show emotion.
"You look terrible," he said.
The corners of her mouth lifted in a reluctant smile.
"Thanks," she said, some life coming back to her. "I've been up for something like thirty-six hours, going back and forth between Emile and Ella. I'm exhausted."
She sighed the last part, rubbing her face.
"Anyway, I'm sure my health is the least of your worries right now. How is Ella doing."
Ella opened her mouth to say that she wasn't invisible, but was overcome by a fit of coughs.
Clarke quickly moved to roll her onto her side, this easing the pain in her chest a bit.
"Don't try to talk Ella, the rope caused your throat to swell and it's going to take a while for it to heal completely," said Clarke in her soothing doctor voice.
Flashes of waking up surrounded by trees and crying out as a rope tightened around her neck caused Ella to go into a panic, her breath coming in shallow gasps.
"Ella?" said Murphy in concern.
"Ella, look at my hand," said Clarke, all business now as she held up her hand, palm facing outward. "Take deep breaths and just look at my hand; focus on the lines and the way my finger prints swirl around on my fingertips. That's it."
Ella's breath started to slow, the panicked feeling leaving her chest as the flashes stopped.
"Lack of air can mess with your brain. You'll get your memories back slowly, but it's going to take some time and when they do, just focus on an object and take deep breaths until you calm down if you have another panic attack. Can you do that for me?"
Ella nodded, feeling like she was being treated like a small child, but not having the energy to care at the moment.
Clarke reached out with the back of her hand and touched her forehead, taking her temperature.
"No fever, that's good; you were out there for a long time before they found you without any food or water in the blistering sun. But, with some rest and a bit of water every hour, you'll get your strength back. I've made you some herbal tea to help with the swelling in your throat and you're going to have to drink that once ever two hours. Murphy, can you make sure she does that."
He nodded, one sharp nod of his head and she gave them both a tired smile.
"Well then, try to get some rest, both of you. I'll be back to check on you in the morning, Ella."
Ella gave her a small smile before she ducked out of the tent, back to the Dropship no doubt.
Murphy laid down on the bed beside her on his side and reached out a hand to gently caress her face.
"My beautiful Ella," he whispered. "What would I do without you?"
She closed her eyes and leaned into his touch as tears came to her eyes, wishing she could tell the boy beside her how much she loved and needed him.
She was sure he already knew.
