The Clover Chapel

by Devney Perry

  In the background, I could hear Dash talking on my phone to Jess but I couldn’t make out their conversation.

  The sound of my heart breaking was too loud.

  Standing outside of Emmy’s hospital room, I clapped Jess on the shoulder. “I don’t know how to ever thank you.”

  “No thanks needed. I’m just fucking glad it turned out this way and not worse.”

  I wouldn’t let myself even think about what could have happened had Jess not saved her.

  “Here,” Dash said, handing me a cup of coffee as he joined Jess, Dad and me in the hall. “She still sleeping?”

  I nodded. “Yeah.”

  I didn’t want to be away from Emmy for too long but I had to get some answers. The one-minute update Jess had given me when I’d sprinted through the hospital doors wasn’t enough to appease all of the questions racing through my brain.

  After I’d collapsed in the party room, Dash had pulled me off the floor and punched me in the face. I was going to have a shiner but I was glad he’d done it. I’d needed that hit to pull myself together.

  Never in my life had I felt so scared or helpless. One phone call and my whole world had come crashing down. I’d spent years running into smoking buildings and burning forests. The fear I’d felt then paled in comparison to the terror of almost losing my Emmy.

  That terror had fueled my race back to Prescott.

  The three-hour trip from Clifton Forge had taken me two. My bike had never been run that hard. Dad and Dash had been right on my heels the whole way.

  It wasn’t until I saw her settled, safely sleeping in a hospital bed, that my panic had started to subside and the questions had rushed in.

  “All right,” I said to Jess. “What happened? With details this time.”

  He nodded, taking a long breath before recapping the events of the morning. “Rowen brought home a cold from school and gave it to Ben. Georgia and I were up all night with him and, at about three thirty, we ran out of Tylenol for his fever. So I left the farmhouse to hit the store. I was just getting ready to pull off the highway and head home when my radio went off. Dispatch got a call from Emmeline’s alarm company again. Since I was only a mile away, I decided to check it out.”

  The bottom fell out of my stomach. Nothing but pure luck had put Jess on the road at just the right time to save my wife.

  “Pulled up to the house and saw a van barreling down the drive. Managed to swing my truck in just in time to cut them off. The two guys both jumped right out of the van. The driver bolted immediately. The other guy pulled a gun and took a couple shots at my truck. I took cover, then fired back but with it being so dark, I lost him the second he hit the trees.”

  “Any idea who they were?” Dad asked.

  Jess shook his head. “Didn’t get a good look at their faces but I’m hoping her exterior cameras got ’em. Both were decked out in black. The driver looked to be wearing a vest with a patch, kind of like the one you got on.” Jess’s accusation was clear. He knew this mess was somehow linked to Dad.

  “Hey, it wasn’t us,” Dash said. “She’s family.”

  “I’ll let her security footage confirm that,” Jess said, crossing his arms over his chest.

  “Then what happened?” I asked.

  “Then I pulled Emmeline out of the back of that van. She was out cold. One of those fuckers took a pretty hard swing at her face. I put her in my truck, then hauled ass here. She’s been awake on and off, but just for minutes at a time. But she’s been asking for you.”

  And I hadn’t been here. I hadn’t kept my vow to keep her safe.

  By all rights, those men should have been able to take her. Emmy’s rescue this morning was nothing short of a miracle. I should have been here.

  Fuck!

  How could I have been so stupid? I hadn’t considered that it was my connections that had been the cause of Emmy’s troubles. We’d been so focused on her life that I hadn’t once thought maybe it was my father’s enemies that had targeted my wife.

  Fucking stupid.

  The minute she had set foot in Prescott, she had been in danger. I’d been so focused on getting her to love me again that I hadn’t made sure she’d be safe first.

  “I gotta get to the station,” Jess said, pulling me from my thoughts. “I want to see that camera footage and I need to check in with my deputies. They’ve been combing the area, and with any luck, one or both of those fuckers is now in a cell. I’m hoping we find some evidence in the van we impounded.”

  “Thanks, Brick. I don’t—”

  “Don’t worry about it. Just take care of Emmeline,” he said, clapping me on the shoulder and turning to leave.

  “Do you know who it was?” I asked Dad and Dash once Jess was out of earshot.

  “Had to be the Arrowhead Warriors,” Dad said.

  “We’ll take care of it, Nick,” Dash said. “They’ll pay.” Dad and Dash shared a look. The chances of the cops finding Emmy’s attackers before the Gypsies did were slim to none.

  “I’ve got to get back to Emmy. Bye.” My tone was clear. They weren’t welcome to stay.

  Both nodded and turned to leave. They knew as well as I did that nothing would have happened to my wife had they not dragged their shit into my life.

  “Dad?” I called and he turned. “She’s my everything.”

  He nodded and looked to his feet. Message received. Given the choice, I would always pick Emmy. Even if that meant I severed all ties with him and Dash.

  “I’m sorry, Son,” he said. “For everything. Your mom. Emmeline. I’ll make it right.”

  I nodded and pushed inside Emmy’s room. Only time would tell if Dad would make good on his promise. But I couldn’t worry about that right now.

  I needed to focus on my wife.

  Emmeline

  I woke up to the smell of hospital.

  My eyes felt huge but I managed to crack them open, giving them a minute to adjust to the white panel light above my bed.

  Blinking hurt. Breathing hurt. The pounding rhythm in my head caused new waves of pain with every thump.

  “Emmy?”

  I turned to the sound of Nick’s voice at my side. Anguish and heartache were etched on his face but he was still a beautiful sight to see.

  “You’re here.” The words sent pools of tears to my eyes.

  “I’m here.” His eyes were glistening too.

  “Hi, Husband.”

  “Hi, Wife.”

  I smiled before my eyes fluttered closed and I went back to sleep.

  “Emmy?” Nick’s gentle voice was at my side.

  I forced my eyes open and tried to remember where I was. The hospital. I turned toward Nick’s voice. He was leaning on the edge of my bed with my hand pressed between his.

  “How are you feeling?” he asked.

  I took a moment to breathe and assess. “Sore. Tired. Thirsty.”

  He helped me sit and eased a plastic cup to my lips. It hurt to swallow but soon the water eased some of the tenderness in my throat.

  “Better?” he asked.

  I nodded and looked around my room. The TV was turned to a basketball game and the bathroom light was on. Though the curtains were drawn, I could tell it was dark outside.

  “What time is it?”

  “About ten,” he said.

  I had spent the entire day sleeping. I remembered Jess bringing me here this morning and a brief conversation with the doctor, but after waking up and seeing Nick, I couldn’t remember anything else.

  “Has Dr. Peterson been back in?” I asked.

  He nodded.

  “What’s wrong with me?”

  “You’ve got pneumonia.” He frowned.

  I wasn’t surprised. My cold was the worst I’d ever had and my stress levels during the last day had been off the charts. It had been the perfect recipe for pneumonia. “How long do I have to stay here?”

  “Three or four days. You’re on an antibiotic and Dr. Peterson said it can take some time to work.
You were pretty dehydrated too so they’re pumping you with fluids. And he gave you some pain medicine. You’ve got two cracked ribs, which will hurt for a while. He wrapped them up but they’re slow to heal.”

  “And my face?” It was pure vanity, but I really hoped that there wouldn’t be permanent damage to my cheek.

  “Just swollen. It should fade to a nice purple, green and yellow color in a few days.”

  I smiled and sagged with relief into the bed.

  “It’s kind of cute. We have matching black eyes,” he said.

  My smile fell as my eyes snapped to his face. In the dimly lit room, with my swollen eyes, I had missed his injury. But now that I was looking closely, the red welt edging his right eye was obvious.

  “Who hit you?”

  “Dash,” he grumbled.

  “Why?”

  “I didn’t handle the news of your ordeal so well. Punching me in the face was his way of telling me to get my shit together.”

  “Oh.” On top of the guilt I felt about our fight, now I felt horrible for putting him through this misery. “We need to talk,” I said, looking at my lap.

  There was so much to be said. So much we needed to work out. What was I going to do if we couldn’t?

  “Not until you’re well, Emmy.”

  I looked into his eyes and begged. “Please. I can’t leave things the way we did.”

  Kissing my hand, he said, “I don’t want to hash it all out while you’re sick. We need to focus on getting you better. Then we can talk. For now, let’s just be us. Okay?”

  “Okay,” I said reluctantly.

  We both stared at the TV for a while and my eyes started to droop not long after the nurse came in to check on me. I’d been awake for less than an hour but was exhausted.

  “You should go home and get some sleep,” I said.

  “I’m not leaving.”

  “Why not? That chair can’t be comfortable.”

  “It’s not, but I don’t care. I’m not leaving you.”

  A happy feeling spread through my heart. I was elated to have Nick back. Yes, we had a lot to talk about, but for now, I was going to savor his comforting presence. I needed him close. So I took a deep breath and braced for pain.

  With one strong push, I slid my body to the far edge of the bed. Pain shot through my side and I sucked in a sharp breath.

  “What are you doing?” Nick said, jumping from his seat.

  “Moving over.”

  “Why?”

  “So you can sleep with me.”

  “No. Get back in the middle,” he said, reaching to pick me up.

  I swatted at his hands and gave him a frown.

  “Emmy,” he growled.

  I rolled my eyes. “Don’t argue with me. I’m sick. I want you to get up here. I’m still cold and you can keep me warm.”

  He huffed out a breath and muttered, “Fuck,” but then he started kicking off his boots.

  Gently, he folded his big body next to mine, then eased an arm beneath my neck so I could rest my head in the crook of his shoulder. It wasn’t as nice as spooning, but I’d take it.

  Two women were outside my hospital room whispering to each other. Or at least they thought they were whispering. They were actually speaking at a normal volume because they were whisper-yelling at one another.

  “I’m going in.”

  “No, you’re not.”

  “Yes, I am.”

  “Don’t touch that door! You’ll wake them up!”

  “Shut up!”

  “Don’t tell me to shut up!”

  “Shut. Up!”

  “Both of you shut the fuck up,” Nick said. “You make any more noise out there and I’m locking you out.”

  “Effing try it!” one of the voices hissed.

  Gigi.

  I started chuckling against his chest.

  “You two woke up Emmy,” Nick snapped.

  “Oh, good! You’re awake,” Gigi said, waltzing into the room, followed by Sara Phillips.

  Unlike Gigi, who didn’t feel any shame for waking us up, the pretty strawberry blond I had met at Gigi’s garage party was blushing and averting her eyes. She carried a huge bouquet of yellow and peach roses along with a bundle of balloons. Both women were wearing scrubs, likely to start working after their visit.

  Gigi had flowers too, gerbera daisies in every color. In her other hand was a huge white box.

  Nick gently slid his arm from behind me and sat up on the bed, swinging his legs over the side. “What are you two doing here?”

  “We’re the welcoming committee!” Gigi said. She emptied her hands and came to me in the bed, gently caressing my sore cheek. “Yikes! I’m sorry, Emmeline.”

  “Thanks. What are you welcoming me to?”

  “The Kidnapped Club.” She grinned.

  “Oh, fuck me,” Nick muttered as I laughed.

  “Ooh! Ouch. Don’t make me laugh. It hurts too much,” I said, clutching my ribs, which were now on fire.

  “Sorry,” she said. “Oh, don’t look at me like that,” she told Nick.

  He was currently scowling at her while hovering over me to see if I was all right.

  “I’m okay,” I said.

  He grumbled a bit but sank down into his chair. “What did you bring us from the café?” he asked, jutting his chin toward the white box.

  “Breakfast. We love hospital food,” Sara deadpanned. “But we thought you might want something special.”

  For the first time since my ordeal, I actually felt hungry. It was Monday morning and I had spent almost all of the weekend sleeping.

  “We called Tina at the café and she whipped up a special batch of cinnamon caramel rolls,” Gigi said. “Usually she only makes them on Sundays but she feels so bad for what happened to you that she made an exception.”

  “Tell me you brought more than two,” Nick said.

  “Six.” Sara smiled.

  He clapped his hands together, rubbing them back and forth. Gigi held out the box but before he could reach it, she snatched it back.

  “We stay as long as Emmeline wants,” she said, narrowing her eyes.

  “She starts to get tired, you’re out,” Nick said.

  “Agreed.”

  I’d never had one of Tina’s famous rolls before and I wasn’t able to eat much, but every bite was delicious. The rolls were warm and gooey with the perfect mixture of cinnamon spice, sweet caramel and flaky bread.

  Nick demolished the other five rolls. When he stuffed the last piece in his mouth, I looked at him with wide eyes.

  “What?” he said with a mouth full of food.

  I chuckled and winced. “Don’t make me laugh.”

  “Wa-rry,” he apologized.

  I rolled my eyes and looked to Gigi.

  “So what’s the Kidnapping Club?”

  “Exactly that. You, me and Maisy are the only members. Maisy really wanted to see you but she won’t set foot inside this building so Sara is her club proxy. We’re here to do your initiation.” Gigi smiled.

  “But I wasn’t really kidnapped.”

  She waved a hand in the air. “Close enough.”

  “Okay,” I drawled. “There’s an initiation?”

  “You’re freaking her out, Gigi,” Sara said. “Don’t worry, Emmeline. I was there when she and Maisy invented this ‘initiation’ twenty minutes ago. It’s nothing serious.”

  “Your initiation to the club requires only one thing. You have to sign our contract,” Gigi said.

  Out of her purse, she produced a folded piece of paper and handed it to me while she fished for a pen.

  At the bottom, Gigi and Maisy had signed their names.

  For the few moments I had been trapped in the back of Jinx’s van, I had been certain that I wasn’t strong enough to survive an abduction. That it would break me. I realized now that I didn’t have to be strong enough to endure it on my own. I could rely on my friends for support.

  My friends.

  Not just Nick’
s. These women had fully embraced me and pulled me into their lives. For that, I was grateful.

  “May I have the pen, please?” I scribbled my name next to theirs.

  Gigi leaned down to give me a hug. “The next month will be the worst. Lean on Nick. And me. And Maisy. We’ll be here. Don’t try and go it alone.”

  My nose stung as tears pricked my eyes. I sniffled and nodded.

  “All right, we have to get to work,” Sara said.

  “Thank you for the visit. And the beautiful flowers.”

  “And breakfast,” Nick said.

  “You’re more than welcome. We’re just glad you’re back safe and sound,” Gigi said.

  “These flowers are from us,” Sara said, pointing to the roses.

  “And these are from your class,” Gigi said, nodding to the daisies. She dug around again in her purse and produced a bright orange card. “They wrote you a card this morning. And because I always take opportunities to brag about my baby girl, Rowen’s penmanship is by far the best.”

  “She’s very talented.” I smiled. “Who is teaching while I’m in the hospital?”

  “Garcia,” Nick said. “I called him at home yesterday and told him you were out for the week. Maybe next week too. He said he’d take your class and not to worry.”

  I let out a sigh of relief that my students wouldn’t be negatively impacted by my absence. Rich was not only a good school administrator, he was also a remarkable teacher. My kids were in good hands.

  “Do you need anything, Emmeline?” Sara asked.

  “No, thank you.”

  “Okay. Well, I’m working up here today, so if you do, just ring the call button and I’ll be right in.”

  “And if she doesn’t answer fast enough, press the emergency call button behind you and I’ll come up from the ER.” Gigi winked.

  More hugs, more banter and more good-byes followed until my friends finally shuffled out. A few minutes after they left, Dr. Peterson came in to assess my injuries.

  “You’re improving,” he said.

  “Can I still take her home tomorrow?” Nick asked.