Kimberly's POV

"It's a beautiful painting." A voice said from behind me. I whirled around quickly. "Duo stulti."he continued. I examined him for a while and then inhaled.

"Two fools." I turned back to the painting.

"You speak Latin?"

"A little." I nodded. His silence urged me to continue. "Two men on their way to paradise. One has a bad leg and a pair of shoes, the other is perfectly fine and barefooted. They can help each other out but 'as long as he doesn't have what I have,I have the advantage'." I rolled my eyes. "Human nature." I added. He stood still for a while, his deep brown eyes staring right at me. I took a deep breath.

"I'm-I'm sorry if I said too much. I tend to talk more than I'm supposed to sometimes and I end up saying a lot of meaningless things, I-"

"It's okay" A smile crossed his face. "I've just never heard it that way before. It's amazing." He turned to face me. "Really amazing."
My cheeks turned red as a beetle.

"I'm Kimberly." I stretched my hands towards him. "Kimberly Hastings."

"Kimberly Hastings." My name rolled easily off his tongue as he took my hand. "Would you do me the honor then, Miss Hastings?" He extended his other arm towards me. A smile played on my lips as I slid my arm into his. He led me to the center of the hall and then lowered his hand to my waist, causing me to inhale sharply. I placed both hands on his shoulder and we began to dance slowly to the rhythm of the song.

"You still haven't told me your name."I said slowly. He grinned.

"You never asked." He spun me around.

"I am now." I said when my hands were on his shoulders once more. He looked at me for a while.

"If I told you-" he pulled me close, closing the space between us. I could feel his breath on my cheek literally. His eyes scanned mine for a moment and I recognized those brown eyes. I recognized the pit in my stomach, I recognized his breathtaking gaze.

I knew this man....

"If I told you-" he repeated. "Then you'd run away." He continued. My eyebrows furrowed.

"I know you." I muttered. "Tell me." I urged him. He looked me for me for a short moment, his eyes never leaving mine. "Tell me-" I paused. "Show me." I pressed further. I reached for the white volto mask on his face. My hand was just a few inches away from his face when his hand grabbed mine. I looked at him for a while. "Let me see you." I told him, my voice almost pleading. He was still for a moment before I felt his hand slowly slip away from mine, giving me all the access I needed. I drew in a deep breath and my eyes never leaving his, I reached for the mask and then pulled it off. I let it drop before I looked up at the face of the man in front of me. I gasped

"It's you."

I sat up from bed quickly, breathing quickly, gasping like I had just seen a ghost. I drew in deep breaths and then exhaled heavily. Strands of hair glued to my face, making me quite uncertain as to whether the salty fluid I had tasted earlier was my sweat or tears.

"She's awake, thank goodness!" I heard someone say. I whirled around quickly and then inhaled sharply. My head hurt. "How're you feeling? Are you alright? Should I get you some water? Meds? Aspirin? Does your head hurt?" The voice echoed through my head. "Kim?" She called. I rubbed my temples and then gasped.

"Mum?" I muttered under my breath.

"Are you okay?" The figure drew closer. I squinted.

"Roxi." I paused. "Wh-what are you doing here?" I stammered and then rubbed my temples. "My head hurts."

"The doctor said it would." She sat down beside me. "You must have hit your head pretty hard when you fell." She continued. I opened my mouth to speak. "You passed out. Paul called me." She added as though she had read my mind. I raked my hand through my hair,confusion written all over my face as Roxi's words echoed through my head.

I passed out.

I passed out?

Why?

I gasped.

"Where is she?" I made a move to stand from the bed but the sharp pain in my left side pulled me back to the bed.

Apparently, my head wasn't the only damaged part of my body.

"Careful." Roxi reached for my arm. I could see just how much she had tensed in the past few seconds.

"I'm-I'm fine." I inhaled.

"I already called Keenan. Apparently, he's in some kind of meeting but he said he'll be here as soon as he can." She continued.

Liar

I wasn't blind, and I was pretty sure even a blind man would be able to tell that Keenan Monroe didn't give a cookie about me or my health. He had left me, on our wedding night for that matter.

Who does that?

Unless something bad happened?

"Where is she?" I asked again, my voice tinier than intended. Roxi bit her lip and then slowly shifted her gaze but she didn't say a word. "Roxi?" I rose an eyebrow.

"I'm really sorry, Kim." She reached for my hand but for some reason, I pulled away before she touched me. My eyes stung and my head was spinning.

"F-fine." I stammered. My eyes were scanning through the entire room and it suddenly seemed really difficult to keep them in one direction. "Then we'll go to the station. I- I'm sure this is just some misunderstanding. I'll- I'll talk to the senator." I forced myself to stand from the bed, ignoring the pain in my left side.

"Kimberly?" I heard Roxi call softly.

No!

"I'm sure I can get them to see that she's not a murderer." I reached for the wardrobe and then pushed it open. I pulled out a grey jacket mum had gotten me for my last birthday and then flung it over my body.

"Kimmy?" Roxi's voice drew closer. I could tell she was walking towards me.

"My name is Kimberly!" I snapped as I turned to face her, hot tears steaming down my cheeks. She gasped. "I'm- I'm sorry. I just need you to give me a ride to the station."

Fuck!

I can't believe I just said that.

"Please." I turned to face her. I drew in a deep breath, letting another tear drop roll down my cheek. "Please come with me." My voice broke. I was so scared. She looked at me for a short moment and I could see the tears gathering in her eyes. "Come with me?" It sounded more like a question this time. She sniffed.

"She shot a cop, Kim." She said slowly. My eyebrows furrowed. "They had no choice."

"T-they shot her?" I squinted my eyes, trembling from head to toe. Roxi exhaled. That was her confirmation.

"N- no." I shook my head and then subconsciously took a step back. "No."

"I'm so sorry Kim." She took a step towards me and to her surprise, and mine, I cringed backwards. I was silent for a while. My head was completely empty and I was lost for words. So, I said the first thing that came to my head.

"Let's go the hospital then." I slipped my feet into the first comfortable footwear my eyes could find. "I'm sure they'll let us see her. It- it'll just be a second. We could pick up some Chinese food on our way there. She- she adores sushi." My voice broke.

"Kim-"

"We can do that, right?" I rose both eyebrows. Roxi looked at me for a short moment before she inhaled and then looked at me.

"She's gone, Kim." She said slowly. The word gone rang in my head over and over again. The air around me thinned and I suddenly found it hard to breathe. I clung on tightly to my jacket and the last thing I heard before I passed out was Roxi calling for help.

Phew!
That was a tough one. This chapter took a long time because I really really wanted it to be perfect.
Anyway,I hope you enjoyed it. Don't forget to vote and drop your comments.

Love,Chay.