Chapter 3
Late at night, I started running a fever.
Nordland's icy wind crept in through the window gaps, and the heater must have stopped working at some point.
I huddled under the blanket, shaking all over.
My throat felt like I'd swallowed a blade.
I touched my forehead, and the heat of it frightened me.
I forced myself to sit up and rummaged through the medicine cabinet.
There was nothing in it.
When Michael left he didn't only take the polar jacket, because he took all the medication with him too.
He claimed Emily always had trouble with the climate whenever she traveled.
I leaned against the headboard, gasping for air.
My vision started to blur.
If my fever kept climbing and I had no meds in a foreign country, who knew what would happen to me.
I fumbled for my phone, found Michael's number, and hit the call button.
Even though I'd already made up my mind to leave, right now, survival came first.
The phone rang for what felt like forever.
Just as it was about to hang up, someone finally picked up.
"Hello?"
But it wasn't Michael on the line, and it was Emily.
She sounded groggy and pretty annoyed, like I'd just dragged her out of bed.
"Ms. Bennett, it's three in the morning," Emily grumbled.
"Calling somebody over and over in the middle of the night? Has nobody ever taught you manners?"
I gritted my teeth, swallowing the pain in my throat.
"Put Michael on the phone," I said, my voice tight with anger.
"He's in the shower," Emily replied.
She let out a soft, self-satisfied laugh, clearly enjoying every second of it.
"We went out to see the ice sculptures earlier, and he was so worried I'd get cold that he kept me tucked against him the whole time," she said, clearly enjoying herself.
"Now he's running me a hot bath.
"If you need something, Ms. Bennett, you can tell me. It amounts to the same thing."
I didn't have the energy to argue with her.
"I have a fever, and the heat in my room is out," I said, and my voice was barely there. "Tell him to bring me something for it."
There was a brief silence on the other end.
Then Emily let out an exaggerated gasp.
"Oh no, a fever?" Emily said, and the mockery in it was unmistakable. "What terrible timing.
"With the snow coming down like this, do you really think he's going to drive all that way to bring you medicine?
"And if something happened to him on the road, could you live with that?
"Besides, Michael says you're built like a tank, so you'll just have to tough it out."
I gripped my phone so hard my nails dug into my palm.
"Put Michael on the phone," I said, my voice cold and unyielding.
"Michael said he doesn't want to hear you making a fuss," Emily snapped, her voice icy.
Emily's voice turned icy in an instant.
"Sophia, don't push it.
"He can't see anything but me right now, so if you know what's good for you, you'll keep quiet."
She hung up on me.
I tried calling the front desk again.
But the blizzard had knocked out the lines, and all I got was dead air.
Hopelessness started to seep into my bones, slow and relentless.
With the last of my strength, I threw on my coat and pushed open the door.
The hallway was dim and shadowy.
I clung to the wall, inching my way toward the elevator.
Just as I reached the corner, my vision went black and I collapsed forward, unable to stop myself.