Virginia opened her eyes. She was resting on a soft bed, a blanket covering her to her shoulders. She let herself enjoy blissful ignorance for a few seconds, but all too soon her mind caught up to her, and forced her to ask herself some questions.
Namely, where the hell was she? What the hell happened?
She sat up to get a better look at her surroundings. As she shifted her body upwards, a dull ache between her legs made her wince. An memory flashed through her mind - a face hovering above her, the sound of flesh on flesh, fingers digging into the side of her neck - and she shuddered.
A chair came into view as she threw another look around the room. The figure slumped in it stirred and blinked bleary eyes open.
"Jacob..." Virginia whispered. She remembered more, now. Jacob, who stood up for her to his father. Jacob, who saved her from whoring... all for nothing.
She whimpered and buried her face in her hands, refusing to let the memories surface further. Jacob woke fully at the sound and rushed to her side. The bed groaned as he sat next to her and laid a hand on her leg.
Virginia's heart raced and she pulled her leg away, curling herself into a ball. "No! Don't touch me!"
Jacob raised his hands and backed off, stepping away from the bed. "Hey, hey, it's okay," he murmured, "you're safe now." He pulled the chair closer and sat by the foot of the bed, giving Virginia some breathing room.
Virginia took deep breaths and let her heartbeat slow, looking around the room while keeping an eye on Jacob, who sat very still, not wanting to spook her further. She noticed a glass of water on the table by the top of the bed, and took a sip.
"Where am I?" she asked, her voice hoarse.
"My room. Above the saloon. I brought you here after..." Jacob trailed off.
"After what? What happened?"
Jacob sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "What do you remember?"
Virginia hugged her legs close to her and rested her chin on her knees. She let the memories flow back to her, slowly, not rushing them. "I remember Annie and Clara. I remember him... the Demon. And Simmons, that fucking..." She bit her lip as she remembered who she was talking to. "Sorry."
Jacob shrugged. "Don't be. He
is
a fucking asshole. The way he touched you, I should have..." Jacob gritted his teeth and shook his head. "No. Go on, continue."
"I went home. And...
he
was there. They had Eli, they were hurting him. And... and... I did things... he did things..." Virginia's voice broke and she felt tears well up in her eyes. "Eli! I have to help him, he was hurt! Where is he?"
She looked at Jacob pleadingly. The look in his eyes terrified her - pity, written clearly across his features. "Jacob? What happened? Please..."
"After you left, I just had this
feeling.
I couldn't shake it. I wanted to check on you, see how you were. I went to find you. When I got there..." Jacob sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. "Jesse was gone. I don't know what he did, but I could guess... you were on the floor, naked, covered in..."
Jacob glanced up and saw Virginia's face. She was blushing, tears threatening to spill down her face, her eyes locked on a spot on the blanket in front of her. He decided to skip some details.
"I tried to talk to you, tried to get you moving, you were awake but it was like you couldn't hear me. The flames were getting bigger, so I dragged you out, and--"
"Flames?" Virginia interrupted him. "What flames?"
Jacob looked at her in confusion. "The fire. You don't remember the fire?" Her bewildered expression answered that question. "By the time I got there, the whole back wall was lit. I barely had time to grab you and get you out before the ceiling collapsed."
"And... Eli?" Virginia asked, choking on the last syllable.
Jacob shook his head and a sob shook her. "I couldn't... there was so much blood, and I had to get you out, and then the fire, it... I'm sorry, Virginia."
"What are you saying?"
"I'm so sorry. Eli's dead."
Once more, blackness descended upon Virginia.
***
She awoke in the same bed. Her eyes fluttered open and settled on a figure, sat on the bed next to her. She held her breath.
"Welcome back, Miss Curtis," he said. "I'm here to help. I'm Doctor Stevenson." He held up the stethoscope hanging around his neck. "You're hurt. Mister Simmons asked me to examine you." Virginia tensed at the name, and the doctor hastened to add, "The
young
Mister Simmons. Jacob."
"You've had quite the trauma, Miss Curtis," the doctor said. His voice was deep and echoed in her chest. His hands gently pulled the collar of her nightshirt open, revealing one side of her sore neck. "The bruises on your neck should feel better soon, but try not to raise your voice for a few days."
Virginia's heart sped at the doctor's touch, and she flinched when his fingers brushed a strand of hair aside so he could inspect the other side. "Shh," he soothed her, "it's okay, I'm here to help."
He pulled back and sat on the edge of the bed. "Now, I need to make sure every part of you is healing, Miss Curtis," he said. "I'm going to inspect your limbs for sprains and breaks."
Virginia nodded, and the doctor palpated down each of her arms in time. The smooth, rhythmic motion calmed her. She felt faint and light-headed - she couldn't remember when the last time she ate was - and she let her eyes drift half-closed.
The doctor gently pulled the blanket away from her, and continued his examination, starting at her feet. He worked his way up her calves, then her thighs. As he reached the top of her legs, Virginia tensed again.
Her eyes flew open and she reached a hand to stop the doctor. "Please, don't, not there."
The doctor looked down at her. "It's okay, I'm here to help," he repeated. "I'm a doctor."
He parted her legs slowly, and massaged the inside of her thighs. She wore no underwear beneath the nightshirt, and could feel the cool air of the room on her pussy as each movement of the doctor's hand pulled the shirt up higher, until she was fully exposed.
"You don't need to check, it's fine," Virginia pleaded.
"It's okay, it's my job. Close your eyes, and stop talking, remember your throat" the doctor said.
Virginia bit her lip and dropped her head back on the pillow. She squeezed her eyes shut, and the doctor spread her legs. He brought her feet together, close to her ass, and pushed her knees down, so her pussy was fully exposed and her lips parted open.
