Two Wrongs Do Make a Right (Rewriting in Progress)

Chapter 8:

"How are you feeling now?" Esther asked.

"What do you think?" Helen complained, inspecting her bandaged forearm. "I still feel pain from all my injuries from last night, I'm feeling restless and tired because I couldn't sleep, I've still got this cash I've yet to hand over to Big Honcho, and I feel embarrassed being a guest in your mansion when your father knows nothing about this. I have too much going on right now." After her lengthy rant, she collapsed on the bed and covered her face with a pillow.

Esther sat down on a chair, giving in and leaving her alone to sulk. They were in a guest bedroom with the tall windows showing another cloudy morning outside. It was 8:17 am and the room was bathed in dull, grey light. The mood in the room was serene and peaceful, in contrast to the griping and tense mood last night, as Jacinta performed some first aid on Helen's wounds while Esther tried to comfort her. At least now, she wasn't feeling as bad as before.

"I'm hungry," Helen finally said.

"Jacinta is making breakfast downstairs," Esther replied. "She'll also give you some medicine to help you get better. How's that sound?"

"It can't come soon enough," she said, looking worn out. The night had exhausted her in all sorts of ways, and she was worse than battered. She had been put through so much, she just wanted some way for a long, easy respite from everything.

There were a few steps headed up the stairs , and then the door opened as Jacinta brought a tray of cereals and a large bottle of milk together with two cups of black coffee. She set it down on Esther's table and asked her, "How is she doing?"

"Marginally better than last night," Helen answered directly, her voice muffled by her pillow.

"I'll give her some more meds," Jacinta said, and hastily left the room.

Helen threw the pillow aside and sat up. Her bloodshot eyes and unruly hair said it all. Wordlessly, she poured the cereal into her bowl and flooded it with milk, close to the edge. The cereal was oatmeal with bits of banana and almonds in it, and she ate them slowly, as if requiring sustained effort to concentrate on eating them.

Esther wasn't doing too well herself either. She had to hold Helen's hand as Jacinta applied some alcohol and antiseptic fluid on her lacerated arm. Afterwards, she embraced her head tightly and helped her through her tears, watching Jacinta wrapping her arm with a gauze bandage roll to stop it bleeding further. By the time they were able to calm Helen down enough to sleep it was 3:43 in the morning.

Esther had lost all her energy staying up all night, so she stood up and walked to the door.

"Where are you going?" Helen asked, munching her cereal.

"I really need to sleep," she weakly responded, forgetting to close the door as she left.

Walking along the corridor, she felt her mind going haywire, and she noticed her strength ebbing away from her veins. She couldn't think straight anymore. She felt something vibrate in her pocket but she couldn't figure out what it was or why. When she opened her door, she had to lean on it to keep her balance. And then she tripped face first into her bed, and the world turned into a vacant void.

She awoke to an incessant noise in her pocket. It was vibrating on her leg, stirring her from her sleep. After a few minutes it died down, and she returned to her slumber. She didn't know how long it took until it