Saving Simona (Alone In The World Trilogy) by Rebekah Blackmore Page B

would not have known the difference.
    Gia tried a final time to open her eyes, desperate now to see if her surroundings were that of a safe place or not. The last thing she remembered was Raymond stabbing her in the side... could he have taken her? Was she trapped somewhere? Was Raymond, or someone worse, going to come back and destroy her again? She shot up, letting out a small scream when a shooting pain in her side made her feel as though she was being ripped in two. Her hand went to the spot of the pain, lifting up her clothes carefully, noticing that she was only in a thin nightgown and a pair of pantalets, neither of which belonged to her. They were far too white and new-looking to be hers. Beneath the cloth of her gown was a thick white bit of cloth, wrapped all the way around her midsection and tied in a knot above her left hip, approximately two centimeters below where Raymond stabbed her.
    She began to undo the knot, barely touching the fabric before she found herself twisting over the edge of the bed. She began to vomit as memories swirled in her head, the realization of what she had done sinking in. I am leading that child to her death, if Leander doesn’t like her, Gia realized, wishing that she had gotten hit in the head instead. She pictured the breaking rituals and Simona, her head filling itself with images of the things that would be happening to the child.
    Gia’s sickness splashed on the floor, spreading out against the wood in a slippery mess. Her hair fell around her face and towards the ground, the tips nearly brushing the  offending liquid as she shook, her body heaving against the edge of the mattress. In a moment of peace, Gia hurriedly grabbed at her hair before it touched anything, spinning it in one hand and tossing it over her shoulder before she continued to get sick.
    The brunette jumped when she felt a hand on her shoulder. “Shh, shh, it’s alright,” a man’s voice said, “just let it all out. I knew I should have waited a while longer before trying solid food on you again. I’m sorry.”
    Gia tried to tense away from the man, but found herself unable to do more than shift to her right side as she began to dry heave, her abdominals tight and sore, her throat feeling as though it had been lit on fire. After a few more minutes, she moved away as quickly as she could away from the man’s strong hand. She looked up at him when he squeezed his hand, her eyes growing wide with fear. The man kept his a tight grip on her shoulder when Gia tried to pull back, holding her in place. “Hey, it is okay. I’m taking care of you, remember? You are safe here,” the man assured her, his light green eyes widening as she tried to move even further away. He thrust his other hand out to keep her from pulling away as she let out a cry of pain. He sighed. “Miss, you need to be gentle on that side. It still has not healed properly.”
    “W-who are you?” Gia stuttered, shrinking away as the man tried to push her hair away from her face as it grew damp with sweat from the force of her heaving. “W-where am I?”
    “Relax,” he urged. “You’re a mile outside of London. This is the first time you’ve been coherent enough to realize I was there when you were awake, so I understand why you are nervous. You must be gentle, though. You do not want to overexert yourself and make yourself ill once again.”He moved up off the bed, and walked out of the room, his long sandy hair swishing from beneath a dark blue ribbon. Gia took this opportunity to glance around the room, blinking her eyes frequently as she pressed two fingers against the side of her head as it continued to throb.
    The room was mostly bare, for the only furniture in the room was the bed, an end table and a chair at the side of the bed, and a table against the wall that held a stack of folded cloths. They are likely for my side, Gia realized, taking note of the similar appearances of the fabrics. There was also a fire place in the far