章 48: Alla's health is deteriorating

Alla, terrified, promptly fell silent. Feeling a twinge of disappointment, she glanced at the man. His absence of anger signified he was not Casiano. A bitter taste flooded her heart, so she mustered the courage to turn her body away from him, sleeping with her back towards him, eyes tightly shut.

For reasons unknown, despite the man not being Casiano, she was imbued with a sense of safety in his presence. Consequently, she fell into a deep, untroubled sleep. After she drifted off, the man tenderly cradled her back into his arms, intermittently patting her back with a soothing rhythm.

Exhausted, Alla slept heavily, her dreams filled with a familiar young man. In her dream, he lifted his foot, aiming it at her heart, kicking fiercely. He snapped her fingers one by one, and slapped her face hard. Lying on the ground, she curled up from the pain, yet still reached out to him with hope, whispering, "Ricky, it hurts... it hurts so much..."