60

Amina

I opened my eyes slowly and everything my eyes caught sight of was blurry in view. I held my head as it started to ache terribly. I stayed still for a while until the headache stopped so I sat up trying not to do anything that will cause my head to bang again.

I started to wonder how I got to Ivan's car then it came back to me. Ivan had asked me to come closer to where he stood earlier and when I did, he had done something to me, I don't know what but I think it was what made me pass out the way I did. It was probably why I was having my headache again; i thought it had subsided permanently.

I looked to my right and saw that someone was leaning against the window part of the car and stopping the light so I started to knock so they could leave. They were two, I noticed that late.

One of them must have heard me because he stopped leaning on the window side and bent to look at me inside the car. Hold on, it was Ivan. Ivan! He was the reason my head was aching. He better open the door and explain what he did to me and why he did it.

The door to the backseat opened and Ivan leaned into the car with half of his body inside and half out.

"You finally woke up," I heard him and wanted to slap him but my body was weak.

"What did you do to me?!" I asked with an angry tone and expected answers right away but he didn't say anything. He just got his body out of the car completely and went round the car to the driver's side and came in through there. He sat comfortably and closed the door before taking an unopened bottle water sitting inside the cup holder and giving it to me.

"Here, have some water." He turned around and held the bottle to my face. I pushed it off from his hands and it hit the face of a man who was about to enter the car.

I realized what I did and covered my mouth with my hands. The man glared at me and I shifted farther from that part of the car. My heart beating fast, It occurred to me that I recognized that face. I started to rake my brain for where I knew the face when I remembered that he was there on the first day of my kidnap. It made me remember that Lenin guy who was also there that day so I looked away in fear.

"Should I tie her up?" The man with the scar asked Ivan. I remember him from the scar over his eyelids. I looked at the rearview mirror in-between the two visors in front and saw Ivan's eyes.

"No." Ivan said and opened the door to his side and came out then he rejoined me in the backseat."Give me a minute with her, Konstantin." He asked the scarred man and he left the car.

I tried to control my breathing and hide my fear just now so that I could return to being mad at Ivan but his right hand went round my neck before I could do anything else. With his hand around my neck like that, he shifted my jaw to the left and then to the right.

"Does that hurt?" He asked me in a calm voice unlike what I expected. I didn't give him an answer right away, I just clenched my jaw to show him that I was angry.

"Do you want it to hurt?" I asked him and he just sighed and let go of my neck.

"If it hurts, let me know." He said and wanted to leave the car.

"I have a headache," I grabbed on his jacket to stop him from leaving. He turned back to me so I let go of the jacket.

"It's probably because you haven't had your pills yet and it's due. Here," he took out the plastic bottle of the pill I took this morning from his jacket.

"No." I slapped the bottle out of his hands reflexively. Why did he have that with him.

"Can you stop doing that?" He thundered at me and I knew he was not in a good mood and was trying to be calm with me all this while. He picked up the bottle and forced it into my hands."If you throw it again..." He didn't have to finish his words to give me a warning. I swallowed saliva. I was trying to be mad at him but now I've made him mad at me and that was not good.

"I don't want to take it." I started to whimper when I remembered how hard it was to brush off the taste of the medicine from my tongue this morning after I took it.

"You have to. I didn't ask you get sick, did I ?"

"This is your fault, you know." I told him after he said that to me.

"My fault? How is it my fault you got sick?" He peered his eyes at me and awaited an immediate answer.

"I didn't say y-you caused m-me to be sick," I stuttered for a second and got my confidence back."I mean it's your fault I've got my headache again. What you did earlier."

"It's not because of what I did, it's because you haven't taken your pills and it due." He stretched his arms and got the bottle of water I had slapped out of his hands earlier; the one that got Konstantin. He opened the water and brought it to my lips.

"Open your mouth," he said in what sounded like a command so I hummed my lips and shook my head."Jewel, come on, open your mouth." I shook my head again so he gripped my jaw and made my mouth open by force and almost poured the water into my mouth but paused in his actions.

"Please take your drugs," he resorted to begging and let go of my jaw. I sobbed without tears and inhaled deeply to stop myself.

"Okay," I said and took the water bottle from him. I did like I did in the morning; I opened my mouth and closed my eyes before taking the pill.

"Thank you." He said and took the bottle from me.

"My teddy bear isn't here, you made me lose it." I reminded him.

"I will get you a new one if you really want one," he said and got out of the car, wanting to shut the door but he stopped when i asked.

"Is he going home with us?" I refered to Konstantin and saw Ivan shake his head in reply.

"No."