Apache Heart

by Miller, Amy J

  Elan pulled on his running shirt, “Actually, Joe stopped by here earlier and threatened Randi.”

  Randi gave Elan dagger eyes, before turning to Joe. “It wasn’t a big deal. Just an ass trying to get under my skin because I kicked him in his man bits.”

  “Did you call the tribal police?” Lee shifted on his feet, wanting to pull Randi into his arms.

  “No…I don’t know, I don’t want to antagonize him and make things worse for Maggie.” Randi tapped at her mouth with the back of her fist, trying to avoid looking at either Elan or Lee. Tuna noodle casserole might solve the problem of what to do with Elan for the moment, but it wasn’t doing much about the situation with Joe and Maggie…and Lee.

  “I’m going to kill that son of a bitch. It’s not like Maggie hasn’t already had her ration of shit.” Lee looked furious, Randi thought. And he was giving Elan an expression approaching disgust. There was something more going on between the two of them than just it looking like Lee had surprised them in a compromising position. Elan had said that he had dated Maggie, Randi remembered, and clearly Lee was holding something against her boss.

  “No one is killing anybody. Everybody needs to chill the heck out. I’m fine. We need to figure out how to help Maggie,” Randi did her best to sound calm.

  “I’m calling my uncle. We’ll just keep it in the family, but someone needs to know what Joe is up to.” Lee flipped out his phone and hit the speed dial. A short conversation in Apache transpired, and then he clicked the phone off. “He’s going to have a patrol swing by here periodically…and he’s taking Maggie to our mom’s house, whether she wants to go or not.”

  “Lee…” Randi wanted to say it wasn’t necessary, but short of having either Lee or Elan spend the night, she had to admit that she was creeped out. Joe was probably just a big windbag, but she had seen the brutality he’d leveled at Maggie. “Yeah, thanks. I’ll make some cookies or something to drop off at the station to say thanks.”

  The timer on the stove dinged, and Randi felt grateful for something to focus on besides the two men in front of her and a sociopath. She grabbed a couple of oven mitts, and took the casserole out. She could tell both Lee and Elan were sniffing the air, trying to determine what her waspy concoction was going to taste like. She put the casserole on a trivet in the middle of the table, and then grabbed another plate.

  “Sit down, both of you. I don’t even care whether you like it or not, but someone is going to eat this damn casserole.” Randi stood with her hands on her hips in a posture that brooked no retort. Carefully Elan and Lee slid chairs out and sat down as instructed, and Randi took the seat in the middle. Armed with a big spoon, she slung casserole on the plates, “Just…shut up and eat. I need to think.”

  Both of the men picked up their forks, and alternated between eyeing their plates, each other, and Randi. Finally Lee took a bite, and his expression became one of carefully guarded neutrality. “This is…interesting,” he said as he chewed. “I mean it’s good, just…different.” He gingerly took another bite, and Elan followed suit.

  “Yeah, it’s…surprisingly…interesting,” Elan said, trying to sound enthusiastic.

  Randi took a bite, and then suddenly spit it out, “Oh my god, this is awful! The noodles haven’t cooked long enough and I forgot to drain the tuna.” It was exactly the break they needed in the tension, and suddenly all three of them were laughing. She picked up the plates and scraped the remainder into the garbage bin. “If I haven’t completely scared you off, I have a frozen pizza I can put in the oven.”

  Elan wiped his mouth with a napkin, “Look, it’s a work night and it’s getting late. We should get out of here and let you get some sleep.”

  Randi made note of the “we” before trying to joke, “Really, I can cook.”

  “I believe you.” Elan gave her a kiss on the cheek. “Call me if you get spooked.”

  Lee noted the kiss, but didn’t comment, nor repeat it. He gave Randi a solemn look as the screen door banged closed behind Elan, “I’m not going to let anything happen to you. Trust me.”

  Could she trust him? Her mind didn’t know, but her gut said yes. “Thanks Lee. Thanks for coming by.” She walked him to the door, every fiber of her body wanting him to gather her into his arms. Instead, she just said, “Goodnight,” and locked the door.

  Suddenly Randi was aware of how much she wanted a shower before she went to bed. Her appetite was gone, but she couldn’t stand the thought of getting into bed still sweaty from the run. In moments she was lathering up under the warm water, washing away the run, and her stress over Joe, and the fact that she was attracted to both Elan and Lee and didn’t have any business getting involved with either one. When she crawled into bed, she felt mentally exhausted, but she understood a little more about how a woman like Maggie could get involved with someone that wasn’t good for her.

  ###

  The sound of a truck motor turning over woke Maggie a little before six. It took a moment for her to realize what she was hearing, before she slid into a bathrobe and went to the living room window to look out. She made it there just in time to see Lee backing his truck out of her drive. Then she understood: he had stayed there the entire night; stayed there making sure that nothing happened to her. Or did he stay there to make sure that Elan didn’t come back? She pondered it for a moment, and then decided that Lee was just keeping his promise.

  As she made coffee, Randi wondered how she felt about that. She’d always been independent, always taken care of herself. Was there something a little controlling about what Lee had done, or did he know more than he was letting on about what Joe was capable of? The fact that he had done it without telling her made Randi believe it was simply his way of being protective, and she had to admit, it was a little more concrete than, “Call me if you get spooked.”

  Randi yawned as she made coffee, and then realized it was Wednesday, so she needed to think about working with the kids in the running program. She turned on the radio to get the weather report while looking for a couple of books on stretching and weight conditioning. It might be nice, she thought, to make some photocopies of a few things to hand out. She leafed through the books, putting sticky notes in to mark the places, while simultaneously eating a bowl of instant oatmeal. Next she got her running clothes together and threw them in her gym bag, and tucked the books in on top. It was going to be warm, so she put on a colorful, cotton peasant skirt and a simple V-neck t-shirt. Sandals and her white lab coat finished the outfit, and then she grabbed a ribbon to tie her hair back. Satisfied, she grabbed her gym bag, keys and purse and headed out the door, remembering to turn off the radio at the last minute.

  As Randi stepped out her front door, though, her pleasant morning suddenly shifted. Someone had scrawled in red spray paint down the side of her truck, “Dr. Bitch.” She sucked a breath in and looked at her watch; it had only been a little more than an hour since Lee left. How could she have not heard someone drive up? Then a weird thought crossed her mind; maybe Lee had done it—maybe he wanted her to be scared, wanted her to come to him instead of Elan. She shook herself, trying to tell herself that was a ridiculous idea. But why didn’t he tell her he was going to spend the night in her drive? And why hadn’t she heard anyone else around? Sure the radio was on, but it wasn’t that loud.

  The paint was fresh, still dripping, when Randi kneeled down to get a closer look. It had to have been after Lee left, but it was possible he’d driven away, only to sneak back on foot. She looked around, but couldn’t see any distinct footprints in the gravel. Standing up, Randi expelled a breath. Why was she trying to blame Lee? Was it because she had this idea of him now as some kind of criminal? It had to have been Joe, part of his plan to intimidate her. He was proving that he could get close without her knowing. All the way into the hospital, though, she kept replaying Lee’s silent presence and departure outside her door.

  Lozen was just getting out of her car as Randi pulled into the parking lot. It was hard to miss the
words ‘Dr. Bitch’ in huge capital letters down the side of Randi’s truck. She waited for Randi to park.

  Randi tried to joke, “Apparently I’ve gained a fan club.”

  Lozen shook her head, “That’s gotta be Joe’s work. Are you okay?”

  After all the craziness, Randi realized that what she needed was a woman friend, someone that wasn’t Lee or Elan that she could be honest with about everything going on.

  “To tell the truth, Lozen, I’m pretty rattled. Joe came by my place last night to threaten me, and I found this when I was leaving for work this morning.” She waved her hand at the obscene graffiti.

  Lozen bit her lip and glanced at her watch, “Come on, we’ve got fifteen minutes before clinic. Let’s sit down and talk.” Lozen led Randi over to a bench. “Let’s stay out here where there’s a little privacy.”

  “Do you think Joe is really dangerous? Or is he just trying to keep me off balance?” Randi asked. “He said something about keeping my mouth shut to the prosecutors, so it makes me wonder if they are going to press charges against him even if Maggie doesn’t want it.”

  “Maggie’s mom called me this morning. Her brother, Russell—the cop—well, he forced Maggie to go to her mom’s last night. Joe was nowhere to be found, which probably meant he was winding up on a bender. Russell was so mad he told Maggie that if she didn’t give a shit about what Joe did to her that was her business, but he sure as hell wasn’t going to let Joe hurt the baby.”

  “This is a mess. I haven’t even been in town for a week and somehow I’m in the middle of a terrible situation. I have no idea how to help make any of this better.”

  Lozen looked at Randi sympathetically. “I know you want to help, but I think the best you can do right now is take care of yourself. Are you scared to be out at your place alone?”

  Was she? Randi wasn’t sure. “Well, Elan came by last night—I’d gone home after our run, and the whole Joe thing unnerved me, so I called him. Then Lee stopped by, because he’d heard about Joe hitting me on Sunday.”

  “Lee and Elan were there at the same time? How’d that go?” Lozen raised an eyebrow.

  “So…there is history between the two of them? I got the feeling that there was more than a little tension in the air.” Randi scratched her head. “I know Elan used to date Maggie.”

  “There’s a story, but we probably shouldn’t get into it now. You want to come over to my house for supper?” Lozen asked.

  “That would be really nice, but I promised Elan that I’d help with the high school kids that are running cross country.”

  “Then let’s make it tomorrow night. I’ll make you some real Apache food.” Lozen smiled, “You okay with rabbit?”

  “Yeah, sounds good. Can I bring something?”

  “Just come and relax.”

  “I’ll try to do something about my car so your family doesn’t think you’ve invited a crazy woman over.” They giggled a little.

  “Don’t worry, I’ll let my husband know that you really aren’t Dr. Bitch.”

  The two women made their way into the hospital, and Randi realized she was excited about the idea of going to someone’s home as a guest. Even though Lozen was probably fifteen years older, Randi felt like they could become real friends. She’d ask Elan, or the kids, about etiquette and how to be a good guest. She mentally paused. Elan. All the excitement over Joe and her newly decorated car had pushed away any thought of their close encounter the evening before.

  “Oh, before I forget,” Lozen said, “You’ve got ER rotation on Friday night.”

  Randi shrugged, “It’s not like I’ve got a big date or anything.”

  The day passed quickly, Randi thought. There was a steady, but not overwhelming, stream of patients. Before she knew it, it was 5:30. She went to the ladies room and changed into a t-shirt and some track pants, then wandered down to Elan’s office.

  “Hey, I’m ready.” Randi smiled. “I just want to photocopy some stuff to hand out.”

  Elan looked at his watch, “Oh my god, Randi, I totally forgot. I’ve been immersed in that genetic case all day. We’re trying to get the family ready to bring the baby home from Albuquerque. I don’t think I can make it.”

  “So what, you’re going to cancel?”

  “You could still go.”

  “You’re going to throw me to a bunch of teenagers I’ve never met before…really?” She raised an eyebrow.

  Elan laughed. “They’re good kids, take a bunch of handouts. They’ll be impressed. You can use my photocopier.”

  “You know the side of my truck is spray painted with “Dr. Bitch,” right now?

  “What do you mean?” Elan’s face sobered.

  “I mean, somebody spray painted “Dr. Bitch” down the side of my truck this morning. It was still wet when I came out to go to work.”

  “Make your photocopies, go coach the kids, and then you’re coming to spend the night at my house.” Elan stood up. “No argument.”

  Randi shook her head, “It’s spray paint, not blood. You don’t need to over react.”

  “I’ll sleep on the couch, or you can, but I don’t think you need to be up there by yourself until this Joe thing gets sorted out.”

  “Apparently Maggie’s uncle forced her to go to her mother’s house last night.”

  “That’s good. They have neighbors—she’ll be safe there. But you need to be safe too. Come back here when you finish. Please.”

  Randi sighed, “Okay, I’ll come back here, but then I’m going home.”

  ###

  Randi met up with the runners at a field next to the school. There were seven boys and five girls, ranging in age from thirteen to seventeen. She saw them laughing and pointing at her truck as she pulled up.

  “Hey,” she called, “Dr. Cody got tied up at work, but as you can see, I’m Dr. Bitch.” The kids started snickering. “Actually, I’m Randi Green, and I am the new doctor. You guys can call me Randi…although after we do this work out, you might be calling me Dr. Bitch.” The teens started laughing again, but they went around in a circle and introduced themselves as Randi passed around the handouts. “I brought you guys some stuff on stretching and weight training, so take this home and read it. We’ll talk about it on Saturday.”

  Randi could see that the students liked that she had brought them training material. One look at their feet and Randi realized half of the group desperately needed new running shoes. She thought maybe she could get them some team sponsors; there was nothing like good gear and matching tracksuits to make you feel good, make you feel like your effort was worth it, and maybe they could have a little lending library for workout books, and share resources.

  Clapping her hands, Randi yelled, “Okay, I want to see some crunches! Let’s go.”

  The group fanned out into the grass, and obediently went to work. Randi got down and crunched with them. They did a strength-training workout, and then did some interval sprints. She was glad when they finished that she wasn’t the only one who looked pooped.

  “So Saturday, we’ll do a good steady run, cross-country. You guys feel up to a 10k?” They looked at each other and nodded their heads in agreement. “You all did an awesome workout today. Tomorrow I want you to warm up with tiptoe and heel walking, body weight squats, and lunges, and, then run 5k at a nice easy lope. Look at the pictures in the handouts, and try to check each other’s form, okay? Friday, stretch out good, but take it easy, maybe just do a few push-ups and some crunches. Sound like a plan?”

  The group rumbled their assent, but Randi could tell they were into it.

  The runners waved and said thanks to her as they started to disperse, and Randi felt like she had made a good impression. One of the girls came up to Randi and smiled, “You’re not Dr. Bitch at all, you’re pretty much Dr. Awesome.”

  “I’m glad you think that! But I think you guys are pretty awesome. I’m excited to be part of the community here. We’re going to have some fun.”

  The girl walke
d with Randi toward her truck, “Do you need a ride?” Randi asked. “I’m heading back toward the hospital, but I’d be happy to give you a lift.”

  “I’m good,” she waved a hand toward a good looking boy with shaggy hair talking with a couple of the other kids, “That’s my brother, I’m with him.”

  “Tell me your name again, it’s going to take me a couple of weeks, I’m great with faces, but terrible with names.”

  “I’m Lynette.” She paused before continuing, “I just want to say thank you for what you did for Maggie.”

  “I’m afraid I didn’t do all that much. Are you family?”

  “Cousin. My Uncle Russell told us you kicked Joe in the balls.”

  “Yeah, I guess I did. It was kind of a reflex. Might not have been the smartest thing to do.” Randi didn’t want to be setting a precedent for teenage girls kicking guys in the nuts.

  “Dr. Randi…what makes a woman stay with someone like Joe? I don’t understand it. She’s beautiful, she got good grades in school, and she got along with everyone. Why would she stay with someone who was mean to her?” Lynette picked at some imaginary lint on her shirt, avoiding Randi’s eyes.

  Randi sighed. “That’s a good question, it’s complicated. But you know that if anyone ever abuses you or tries to control you, that you should tell your family, right?”

  “Oh don’t worry, if some asshole ever hits me, I’ll tell my family…after I kick him in the balls first.”

  “Running might be a better option,” Randi smiled, “I have a feeling you can outrun most of the guys around here.”

  Lynette laughed a little, “Yeah, I’m pretty fast.”

  “But your question, about why Maggie stays, I can’t say for sure. I don’t really know Maggie, or what Joe might have been like at one time, but usually there’s fear and shame in there somewhere. Sometimes women don’t think they deserve better, because their self-confidence has been shattered in some way. Sometimes, after an episode, there’s like a honeymoon, where the abuser is really nice, and then the woman believes that things will get better. And sometimes there’s just a lot of manipulation going on, the man threatens to do something terrible if she leaves, or to tell people something that will shame her. And sometimes they’re just scared that the person they love might kill them if they leave.”