And as I turned my head toward the mirror, I found the fuzzy outline of a glass shower with a frosted figure turning all about behind it.
“Stupid fucking conditioner, come on,” Fangs grumbled.
I paused. The second I heard his voice, my entire body locked up. My gaze attached itself to that mirror, studying his frosted figure in the reflection of the bathroom mirror as he whipped around in the shower.
Washing himself down.
Naked.
I swallowed hard, but it was probably a bit too hard. Because the next thing I knew…
“Well, don’t just stand there staring. Close the door or get in here,” Fangs said.
To this day, I still wasn’t sure what possessed me to do it. One moment, I was considering his words as I reached for the doorknob, and the next moment I was pushing the door open further to slip inside. My bare feet tapped across the tiled floor as I shut the door behind me, and as my fingertips tickled the lock on the doorknob, I wondered if it was a good idea to lock the door behind me.
“You should. Wouldn’t want someone walking in on us at an inopportune time,” Fangs said.
Which caused my fingers to flick the lock, rendering the doorknob immobile.
I turned away from the shower and, instead, allowed the steam to wrap around me as I headed toward the sink. I needed to wake up. I needed to figure out what in the absolute hell was happening around me. And if there wasn’t going to be coffee, then I at least needed to splash some water in my face. I turned on the cold water and cupped my hands beneath it. Watching the running water after not having any for damn near two weeks made my mouth water, and the first thing I did was chug it. Water. Right from the damned sink. I dipped my face beneath it and chugged, allowing the overflow to coat my face for the first time in weeks. The longer the water ran over my skin, the dirtier I felt. It had been two weeks since I’d been allowed a proper shower. Since I had wiped down with anything other than the wet wipes those men had tossed me from time to time.
And as I finally took a look at myself in the mirror, I was horrified by the sight.
“My God, Julia,” I whispered to myself. “You look like hell.”
My hair was greasier than a mechanic’s fingernails. The grease was so heavy, in fact, that it matted the hair at the crown of my head to my scalp! I grimaced as I studied my eyes. So tired. And hooded. The bags, so heavy beneath them that a small sliver of red meat shined beneath my tired orbs. Dark circles dragged all the way down to the tops of my cheekbones, and as tears spilled down my scratched cheeks, I sniffled.
Before the frosted glass door behind me cracked open.
“I won’t do anything you don’t want. But I think you could use some help cleaning up,” Fangs said.
Maybe it was the comforting nature of his voice, or maybe it was simply the idea of being closer to him after being starved of any sort of kindness. However, the second he reassured me that things would be okay, I stripped myself down. I tossed my clothes over toward the trash can, because as far as I was concerned, I wanted nothing to do with them. I tossed my underwear and my bra into the sink before running some hot water and filling the sink with soap. And as they sat in the water, already turning it a murky sort of gray, I turned my naked form back toward the shower.
Where the frosted glass door still hung open for me.
As I stepped into the shower, I held my breath. The scalding hot water battered against my skin, and the comforting heat brought more tears to my eyes. My throat closed off. My legs wobbled from the sheer relief of the water washing away the nastiness and abuse of the past two weeks. And as I placed my face in my hands, I sobbed. Openly, outright sobbed.
As Fangs wrapped me up in his naked embrace.
“I’ve gotcha,” he whispered as he stroked his fingers through my greasy hair, “you’re all right.”
I drew in a broken breath. “I-I-I—my hair—it’s—don’t—”
“Shh, shh, shh, shh,” he said softly as he backed me beneath the stream of water pouring from the showerhead. “Let’s just get you clean while you let it all out.”
Anger and sadness overtook me as my body shivered. Emotions overflowed, drenching me the way the water did as everything poured out of my body at once. Fangs held me tightly, rocking me side to side and holding me close, all the while reassuring me that everything was okay. That we were safe. That he wasn’t going anywhere until he knew that me and my sister were okay.
While his hands slipped effortlessly to the sloped small of my back.
“Fangs?” I choked out.
He gripped my chin and tilted my gaze up to his. “Yes, Julia?”
My eyes danced between his. “What in the world are me and my sister supposed to do now?”
He smiled softly. “If I were you, knowing what I know, I’d stay here with us until your sister gets better. Goose can keep an eye on her medical developments while we keep you guys safe.”
I tilted my head. “Safe from what?”
