Chapter 20

The first thing Robin became aware of was that she was lying on a hard surface. She wondered if she was in the hospital. The smell convinced her that she wasn't. Obnoxious, musty smell. She opened her eyes and saw the looming silhouettes of old furniture. The room was small and there were not any windows. The only light was a faint glow coming from under a door. The cement floor felt unpleasantly cold. Robin swore and stirred. She knew that her ankle was broken but didn't expect the pain to be so torturous. Trying not to move it, she sat up and cautiously touched her jaw. It was sore. Her left arm protested as she moved it. There was a swelling just under her elbow. Despite the gravity of the situation, Robin felt almost happy. The man hadn't raped her. At least, not yet. She looked at the door and shivered, then focused her attention to her ankle. The black stocking could not disguise the hideous swelling. Even the slightest move was causing more and more pain. It was certainly broken. Robin wiped the cold sweat off her brow, then examined the room closely. Something that looked like a tablecloth was lying in the corner. She gingerly lifted her injured ankle off the floor and began crawling toward the corner. The tablecloth seemed to be suitable. Robin managed to tear it. After taking off her stocking very cautiously, she touched her swollen ankle here and there trying to determine the extent of the injury. Bandaging her own ankle proved to be a lot more difficult than bandaging someone else's. When Robin finished, her hands were trembling from pain and exhaustion. She rested for a while, then stood up and hopped toward the door using the wall to support herself. The movement aggravated the pain so she had to stop a couple of times to catch her breath. The door was locked. When she was about to sit on the floor again, the door opened. The man looked into the room. He appeared to be no more sober than before.