The Queen Imperial

Chapter 18

"Here, eat this."

Abel's eyes were glued to the television, though he hardly registered the images on the screen. An animal documentary played, but the rumbling of his empty stomach drowned out any interest he might have had. He was so hungry, so cold, and the enticing smell of French fries from the bed next to his only made the ache in his belly worse.

Where was Anne-Marie? She was supposed to have been there hours ago, but her phone was still off. He glanced over at the other two kids in the room, both surrounded by family who fussed over them, bringing food and comfort. Abel had no one but the flickering screen in front of him and his old, tattered teddy bear. His vision blurred, but he stubbornly kept his eyes open, one hand pressed over his stomach in a vain attempt to ease the pain.

Suddenly, he felt a familiar, sickening bile rise in his throat. Knowing what was coming, he quickly grabbed a handkerchief from the pack Mickey had brought him earlier. He sat up as quickly as his weak body would allow and coughed hard into the cloth. The effort left him breathless, and when he pulled the handkerchief away from his mouth, it was soaked with blood.

Outside the room, Anne-Marie stood frozen, her hand on the door handle. For over ten minutes, she had been trying to steady herself, to force a smile onto her face before facing Abel. She couldn't let him see the turmoil she was in, the overwhelming fear that gripped her since Oliver's men had dropped her off at the hospital. The last few hours had been a whirlwind of confusion and impossible choices.

Pretending to be someone else, especially someone as important as Paris Vurton, was terrifying. But yet, Oliver's words of promises haunted her. This might be the answer to all her prayers, the chance to save Abel, to change both their lives forever. Clutching the food pack Oliver had given her, she took a deep breath, forced a smile, and pushed the door open.

"Abel, your sister is here."

Abel turned his head at the sound of the girl's voice, hiding the bloodstained handkerchief quickly first. He tossed it into the small dustbin beneath his bed and plastered a smile on his face as Anne-Marie approached. Seeing her smile, even if forced, was all that mattered to him. He knew that if she saw the blood, that smile would disappear, replaced by a look of despair that would crush him for days. He couldn't let her worry.

Anne-Marie forced an air of excitement as she waved the food pack in the air.

"Hey, hey," she said, leaning down to kiss his forehead.

"Eww," Abel groaned, feigning disgust even though he had been waiting for that kiss all day. "Gross."

Anne-Marie chuckled, but her eyes scanned the room.

"Where's Mickey?"

"She had to leave," Abel replied, his eyes returning to the television. "She got called in at work."

"Oh," Anne-Marie pouted briefly before brightening her smile again. "I got your favorite!" She hurried to the tiny bedside table and set the food pack down. "Okay, I got a lot of things you like because I figured you must be really hungry—"

Her words trailed off as her gaze caught something beneath the bed. She froze, noticing the red stains in the small metallic dustbin. Abel was speaking again, his voice excited, but she barely heard him as she bent down to inspect the bin.

"You missed the show," Abel said, his eyes still on the television. "We were supposed to watch it together, remember?"

"Yeah," Anne-Marie murmured, bending over to reach for the dustbin. "I just had a few things to take care of. We can watch it some other time." Her heart sank as she saw five blood-soaked handkerchiefs at the bottom of the bin. All Abel's blood.