**Halia's POV**
The beeping started. It was slow and steady. It would not stop.
My eyes opened. A bright light filled my vision. It hurt my eyes. The smell of the hospital was strong. It made my stomach turn.
I was in a hospital. I felt scared.. I did not want to show it.
"Halia…" My mom said my name. Her voice was shaking.
I turned my head. My mom was sitting next to my bed. She looked very tired. Her eyes were red. She had been crying. She grabbed my hand when she saw that I was awake.
"You are awake " she said quietly. "Thank God."
"I am okay " I said. My voice was not very strong.
It felt like I was saying something I had practiced. Something I had been told to say.
Then Maggie came into the room. She hugged me gently. Like I might break.
"You scared us " she said quietly.
"I am sorry " I said.
The doctor came in soon. He checked my heart. Asked me questions. I answered him simply. I felt dizzy. I did not remember much. I must have fainted.
He nodded. He seemed happy with my answers.
When he left the room was quiet. Too quiet.
My mom did not look away from me. She held my hand tightly. "Do you remember how you got here?" she asked.
My chest felt tight.
"Get where exactly?" I said. I tried to shrug. "I do not know. Everything is blurry."
That was not a lie.
I remembered some things. I remembered being taken. I remembered a house in the woods. I remembered a woman. I remembered the people who worked for her. I remembered running. I remembered a voice. It was a voice that made me say things I did not want to say.
I did not tell my mom. I did not tell her any of those things.
My mom looked at me. She was searching for something. She was afraid of what I might say.
She started to speak. Then she stopped. "That is good " she said quietly. "Sometimes it is better not to remember."
My heart skipped a beat.
Maggie squeezed my hand. "The important thing is you are alive " she said.
Alive. That word felt heavy in my chest.
After a while Maggie got up to get some water. A nurse called my mom into the hallway. She had to sign some papers. Before she left she looked at me.
"Try to rest " she said. ". If you feel strange call me."
Strange. That was a thing to say.
The door closed. I was alone.
That was when my hand started to burn. It felt like it was on fire.
It was the feeling I had when I was taken.
I told myself it was not real. It was a dream.
My heart was beating fast. I looked at my hand. The veins under my skin were purple. They were glowing.
"No " I said quietly. "Not now."
The glow went away.. The feeling stayed.
Then I felt something. It was not fear. It was like I knew something.
The voice spoke to me. It was quiet.. It was old. It was patient. It was sure.
*I have been waiting for you * it said.
The machines around me made a noise. The lights flickered.
I felt cold. I closed my eyes. "Leave me alone " I said.
The voice did not say anything for a moment.
Then it said, *I have never left you.*
The door opened. Maggie came in. "Are you okay?" she asked.
I nodded. I nodded quickly. "Yes. I am just tired " I said.
She smiled. She sat next, to me.
I looked at the ceiling. My heart was beating fast.
I would not tell them. I would not tell them about the woods. I would not tell them about the voice. I would not tell them about the things that happened to me.
Because if I was right the thing that took me was still there. It was waiting for me.. Next time it would not let me go.