The Rescue

Chapter 2

"Lena! Lena, are you at the hotel? Where are you? What's happening?" Kara becomes very alert, very quickly hearing the plea over the phone. She is rummaging around frantically to throw on a pair of sweats and a sweatshirt. Her mind races, wondering if the men found her and is in an even worse situation than the other night.

"I- I'm... Hotel.. 14...28.. Please, please... hurry.." Lena manages to get out in-between sobs and gasps for air.

"I'm on my way, Lena. Hold on. I'm going to keep you on the phone. I'll be right there, I promise. Just breathe for me," Kara tries to keep her voice calm. If she's in the hotel room, then she should be safe for a little bit. Kara thinks about calling 911 but doesn't even know the situation to report. Kara puts in her wireless headphones, grabs her helmet, and runs down the stairwell to her motorcycle.

"Lena, listen to my voice. What is going on? Do I need to call for help?"

"P-p-panic. A-Attack."

Kara lets out a breath that she was holding while racing between cars to get to the hotel in record time. "What are 5 things you can see, Lena? List them out loud for me. Can you do that, hun?"

Kara slips into using pet names without even realizing it. Listening to the sobs in response, she lays into her clutch to go even faster. "Okay, okay. Just take a deep breath with me? Can you do that for me?" She hears a shaky breath as Kara does an exaggerated one with her.

The blonde sprints her way into the hotel lobby and tosses the keys to the valet as she runs into the lobby. She rips off her helmet as she pushes the elevator button repeatedly for the 14th floor. "I'm in the elevator right now. Can you make sure the door is open for me, honey? I'm almost there. I- I'm almost there."

Kara can hear noises over the phone and can barely make out a click followed by a massive thud. She runs out of the elevator as soon as she can slip through and races down the hallway. As she slams the door open, her eyes dart around until they land on the petite woman huddled into the corner. Her face hidden behind a curtain of dark, inky hair. Kara collapses on her knees in front of the ravenette, and barely holds herself back from touching the woman. Kara takes a deep breath to calm herself as she quickly assesses the rest of the room to make sure no one else is present.

"Lena, baby. I'm here. I'm right here. Take a deep breath in." As she sees the woman try to follow the instructions, she says softly, "Good! Good job, sweetie. Alright, on the next one, I want you to inhale deeply and try to hold it for a couple seconds."

Lena is doing her best to listen to the soft voice in front of her. She can feel the difference from the rapid breathing to the deep breathing. She inhales deeply again and holds it only for a couple seconds before she has to let it out again. She tries it again and can hold it a bit longer. Lena slowly stops sobbing uncontrollably and focuses on the breathing.

"You're doing so good, Lena. So good. Can you try to tell me 5 things you can see?"

Lena holds another breath for a few beats as she barely whispers on the exhale, "my hair."

"Good! That's one! Four more things." Kara holds back a sigh of relief.

Another breath being held before whispering, "carpet." Lena keeps to the pattern of breathing when she lists her legs and her phone. She shakes some of her hair out of her face when she whispers even more quietly, "Kara."

Kara smiles softly at the woman. "Perfect, Lee. You are doing fantastic. Now, list four things you can feel."

"Fan." Lena's hair is tickling her face with each pass of the oscillating fan. "Phone." She relaxes her hand so it's not digging into her skin. "Tears." She moves to wipe the tears that are dripping down her chin to her chest. "Soft hands." Lena reaches out to Kara's outstretched hands on the ground.