wrath of the Sea Queen (63 page)

"No, that you don't, Love.  Be careful and don't be long."

With a parting kiss for Ben,
Salma left the room
and headed down to the lobby
.  As the door to their hotel room closed
, C
a
eli made her way out of the
bath
room and
let Vin help her
over to a
red recliner
in the corner.

"
Ben, C
a
eli, I know you two are miserable, but we
are going to
have to hit the road again. 
Do you think you c
an you handle another short trip
?
"
  He looked at them
sympathetically
.
 
Vin hated
asking
them to
travel again right away
.  Despite his assurance a few moments ago, Vin
understood th
e
necess
ity of leaving the hotel
for Salma's safety.  Too many people knew
Salma
w
ould be
staying
t
here.

"
Whatever you think is best, Vin.
"
  C
a
eli answered weakly from where she curled up in
the
large
chair
by the window.

Ben
sat
in a
pale,
wooden chair
in front of a
desk
made of the same material
.  Salma recommended that the firm support would be better for
Ben
until she could get
finish the patchwork that
C
a
eli
had started
. 

"
I
wi
ll be fine.  Of the two of us, I think I'm currently in better shape.
"
  Ben nodded to C
a
eli, shivering in the chair. 
She had her feet drawn up and her arms folded tightly across her midsection
yet again
.  She
sat
sideways, leaning against the back of the plush chair.  Ben
held out a blanket he
ha
d grabbed from the end of the bed next to him.

Vin thanked him as he took the soft, blue
throw
from Ben's hand and walked over to his wife.  Once
s
he
was
covered, he
sat on the edge of
the chair and
gently
stroked her
sweat-soaked
hair
as it
clung to her
heated
skin.

"
I'm sorry, C
a
eli
.  I said that you would have my full attention once we arrived, but I
'
ve been preoccupied.  I also sent Salma away while you
were in the bathroom
,
"
Vin whispered to her.

"That's ok."

"
It's
just
not a good idea for Salma to stay here.  There's no telling what the
protestor
s or the media might try next.  We have to get her
to a less
public
venue
;
b
ut we
wi
ll be settled soon.
"

"I understand, Vin."

"
It won't be much longer. 
Is there anything I can do
for you
until
Salma gets back?
  Do you
still want to
talk
about this
?
"

"
Yes, but give me a few minutes please
. 
My head is pounding
. 
L
et me rest until
Salma returns.  Then I won't have to repeat everything for her
,
"
C
a
eli tried to smile rea
ssuringly at him
.

"
Ok. 
Then close your eyes and rest
, Honey
. 
I'm right here if you need anything. 
Salma will have a look at you
soon.
"
  Vin kissed her unusually warm forehead as he stood up, taking one last look into her
weary
eyes before
turning away
. 
He
did
n
o
t get two steps before
he heard C
a
eli
cry out
in pain.  He quickly turned to see what was wrong.  C
a
eli
had
thr
o
w
n
the cover off
and
was clutching her midsection
,
curled up more tightly in the chair. 

"What is it, C
a
eli?" 

C
a
eli shook her head.  She couldn't answer him.  Her stomach
had
cramped up causing a good deal of pain. 
She was sweating profusely
again
, yet felt chilled to the bone. 
She tried to hold very still because
even the slightest
movement caused
the room
to
start spin
ning
.  It was all
C
a
eli
could do to kee
p from being sick each time she opened her eyes, and she was ultimately unsuccessful.  Thankfully, Vin grab
bed
a nearby wastebasket for her.

Vin knelt beside her, helpless to ease her pain, but there for whatever
else
she might need.  He kept a hand lightly on her back for support.  After several minutes, the pain in her stomach finally subsided,
the nausea passed,
and C
a
eli was able to sit back in the chair again.  Vin made a quick trip to the sink in the bathroom to get her a glass of water and helped her
hold the cup so that she could
drink.  He also brought back a wet washcloth which he used to wipe the sweat from her forehead, and then placed it on the
back of her neck to help calm any
lingering
nausea. 

"Honey, you
definitely
need
help
," Vin said
after returning from running
the washcloth under the cold water again and
wiping
down her face and neck
once more
.

"Thank
s
, Vin
," she whispered
as the coolness of the water helped calm some of the unpleasant feelings
. 
C
a
eli
started to shiver again, and Vin recovered her with the blanket.

"
Maybe it's a good idea to
go ahead and
get
both
you and Ben
to a hospital
.
"
  He was seriously considering changing his plan and taking her to
the emergency room
right away
.  If the water hadn't
provided some relief
, then
Vin
would
have
already called the front desk to arrange
for an ambulance
.

"
I
prefer to
wait for
Salma
. 
I trust her
more than
any
stranger. 
I
will go to the hospital if she thinks it's necessary
. 
Will she
be back soon?
"
 

"She should be.  I
wi
ll have her look at you as soon as she returns
.
"
  In the back of his mind, Vin hoped he made the right call sending Salma out by herself; but his choices were limited.

"
Th
en l
et me sit here until
she gets back
,
please
."

C
a
eli wasn't fond of hospitals or doctors.  Salma was the only doctor she truly trusted.  Even still,
the rare times that she was sick enough to need more than an over-the-counter remedy,
it was like trying to pull teeth
even
to get her to
see
Salma
in a medical capacity
.  Vin's intervention
was usually required
to break through C
a
eli's resist
ance
.  The fact that she readily agreed to let Salma treat her
now
and
to
go to a hospital, if necessary,
was another
sure sign that this was serious
.