The Captain's Dirty Little Secret

Chapter 391: Chapter 391 - Tomorrow

Roxie stopped breathing as Karen’s head shifted against the seat. Her eyelids slowly opened, unfocused at first, before finally landing somewhere near Roxie’s face.

”Oh my God.”

The relief hit so hard Roxie almost laughed, cried, or dropped to her knees all at once. She slapped her palm against the glass again and pointed toward the lock. ”Karen, open the door.”

Karen stared at her like she was trying to understand the words. She looked confused and completely out of it, almost like she was looking through Roxie instead of at her, but Roxie didn’t care. Karen was moving. She was breathing. Right now, that was enough.

”Open it. Come on. Open the door.”

Zac stepped closer beside Roxie and leaned toward the glass. ”Karen. Unlock it.”

Karen’s eyes moved toward him. It took several more seconds before her hand finally shifted toward the controls and the lock clicked.

Roxie yanked the door open, and the smell of alcohol rolled out immediately.

For a moment she just stared.

Karen looked worse up close. Her face had gone almost gray under the makeup, her hair stuck messily around her cheeks, and her eyes could barely stay focused. An open bottle lay on the passenger floor beside crumpled gum wrappers and her bag.

Roxie reached for her face before she could stop herself. ”Karen.”

Karen flinched weakly away. ”Why are you here?”

The question hit Roxie so wrong she almost laughed. ”Why am I here?”

Karen rubbed one hand over her forehead, then closed her eyes again.

Roxie’s relief disappeared immediately. Her hand started trembling as she touched Karen’s arm. ”Hey. No. Open your eyes.”

Karen groaned. ”Roxie. I want to sleep.”

Roxie’s heart slammed painfully against her ribs. ”No. No, open them.”

Karen opened them again, but only halfway.

By then Mason’s car had pulled in behind them. Angela got out before he had completely stopped and ran across the lot, calling Karen’s name before she even reached them. Karen turned weakly toward the sound, but Angela stopped beside Roxie and covered her mouth the moment she saw her.

Whatever Angela had expected, it clearly wasn’t this.

”Oh my God. Karen.”

”I’m fine,” Karen muttered.

Roxie almost screamed. Fine? She called this fine? She was alone, drunk, barely awake in the middle of nowhere after disappearing all day, and she still had the nerve to say she was fine.

Angela immediately reached for Karen’s hand. ”What did you take?”

Karen frowned.

”The pill,” Roxie said. ”What did you take?”

”One.”

”One what?”

”I don’t know.”

Roxie stared at her, waiting for something else, some explanation that never came. Karen only closed her eyes again.

”Karen.”

No response.

Roxie grabbed her shoulder. ”Karen.”

Her head shifted slightly.

”Open your eyes.”

Karen muttered something Roxie couldn’t understand, and panic rushed through her so quickly she felt dizzy. ”Karen, open your fucking eyes.”

Zac reached around Roxie and pressed two fingers against Karen’s neck while watching her chest.

Roxie looked at him sharply. ”What are you doing?”

”Checking her pulse.”

The words made everything inside Roxie go cold.

Angela started crying harder. ”Is she breathing?”

”Yes,” Zac answered immediately. ”She’s breathing.”

Roxie grabbed Karen’s face with both hands and forced herself to look at her. ”Karen, look at me. Come on. Look at me.”

Karen’s eyelids fluttered before opening again, and Roxie almost sobbed from relief even though she knew something was very wrong.

”What did you take?”

”I told you.”

”No, you didn’t. What pill?”

Karen frowned like Roxie was annoying her. ”I don’t know.”

”Who gave it to you?”

”I don’t know.”

”How much did you drink?”

Karen turned her face away.

Roxie’s voice started breaking. ”Karen, I need you to fucking answer me.”

Angela was beside her now, holding Karen’s hand between both of hers. ”Karen, please. Please answer her.”

Karen looked toward Angela, and something in her face softened for a moment before her eyes closed again.

Angela made a sound Roxie had never heard from her before.

”No. No, no, no. Karen, look at me.”

She shook Karen’s hand.

”Karen.”

Nothing.

Angela started sobbing. ”Karen!”

Roxie felt her whole body go cold.

”Open your eyes!”

She grabbed Karen’s shoulders and shook her harder, but Karen’s head rolled slightly toward her. For one horrible moment Roxie wasn’t looking at Karen anymore.

She was back with Claire.

Those nights after partying when Roxie had begged her to wake up.

Then the morgue.

Her mother’s face.

Her mother’s body.

That horrible stillness.

”No.”

Zac caught Roxie’s wrist before she could shake Karen harder.

”Roxie.”

”No. Karen, wake up!”

”She’s breathing.”

”I don’t care. Wake her up!”

”Rox.”

”Karen!”

Her eyes opened weakly.

Roxie broke.

A sob tore out of her as she bent toward Karen and pressed one hand against the side of her face. ”You fucking bitch. You scared me.”

Karen blinked slowly.

”Don’t close your eyes again.”

”I’m tired.”

”I don’t care.”

”Roxie.”

”No. You look at me. Stay awake.”

Karen’s eyes were already drifting, so Roxie lightly slapped her cheek. ”Stay awake.”

Angela was crying so hard she could barely speak. ”Please, Karen. Please. Just keep looking at us.”

Karen turned her eyes toward her, and Angela immediately tightened both hands around hers.

”There. Just stay there. Look at me. You can be mad at me later. You can tell me to fuck off tomorrow. Just stay awake right now.”

Karen tried to say something, but the words came out so slurred that neither Roxie nor Angela understood her.

Zac stood abruptly and pulled out his phone.

Roxie looked at him. ”What are you doing?”

”Calling 911.”

Karen heard him.

Her eyes opened wider.

”No.”

The fear in her voice was immediate despite how weak it sounded.

Roxie stared at her.

”No hospital.”

”Yes, hospital,” Zac said as he put the phone to his ear.

Karen tried to sit straighter, but her body barely cooperated. ”No. Roxie.”

Roxie swallowed.

”Please.”

That word almost destroyed her because yesterday Karen had looked at her with those same pleading eyes when Coach Miller asked what happened. Roxie had protected her then. She had lied because she was thinking about graduation, cheer, Karen’s reputation, her family finding out, everything except the possibility that hiding it could make things worse.

Now Karen could barely keep her eyes open.

Roxie shook her head while tears kept running down her face. ”No. I’m sorry, Karen. I don’t care if you hate me.”

”Roxie.”

”I don’t care if the school finds out. I don’t care if your aunt gets mad or your parents come here and blame me. I don’t fucking care anymore.”

Karen’s eyes filled.

Roxie cupped her face again. ”You’re going to the hospital.”

Karen weakly shook her head, but Angela was already crying beside her.

”Please. Please just go.”

Karen turned toward Angela.

Angela could barely breathe through her sobs. ”I’m scared. I’m so fucking scared, Karen. Please.”

Karen’s face crumpled, and for one second she looked completely sober.

Completely scared.

Then her eyes rolled slightly before closing again.

Angela screamed.

”Karen!”

Roxie felt her heart stop.

She grabbed Karen’s face. ”Karen. Karen!”

Zac dropped beside them immediately while still speaking into the phone. ”She’s losing consciousness.”

Roxie heard the words and everything inside her broke apart.

”No, she’s not. Karen, open your eyes.”

Zac pressed his fingers against Karen’s neck again while Roxie watched his face so closely that every second he stayed silent felt unbearable.

”Zac?”

He kept checking.

”Zac!”

”She has a pulse.”

Angela was sobbing uncontrollably now. ”Why isn’t she waking up?”

”She is breathing,” Zac said firmly. ”Roxie, listen to me. She’s breathing.”

Roxie couldn’t listen. All she could see was Karen’s face as she kept touching her cheek, begging her to wake up.

Mason stood beside them looking completely white. ”How many pills?”

Roxie looked at him. ”What?”

”How many did she take?”

”We don’t know.”

Mason turned toward the car and kicked the tire so hard Angela jumped. ”Fuck!”

He dragged both hands through his hair and looked back at Karen. ”How the fuck did I miss this? I picked her up. I fucking picked her up all those times and she kept telling me she was just drunk.”

”Mason,” Dylan said.

”I believed her.”

”This isn’t the time.”

”When the fuck is the time?”

Dylan grabbed his shoulder. ”When she’s awake.”

That shut Mason up.

Roxie barely heard them because Karen moved again. Her eyelids fluttered and a quiet sound came from her throat.

”Karen?”

Roxie leaned so close their foreheads almost touched. ”I’m here.”

Karen’s lips moved.

”What?”

Roxie leaned closer.

”I’m sorry.”

Roxie froze.

Angela sobbed harder.

”No.”

Karen’s eyes stayed barely open.

Roxie shook her head desperately. ”No, don’t say that.”

”I’m sorry.”

”Stop.”

The words sounded too final, and Roxie started crying harder.

”Stop fucking apologizing. You can apologize tomorrow.”

Karen looked at her.

”You hear me? Tomorrow. You can apologize all fucking day tomorrow. You can yell at me too. You can tell me I’m controlling and dramatic and whatever the fuck you want, but you’re doing it tomorrow.”

Karen’s mouth moved like she was trying to smile.

Then her eyes closed again.

”Karen.”

Roxie grabbed her.

”Karen!”

Zac caught Roxie around the waist when she tried to pull Karen toward herself. ”Roxie, careful.”

”She won’t wake up!”

”I know.”

”Then fucking do something!”

His face changed.

Roxie knew immediately she had hurt him, but right then she couldn’t care. She couldn’t care about anything except Karen.

”Please.”

That came out smaller.

Zac tightened his arm around her. ”They’re coming.”

”How long?”

”Couple minutes.”

”That’s too long.”

”They’re coming.”

”What if she stops breathing?”

”She’s breathing.”

”What if she stops?”

Zac didn’t answer.

That silence terrified her more than anything he could have said.

Angela still had both hands wrapped around Karen’s, crying into them while Mason stood beside her looking like he didn’t know whether to turn away or stay. Ethan remained several feet back, pale and silent, and Dylan kept looking toward the road for the ambulance.

Roxie stayed half inside the car with one hand against Karen’s cheek, checking over and over for warmth because she couldn’t stop herself.

”Come on.”