055

Malina awoke in the dark. It wasn't the darkness of before, instead it was simply the absence of light. She could feel that she was lying on floor of the boat. Rough cloth rubbed against her cheek and she could hear the familiar boat sounds: the creaking of the woods and the lapping of the waves. Her throat was dry. She took a deep breath in though her nose and could hear her breath gurgle through thick mucus clogging her nose.

Malina brought her hands up to her face and brushed her hair back as she sat up. She was sore and stiff. Sitting was difficult and she had difficulty keeping her head up. She let her chin drop to her chest, her eyelids fluttered and closed.

Malina awoke in the dark. She was sitting against the curved wall of the ships hull. She was somewhere in the hold of a ship. Her head was pounding, but she could remember having been awake earlier. She reasoned that it hadn't been that long since she was last conscious. There was not light to use to differentiate, but the rhythmic lapping of the waves had not changed. She reached her hands up to the back of her head, her ribs were sore and she could feel dried blood matted into her hair.