The Essence of Water

OLD VERSION Chapter 24

I slip in and out of consciousness. I unzip my jacket at some point, the heat is almost unbearable but it will hurt too much to take it off, the best I can do is unzip it. Aiden's steady breathing is like a lullaby, the pain is the nightmare. I moan every time the sled tips or jerks. If I concentrate hard enough I can feel the snapped bones in my wrists rubbing together.

It's eternity before we reach safe haven. Aiden pushes the sled to the bottom of the porch steps and takes a moment to unlatch the door and disappears inside. I stare at the dark silhouette of the cabin against the stars. What a strange perspective. What if the stars were the ground and we cast shadows upon the sky?

I giggle.

"Adie?" Aiden appears out of the cabin.

"We're stepping on stars."

His hand touches my forehead. It's like ice yet it burns my skin.

"You're burning up." His voice is quick his breathing is no longer even and controlled. He eyes are black and wild in this night. He lifts me off the sled and I take a sharp breath, an animal like whine escapes my lips but he says nothing about it. He takes me to the bed where the covers are already pulled aside. There is a flashlight pointed to the ceiling to give us some light. He sits me down as gently as he can but it still jars my body.

"I'm sorry," he says and he pulls of one arm of my jacket and then he goes to remove the other one.

"Don't," I say.

"I have to." He doesn't wait for me to say anything and I'm in too much pain to fight. I'm too tired, too weak. He slips the jacket off as quickly and as gently as possible. Tears are staining my face but I have no care to wipe them away. Once the jacket is off he pulls my boots off and I'm surprised that it hurts. He slips off my socks and pushes my right pant leg up. My ankle is blue and purple and swollen.

Aiden runs a hand down the side of his face. "You've sprained your ankle."

"Sorry."

He laughs one harsh laugh that sounds more like a sharp exhale. "Don't apologize." He grabs my legs at the calves and swings them onto the bed and puts a couple of pillows behind my head. Aiden grabs the covers.

"Please, it's too hot."

He shakes his head and pulls them up to my neck and tucks them in on the side for an extra measure. "You've got a fever Adie, that's the only reason you feel so hot. You've just spent hours in the cold with a broken bone and a twisted ankle. You will keep those covers on until I get back or else you will see how angry I can be. Now don't move. I'll be back shortly."

I stare at the circle of light on the ceiling and try to push the pain down.

I'm strong enough.

I am.

"Adie, wake up." I struggle to open my eyes. A cold has settled deep in my body. I was dreaming. No, that's wrong, I was remembering. Tears stain my pillow, and new ones wet my cheeks. I don't think I've stopped crying since I fell.

"Please don't take me back there." My voice sounds broken too.

Everything is broken.

Aiden's hand gently strokes my hair. "Never," he promises.

There are two candles casting light around the room. The shadows dance with the light and run across Aiden's face. One side is dark, the other light. I see two faces. One frightens me. The other makes me strong.

A broken face.

"How bad is the pain?"

"Bad," I say.