Trusting You

by L. P. Dover

  Blood was on my hands and legs, but I didn’t care. I picked the first thing I found and threw it on with no bra, and slid a pair of pants on with no underwear. I didn’t want to waste time putting on shoes so I grabbed the keys and took one last look at Daniel. Bursting into tears, I didn’t know if I’d killed him or not because he was bleeding and not moving. It could be a farce to see if I’d help him, but it wasn’t a chance I was willing to make.

  With blood on my hands and tears streaming down my face, I opened the motel room door and was blinded by the sunlight of the day beyond. Quickly, I ran to the stairs and bumped into a couple that was walking up.

  “Oh my goodness lady are you hurt?” the man asked, wide-eyed, staring at the blood on my hands and my disheveled appearance.

  Gasping, I could barely get the words out when I answered, stuttering, “Call … call the police and get them here quickly.” My breath hitched and my throat tightened with my next words. “Tell them,” I began, choking on my words. “Tell them that Daniel O’Briene is here at this motel and that he’s hurt. Give them my name. It’s Melissa Ashford. I’m sure they’ll know who we are.”

  As soon as I gave them the information I rushed down the steps and bolted for the car. The guy yelled something to me, but I couldn’t hear him. All I could hear was the pounding in my ears and my inner self telling me to run, to find a place safely away where I could call Brett and Mason and tell them where I was.

  When I got in the car, I started it up and immediately stalled out when I tried to back it up. Angry with myself, I slammed my hands against the wheel. “Not now,” I screamed at myself. “Come on, you can do this.”

  Cranking the car, I put it in reverse and backed out of the space. I took one last glance at the hotel room door where behind it Daniel was bleeding out. Trembling, I put the car into first and took off out of the parking lot.

  Please don’t let him be dead.

  Thirty-Five

  The police chased by my car on the opposite side of the road and I knew I should go back if I had the protective custody of the police, but I needed to find a phone and call Brett as soon as possible. About two miles down the road I found a gas station with a pay phone. I pulled up in front of it and cursed when I realized I didn’t have any money. Or at least I didn’t think I did until I found my purse sitting behind the passenger seat.

  Rummaging through it, I found some change in my wallet and quickly got out of the car. There weren’t that many people around, but the ones that were around stared at me curiously with my bloody hands, pink T-shirt, and pajama bottoms. My hands were shaking so bad that I couldn’t even put the money in the slot on the pay phone. I took a few deep breaths and it didn’t help. There was no way I would be able to dial his number correctly with the way my hands were trembling.

  I stood there and cried until a woman about my age came up to me, cautiously. “Do you need help?” she asked calmly, her kind blue eyes searching over my body. “I’m a nurse, sweetie. My name is Abbey. Are you hurt anywhere? Do I need to call the police?” She glanced down at my hands and then back up to my face.

  Shaking my head, I licked my dry lips and responded, “No, I’m not hurt. I need help to call my boyfriend and then the police. I have to let them know I’m okay.”

  Abbey nodded and pulled out her phone. “What’s your name, sweetie?”

  “My name’s Melissa Ashford,” I said.

  Abruptly, her gaze met mine and her eyes went wide. “Oh my God, you’re the one everyone’s been searching for. I thought you looked familiar. Your picture has been all over the news. They said you had been kidnapped by your ex-husband.”

  “It’s true,” I whispered.

  “Okay, if you don’t mind I’m going to call the police first, and then I’ll dial whoever you want after that. The authorities need to know you’re safe and to come for you.” I nodded and sat down on the hood of the car, hanging my head so I could cry. I wanted to hide because now there were so many people milling about and staring at me. I wanted to crawl back in the car and just pretend that none of what happened ever existed, that it was all just a bad dream. Abbey dialed 911 and told them where I was and that I was safe. When she got off the phone she came back to me.

  “They said to stay here. I told them I would stay with you until I knew you were perfectly safe. An ambulance will be here soon to escort you to the hospital.”

  Furrowing my brow, I asked, “Why the hospital? I’m not hurt.”

  Abbey smiled apologetically. “I don’t know what happened to you, Ms. Ashford, but it’s plain as day that you’re not okay.” She pressed down on my skin and shook her head. “You’re also severely dehydrated and need to be taken care of. People die from dehydration all the time. They’re also going to want to examine you to make sure nothing else is wrong. Now give me the number to your boyfriend.”

  I called out the numbers and she held the phone out to me. It rang and rang and I was about to hang up when Brett finally answered the phone, “Yeah.”

  “Brett,” I whispered hoarsely. My throat closed up and I started to cry.

  He gasped and yelled to the people in the background. “It’s her! I got her,” he hollered. “Where the hell are you? Mason and I are here at the motel and there was a couple that said you left. So help me God I’m going to kill Daniel if he makes it through this.”

  “You’re there?” I choked out. “I’m about two miles down the road at a gas station. What’s going on now?”

  He sighed. “Look, don’t you worry about anyone but yourself right now. I’m on my way to you. Did you take a left or right out of the parking lot of the hotel?”

  “A left,” I replied.

  “Stay on the phone with me until I get there. So help me God, I thought I would never see you again when your watch ended up in the woods. I thought we had lost you for good.”

  “How did you find me?” I asked.

  “The guy who you were supposed to meet for the plane ride over the border called and informed the authorities what Daniel was planning on doing. He told the police where you were at so we were already on our way when the call came through from the couple at the motel.” I could hear the rumble of his Jeep coming down the road and my heart slammed in my chest when I saw him speed into the parking lot of the gas station.

  His eyes immediately found mine so I hung up the phone and handed it back to Abbey. “Thank you,” I muttered graciously to her.

  “You’re welcome,” she uttered, eyes going wide at the sight of Brett climbing out of his vehicle. He wore a rumpled T-shirt and jeans and his face looked like it hadn’t seen a razor in days. He was still handsome even with the tormented look on his face. His mouth flew open at the sight of me and his eyes glowed with anger.

  I ran as fast as I could to him and jumped into his arms. “Brett,” I cried.

  His arms engulfed me and he held me tight. The sores on my back screamed in protest, but I needed his arms around me. “Shh … it’s okay, firecracker. I got you,” he whispered hoarsely in my ear. “You’re safe now.”

  The sirens from the ambulance sounded off into the distance and I knew they were coming for me. “I love you,” I cried. “I can’t believe you’re here. I didn’t know if I was ever going to see you again.”

  “No matter what happens in our lives I will always find you. I’m here now and we’re together. I love you and nothing and no one is ever going to take you away from me again. If anything … trust me on that.”

  Breathing in his scent, I sighed and collapsed into his arms. “I trust you.”

  I was taken to the hospital and examined, thoroughly, even though I told them it wasn’t necessary. Given the situation, it all had to be recorded in the police report. The only thing I suffered from was dehydration, just like Abbey the nurse said, and of course I was starving. The sores on my back were fine, except there were some gravel pieces that were lodged in my skin. As soon as the examination was over and my skin scrubbed, I was wheeled into a hospital room
where Brett was standing there waiting for me, looking distraught. The nurse hooked me up to an IV and smiled sadly. “Once we get your fluids up we’ll discharge you. But for now, I want you to rest and take it easy. I know you have a lot to recover from, not only physically, but emotionally as well.”

  “Thank you,” I muttered. She nodded at Brett before leaving the room and shutting the door behind her.

  Brett came over and sat beside me on the bed, taking my hand. Daniel’s blood had been all washed away, and I was thankful for that. It was a constant reminder of what I did.

  “How did the exam go?” he asked, worry evident in his tone. His eyes were the most haunted I had ever seen them and I knew the reason why he wanted to know the answer.

  Taking his hand, I pulled him down to lie beside me on the bed. I placed my hand on his cheek and looked straight into his soulful gray eyes. “It went fine, Brett. Nothing happened, okay?”

  Clenching his teeth, he nodded quickly and looked away. “Are you sure about that? I saw what happened to Daniel. It didn’t look like nothing happened. Did he …” He was so angry he couldn’t even finish the sentence.

  “No,” I said firmly, taking his face in both hands for him to look back at me. “I took care of it before it got that far. Which I’m sure you saw what I did.” I paused for a few seconds before asking the question that had been weighing on me since I ran away. “How is he by the way? I didn’t kill him, did I?”

  Closing his eyes, he sighed and placed his forehead to mine. “Unfortunately, no. You have no clue how hard it’s been not to go to his room and kill the son of a bitch. I almost came close when I saw him in the motel struggling to stand up. If it wasn’t for Mason I probably would have.”

  My eyes went wide. “What did you do?”

  He shrugged and pursed his lips. “Well, let’s just say he has a broken nose, and a few cracked ribs to go along with his head injury. He didn’t look so good after I was hauled out of the room.”

  Silently, I breathed a sigh of relief. I was angry with Daniel, but I didn’t wish him dead. “Where are Claire and Mason?”

  “Claire said she was going to sit with Daniel for a while, and Mason said he would be here shortly. What we all want to know is how come Daniel went off the deep end and fled. When I got that call from you and heard you struggling on the other end I about lost it. Claire was the one who found your smashed up phone in one of the bedrooms,” he explained.

  I took a deep breath and sat up, pulling Brett with me. “You do realize it was the bedroom beside the study right?”

  Brett furrowed his brows, but then after a moment realization set in and his eyes grew wide. He groaned and hung his head. “You and Daniel heard all of that, didn’t you? That’s why he took off with you because he knew he was busted.”

  I nodded. “Yeah, but you forgot to mention that it was your dad you were talking to. I heard that part as well. I didn’t know he was one of the state senators.”

  He looked away. “Yes, he is. He had always been in the running for some kind of political office. He’s also a very manipulative man, and when he found out about Daniel’s plans to sell homes on the vineyard my father saw an opportunity to reel me in. He made an offer to Daniel he couldn’t refuse, and if he did refuse he was going to make sure he regretted it.”

  “Did your father threaten him?” I asked, wide-eyed.

  “He did. He lied to me when I told him about everything that night. He already knew that Daniel had been stealing money from his investors. His proposal was for Daniel to make sure I took the project and if I didn’t he was going to expose him.” Brett laughed and shook his head, except his laugh was one of torment. “Now do you see why I want nothing to do with the man? He’s a money hungry parasite who will do anything for power and fuck over anyone he can to get what he wants. His determination to get me to speak him almost cost me the one thing I care about most in this world. He can rot in hell.”

  He got up from the bed and walked over to the window with his shoulders slumped. The clouds were gray just like his eyes, and the rain pouring down outside definitely reflected our somber moods.

  “I’m sorry,” I muttered softly. “I know it had to be hard to see him again and to find out what he did. What happens to him now? Will he get in trouble for knowing about Daniel’s dealings and not reporting him?”

  Brett scoffed, “Hell no. He gets to keep living life like nothing happened. He did agree to pay off Daniel’s debts in return for penance though.”

  “What’s going to happen to Daniel?”

  “I can answer that one,” Mason called out from the doorway. Claire followed him into the room with a huge bouquet of flowers.

  She rushed over and set them on the table before wrapping her arms around my neck. “Oh my God, I’m so glad you’re safe. I had no clue Daniel was so messed up in the head that he would kidnap you. I think that threw us all for a loop.”

  “How is he?” I whispered in her ear.

  She sniffled and quietly replied, “He’s awake and he says he wants to see you.”

  My heart dropped and I swallowed hard, barely able to breathe. Did I want to see him again after what he did? I shook my head and let the tears fall down my cheeks. “I don’t think I can see him,” I told her.

  Pulling back, she wiped the tears from under her eyes and nodded. “I understand. He just wanted me to tell you.”

  Mason sidled over to the bed and dropped something into my hand. It was warm from being in his grasp, and when I looked down, it was his mother’s watch that I’d lost in the woods. “I thought you might like this back,” he said with a smile. “You had us scared shitless when it traced to a set of woods. I was afraid we were going to find your body. It was the hardest hours of my life travelling up this way. Next time, don’t be stupid and try to escape when you knew we would be right behind you,” he teased.

  Brett joined us by the bed with his arms crossed. “Hopefully, there won’t be a next time. You don’t have any more psycho ex-husbands out there do you?”

  Snickering, I shook my head and held up my hands. “No more psycho exes. But what happens when Daniel gets out of jail. Surely, he’s not going to get life in prison for what he did, right?”

  Mason sighed. “No, he’s not going to get life in prison which means he will get out one day, but it’s not going to be anytime soon. And when he does, he won’t be able to get within a hundred feet of you. If I was him I would rather stay in prison. He’s not going to have a life when he gets out and he knows it. He didn’t even fight back when Brett tried to basically kill him. But you did a pretty good number on him with the lamp.”

  “I didn’t know what else to do,” I uttered sadly. I just wanted to forget the look in Daniel’s eyes when I bashed him in the head. It will always be a permanent mark on my heart.

  The room grew quiet and they could tell I didn’t want to talk anymore about what happened. Wary, Claire and Mason both tried to smile and left the room while Brett took a chair and moved it beside the bed. Taking my hand, he kissed it and held it in between both of his.

  “One day, the pain will be less,” he murmured gently, leaning over to brush the hair away from my face. “But I’ll be with you every day to make sure you get through it until it does. I can promise you that.”

  Smiling, I captured his hand with mine and held it to my face. “Good, because I’m going to hold you to that promise. I hope you know what you got yourself in to. I can be a little hard to handle sometimes.”

  He chuckled and stood up to kiss me, tracing his tongue lightly over my lips. “Oh, I’m always up for a challenge, firecracker. I look forward to it.”

  Me too.

  Thirty-Six

  Before leaving the hospital, I did something I didn’t think I would do or wanted to do for that matter. I went to see Daniel. Claire told me what room he was in and offered to walk in there with me, but I wanted to see him alone. Brett pushed me in the wheelchair down the hall to the room designated for him and on
ce outside the closed door, I licked my dry lips and hesitated. What reason would he have to want to see me after everything he did?

  Brett helped me up by grasping my arm gently, and other than feeling weak I was fine. There was a guard by the door who was stout like an ox, all bulky in his uniform, with a shaved head and kind smile. He nodded at us as we approached and moved aside so I could have access to the door.

  “Are you sure you want to do this?” Brett asked skeptically.

  Heaving a resounding sigh, I nodded my head and faced the door. “Yes, I’m sure. I’ll always wonder what he wanted if I don’t.”

  With my hand on the knob, I turned it slowly and opened the door, little by little. I walked in, taking quiet steps, until I could see the foot of Daniel’s bed. Carefully, I turned the corner and gasped when his face came into view. His head was wrapped in gauze, his eyes were swollen and black, and his nose was crooked from what I assumed was from a punch by Brett’s fist. Shockingly, he was actually breathing on his own.

  I sat in the chair beside his bed and watched him. His eyes were closed and his breathing was even. For about fifteen minutes I sat there waiting on him to wake up, and when he didn’t, I quietly ambled over to the door, not getting very far. I froze immediately when I heard the sound of Daniel’s voice, all raspy and hoarse, calling out my name.

  “Melissa,” he whispered.

  Turning my head ever so slowly, I gazed at him from over my shoulder. His face was toward me, but with his eyes so swollen I didn’t know if he could really see me. He repeated my name again in his gruff and beaten voice, “Melissa.”

  I blew out a shaky breath and answered, “I’m here, Daniel. Claire told me you had something to say so I’m here.” My eyes pooled with unshed tears, and in a way I knew I shouldn’t feel sad with the way he landed himself all broken in a hospital bed. It was his fault he made terrible choices in life, but …