Save My Soul

by K. S. Haigwood

  I faintly heard Murry whisper something; it sounded like, "No…it fuckin' can't be." I heard a pop then I blacked out.

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  Chapter Forty-eight

  "Kendra! Kendra can you hear me?!" Rhyan's voice sounded panic stricken in my head.

  I was groggy and my brain wasn't working right, but of course I could hear him. "Of course I can hear you. You're in my head, aren't you?"

  "Are you all right?" Was I all right? I thought I was. Then I remembered Murry taking me and draining me of my blood.

  "Rhyan, I need help now! Murry slit my wrists and I think I'm dying or maybe I'm already dead. He's not here. He said something and then he left."

  "I'm coming. Now that I can hear you, I can find you."

  "How is Adam?"

  "We may be able to talk about it later. I'm coming to get you. Sit tight."

  Well what else was I going to do? It was like after my repelling accident when I was on the operating table all over again. I couldn't hear anything except my own thoughts. What had happened to Murry? Was praying really all I had to do all along?

  I was physically and emotionally exhausted. I knew I had to remain conscious, even if I had to talk to myself, but sleep seemed so much easier, so much simpler.

  I started to hear things again; voices of men and women and metal clanging together. Were they about to take me to Hell? "Kendra, stay with me, honey. Don't you dare leave me after what I've done for you." Adam said, and I became more alert. I couldn't open my eyes. It was the same as last week; I couldn't feel my body, or see, or smell, but I could hear just fine.

  "She can hear you, Adam," Rhyan said, and he wasn't speaking in my head, but directly to Adam.

  There was no talking from my two men for a moment, but the voices of the other people were more distinct. I could hear that Debbie woman and Sherri talking. Surely Adam wouldn't let his ex-girlfriend in here to help; she had to hate me. I could hear the heart monitoring machine and my heartbeat was really slow. "I love you, Kendra. I don't want to disappoint you, so I am trying to keep my promise…and my sanity," He tacked on at the end.

  I laughed a little in my head then heard Rhyan laugh. "She thought that was funny."

  "Glad I can amuse you, honey," Adam said, then started talking to a nurse or someone. He was telling them to get more blood and fluids, STAT. His tone became almost violent as I heard him shouting at someone to get the hell out of the room, or else.

  "Kendra, do you want me to leave these scars or make them disappear?" Rhyan said to me, as if he hadn't heard Adam threatening to harm someone.

  I thought for a moment. "I'd like to keep them if you don't mind."

  "No problem. They're going to get some blood and fluids in you, and I'll take care of the rest of the healing. You should be able to wake up soon."

  "What happened with Murry?"

  "We can talk about it when you wake up."

  It may have been childish, but I wanted to throw a fit. I was anxious to know what happened to the demon who was trying to steal my soul. Was he still out there waiting for me to heal so he could try it again? Or was he in the pits of Hell, never able to surface again?

  "Tell me now, Rhyan."

  "No, Kendra, I won't tell you now. Go to sleep or just relax, and let us get you fixed up." Rhyan said.

  He didn't have to be so rude about it.

  "Yes I do, or you would never shut up about it. Go to sleep. I'll wake you up when we're finished." I could hear Adam snickering softly. I rolled my eyes to myself and drifted off to sleep.

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  Chapter Forty-nine

  I woke up to the sound of a heart monitoring machine. The beeps indicated a normal heartbeat. I took in a deep breath then let it out. It was good to be alive and pain free. I opened my eyes to a small private room. It was just as it had been Wednesday night. My parents and Kobhye were sleeping in the uncomfortable chairs. The only one missing was Aven. I guess he really was mad at me. Where were Rhyan and Adam?

  "We'll be there in a few minutes, Kendra. We're talking to the police," Rhyan said. I gasped, and everyone in the room woke up. "The police! Why would you need to talk to the police?"

  "Well, for one, they think you're suicidal. You've had three major accidents in a week. They could all have been accidentally on purpose, if you know what I mean, falling off a cliff, flipping your vehicle, and now slitting your wrists. The last one, well, people don't really go around slitting both of their wrists by accident. Murry made sure it would make you look bad if you lived through this. I can make the police believe what I want them to. However,you should know your parents are thinking the same thing."

  I nodded to myself. Everyone thinks I'm suicidal. A tear escaped my eye and I tried to reach up to wipe it away, but my arms were secured. I looked at them in sheer horror. "What is this? Mom, get me out of these things!"

  She rushed to my bed and wrapped her arms around me, holding me tight. "Shhh, baby…calm down. The doctor will be in to talk with you in a moment.

  Just then, the door opened and a black man in his mid-fifties walked in. He was wearing a white lab coat and scrubs. He must be the doctor. "Hello, Kendra, my name is Dr. Richardson. On a scale of one to ten, ten being the most painful, how much pain are you experiencing?"

  I shook my head and stared at him in confusion. "I feel fine. Where is my doctor?" I asked, feeling a little frantic. My mom shushed me and rubbed my back.

  "I am your doctor, Kendra."

  I shook my head. "Get me out of here, Mom. Please." My tears were flowing, but I couldn't stop them or even wipe them away.

  The doctor looked at my chart he was holding. "That was a pretty nasty fall you had last week. It almost killed you, didn't it?"

  I gave him my best pissed-off look. "Miracles do happen, Doctor."

  His eyebrows went up at that. Maybe he didn't believe in God either, but I wasn't going to be the girl to help him. "Well, yes, miracles do tend to happen from time to time, but it looks to me like you've had three in a week." He sighed. "That…does not happen."

  I was still wearing my pissed-off face. I didn't like this man at all. "What are you implying?"

  He shrugged. "Have you ever caused yourself harm before?"

  "I have never hurt myself." I said calmly, but in my most menacing voice.

  "Who hurt you, Kendra? I can understand falling while repelling, and even losing control of your vehicle, but I can't understand those right there." He pointed to my wrists. There was a three-inch scar running up both of my wrists. The wounds were already healed, and my skin only held a trace of a pink line. Rhyan had done an excellent job of healing them. But if I explained to this doctor about my miracle guardian angel and explained to him why all of the accidents had occurred, he'd put me in a nut house. Looking at him now, I wondered if he was thinking of doing that anyway.

  I told him the only thing I knew to tell him. The truth. "Mason Carter has been trying to kill me."

  The doctor's eyebrows rose again. "Mason Carter? The Mason Carter that works here?"

  I nodded.

  "Mason Carter was here in the hospital working during all three of your accidents Kendra. You are mistaken." He glanced at my father and mother, then back to me.

  Oh God. I was sure that Mason could make himself appear to be two places at once. What could I say to make him believe me? "Yes, the first accident last week was an accident, but Mason became obsessed with me. When Dr. Chamberlain and I started dating, he didn't take it very well. He may have been here, but I am positive he caused my accident, just as I'm positive he slit my wrists with a scalpel."

  He looked back at my parents. "May I speak with the two of you outside?"

  "I'm not crazy, Dr. Richardson. I'm the least suicidal person I know. I love my life." I said and the tears began to flow again.

  He nodded, and waited for my parents to walk out the door. I looked at Kobhye. "I know you believe me."

  She nodded. "You know I do, but I don't
know how to help you with this." She took a shuttering breath. "I overheard the doctor talking earlier about putting you in that mental hospital outside of town. That is why the cops are here. Rhyan and Adam are trying to talk them into leaving you here for a few days until they can get some concrete evidence one way or the other."

  "I'm not fucking crazy! Why isn't Adam my doctor? He's the one who operated on me."

  "They won't let him because the two of you are dating. Sherri told everyone a bunch of lies. She is the one who got all of this started about your elevator not going all the way to the top. She's telling everyone that you are suicidal, Kendra. I'm sorry. I saw her earlier and gave her a piece of my mind. Security told me to stay in your room or I would have to leave the hospital."

  "Well, giving her a piece of my mind is not all I'm going to do to her. I'm going to kick her fucking ass!"

  "Easy there, Kendra. I took care of her for you. We're on our way. Sit-tight," Rhyan said in my head.

  I huffed. I was really getting tired of him telling me to sit tight. What else was I going to do; I was tied up for Christ's sake. I heard Adam and Rhyan outside the door talking with my parents and Dr. Richardson. Adam's voice grew loud, but I couldn't hear what he was saying, then the door opened and he came in alone.

  God, the sight of him took my breath away. I needed answers. I started to speak, but he shook his head like he knew what I was going to say. "Let's get you out of here, then we can talk. I promise." He took the bindings off of my wrists and ankles, and I got out of the bed instantly. I didn't want anyone to be able to catch me and tie me up again.

  "Get me the hell out of here," I said as I grabbed my dress. It had blood all over it. I closed my eyes and sighed before throwing it in the trash. It looked like I was going to be walking out of there with my ass showing.

  "I brought you some clothes. They're in the bathroom," Kobhye said.

  "Thank you," I said and made a bee-line for the bathroom. Adam followed me.

  He shut us in the bathroom together. I started to take off the hospital gown, and he grabbed me in a big bear hug before I could undo the tie on my side. "I'm so sorry, Kendra. I thought I'd lost you. If I had only listened to you last week, you would not have had to go through all of this. Please forgive me."

  I pulled back out of his hold. There were tears in his eyes. "Everything happens for a reason, Adam. I'm not mad at you. But you are going to explain everything to me, in detail, when we get out of here."

  "We won't have any problem leaving. Rhyan did something to everyone's brains. They think you're just here for a check-up concerning your accident Wednesday. I changed your chart myself." He snickered a little. "Sherri is having a longer bit of amnesia. She doesn't remember dating me at all."

  I sighed. "Thank you." I glanced at my wrists. "I don't guess it was such a good idea to keep these. I wanted to keep them as a reminder not to trust people so easily in the future."

  Adam smiled. "I guess I need a few scars of my own, but Rhyan can still take them away if you want him to."

  I quickly dressed and we walked out of the bathroom. Rhyan was talking with Kobhye, and they both looked up when they heard us. "I told your parents to go home. I said everything checked out fine. No one knows anything about what happened today except for us."

  I went to Rhyan and gave him a hard hug. I didn't know what I would do without him.

  "I will always be here for you. All you have to do is pray."

  I pulled away and looked at his face with sadness. "We'll still be able to talk to each other, right?" I asked.

  He shook his head, and looked a little sad himself. "I will hear you, but you will only be able to feel me through your instincts."

  I covered my mouth with my hand and let the tears fall. "No, Rhyan. I need to be able to hear you. Make them let me hear you, please." He grabbed me and held on tight while he ran his hand over my back.

  "Shhh. You'll be just fine. I'll see you again someday; you and Adam both." He let me go enough to shake Adam's hand. "I'll make it very hard on you if you don't treat her right."

  Adam smiled. "I should have a very easy life then."

  Rhyan nodded then turned back to me. "I'll miss spending time with you, but I'll always be here with you." He hugged me again, and I couldn't stop crying. I was going to miss him so much. He pulled back and looked at me. "See you later?"

  I nodded and managed to get out through my sobs, "See you later."

  We all heard the loud pop, and Rhyan was gone. I closed my eyes and Adam wrapped me in his arms.

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  Chapter Fifty

  Adam took me to my house and Kobhye went back to her place. We were finally alone. Adam fixed me a glass of wine while I sat watching him from a barstool. He was so at home with me, so comfortable. I was still waiting for him to explain everything, but he didn't seem to be in any hurry.

  He crossed the kitchen with two glasses in his hands and handed one of them to me. He held his up. "Here's to a new beginning."

  We clinked our glasses and took a sip. "To a new beginning," I said, then cleared my throat. "Are you going to tell me what happened?"

  He looked a little nervous for a moment then gave me a shy smile. "I have something I want to do first, if you don't mind."

  I furrowed my brow in confusion, then he set his glass on the counter and bent down on one knee. He put his hand in his pocket and pulled out a little black velvet box.

  I gasped and my hand went to my mouth. "I thought you were going to ask my father for permission first?"

  He smiled. "I did. I asked him last night when we were looking at my car. It was before you came outside. When we brought you into the hospital, he told me if I couldn't find a way to get you out of that mess with the doctor thinking you were suicidal, then I couldn't marry you. He didn't believe that you were crazy for a second."

  My eyes instantly went misty, and I couldn't help but smile at him. I assumed, since he was on his knee before me, that my daddy said he could propose.

  Adam opened the box and revealed a very large, very beautiful...did I mention it was very large...diamond ring. I couldn't speak, but I didn't have to. "Kendra Larkin, I've been a lost soul for most of my life. You helped me find it again, and you've captured my heart. I will be a very miserable man if you don't agree to spend the rest of eternity with me. If I die first, I'll wait patiently for you in Heaven. Will you be my wife?" He shrugged and smiled nervously. "I went ring shopping the moment that your dad gave me permission and I knew you were going to be okay. When I got back, Rhyan was about to do some kind of karate moves on those cops. I had a better plan and I guess he liked it." He took my hand in his shaking hand and smiled nervously up at me. "Kendra, are you going to keep me waiting forever?"

  I nodded and couldn't stop smiling. I wiped at my tears and threw myself off the stool and into his arms. "Forever sounds great, but you don't have to wait any longer. Yes, I'll be your wife, Adam. I will marry you."

  He hugged me back fiercely, and I could feel him sobbing softly. We held each other like that for a long while before he let me go. His face was wet, but he was wearing a smile a mile wide, just like the one I had to be wearing. He stood then helped me up.

  "You were right, Kendra. I couldn't keep you without God in my life. I'm sorry I was almost too late in realizing it. Rhyan couldn't hear you for the longest and we thought you were gone…until he heard you praying. He grabbed my head and put my forehead to his; I could hear you too. Without even thinking, I began reciting the prayers along with you."

  I stared at him with a sort of fascination as he told me for the first time that he believed in God. He really believed.

  His smile faltered. "When we found you in that room…I thought we were already too late. Rhyan couldn't do anything until I got some blood into your body. I was going crazy, but I knew I had a job to do. I have never been so scared in all my life. Not even when I found my family dead. I knew that I had to do everything in my power to keep you her
e with me."

  I kissed him hard on the mouth, then he pulled back with an even bigger smile than before. I hadn't thought that was possible. "I have a brand new guardian angel."

  I know my expression was a mixture of excitement and shock. "Have you met him or her?"

  He nodded with that big smile still in place. "She's my mother, and she likes you a whole lot. She told me to thank you, for saving her son."

  I was speechless. What could I say to that? "Tell her I said you're welcome." Somehow, that didn't seem good enough. I shrugged. "I'd do anything for my soulmate."

  He smiled and pulled me tight against his firm body. I could tell he had "other things" on his mind. "And I would do anything for mine." He said, then he kissed me softly.

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  Epilogue

  "Welp, folks, I guess you already know what happened next. Adam and I got married, of course, and we're expecting our first child early next summer. We found out today that it's a boy. I haven't told Adam yet, but I want to name him Benjamin Lee. It was the name of his baby brother. He may not want to, but I'm adding it to our list of potential baby names.

  I forgot to ask Rhyan to take away my scars before he left. I was looking at them a few weeks ago, remembering that I'd forgotten to ask him. They began to disappear before my eyes. Of course, I began to tear up. I knew I wouldn't hear a response, but I knew he was listening when I thanked him for being my guardian angel and told him that I really did love him very much. Suddenly, I felt a presence nearby. I looked all around me. My eyes focused on a blurry object standing in the center of the living room. It never became solid, but I could tell it was Rhyan. He winked at me and then he was gone. A light gust of wind blew through the house, but there were no windows open. A single photo floated on the wind toward me. It landed in my lap and the wind disappeared. I looked down at the photo and instantly began to cry. Rhyan was staring back at me with a big smile on his face. I looked at it for a long time then finally flipped it over. He had written these words: I am with you always, Kendra, and I will love you forevermore. Congratulations on the baby. The guardians have already chosen his guardian angel. I made sure the one they chose is just as good as me. I know you will make a wonderful mother. Love Always, Rhyan. I smiled and clutched the picture to my chest. It was definitely possible to love more than one person at a time.