Fifty-One

VALERIA

A draught of air blew over my skin, waking me up. It was still and silent in the room or wherever I was. I moved my limbs just enough to discover that I was lying on something very soft- a bed. A bit disoriented, I opened my eyes. The first thing I saw was the familiar dark blue and grey decor of Dimitri's room.

I was in Dimitri's room, lying on Dimitri's bed. Why? A second later, it all came coming back to me. I pressed my hand to my stomach and immediately felt a flash of white, hot pain. It felt as though my insides had been ripped open, hollowed out and sewn back together again.

I remembered coming to Dimitri's house by sheer force of will because I had not been feeling too good. I remembered getting into his office and then Dimitri had carried me into the kitchen, while he said something about getting me to eat.

Then everything had gone black. I had only come to when I had dimly heard something fall with a crash. I couldn't move, couldn't speak, but a part of me knew that