Bound in Winter's Grip by Emma Langston

Author:Emma Langston [Langston, Emma]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Suspense, Lesbian Romance
Goodreads: 197888722
Published: 2023-08-24T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter 26

Riley awoke with a start from a deep and dreamless sleep. She instinctively pushed off the blankets and attempted to sit up. A chorus of pains assailed her and caused her to gasp out loud. Her eyes filled with involuntary tears. It wasn’t easy, but she remained still, taking deep breaths, until the pain reached a tolerable level. After a wave of dizziness and nausea washed over her, she cautiously lowered her feet to the floor and sat up.

Olivia was already up, but Riley didn’t see her. She assumed Olivia was in the bathroom.

Though the room was dark, she knew it had to be after dawn. She tried the lamp on the end table, and it came on. The cabin still had electricity, which was as surprising as it was wonderful. But she was shivering from the cold. Apparently, the propane had run out during the night. The first order of business was to build a fire.

On an ordinary day, she would have sprung out of bed and tackled the fire. However, this morning, the simple act of sitting upright took all her energy. Her muscles were sore and her joints were stiff from sleeping all night in one position. Mere breathing was painful, with the murderous expansion and contraction of her rib cage never stopping to give her a break.

She opened her coat and lifted her sweater to examine her torso. The entire left side of her trunk was purple. With gentle pressure, she ran the tips of her fingers over each rib. She didn’t think any were broken, but she wouldn’t have bet the farm on it. Yet even if all of her ribs had been snapped in half, she could not have hurt more. She felt lucky to not have a punctured organ. Or if she had, at least it was a slow leak. Whatever the case, she had made it through the night alive. And that was something to be cheerful about.

Her head injury felt damp to the touch. Examining her hands after touching the wound, she saw only a smear of blood. That was acceptable. There were no more searing pains through her skull, just a dull headache and some dizziness, which she could control if she didn’t move too suddenly.

And she was hungry. This shocked her, and she took it as an unexpected, albeit positive, sign. The thought of coffee gave her fortitude. She decided she would brew them one cup each.

She glanced toward the closed door of the bathroom. Olivia was taking her time, and it had to be even colder in the tiled room. Easing off the sofa, she shuffled over to the window. The wind was blowing with less ferocity, but that was the only improvement from last night. The snow was falling with unbridled enthusiasm and settling into drifts. She guessed the ground cover to be knee deep, at least. They would not be getting off the mountain today.

Within several moments, she sensed that something wasn’t right and crossed over to the bathroom door and knocked.

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