“Shhh,” he whispered as he closed the door.
I breathed a sigh of relief. He was real. He was here. And I had a million questions for him. “Where are we? Is this a hospital or some recovery center or something? Did my dad hurt you again? Did you know he was going to take my kidney? Is that why you seemed surprised when I signed the contract? Where is my dad? Has he stolen other people’s organs? The nurse mentioned him making arrangements for something. What was she talking about?”
“Move over, kid,” he said without answering any of my questions.
I hated when he called me that. But I slid to the edge of my bed and smiled as he climbed in beside me. He lay down, resting hishead next to mine. The warmth radiating off his body comforted me.
“You’re shaking,” he said, looping an arm across me. “Are you cold?”
I didn’t realize I had been shaking. But I immediately stopped when he put his arm around me. He was doing that thing again…where being close to him was making me relaxed and sleepy. But I couldn’t believe I’d just fallen asleep last night when I needed answers. I wasn’t going to make the same mistake again. “You didn’t answer any of my questions.”
“I told you to read the whole contract. How do you think I got stuck in a job I can’t get out of?”
He’d tried to warn me. And I was too foolish to listen. “Yeah. You did try to warn me.”
“This is so fucked up.” He sighed. “I’m so sorry he did this to you.”
“What did he do to you?”
There was a long stretch of silence. “It’s not important, Brooklyn.”
It was to me. I reached up and touched his face in the darkness.
He cringed.
“Turn the light on.”
“It’s late,” he said. “How about you try to get some rest?”
“I can’t possibly sleep right now. Please, just tell me why he hurt you. It’s not like me being in danger this time was in any way your fault. It was his.”
“Mr. Pruitt is coming down here tomorrow. He can answer all of your questions.”
“Down here? Where are we?”
“Tomorrow, kid.”
I slowly exhaled. It was nice to have a familiar face, even if I couldn’t actually see him. But he was being purposely evasive right now. “But…”
“All you need to know is that you’re safe here. No one knows we’re here except for the nurses, Mr. Pruitt, and me.”
“What about Matt?” I immediately regretted asking the question. I felt Miller’s arm tense around me.
“Try to get some rest, okay?” He moved to get off my bed.
“Wait.” I caught his arm. “Please don’t go. I won’t ask any more questions. Just…please stay the night.” It was a selfish thing to ask. Miller was already hurt. And if my dad caught him in here sleeping on my bed? I didn’t know what my crazy father would do.
But it didn’t seem like Miller cared, because he lay back down.
We were both quiet for a moment.
“I’m sorry,” I said. “About what my father did to you.”
“You don’t have to apologize for his actions. You’re not him.”
I swallowed hard.
“Does it still hurt?” he asked.
