Soul-crushing Despair

Jesse came back twenty minutes later. ‘Here.’ He tossed two shopping bags onto the bed. ‘Toothbrush, toothpaste, shampoo, soap. They don’t have women’s clothes, so I got you a men’s t-shirt. It should fit.’ He added, ‘If it doesn’t, call Kai. Don’t call me.’ Kira nodded. ‘Okay, thank you.’ She had wanted to change out of the dress hours ago. Jesse jutted his chin at Austyn. ‘I’m going to send you the bill. Don’t be stingy with the tips.’ Then he took off before Austyn could assign him more errands to run. Kira checked the IV bag. It was still more than two-thirds full. Austyn’s eyes were closed. Either sleeping, or faking it. Kira picked up the bags and headed into the bathroom. The hot shower brought her back to life. It washed away crusts of dried blood from her arms and calmed her jittery nerves. She towel-dried her hair and brushed her teeth. Her face in the mirror looked almost back to normal except for the bruises on her cheeks. At least she looked better than the man lying in be