Lies Inside

by Lindsey Gray

Murphy left the room as Finn turned to capture his fiancée’s cherry cheeks.

  “What?”

  Finn smiled. “I think it’s cute how you get all embarrassed around my dad.”

  “I told you, it’s because he’s so much like you.”

  “Sure.” Finn nodded as she rolled her eyes, then let them drift shut.

  “Still sleeping?” Murphy checked in a couple of hours later.

  “Yeah, but she hasn’t been moving around like she usually does. Must be the medication.”

  “Can I talk to you out here for a minute?”

  “Sure.” Finn lifted himself from the chair he’d inhabited for the past few hours. He stretched his arms above his head and twisted his body at the waist to relieve the stiffness in his muscles. He gave Lucy a soft kiss on the forehead before walking out to talk with his father.

  “What’s going on, Dad?”

  “I wanted to fill you in on a couple more things.” He wiped his brow and tussled his hair as he always did when he was trying to tell his son something important but wasn’t really sure how to say it. “They’ve done the EEG, which showed abnormal brain activity. They also did an MRI. I just went over it with her neurologist and the radiologist. It confirmed the presence of abnormal electrical activity in her brain. They want to try a few drugs on her. Find one that will prevent future seizures. I’ve had success with several patients on one in particular. Hopefully, this drug will work for Lucy. Now…she told you she was having a nightmare when it happened?”

  “Uh…yeah. She said it was about Viktor shocking her. I guess it happened a lot more than I knew about. She said he would shock her until she passed out. I don’t even want to think what he could have—” Finn broke down at just the thought of Viktor putting any part of his body on her.

  Murphy wrapped his arms around Finn as his coworkers watched his grown son cry like a baby. At that moment, Finn didn’t care. All that mattered was Lucy.

  “You need to let us take care of you for awhile, Son.” Murphy pulled him from his shoulder and placed his hands on either side of Finn’s face. “When was the last time you ate?”

  Finn shrugged. “Breakfast, I guess.”

  “Your sister is in the waiting room. Why don’t you go down to the cafeteria with her? I promise to call you if anything changes.”

  Finn knew he was right. His stomach sounded like a thunderstorm with all the growling. “I know I should, but do you think eating with Rylan will help?”

  “Jack’s with her. Just try to eat something and take a few minutes to relax. I really need to discuss a few things with Lane.”

  “I’ll be back in a little while. Tell her where I am if she wakes up.”

  “I will.” He patted Finn’s shoulder before Finn walked out the door and into Rylan’s bone-crushing embrace.

  Lucy’s eyes opened, but she was barely awake. She tried to make her eyes focus, but all she could see were two blurs floating around the room. She squinted as one figure came in closer. She could distinguish his hair. Then she felt a smile cross her face as she stared into those cobalt blue eyes.

  “Feeling any better?”

  “Still a little woozy. My head still really hurts.”

  As Lucy’s vision cleared, she saw Murphy turn to a nurse who pushed a few buttons on the monitor connected to Lucy’s IV.

  “That should help.”

  “Thanks, Murphy.” Lucy lifted her hand and took his.

  Whenever she was with Murphy, she felt one of two extremely different things. She was either a total wreck of teenage hormones or completely at ease. It could have very well have been the drugs, but she was slowly feeling at peace.

  Murphy sat down next to Lucy, her eyes following him as he did.

  “We’ve done several tests. They all point to a seizure. We hope that with some medication, we can stop it from happening again. We can’t be sure what the trigger to the seizure was because you were sleeping when it started. Finn said you were having a nightmare?”

  Visions of Viktor pushing her up on the counter, his hands pulling at her zipper began to flood her mind. “A nightmare? I wish, it was more like a memory.”

  “It’s possible the seizure was brought on by emotional stress. That coupled with all the shocks you received—”

  “Caused a seizure. I get it. Just tell me, am I going to be alright?”

  “I’m going to do everything I can, Lucy. My hope is that this is just an isolated incident.”

  “Humph.” She laughed as she laid her head back to stare at the ceiling. “I guess I should have known better than to take a nap without Finn.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Well.” Lucy turned her head back to him. “Even though every day we were being put through some sort of hell, it was a completely different story at night. Lying in his arms, I had the most magnificent dreams.” Lucy fell back into a state of complete relaxation. She never had a nightmare as long as she was in Finn’s arms. “The only time my nights were as bad as my days were those nights they hid him from me.”

  “It really amazes me how physically connected you two are.”

  A shocked and bewildered look swept across her face as a blush covered to her cheeks. “We never…I mean, we haven’t…”

  “I know. What I meant was the two of you balance each other out physically as well as emotionally. Like when Finn had that attack in the ER in Billings. All you had to do was hold him, and he calmed down instantly. Even today, when he was in here just holding your hand while you slept, you looked completely peaceful. The drugs might have had a little to do with that, but truly I’ve never seen two people as wrapped up in each other as you two are.”

  “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

  Lucy spent two days in the hospital to watch for adverse reactions to the medications they were giving her. She was scheduled to follow up with a neurologist and have more tests in a couple of months.

  While she was lying in bed, Lucy talked Finn into getting the tests he needed done by the cardiologist. They made him run on a treadmill while they had all sorts of patches attached to his chest. He had only been taking his medication for a few days, but it already seemed to be helping. He would have to get regular checks and tests as often as she would.

  Finn sent Rylan and Claire to Manhattan the day Lucy came home from the hospital. They took Chloe and Olivia to see the designer making all the dresses for the wedding. After their fitting, they spent a “girls’ day” in the city. Lucy was just glad to have a little peace and quiet for at least one day.

  Finn carried Lucy up to their room as Aiden trudged behind them with her bags.

  “You really didn’t have to carry me all the way up here. The doctors said I’m fine now.” He laid her down on their bed before giving her a peck on the lips.

  “I’m not taking any chances. Today you let me take care of you, alright?”

  “Alright. On one condition.”

  “What’s that?”

  “I want you two to play something for me.”

  Aiden looked over and shook his head, but Finn seemed really excited. Lucy had never heard them play together, but they’d talked about it endlessly. She was hoping they could record something together to do at the wedding.

  “Come on, Aiden.” Finn walked over and sat at the window seat with his guitar. “I was thinking of that song we call ‘Eternity.’ You up for it?” Finn raised an eyebrow to Aiden.

  “Why not.” He pulled his own guitar from its case as Lucy settled on her stomach, waiting for them to begin.

  They started together with perfect timing, as they had done countless times before. Lucy was a little more than shocked when Finn closed his eyes and began to sing.

  Finn’s voice carried throughout the room until Aiden joined him on the chorus. Lucy never really appreciated her love’s voice as much as she did at that moment.

  Aiden and Finn with their guitars—it was as if she were in music heaven. The knock at the door ruined the moment.
r />   Finn’s smile reached from ear to ear. “Come in.”

  The door opened and Jack stepped in.

  “Sorry to interrupt your jam session, but we’ve got company.”

  Lucy sat up on the bed. “Who is it?”

  “Sam and one of the prosecutors. They’ve got some news.”

  Lucy wasn’t sure whether to be frightened or relieved. If they were here, maybe Viktor and Camille had confessed. On the other hand, it could have meant they had hired some big shot attorney who was pulling every trick in the book to get the charged dropped or an acquittal. All Lucy knew was, as long as Finn’s hand was in hers, they could face anything.

  “I’m sure you’ve heard by now that the grand jury has handed down an indictment and charges have been filed.”

  Finn swallowed hard before he answered Sam, “Yes, we had heard.”

  “We want the two of you to understand all the charges before we go any further. There is a hearing next week when the Karpovs will each enter their pleas,” said Max Shepard. He was from the U.S. District Attorney’s office and the lead prosecutor on the case; he seemed just as eager to get it over with as the rest of them were. “This is what we’re looking at.” Max slid the stack of papers across the kitchen table to Finn and Lucy. “It’s all in there.”

  Finn picked up the stack and started to leaf through the pages. Words like kidnapping, aggravated, sexual, assault, and pornography jumped out as his eyes glanced across the page.

  He pushed the papers away, took a deep breath, and slowly released it. He didn’t realize he was crying until Lucy wiped his face with her thumb. Finn relaxed and kissed the inside of her palm before taking her hand in his. That’s all it took to take the edge off and help him relax.

  “What’s the next step?” Lucy’s voice was quiet yet strong.

  “Well,” Max spoke up after exchanging a look with Sam, “at the hearing they will have a chance to refute the charges, plead not guilty. With all the evidence we have and from my dealings with the Karpovs and their lawyers, I don’t see that happening.”

  Confused, Lucy looked over to Finn as Max’s words began to sink in. “You think they’re going to take a deal?”

  “We’ve been working on the terms of a plea agreement. We will present it to the both of you, of course, before we take it to them. If the agreement is not acceptable to the both of you, we can go to trial.” Finn got the impression that Max was the type of man who would get the Karpovs to agree to just about anything.

  “No trial?” Finn questioned.

  “No. But there is a hearing when we present the agreement to the judge. If he decides to accept their deal, they will schedule a sentencing hearing. At that hearing, you and your families can make a statement to the judge, and that’s it.” Max clasped his hands in front of him.

  “You think they’ll really take a deal?” Lucy crushed Finn’s fingers in her tense grip as she held her breath.

  “That house was full of evidence, and the cell phone you two gave us is a prosecutor’s dream. I just hope we can all come up with a deal to satisfy everyone.” Max smiled as Lucy took in a deep breath.

  Finn pulled her into his arms as agonizing relief swept over his body. He was so euphoric that it was almost painful. He kissed Lucy’s forehead as she began to cry.

  “It’s almost over. I promise.”

  “That’s good. Just like that.”

  Aiden was taking pictures of Finn and Lucy as they lounged on the living room couch.

  “You guys look so at ease.”

  Finn was sitting at one end of the couch with Lucy snuggled into him, his arm over her shoulder and their fingers lazily intertwined. They did feel completely at ease.

  “Come on. How about a few in the garden.”

  Lucy just smiled as she pulled Finn out the back door. They ran off ahead of Aiden to make it to their favorite spot under the lilac-colored blooms of Claire’s royal empress tree.

  “In just a few weeks, you’ll become Mrs. O’Malley on this very spot.”

  “Lucy O’Malley. That has a nice ring to it. I think maybe it’s who I’ve always been.” She laced her fingers through his and stood up on her toes to give him a kiss.

  Snap.

  “Sorry. You two just looked sickeningly sweet. People will love it,” Aiden chuckled, holding up the camera.

  “It’s fine. How about a few more?” Lucy turned and pressed her back against Finn’s chest as he wrapped his arms around her waist, his chin resting on her shoulder.

  Snap.

  “Perfect. They are going to have a field day with these.”

  “We can use them for our engagement pictures. What do you think?” Lucy’s sparkling gray-blue eyes glistened as smiled up at him.

  “Yes and I’m sure Aiden will take amazing wedding pictures.” Finn looked to Aiden. “Don’t worry. We’ll have someone to back you up while you’re busy with your best man duties.”

  “Sure,” he said. “I think I’ve got enough. I’ll leave you guys and get these uploaded.”

  “We’ll be up after awhile.” Finn took Lucy’s hand and brought her down to the ground with him. He had her settled on his lap and sitting beneath the tree only a moment later.

  “I know we’re going back to Montana for the hearing, and we’ve got all the wedding plans, but there’s something else we need to think about.”

  “What’s that?” Finn nuzzled his nose against her cheek.

  “School. I know NYU can wait until next semester, but I’m not sure I’ll even want to go in the spring. Maybe the online thing is the way to go this year.”

  “That makes sense. I’m sure we’ll be able to pass without any problems, if that’s what you want.”

  She pulled his head away from her neck so he could concentrate on what she was really trying to say to him.

  “I want to be an adult in every way the day I marry you. We’ll both be eighteen, not worried about high school anymore, and on our way to a better future together. Do you understand?”

  Finn furrowed his brow and pursed his lips as he nodded, trying to be serious. “You don’t want to feel like we’re ten years old, wrapped up in toilet paper. You want it to be as real as it can be.”

  “Exactly.”

  “It will be. The day I make you my wife will be one of the happiest days of my life.”

  “Just one of them?” She questioned. “What are the other ones?”

  “A few pop into mind.”

  “This I’ve got to hear.” Finn wrapped his arms around her waist as she sat in between his legs with her back to him.

  “I don’t think I ever told you what it felt like, that first day back at school.”

  “You mean when Rylan pushed us together.”

  Finn nodded remembering that he was about to hug Lucy when Rylan intervened.

  “Yeah. As soon as I wrapped my arms around you, I felt the safest I had in years. That’s why I could barely let you go.”

  “It was hard for me, too. I had tried to forget about you, but that morning when my dad told me you were back, I spit my breakfast across the table.”

  “I would’ve loved to have seen that.”

  She wrapped his arms around her tighter. “What else? Come on, I know there’s more.”

  Finn shook his head as he looked to the heavens. Just the memory made him a little hot under the collar. “Well…there was that kiss.”

  “At Rylan’s competition?”

  “Yeah. I had known since I saw you again that I wanted to. I thought about it probably more than I should have. You don’t know how many times I tried to convince myself to back out of it.”

  “I’m so glad you didn’t. That kiss was wondrous.”

  “Hm.” Finn brought his hand to his chin as she turned to face him. “I wouldn’t mind a little more of that wondrousness.”

  “You think you can handle it, O’Malley?”

  “I’d like to try.”

  Finn pressed his lips to hers. It reminded him of soft, gentle
waves crashing against each other. He felt her tongue trace across his bottom lip. He felt a sudden growl escape from his chest as he laid her on the ground, his body hovering above hers. He fit perfectly between her legs as she gingerly twirled her fingers through the back of his hair, and Finn knew for the first time, knew he could do it. He would be able to make love to her. His body was screaming for hers as his hand made its way under her shirt to caress at her soft skin. He felt one of her hands leave his hair and travel down to his hip as she wrapped her thighs around his waist.

  “Finn,” she moaned in the brief second their lips weren’t touching.

  “I want you, Lucy.” He kissed her neck.

  “God, I want you, too. We can’t. Not here.”

  Finn pulled back to look in her eyes to see her smile. He leaned down for another kiss.

  “August?” If she could wait, so could he.

  “I promise. I want the first time I’m with you to be as your wife.”

  “It’s settled then. August fourth. How much longer is that?”

  “Not long. We should really get out of this position, or I’m going to have some explaining to do about the grass stains on your back.”

  Lane was a tad bit upset when he learned Lucy and Finn had gone behind his back and spoke to NYU about taking their classes online. He understood their need to stay close to home but hoped they could blend into the New York City background by the spring.

  “This way if we decide to move to the city next fall, we won’t be behind, Dad.”

  Lane furrowed his brow, wondering why she didn’t think she could be anything but brilliant. “NYU is lucky to have you as a student no matter where you study from.”

  Lucy rolled her eyes at her father. Finn kissed her nose before he felt little arms wrap around his legs.

  “There’s my Olivia girl. Where’d you come from?” Finn picked her up and put her on the kitchen counter.

  “Car.”

  “You went for a car ride?”

  “Yep!” Her eyes twinkled. Finn could tell she had the same speed demon inside of her that he did.

  “What sound does a car make?”

  “Voom, voom!” She pouted her lips and tilted her head up as she made the sound. Both Finn and Lucy laughed while Murphy, Claire, and Chloe entered the kitchen.