by Donna Alward
Aiden did a quick check. Legs and arms seemed okay, but when he lifted George’s shirt there was already some bruising and when he gently touched ribs, George cried out. It was worse when he touched his abdomen, on the left, and Aiden wondered if he had some internal injuries. He’d had the shit beat out of him for sure, and Aiden fought down a surge of anger that someone could treat another human being in this way.
He heard sirens approaching. “Not long now, buddy. Hang in there.”
“Shosh.” George closed his eyes and his swollen lips formed the sound. “Shell.”
“Hush,” Laurel murmured, smoothing his forehead. “There’ll be time for that later.”
“Up.” This sound was clear and George struggled to brace his hand somewhere so he could rise. The ambulance pulled up right behind Aiden’s half-ton and Aiden waved them over. “Up,” he demanded again, glaring at Aiden through his swollen eyelids.
Aiden went over and put his arm around George’s back. If the man wanted to meet this head-on, then Aiden would help him. He got the sense that there was some sort of pride at stake here. That George was, despite being hurt, terribly pissed off at being a victim.
And then George cried out; a sharp wail full of pain. The paramedics were just approaching when George went limp against Aiden’s arm, and Aiden scrambled to catch the rest of the man’s weight so he wouldn’t fall.
“Shit,” he barked, his arm quivering beneath the weight. George wasn’t a small guy, and he’d put on some weight in the last month. “A hand here?”
In no time flat they’d got George on a stretcher and immobilized, then moved to get him out of the woods and back to the ambulance. Laurel looked as though someone had struck her, she was so pale, and Aiden reached for her hand and helped guide her out as they followed the team.
“He’s still unconscious,” she whispered, her fingers clinging to his.
“I know,” Aiden replied, and with the same worries. George hadn’t just blacked out from pain; he would have come to already if that were the case. He had some serious injuries. And someone had done this to him. It was no accident.
“We can follow them to the hospital.” They got to the other side of the railroad tracks and he stopped, put his hands on her shoulders. “Are you okay? Do you need a minute?”
“I’m fine. I’d like to go be with him. He doesn’t have anyone else.”
Aiden felt the same way. He helped Laurel into the truck—her hands were still shaking—and got in the other side. As the ambulance pulled away, they turned on lights and sirens. Aiden swallowed against a lump in his throat. George was harmless, and now he was seriously hurt.
“Aiden?”
“Hmm?” He pulled a U-turn and hit the gas, pulling in behind the ambulance as they headed for the highway and the hospital.
“He won’t have any insurance.”
“He’ll be cared for. Don’t worry.”
They drove in silence to the hospital, and parked while the ambulance pulled into the emergency bay. By the time they’d hurried inside, he was already being triaged.
“Are you family?” the clerk asked.
“Emma. You know we’re not.” Aiden frowned. “We found him. He … helps out at Laurel’s garden center.”
“He lives at the shelter,” Laurel added, her voice quivering. “I don’t…” her voice caught. “I don’t even know his last name.”
“Have a seat,” the clerk said, gentler now. “I’ll let you know as soon as I have any news.”
They sat. Aiden made a few phone calls to the station and then went for coffee while Laurel checked in at the garden center. Minutes passed, then an hour. Then two. He heard Laurel sniff beside him and he put his arm around her, pulling her close. “No news is good news,” he said quietly. He didn’t believe it, but he didn’t know what else to say.
It was past noon when Emma finally beckoned them over. “You can have five minutes,” she said. “I’ll take you back.”
They went through the sliding doors to the trauma room. It was quiet inside, except for the beep of machines. A nurse was checking an IV bag and smiled at them. “The doctor will be right in.”
“Thanks,” Laurel said. There were no chairs, so she stood beside the bed. “He’s so bruised. I don’t want to touch him in case I hurt him.”
“I know.”
“He was beaten very badly, Aiden.”
“I know that, too. There’ll be an investigation.” He looked down into her eyes. “Maybe we don’t know his last name, but he’s not nobody.”
Her gaze warmed and they shared a moment where it felt like they were on exactly the same page. God, he loved her. Even though she was mixed up, even though she drove him crazy, she had such a good heart. She cared about people and was loyal to a fault. Anyone would be lucky to have a champion like her backing them up.
And he’d driven her away, after he’d promised they could take it slow. What a fool.
The doctor bustled in, her fresh blue scrubs rustling as she moved briskly. “Good morning. You’re here to see our George Doe.” She smiled at them.
“I’ll get to work on a last name,” Aiden said. “I’m a cop with the Darling police force.”
“You might be interested in his personal effects, then,” she said. “Check at the desk.”
“It’s evidence in any case,” Aiden replied. “How bad is it, doctor?”
She sighed. “He was beaten pretty badly, but he’s going to be okay. Broken nose, facial lacerations, and a concussion are going to have his head hurting for a good while. We’ll monitor that closely, because the last thing we want is a bleed. There’s bruising on several parts of his body, and he’s got four broken ribs on the left. There’s significant bruising there, too. I suspect he took a big boot to the side.”
Aiden saw Laurel pale. “You okay to hear this?” he asked.
She nodded. “I’m fine.”
“He lost consciousness but regained it en route, which was a big relief. But one of his ribs caused a collapsed lung. He’ll be in here for a few days at least, and then he’ll be out of commission for at least three to four weeks as his ribs heal.”
“But he’s going to be okay?”
The doctor nodded. “Yes. We did some imaging to rule out any spleen injury or other internal bleeding. If there aren’t any complications from the concussion, he’ll be on his way to a full recovery before long.”
Laurel wilted against him. “Oh, that’s such a relief.”
“We’re going to be moving him to a room soon. Do you want to be notified?”
“Yes,” Laurel answered quickly. “I’ll stay with him. I don’t want him to wake up and be alone.”
“You’re sure?” Aiden squeezed her arm. “I can come and spell you, but I have to clock in for work in another hour and I’m not off until late tonight.”
“No, I’ll stay,” she repeated, and he knew that look. When Laurel made her mind up, nothing would shake it. “I’ll have the staff close up for the day.”
“Great.” The doctor touched Laurel’s arm lightly. “He’s sleeping right now. We’ve given him something for the pain. We’ll be monitoring the concussion, but he’ll wake up. Relax.”
Laurel smiled a little. “Thanks. Seeing him faint was scary.”
“He was lucky you two came along.”
Aiden looked down at Laurel. It hadn’t been any accident they were there. She’d been determined to find George. She’d been the one to save him.
When the doctor left, Aiden guided her out of the trauma room and back to the waiting room. There was a corner where no one was sitting, and he led her there, sat beside her on the vinyl seat. “Just so we’re clear, George owes this to you. You’re some woman, Laurel.”
“I just knew he wouldn’t take off.”
“You believed in him. More than anyone, me included.” He put her hand in between his. “Don’t change. I know I gave you a hard time. I know I walked away. But don’t change who you are. You care about people even whe
n they let you down, and at your own expense. That’s not something to be ashamed of. It’s honorable as hell.”
“Aiden…”
“I heard you agreed to do the photo.”
“Oaklee beat me to it. I was going to tell you today, and then George didn’t show up…”
“Why did you change your mind?”
“Because my reasons didn’t hold up anymore. It wasn’t because I hated you, even though I thought I did when I first moved back. And it wasn’t because I was too busy with the garden center, even though I’m working long hours. The truth is, I couldn’t face putting on a wedding dress again. It felt like such a farce. I stopped believing in the symbol of it. For me, a dress like that was a fraud. But it wasn’t really the dress, it was me holding myself back. And I need to move forward. If I can put on a silly satin gown, maybe there’s hope for me to get on with my life and stop feeling sorry for myself.”
Did that mean there was hope for them? Aiden wanted to ask, but with everything that had happened today, he didn’t want to push too much. “Good for you,” he replied. “It’ll be fun. If we can remain civil to each other for an hour or two?”
Her eyes delved into his. “I think I can manage that.”
“Me, too.” An hour or two, or a lot more than that. But maybe what Laurel needed was baby steps.
“You want to know the ironic bit?” She was smiling at him now. He was glad. He hated how they’d ended things, and had missed that note of warmth in her voice.
“What?”
“I always wanted a simple wedding in the park, like Dan had. Just some flowers and people I cared about, and a simple but pretty dress, and maybe a backyard barbecue for a reception. Instead I had a big, fancy, uber-official-looking event that was the real deal. And now I’ll be in a dress and standing on the bridge, just the way I always dreamed, and it’s all pretend.” She shook her head and laughed. “Oh well. I’m trying to learn to roll with the punches a little better these days.”
She couldn’t know how much her simple little speech had touched him. The whole time she’d been at Dan’s ceremony, she must have been thinking about the wedding she’d wanted and hadn’t had. And there her ex had been, having it, and going on with the life they’d planned but with someone else. No wonder she’d been so upset. Dan had stripped away just about everything.
But maybe, just maybe, he could give her some of it back.
“Laurel.” Aiden reached out and touched her face. “I really am sorry. I promised you we could go slowly, and then the day of the wedding I pushed.”
She shook her head, and he saw her throat bob as she swallowed. “I wasn’t ready to hear all that, you know? It was a hard day and I was overwhelmed, and I took it out on you. When you said you loved me…”
She bit down on her lip, and his heart squeezed a little bit. He reached out and took her hand.
Her gaze met his as she continued. “I wasn’t ready to feel what I was feeling. I’m not sure I’m ready now, either. But it wasn’t just fun for me, Aiden. It was much, much more. I just get so scared when I hear the ‘L’ word. It hasn’t really worked out for me in the past, and I’m not sure I can take having my heart broken again.”
He rubbed his thumb over her hand. “You’re not the only one to have your heart broken, you know.”
“Your ex? What was her name?”
“Erica?” He gave a short laugh and shook his head. “No, not her. You, Laurel. I have never felt about anyone the way I feel about you. I can’t think straight. I keep replaying that conversation and wishing I’d handled it differently. But I was scared too. And I wanted you to hurry up and move on already, so we could have a shot.”
Her voice quivered as she said, “I broke your heart?”
He thought about how irritable he’d been lately. How he’d hated getting out of bed in the morning, how the days seemed pointless. “Yeah. Nothing’s been the same. I can’t eat, I sleep too much, I snap at everyone.”
“I’m sorry. I never wanted to hurt you.”
Her eyes filled with tears and the ache in his heart intensified. “Don’t cry, okay? We’ll figure it out.”
She nodded. “I need to tell you something. I mean … we’ve talked about the divorce, and me getting over what happened, and you were one hundred percent right about that. But it’s not just Dan’s affair, you see? It’s much bigger than that. We had this life planned, Aiden. A life that included children—a whole future. He kept putting it off, but we’re only in our twenties. I wanted to start a family but the clock wasn’t exactly ticking yet, you know? So when he told me about Ryan…” She let out a long breath. “I thought he was going to say he was ready for babies. He crushed all of my dreams that night, and ever since I’ve been too scared to dream again.”
Children. His stomach clenched and he stared at her. Babies. This was big territory he was wading into. He remembered Erica talking about marriage and babies and how it had terrified him. Now, though, the terror rushing through his veins wasn’t the urge to run. It was bigger. Different. It was the earth-shaking fear of being a father, and all that came with it. Fatherhood was huge. And then he thought about Connor and Ronan and wondered how their kids would look, his and Laurel’s. And something new rushed through him. Something wonderful and scary.
“You should dream,” he said quietly, wanting to gather her into his arms but holding back, considering they were still in a hospital waiting room. “You should always have dreams.”
“You were right about the consolation prize. I love the Ladybug, but it really was a ‘since you can’t have the life you wanted, take this instead’ thing.”
“And now?”
Her fingers tightened around his. “And now I’m starting to think that coming home and opening that place was the best decision I ever made.”
He smiled. She was wearing her Ladybug golf shirt and no makeup and her hair was held back by a simple band, but to him she was the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen. There wasn’t a single thing about her that was false.
“Aiden?”
He met her gaze.
Her lip trembled a little. “I feel the need to say something here, and I don’t want you to read too much into it, okay? But I think you need to know that I love you, too. I knew it this morning when I couldn’t find George and I called you. It wasn’t because you’re a cop. It’s because you were the first person I wanted to turn to when I was afraid. You make me feel safe, even when we’re not even speaking. I love you. Maybe we can start there, and start over?”
She looked so scared, and yet so gloriously defiant as she said the words. Everything in his chest seemed to expand as hope slammed into him.
“Thank God,” he murmured, and ignoring the public setting, he tugged on her hand. She slid over and onto his lap.
“What? You’re not worried someone will see you?” he asked.
She shrugged. “It’s time I stopped caring about stupid stuff and focused on being happy.”
He held her close, closing his eyes and soaking up the moment. After a minute or two, he lifted his chin. “So, what happens now?”
“You mean, where do we go from here?” She gave a little laugh. “I don’t know. I suppose we can start with the picture on the bridge. Let’s get that out of the way first, and get George on his way to recovery.”
“If that’s what you want.”
She nodded and he felt the movement against his temple. He lifted his head and kissed her, just a brief kiss but on the lips. “God, I feel horrible this has happened to George but so happy that it led to this.”
“Me, too.” She smiled down at him. “Oh, Aiden. It feels good to be excited for the future again.” She kissed his cheek. “I stopped going after what I wanted. Maybe I felt I didn’t deserve it. Or the universe was telling me I didn’t. But here you are. And it feels right, doesn’t it?”
He would have answered but the clerk called them over again. When they approached the desk, Emma looked directly at Aiden. “I’ve got
George’s things here, but there’s a bit of a problem.”
Aiden’s brow furrowed. “What sort of problem? George really didn’t have much to speak of, and as far as I know his backpack stayed at the shelter.”
“Can you come back here with me, please?” She opened the door and ushered them into a little triage desk area. “I know you called the assault into your station, Officer Gallagher. We’re waiting for them to arrive before we hand over the personal effects.”
“Because they’re evidence?” he asked.
She nodded.
“What sort of evidence?”
“He had a plastic zip bag in his pocket. It’s got the name of the Ladybug Garden Center on it.”
“May I see it?”
“Just don’t touch anything,” Emma replied. She gestured to the articles on a small table. “The problem is, it has pills in it. Do you know if he was using? Maybe dealing to local kids or anything?”
Aiden felt as if he’d been punched in the gut. “Pills? Not George. He’s not a user or a pusher. I’ll stake my badge on it.”
“But the bag is one that I use to keep the cash float in at night,” Laurel said, sounding shaken. “It doesn’t make sense.”
“Well, I’m sure once he wakes up it’ll be explained just fine.” Emma’s smile was polite, and Aiden felt like saying, “You’re not sure at all. I know that smile.” He looked at the other items. No bills, but a little loose change, a stubby pencil, and a receipt from the corner store deli were all that was on the table along with the bag.
“Wait,” he said. “George always wore a black bracelet. It’s not there. Would he still be wearing it?”
“We would have taken it off,” she replied, frowning. “Maybe he didn’t wear it today.”
Laurel shook her head. “No, I noticed it, too. He’d show up to work and always have it on. I kept meaning to ask what it meant, but George is pretty private. I didn’t want to stick my nose in. But I’ve never seen him without it on, not that I can remember.”
Emma shrugged. “I don’t know what to tell you.”
“Thanks, anyway. And for showing us. Maybe we can help put the pieces together if we remember anything.”
