Chapter Seventeen
AFTER THE POLICE OFFICER TRIES to get Nicole to tell him what happened and she refuses, a doctor and nurse evaluate Nicole, giving her the news that she’ll be moving to another floor and then going home soon after.
Brian has no time to discuss any of it with Nicole before they leave the room and a woman from the hospital billing department begins saying her bit. She’s skinny and heavily made up, wearing a badge that says she’s Joanne Jones. The smell of cigarette smoke hangs around her. She’s all business from the moment she enters. With very little preamble, she launches into her you-have-bills-that-need-to-be paid lecture.
Nicole sits in the bed in shock. Halfway through the woman’s spiel, she closes her eyes and falls asleep.
Brian speaks up. “She’s on painkillers right now. She’s probably not going to remember any of this.”
“Well, she needs to know it, regardless. And I need a signature on several forms I have.”
“She doesn’t have insurance,” says Brian, getting irritated with the woman. “And her arm is broken, so I don’t think you’re going to get her signature today.”
“Well, that’s going to be a problem. Care in the ICU is expensive.” She taps her pen on the clipboard in her other arm. “She can sign with her other hand.”
Brian can’t help but snort at that. “Yeah, right. Once they take the needle out of it. Speaking of costs, care anywhere in this place is expensive. But you give a discount to cash payers, right?”
The woman’s lips tighten. “We do what we can to make our care affordable.”
Brian gestures to Nicole and speaks quietly. “She’s been abused for a long time. Her injuries are extensive and they’re going to take a lot of care.”
“I realize that.” The woman’s voice and expression soften somewhat. “I’ve seen her chart. That doesn’t change the fact that the care costs money.”
“Don’t you have a foundation or something that contributes to cases like this?”
“Nothing sponsored by the hospital, but there might be something out there in the community. That’s up to you to find, though. I have nothing to do with that.”
“So what do we do in the meantime?”
“You tell me how you’re going to pay for the care she’s already received. You’re her brother, right?”
“Yes. How about if I come see you later in your office and we discuss the details then? I’m not sure this conversation is something she needs to hear right now. I’m worried it will interfere in her healing.”
The woman nods once. “That’s fine. Here’s my card. You can come see me tomorrow. Just call first to make sure I’m in the office.”
“Will do. And thanks. If you come across any services that could help, get the info for me, would you?”
“Yes. I will.”
The woman leaves the room and Brian sits down, staring at Nicole. What’s happened to her is so unfair. Feelings of protectiveness overwhelm him as he pictures the hospital just kicking her out because she doesn’t have the money to pay for something that someone else did to her. That asshole should pay. Brian’s lips press into a thin line as he considers his options.
Stepping outside the room, he pulls out his cell phone, using the speed dial for his ex-wife.
“Hello, Brian, what’s up?” she says as a greeting.
“Hey, Helen. Listen, I have a little situation here, and I wanted to get your input.”
“Oh, yeah? Tell me.”
“Well, it’s kind of complicated. And big. Really big.”
“Hmmm, now you have me intrigued.” She pauses and then says away from the phone, “Liam, please … go outside with that, would you? You’re giving me a headache.”
Brian smiles, knowing exactly what his son is doing and happy that Helen is the one dealing with it today. “First of all, I need to know if you can keep Liam for a few more days. Maybe a week.”
“Whaaaat? Are you crazy? You know what my schedule’s like.”
“I know. You know I know, and that I wouldn’t ask if it wasn’t really, really important.”
“Wow. Sounds major. You’ve never asked me to keep Liam longer. What … did you meet the woman of your dreams or something? Gonna run off to Jamaica and get married?” She laughs at her own joke but then stops abruptly. “Seriously. Are you doing that? I probably shouldn’t joke about it. If you are, congrats. I’m happy for you if she’s nice. I’m pissed if she’s not.”
“No, don’t be ridiculous. I don’t even have a girlfriend. But it does involve a woman and … it’s just complicated.”
She switches to her lawyer voice. “Well un-complicate it if you want my help. Tell me what’s going on.”
“Nutshell version … one of our neighbors is in the hospital. She’s been horribly beaten by her boyfriend. I’m here in the hospital with her for now, and then I’m going to bring her to my place to recuperate.”
“Like hell you are!” Helen schools her voice and brings it down a notch. “You’re not bringing some woman with a crazed abuser after her into my son’s home. That’s not going to happen.”
“Helen, it’s going to be fine. She lives on another street, and he’ll never know she’s here. We’ll keep the blinds shut, and she won’t go outside. It’s only temporary. Besides, you know I’d never put Liam in harm’s way. Don’t be like that.”
“I’m not being like anything. I’m being a mother, and I expect you to act like a father, not some … superhero or whatever.”
“I’m being a father. And a good person, which is what a father should be so his son learns how to be one too. What would you rather me do? Send her back home to get killed?”
“Of course not. Don’t be ridiculous.”
“Then where? She has nowhere to go, or she would have already been there. Helen, you have to see her. She’s been turned into a monster.”
“What the hell does that mean? Is she psychotic?”
“No, not at all. She seems very sweet. But she’s been beaten over years. Her face … it’s just … awful is the only way to describe it. Her face is awful. Deformed. Like, permanently.”
Helen is silent for so long Brian wonders if she’s still on the line. “Helen? Hello?”
“I’m here. I’m just thinking.”
“Please, Helen? You know I never ask you for anything. I do everything you ask of me without complaint.”
“I know, jerk. You don’t need to remind me.”
“Are you calling me a jerk because you’re considering helping me out?”
“Just shut up and let me think for a minute, would you? Jesus. You’re totally stressing me out over this, you know. Like I don’t have enough crap at work to deal with … I don’t need this too.” She sighs. “What to do, what to do, what to do…”
“I hear that tone in your voice. Better be careful. You’re going to tire out the hamster.” He battles to keep the grin out of his voice.
“Hamster? What hamster?”
“The one on the exercise wheel powering your brain.” He can’t help it; he laughs at his own teasing. She hates it when he defuses her anger with lame jokes. She always said a man as big and tough as he is shouldn’t act goofy, but at the same time, she always laughed too. That was the one thing they always had in common and it hasn’t changed; they both like to laugh.
She sighs heavily. “I’ll call you back.”
“Are you mad?”
“No. I’m frustrated with your superhero complex and wishing my life was a lot less complicated, but I’m not mad.”
“I’m no superhero,” says Brian, suddenly feeling sad.
“Tell that to the girl you’re rescuing,” Helen says, just before disconnecting the call.
Chapter Eighteen
NICOLE LOOKS AT BRIAN, STILL sitting in the chair next to her bed. The last day or so has passed in a haze of painkillers and conversations she only half-remembers. The woman asking her for money hasn’t come back; that’s the only bit of good news she’s had la
tely. All the rest has her terrified, especially that police officer that’s come back twice now trying to get her to confess to what happened. She continues to refuse, knowing it will lead John right to her.
Brian looks up from his Kindle. “Oh, you’re awake. Good.” He smiles big. “How’re you feeling?”
“Better. A tiny bit better.” She tries to smile back but her split lip is still too sore.
“Ready to go home?” he asks.
She has a near heart attack before he rushes to correct himself.
“I mean, are you ready to leave? To go to your new home?”
“No,” she says, breathing easier, “I’m not ready for any of that.”
He gives her a commiserating frown. “I know. But it’s going to be okay. You just need to trust me.”
“You’ve said that a few times.” She picks at the covers on her leg, trying to move past the awkward moment.
“Yes, I guess I have. Sorry. Just tell me when I’m being annoying. I can’t guarantee I’ll stop, but I’ll try.”
“I don’t even know you.” She feels angry for some reason. He’s being so nice. She’s not used to nice.
“Do you need to?”
“Yes? I think? Don’t I?”
“I’m a person, you’re a person. We’re both here in this world just trying to get by, be with people we care about, be good to others. I’m that guy. What else do you need to know for right now?”
“For right now?”
“Yeah. For the period of time it takes you to get back on your feet. What do you need to know, other than that?”
“I need to know who you are, what you do, about your background … everything.”
“Why?”
“Because! Because …” She tries to think of all the reasons why, but she can’t come up with anything. Tears come again. It seems she never runs out of the damn things.
Brian puts his Kindle down on the table and walks over to the bed, taking her hand. “You can know whatever you want about me. I’m an open book. Ask me anything you want.”
“Where are you from?”
“I grew up in upstate New York, but I moved down here with my parents in high school. I’ve lived here ever since.”
“What do you do for a living that makes it okay for you to be here all this time? Aren’t you going to get fired?”
“No, I’m self-employed. I re-finish furniture and antiques. I have a workshop at my house and a storage facility for bigger things not far away from my house. I have all the time in the world that I need to be here, so don’t worry about that.”
“Where are your parents now?”
“Dead. As of three years ago. They went within two weeks of each other.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be. They were happy and they died that way. No regrets.”
“Are you married?”
“Nope. I was. Now I’m not.”
“Where is your ex-wife?”
“She’s in town, about fifteen minutes from my place. She’s got our son right now. Normally he lives with me. She travels a lot for work, but she’s going to keep him for a few more days for me while I get you settled.”
“What if I don’t want to get settled?” She feels mutinous right now. Like she needs to challenge him.
“Then tell me where you want to go, and I’ll bring you there. Anywhere but where you came from.”
She looks away, staring at the wall. “I need to go back.”
“Bullshit.” He reaches up and puts a single finger on her chin, guiding her face back and forcing her to look into his eyes. “You are not going back there. I don’t care what you say or what bogus bullshit poor-me excuse you try to come up with, I’m not letting you go back. So, get that crap out of your head right now. Banish it. Forever. Gone.”
“You’re not my keeper,” she says as angry, frustrated, and sadly hopeful tears pour down her face.
He wipes them away, first on one side of her face and then the other. “You are your own keeper, Nicole. I’m just your protector. I can’t let you go back to him. He’ll kill you next time, you know that, don’t you?”
She tries to look away, but he won’t let her.
“He might,” she concedes. “But I still have to go.”
“Why?” He looks really sad, and it makes her heart hurt to see it.
“Because. He’ll just find me anyway. He always does. And if he finds me at your house, he could hurt you. Or your son.”
“He won’t find us, and if he tries to lay a finger on any one of the three of us, I’ll beat him to a pulp and put him in jail for the rest of his life.”
The spark of hope that has stayed alive deep inside her springs up into a tiny flame. “Why would you do that for me? I’m just a woman with a destroyed face and body and nowhere to go.” The sob leaps from her throat and shakes her whole body.
He leans in and pulls her torso forward gently, enveloping her in a hug. “No, you’re not. You’re a girl who fell in love with the wrong guy. Your face doesn’t matter, it’s your heart that’s important. And if you can love a guy like that, then I know it has to be twice the size of a normal one. Besides … you do have somewhere to go. You’re going to my place.”
“Because I’m your sister,” she says, feeling like she’s almost ready to surrender. She has nothing to lose except herself, and right now that seems hardly worth much to fight over.
“Yeah. Because you’re my sister for now.” He puts her back down on the bed, smoothing her hair away from her face and smiling. “Please say you’ll do it. I promise to keep my hands to myself.”
She snorts sadly. “That’s not a hard promise to keep around me, considering what I look like.”
“Don’t say that about yourself.” Brian goes back to holding her hand. It’s barely been without his warmth since she entered the hospital. “Beauty comes from inside, not out.”
“Is your ex-wife pretty?”
“Yes. She’s beautiful.”
“Then I’m not sure I believe what you’re saying, but I appreciate the effort and the thought.” It makes her sad to think that her life with a man is over, but she’s not stupid enough to think that any man could love who she is now. She has nothing to offer. No pride, no beauty, no accomplishments … nothing.
“A pretty face brings people to you, sure,” he agrees. “But it’s the personality and what’s inside that keeps them there. Personally, if I had to choose between a pretty face and a great personality, I’d choose the personality.”
She looks at him, taking in his ruggedly handsome face, his soft blue eyes, and his muscular frame. Sighing, she says, “I guess that means your personality isn’t worth a hoot.”
He barks out a laugh and leans in to kiss her cheek, making her go all warm inside. She can’t remember the last time a man kissed her with such tenderness. Maybe never.
“That’s hilarious. I’ll take that compliment, thank you very much.” Brian’s grin lights up his whole face.
“Who’s Briana?” Nicole asks, suddenly feeling the immensity of her life. In this moment, everything she ever knew about herself and the world is being turned upside down. The only question she has left is, Why? Why is this man helping me of all people?
His smile disappears. He has to clear his throat before he can answer. “Briana was my twin sister.”
“Where is she now?” Nicole asks very softly, sensing the answer will be difficult for them both.
“She died a while back.”
“I’m sorry,” she says.
Brian lifts her hand and kisses the back of it. “So am I.”
Chapter Nineteen
BRIAN’S CELL STARTS BUZZING IN his pocket. When he sees who it is, he steps outside the hospital room to take the call.
“Hey, Helen. What’s the deal?”
“Wow, let’s just jump right into the conversation why don’t we?”
“Sorry. I’m just anxious. I really need your help.”
“Yeah. I get that. A
nyway, I’m cool with keeping Liam through this coming weekend. I need to bring him back Sunday night, though, because I’m leaving for Denver on Monday morning.”
“That’ll work. She’s getting out Friday. That’ll give us a couple days to settle in.”
“Why is she getting discharged so soon? She must not have been hurt that bad.”
“Actually her injuries are pretty terrible, but she doesn’t have insurance.”
Helen hisses out an angry breath. “Now, that just pisses me off. Are they actually kicking her out?”
“Not exactly. But I’ve talked to the billing department, and it’s just better if she can do some of her rehab outside their facility. Her bill is already more money than she’ll probably ever make in a lifetime.”
“She’ll have to declare bankruptcy.”
“Maybe. We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it. Do you need to go by the house to get more clothes for Liam?”
“No. I took him shopping. He’s all hooked up with plenty of tacky Spiderman-wear.”
“Good. You’ll be the favorite parent for the next month.”
“Ha. Who are you kidding? I’m the favorite parent all the time.”
Brian doesn’t argue the point because he hopes it’s true. Both Liam and Helen need that closeness emotionally since they can’t always be together physically. Brian knows he’s the lucky one, favorite parent title or not; he gets to tuck Liam in most nights and see him first thing in the morning with his hair sticking out all over the place. Those are the times when he’s an absolute angel who can do no wrong. It’s later on in the day when he starts hitting autographed baseballs through neighbors’ windows that Brian’s perspective changes on that a little.
“Whatever,” says Brian. “Would you do me a favor and warn him that someone’s at the house? But don’t tell him who it is.”
“Why not?” Helen asks. “Maybe preparing him for her injuries is a better idea.”
Brian sighs, not looking forward to this part of the conversation. “Because. He’s already seen her once, and it wasn’t pleasant.”
“How’s that? And why am I just hearing about this now?”