Lost Wanderer Awakened - Book One of the Airendell Chronicles

by Audra Hart

  Seth comes out to the waiting area a minute or two later. He beams broadly when he sees them sitting with their heads together, holding hands. “Hey you two! How’s my buddy and my favorite patient?”

  Luca stands and tugs Morna gently to her feet. Then he turns to Seth to shake hands. “Fine, fine. And you?” he asks politely, watching Morna as she walks toward Seth. Morna just smiles at Seth as he holds the door open for her to enter the treatment area.

  Luca asks, “Morna? Do you want me to join you, or should I go outside and contact Brigid?

  “Go call Brigid,” she assures him. “Seth is perfectly capable of torturing me without your help,” she chuckles. Both men chuckle too, and Luca says, “I’ll be here in the waiting room when you come out.”

  “Fine babe,” she smiles at him as she goes through the door held open by Seth. He directs her to room marked #3 and then closes the door behind him quietly, and turns to her with an expectant look on his face as she sits on the exam/massage table.

  “So?” he asks, “When did you two finally hook up? He’s been mooning over you for months, you know that right?”

  “Well, I didn’t know that until recently,” she admits. “But to answer your first question, we kind of connected Monday morning. Sorry, but that’s why I blew off your appointments this week until today.”

  Seth smiles and says, “I was hoping that was the case. I answered the phone when he called to reschedule both times. I have been hopeful for you two for long while now,” he beams at her. “I am glad you finally noticed how much he likes you. I was beginning to wonder if you ever would.”

  Morna smiles tentatively and says, “So, you don’t think I am some kind of cougar or something?”

  Seth laughs, “No way! You two are perfect for each other!”

  “Yes,” she agrees, “Yes, we are,” she admits with a big secretive smile on her face.

  “Good,” says Seth. Then he moves on to business. “I didn’t notice any trace of a limp when you walked back here. I am very impressed lady! You must be working faithfully at your exercise regimen.” Morna blushes at that, because her exercise habits have been haphazard at best since she got out of the hospital. He reaches behind him and gets a pair of shorts and tee shirt out of the cabinet, and hands them to her. “Change and open the door when you are ready for me to come back,” he says. Then he walks out of the tiny room.

  She changes quickly; draping her clothes on the hooks designed for that purpose then opens the door and walks back to stand by the table to wait for Seth. He enters the room quickly and smiles. “You are looking good, sista! That was a quick change. You must be pretty limber today. I think the scars are even fading. Wow!” He notes her blush, and is mildly confused by it, but moves on to business. “Let me help you up onto the table, let’s test your range of motion and reflexes.”

  After a thorough exam, Seth smiles as he writes his notes on his chart. He has her go through her exercises and is happy she does them effortlessly. He goes through the exercises with her that require two people. They are strenuous and require a great deal of strength, and he is very impressed with her performance.

  Once he is finished he leaves the room and comes back with a heat pack for her hip and leg. “Just a precaution,” he says as he puts it in position. “Your range of motion is great, and you even seem to be gaining more muscle tone and definition, but I don’t want you to get stiff after that exam and treatment.” He settles onto his work stool then says, “Do you mind if I hang out in here and chat with you while that works?”

  “I’d enjoy that Seth,” she says sincerely.

  “Deidra, I think I might be able to release you in a week or two if your progress continues. I am very pleased. What would think of that?” he asks.

  “Great,” she says.

  “Well, we might be going to Chicago next week. Luca wants me to see a neurosurgeon there.”

  Concern flashes across Seth’s face and he asks, “Why? Any problems I am not aware of?”

  “No, no. Not exactly. The body is doing fine, but I have some minor memory issues and Luca wants me to see this friend of his in Chicago that has an excellent reputation. Nothing to be concerned over,” she assures him.

  He smiles and says, “Let’s set up a couple of appointments for next week, and then re-evaluate after that. How does that sound?”

  “Sounds good.”

  “Oh okay. Good then. Keep me posted about what the neuro guy says,” he says. “Okay lady, I will send Bobby in here in ten minutes to take those heat packs off. Then you can dress and scoot. Just speak to Cathy to schedule a couple of appointments for when you guys get back. Okay? Keep doing the work at home. You are doing great.” When she nods, he stands and places his hand on the door knob, but before he leaves, he says, “Seriously, I am glad you finally gave our buddy the time of day. He will be great for you and you for him. You guys have really made my week.” He laughs as he walks out of the exam room.

  “Mine too,” she whispers. And closes her eyes and recalls some of the life changing events of this past week. She is still lying there with eyes closed and smiling when the moody Bobby comes in and takes the packs away. He reminds her to pay the receptionist on her way out. She chuckles to herself as she wonders why Seth keeps the moody youth on. He’s such a stark contrast from everyone else at the facility. “Oh well.” She thinks and then shrugs as she dresses. On her way out she stops at Cathy’s desk. Cathy just smiles at her and says, “All taken care of hon. Mr. Michaels has your appointments for week after next. Keep up the good work, you are getting around great.”

  Morna isn’t surprised that Luca took care of business with the receptionist, but feels obligated to offer to reimburse him once they are back in the car and driving out of town toward neighboring town and The Bridge. “Seriously Morna?” he scoffs when she broaches the subject.

  “Sorry Luca, it’s just that I am perfectly capable of covering my own expenses,” she says quietly.

  “I know love; I asked Carlisle to get the settlement for you. I didn’t want you to ever have to worry about paying your bills.”

  Morna laughs dryly. “I guess I should have figured that one out. Okay, okay. Forgive me. I have always been the caretaker in this incarnation. Bear with me Luca,” she beseeches. “It’s hard to leave the current personality behind and embrace my original personality. I just kind of end up with a hodge-podge of personalities.”

  “Fine, fine,” he says softly. “Baby, I know how you struggle to integrate all your experiences and personalities, but you need to relax and rely on me more. Taking care of each other is just what we do. You know that.”

  “I am remembering that, but old habits die hard. Don’t get too put out with me when I get my independent backbone up, okay?” she asks.

  “Of course,” he soothes in his velvet voice, and turns to favor her with his lopsided grin. “Now, I want to go on to something else I am very eager to resolve. When can we renew our vows?” he asks quietly.

  She gasps, looks down at her hands. “I want to as much as you do, Luca. But I hate to admit it… but what would people think if I obviously start moving on with my life so soon after my babies die. They haven’t even been gone a year.” The pain in her eyes is almost more than Luca can bear to witness. “Would I be dishonoring their memories?”

  “I don’t think so,” he soothes, “But we can come back to that later. Now I want to ask a question and clear something up. You mentioned your children, but not Rolan. You rarely speak of him, why baby?”

  “Rolan and I had not been living together as man and wife for nearly seven years when they all died,” she admits quietly.

  “I didn’t know that,” he says thoughtfully. “May I ask why not? Didn‘t you love him?”

  “In the beginning, I loved him like my best friend. I thought that was enough to build a life on. We got on very well for many years. But our marriage was pretty much over shortly over after Aiden was born. Rolan resented all the effort and time that I
spent on Aiden and Kyle. And I grew to despise Rolan for being so selfish. I was a bit of a coward. I really should have demanded a divorce, but I just put on a good face every day and muddled through. Finally one day, Rolan came in and found me lying in the floor. I had fallen asleep while working on progress reports for my students. Aiden was still on his bean bag where I had propped him up while I worked.”

  “Rolan had been sullen for weeks because I wouldn’t have sex with him and had asked for a divorce. When he found me like that, vulnerable wearing only a long tee shirt and panties. He pinned me face down into floor, ripped my panties and rutted me from behind like the pig he was.” Morna looks out the window for a long while, struggling to get her emotions in check.

  “I begged him to stop but I didn’t fight him because I knew Aiden was in the bean bag. I could hear him making the little noises he made whenever he was frightened. When Rolan finished, he slapped my ass and whispered in my ear, ‘There ya go honey. I know you liked it better than I did.’ I didn’t say a single word, and I absolutely refused to cry. I just got up and picked Aiden up and carried him into his room. I was talking to him, trying soothe his fears. He knew his Daddy had hurt his Mommy. I wasn’t fooling him a bit. He wasn’t even four years old yet, but he was a very smart boy.”

  “Anyway, I changed his diaper, put on his pjs and settled him into bed. I read his favorite story to him then I stayed with him until he finally went to sleep. Then I snuck out and went to the kitchen. I yanked my destroyed panties off my hips and threw them in the trash. I grabbed a butcher knife out the drawer and snuck into Rolan’s bedroom. I had taken to sleeping on the couch or in the floor in Aiden’s room.”

  “I watched that bastard lying in what had been our marriage bed. He was naked, except for a towel around his waist. He had obviously showered and flopped down onto the bed to sleep with out another thought to what he had done in the living room, in front of our son. I made up my mind he was going die, right then and there. I quickly straddled his back, pinning his arms under my legs. I yanked his head back by his hair, exposing his throat. I jammed the knife against his throat hard, I was going to slit him like the pig he was and watch him bleed to death.”

  “Then the strangest thing happened; Aiden started crying loudly and Kyle screamed my name in his sleep. I came to my senses. So I just told Rolan to pack his belongings and leave, immediately! I assured him that if he did not leave within the next 15 minutes, he would never leave alive. Then I got off his back, took the knife back to kitchen, and went to take care of Aiden. I guess Rolan knew I was serious, because I heard him leave about ten minutes later. He never stepped a foot in the house again, well until the day of Aiden‘s funeral. I took the next day off from work, called a locksmith to change all the locks, packed the rest of his things into a U-haul trailer that I had parked on the street, and called him to come pick it up.” Luca thinks Morna looks proud of herself.

  “I contacted a divorce lawyer the same day, but when Rolan saw me five months later and realized that I was pregnant, he really started fighting the very idea of a divorce. Before that I hadn’t even been able to locate him about insurance matters, or even to serve him my petition for divorce. It was weird, it was like he fled the country.”

  “Anyway, that all changed when he realized I was carrying a girl. He was suddenly very interesting in being a father.” Morna shakes her head in disbelief at the memory of her ex’s abrupt turnaround. “His lawyer petitioned for paternity tests on all the kids, then for full custody. He fought me over our meager assets. Accused me of being an unfit guardian and caretaker for Aiden. It was a long nightmare. He even filed a nonsense suit about naming Nora, I told you that I wanted to name her Lucy or Morna. He even tried to sue for full custody of her before she was even born. He really made my life hell. He had finally agreed to stop fighting the divorce after I offered to let him off without paying child support and his lawyer convinced him there was no way on God‘s green earth that an Oklahoma judge would take custody of any child away from a mother who is deemed fit. It was strange, very strange.”

  “Our lawyers were going to file the papers when Aiden got sick that last time. That put everything on hold. I have to admit there were many moments when I regretted not murdering him.”

  “So Nora was not a planned child?” Luca asks quietly, holding Morna‘s hand gently.

  “No,” Morna admits, “but even though she was conceived under horrible circumstances, she was the most amazing gift from heaven. The pregnancy was very hard. I have to admit. I wondered how I would feel about her once she got here. But it was love at first sight Luca! Just like it was with her brothers. She was an amazing little girl. So loving and sweet. I was truly grateful that Rolan never expressed any interest in spending time with her, I think the sod actually felt guilty by that time for what he had done. He quit his job at the school shortly after Nora was born and I rarely saw him around for over six years, except when he was harassing me about visitation rights. He wanted to see Kyle, but not the other two. I never understood why he was so interested in Nora when I carried her, but not after she was born.”

  Morna finally looks up from her folded hands. This was the first time she had ever shared the story of Nora’s conception and all the details of the nasty divorce with anyone. She hadn’t realized that Luca had pulled the car over. He was watching her, his eyes filled with love and compassion. And something else, hate! Yes, that was it. Morna had no doubt it was for Rolan and not her, but it still made her flinch.

  Luca reaches over and takes her hands into his. He’s looking deeply into her eyes, trying to gauge her mental state. She looks back at her hands. “Morna, I am so sorry. I had no idea.”

  “Luca, no one knew, except our lawyers. I gave up a lot of power to keep it out the public view. I didn’t want our children to be dragged down by all the ugliness between Rolan and me.”

  “I spent a lot of time trying to learn about your life. Your friends did not even know, or at least they did not discuss the fact that you and Rolan were going through a bitter divorce. I guess you have worked very hard to keep it all quiet?” He pauses to watch her face. When she doesn’t react, he murmurs, “I see. Morna, please tell me that you know what he did to you that night was not your fault. Being vulnerable in one’s own home doesn’t excuse what he did. You did not cause it.”

  “Sure Luca. I know that. Hey, we really should get going. Amanda will be late for her appointment,” She looks at the clock on the dash. It’s almost 10:00 am. Then she looks out her window. “Please, let’s just go. I really don’t want to talk about this anymore.”

  CHAPTER 11 - MORNA’S FAMILY GROWS

  THE GIRLS

  Luca restarts the car and pulls back onto the road. He’s very concerned about her mental state. It’s obvious that she has worked very hard to keep all of this buried very deeply. He knows she will need to deal with it at some point, but he knows better than to push her right now, Morna pushes back hard when she feels she is cornered. He pats her knee and says, “I love you Morna.”

  “I love you too,” is her quiet reply.

  When they pull up in front of The Bridge, Morna turns to face Luca with a bright smile lighting her lovely face. “We have a new resident. Her name is Mac, well that’s really just a nick-name, her real name is Mackenzie Summers. Anyway, she’s 19 years old, and has been on the street since she was 15. She has autism and other issues. Mostly, I want you to understand she has extreme sensory processing issues. Don’t take this the wrong way darling, but under no circumstances should you touch her.”

  “You think that she will react as Natalie did?” he asks.

  Morna looks confused for a moment and then understanding dawns as the memories of that past incarnation flood back. “Yes, I am sorry. I know that time isn’t a good memory for you,” Morna says quietly. “I just don’t know how Mac will react to your cold, hard skin. She is very high functioning, obviously, she has been able to survive on the street for over four years, but sh
e can turn violent in an instant. If she becomes overwhelmed and can’t access her coping mechanisms, she lashes out physically. Okay?”

  “Of course, I will just follow your lead. How many girls are staying here now?” he asks.

  “We have a full house: six girls. Ages 15 to 21. There’s Monica, you know her, right? She works with Mike at The Shack. She’s 21, but she has been on the street since she was 12. She is very tough little lady, but really very, very sweet. She is taking classes at Murray State in Tishomingo. She wants to be an occupational therapy assistant.

  “Then there is Amanda, she is 19. She was first girl I met, really she’s the reason I started the house. She has kind of become a mother-hen to the other girls. I really don’t know her story. She won’t share and I won’t push.”

  “Jan is the youngest at 15, she ran away from a very abusive home, her father molested her and beat her. She is very, very frightened of men. She should be in school today, but for future reference… I am sure you know this already, but don’t make any sudden moves around her, okay?” Luca nods.

  “Josie, also 20, is a bit of hard case, but I hope she will come around, eventually. I just don’t know how to reach her. All the girls are supposed to either go to school or work. Josie refuses to do either. I may have to make her move out if she doesn’t get with the program soon.” Luca pats her hand; he understands that considering this step is very hard for Morna, she doesn’t like to give up on people.

  “And Samantha is 16. She is a special case. She’s been in and out of mental facilities. Luca, I think she might have the second sight. But I am not sure. Perhaps you could help me solve that riddle. But she will pose a bit of a quandary for you, as a man. She is, well she acts a tad promiscuous. I think she sees flirting, sex and such as some sort of power play. So be on your guard, okay?”