Chapter 181: Why You Bleed
"Slow down, Pippa Longstocking," I said, holding up my hand to get her to stop making that sound. It was like nails on a chalkboard. Taking another sip of my mocha, I really wished that I had brought some Tylenol or something to ease the headache she was giving me. How could someone so stupid be left alive?
There was a pause as she looked at me in confusion. "My name isn’t Pippa Longstocking; it is Pippa Flynn. Are you okay?" she asked, looking at me like a confused puppy. I really wanted to cut her tongue out of her mouth to get her to stop talking, but that wasn’t going to help me right this minute.
"I know your name," I said through gritted teeth. "You just don’t understand the reference."
She blinked at me rapidly for a few seconds before shaking her head. I wondered if that was how she became so dumb. Was she shaking every good idea out of her head when she did that?
"Anyways... what did you do!??!" she said again, the same high pitched tone only a dog would be able to hear.
"You are going to have to be a bit more specific," I said, rubbing my forehead. As if sensing my growing tension, Midnight placed his warm hands on my shoulders and started to give me a massage. It was so good that I was struggling to keep my eyes open. "I’ve done a lot of shit since I was freed."
"You killed a bunch of people! It is all over the video feeds!" she screeched, and I could feel the hair rising on my arms at the sound she made.
"Once again, you are going to have to be more specific. Are we talking about the dead Sisalik when Jun Li and I were first freed? The Thuzirusians? Come on, if you are going to accuse me of something, you are going to have to give me a lot more details than ’What did you do?’," I moan as Midnight hit a particularly deep knot with his thumb.
My answer must have stunned her because she just stood there silent for so long that I had to open my eyes to see if we were still connected or not.
"You mean there has been more than one?" she asked tentatively.
"I’m a bad guy; it’s what I do," I answered with a smile. It was seriously the best quote ever.
"I am talking about killing all those innocent people on the Noronha. There are videos of you doing all over the place. You are, like, one of the most wanted criminals around right now," she said, her chest heaving as if she was going to hyperventilate.
"Are we talking Country M’s Most Wanted or Country C’s? Because there is definitely a cred difference between the two," I answered, once again closing my eyes and letting Midnight’s hand work their magic. And they were magical. I shifted in my chair as heat began to pool in my belly right before the first cramp caught me off guard. Midnight stiffened behind me.
Fucking Christ, not now.
Well, at least that explained why I didn’t want to wake up this morning. My aunt had come to pay me a visit and knock me on my ass at the same time. Top it off with Pippa screeching like a harpy, and I was more than done for the day.
"Does it really matter?" demanded Pippa, glaring at me. If only she were more intimidating.
"It does. Like I said, it is a cred thing," I answered with a smile, fighting back the pain. I would not show pain or weakness in front of a woman like Pippa.
"Fine," she huffed. "Like Country M."
"Good," I said with a nod of approval. "Then maybe you should remember that next time you decide to call me at this ungodly hour."
"Ungodly hour? It is like 1 o’clock in the afternoon. How is this an ungodly hour," asked Pippa back to looking confused.
"Do you see a sun shining?" I asked, my eyes closed as I tried to fight back a moan of pain. It had been forever since I last had my period, and it was making its presence known.
"Well... no, but that is because there is no sun where we are."
"Exactly, no sun means that it is still nighttime. Thus, you are calling me in the middle of the night at an ungodly hour," I said, knowing that I made no sense but enjoying confusing her more than a little. Besides, I was pretty sure that each ship looked after its own time, using whatever it would have been on their planet. "Now, do you have anything important to say?"
She looked at me, stunned. "Just the fact that there is a video of you blowing up a ship and killing everyone on board," she said slowly.
"Okay, good to know," I replied with a smile. "If that is all, I am going back to bed. Night!"
I looked at Jun Li, and he quickly cut off communications just as I doubled over in pain. My mouth opened in a silent scream, only for a pant to come out. Wrapping my arms around my waist, I rocked back and forth, forcing my tears back.
Midnight rushed around the chair before anyone else could even process what was going on.
"Why do I smell blood?" asked Da’kea in confusion as he looked around the room, trying to figure out where the smell was coming from.
Midnight growled low, his chest vibrating with displeasure. Picking me up and into his arms, he carried me bridal style as he sprinted down the corridor and into my quarters. I heard the pounding of feet as the rest of the men, including Jun Li, rushed into my room and surrounded my bed as Midnight gently laid me down.
"What happened?" he demanded, his eyes and hands traveling over my body to try and find a wound of some kind. "You aren’t wearing the Dryadalisan silk... was there an assassin? Is that why you bleed?"
