Daddy's Little Girl

Daddy's Little Girl-7

Sorry this is so short but you will understand why later. But before I distract you any longer, I will shut up. Enjoy!

Love,

Eryn <3

P.S. Note the Wizard of Oz reference. I felt like including something a little funny to lighten up the scene a little. Enjoy!

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The doctor ushers a furious Rick from the hospital room. My heart rate is so fast that a nurse comes in and sticks a long silver needle into my arm, she squirts a brown liquid into my blood and I immediately feel my eyelids drooping, and the room is slowly rocking back and forth. Before I can process what is going on in the room, blackness engulfs me and I can't escape.

I am in the pitch black darkness. I feel solid ground below me but I cannot see even my hand placed in front of my face. Suddenly, I see a spark of light. I spin around to face it but it's gone. I see another spark out of the corner of my eye. This time, it doesn't go out. I turn and see the red-orange light spreading. I finally have enough light to see where I am, in the middle of a circle of hay. There is no hay touching me, but if I don't get out soon, I will be trapped. I start to sprint for the clearest patch, but when I get a yard away, the flames spring up, blocking my way. I turn and sprint in the other direction, but it's useless. The flames are already burning strong. There is one final opening, all the way across the circle. I sprint towards it like my life depends on it, which it does. I get closer and closer, but just as I'm about to cross over, flames explode with fury and send me flying back to the center. The burns now on my face and arms sting and I know there is no escape. The flames make a ten foot wall, surrounding me on all sides. I start to scream but there are no answers. Eventually, I give up screaming because all it's doing is I'm inhaling more smoke. I lift up my shirt to my mouth to try to filter some of the smoke but it's useless, the shirt is too thin. The heat is starting to make everything spin and the world seems uneven. I try to walk forward, but I fall forward. Getting up isn't even an option at this point. I am wheezing and coughing and my arms feel like lead. The smoke is getting so thick that I can't even see the far wall of flames. Finally, my body can't take it any more and I fall over onto the ground, darkness taking over once more.

I awake, breathing heavy and sweating, with a frantic beeping behind. I realize that is my heart rate. It was just a nightmare. I tell myself. Immediately Ryan is at my side, calling for the nurse. "No, no I don't need the nurse. It was just a bad dream." She comes in anyway, but Ryan shoo's her away. I take a deep breath of cool fresh air and it feels like heaven going down my throat even though I never actually inhaled any smoke from the flames.

"Do you want to talk about your dream?" Ryan asks in a soothing voice.

I shake my head, no. I simply whisper the word "fire." Just loud enough for him to hear and understand. Ever since I was a child and my mother accidentally set a dish towel on fire, which burned me when it fell off of the counter, I have been scared of it.

I shake the memory from my mind and turn to Ryan. "I need to get out of here." I whisper into his ear. He gives me a look of concern but agrees to discuss it with the doctor.

As if on cue, the doctor walks in again, nose buried in papers. "I heard that your heart monitor was going off like crazy. This concerned me, but you seem fine. What happened? Bad nightmare?" His accuracy startled me and it takes a moment before I nod my head. "Many patients get them after injuries such as your own. Let me guess, you had a dream that reminded you of your attacker?"

I open my mouth to protest, to convince him that I did it to myself., but the doctor holds up his hand, silencing me.

"Save it. I know that you were attacked. You can't do that kind of damage to yourself. Your friend here confirmed my thoughts when he fought with me earlier." Ryan smacks himself on the forehead. I visibly cringe and he continues. "I cannot say that I know who it is but I have a fairly certain idea. My suggestion, take it to court. They can take you away from him. They can keep you safe." He meets my eye and I see pity and concern. I shake my head and he doesn't continue, instead he waits for an explanation.

I manage to almost inaudibly whisper, "I can't. He'll kill us all." Tears roll down my cheeks before I can stop them. Ryan wraps me in his arms and I feel salty drops hit my shoulder. The doctor doesn't say a word for a long time. When he finally speaks, his words shock me.

"I will be willing to risk it if it will save you. I don't like seeing cases like this. Don't think that you're the first. Sadly, most of those patients didn't do anything about it and they went right back to that life. I don't want to see that happen here. Your life is too valuable to go back to that. I will gladly be a witness for you. Here is my home phone number." He takes out a prescription pad and writes something onto it before handing it to Ryan. He gives a faint smile. "I will be back later to see if we can get you out of here." With that, he turns and walks out of the room without looking back. Ryan looks as shocked as I feel. Finally, to break the silence, I speak.

"Ryan, what are we going to do when we get out of here?" He doesn't reply at first. He thinks for the longest time. I'm about to ask him again when he interrupts my thoughts.

"We are going to go back to the house. I don't think there is anywhere else that we can go. I have been trying to figure it out but I can't think of another option." I don't know how to react. My first thought is that we're doomed. Then, I get it.

"Ryan, what about the church? They must know someplace that we can go."

"Maggie, that might work, but what if they can't take us in?"

"Then they will find somewhere for us."

"Where though? Maggie, wake up. We can't just go over the rainbow and stay in little munchkin houses or in green cities. Who is going to take in an orphan and an abused girl? It doesn't help that we're teenagers. Mag, they would separate us and I don't think either of us can handle that right now."

His words bring fresh tears to my eyes as I realize that he has a point. Then I feel a surge of anger. "Ryan can you please just think positive? Seriously, all of this negativity around me is killing me, literally! I nearly died and I have already lost my mother and my brother! I don't need you telling me to face death for a third time!"

"Maggie do you honestly think that I don't know what it feels like to lose someone? Do I need to remind you which one of us is now an orphan? My parents died when I was five. I was five Maggie! I have had to grown up not knowing who my parents were. I don't have to be here Maggie. I could go live with my aunt and uncle in Washington D.C. rather than live with you. But I stayed because you and Sam were all I had left to love. I could have left any day! But I stayed with you and Sam! I stayed with you even after your father murdered his own son and threatened my life! I stayed because I love you Maggie! There! I have finally said it! I love you! Are you happy? I hope that at least one of us is. I have dealt with so much because of you Maggie. If you can handle a little bit of my shit then why should I have to deal with all of yours? Because really, I'm sick of it."

"You know Ryan? If you want to so badly then go with your aunt and uncle! See if I care! I'll be happy with one less thing to worry about! One less person to protect!"

"Fine. Goodbye Maggie." With that, Ryan storms out of the room. He never looks back. I wait for him to return but he doesn't. I wait one hour, two hours, three hours. Nurses come in and out and check on me but however many times I assure them that I'm alright, I realize that I'm not. I continue to wait as the sun sets and darkness takes over the world. I wait until darkness takes over my body. Even in my dreamless sleep, Ryan never returns.