A Safe Place To Fall (The Fall Book 1)

by Jessica Kile

  “Hey,” Drew's groggy voice said from a chair beside the bed. “It's about time I got to see those eyes. How are you feeling?”

  “Like some jerk-face tried to shoot my arm off.”

  Was that her raspy voice?

  He reached over to the small table to pour some water into a small cup, and offered the cup to her. “Here drink some of this.”

  She greedily emptied the cup. The water tamed down the dryness of her throat, but didn't fully take it away. How long had she been asleep?

  “You've been out of surgery for a couple of hours,” Drew informed her, reading her mind. “Your mom and dad are outside in the hall.”

  Lana groaned. “Why did you call them?”

  “Oh, I don't know,” Drew began, “maybe, because their daughter got shot.”

  She gave a lame attempt at rolling her eyes. “Big deal.”

  He chose to ignore her attitude. “I'll go let the nurse know you are awake. Don't move, not even an inch.”

  As if she could move with the burning sensation in her arm. Getting shot was for the birds. How it had happened replayed in her mind in a slow replay. How could she have forgotten to take the safety off?

  Stupid. Stupid. Stupid.

  Now she would have to deal with lectures not only from Drew, but her parents. Her parents. Drew owed her for going against her wishes and contacting her parents. What made him think that was a good idea, anyway?

  “Oh, Honey,” her mother cried, running into the room. “I can't believe I almost lost you!”

  And the dramatics begin.

  “You didn't almost lose me, mom. He shot my arm not my heart,” Lana pointed out the obvious.

  “He shot my baby girl.” Her mother had tears in her eyes.

  Lana moved her hand away from her mother's searching ones. “I'm fine mom. Quit being so dramatic. I hate it when you do this.”

  It may have been rude, but the medication kept her from caring.

  Her mom had a flare for drama. Lana admitted being shot was probably a big deal; yet, people got shot every day. Some lived, some didn't. She had been one of the lucky ones, who only received an arm wound. In her mind it was simple, and there was no need for all of the drama.

  “I knew we should never have let you come here,” her overprotective dad said from the door way. “When you get out of here you're going home with us.”

  As if!

  That was her father, always trying to take control of a situation. Little did he know, this would have happened even if she had stayed in Charleston. Devin had followed her. This had roots' back home; eventually he would have snapped.

  “I'm not going home,” she replied weakly.

  Conrad stalked angrily into the room. “I'm your father, and you'll do as I say.”

  “No, I won't,” she did her best to yell. It came out more as a squeal.

  Real convincing, Lana.

  “Now is not the time, Conrad,” Sandra told her husband. “She just came out of anesthesia.”

  The nurse chose that moment to walk into the room. “It's important that nobody does or says anything to upset the patient.”

  The patient, as if she did not have a name. To the nurse she was just one of many people who would be in and out of this room. Why would she take time to bother to learn Lana's name?

  At least the woman was trying to get her parents to shut up.

  The nurse gave Lana a friendly smile. “I'm Nelly, are you feeling any pain?”

  Was she feeling any pain? It was a stupid question everyone seemed to be asking today. Of course she felt pain; she had just been shot in the arm for crying out loud.

  “I feel like I've been shot,” Lana repeated the same reply she had given to Drew. She hated repeating herself.

  The nurse, who reminded her of that short black doctor on Grey's Anatomy, chuckled. “Well, I do suppose that's normal.” The woman busied herself with checking her vitals. “You gave that man of yours' a scare.”

  At the mention of Drew's name, Lana looked around the small room. Where was he? Why had he not come back yet? She needed him by her side to feel an ounce of comfort.

  “He went down to the gift shop,” Nelly supplied, switching bags on the IV stand and pressing buttons. “He wanted to give your parents time with you.”

  Sure he did.

  If he was staying away, it meant he was avoiding someone. That someone was, no doubt, standing in this room. Lana's money was on the person being her dad. What had her father said to keep Drew away?

  “Don't pout, child, he'll be back soon.” Was it just her, or did Nelly sound a little like that hippo nurse off of Doc Mcstuffins?

  Wow. The drugs really were messing with her head.

  “The doctor will be in later on,” the nurse went on when Lana remained silent. “I'll leave you and your parents to talk. Calmly.” She had looked at the couple when she said the last remark.

  Lana closed her eyes and prayed for patience in dealing with her parents. They wanted her to go home with them. That was the whole reason why she had kept the stalking a secret from them. Besides what could they have possibly done that Drew hadn't?

  “You're going home with us,” her dad broke the silence, “and that's final.”

  She ignored him. When it came time to go home she knew she would not be going with them. The days of her father controlling her life were over. If she could face down a stalker, she could face down her father.

  ***************************

  Drew tossed and turned in bed that night. Lana's dad had stated that Drew would not be staying at the hospital, not even in the waiting room. Her father had it out for him.

  He kept seeing her laying in blood, and could hear her moans of pain. Not being able to take away her pain had caused him pain. This had to have been the hardest day of his life.

  Just thinking about what could have happened if Devin had better aim made him want to puke. To make matters even worse, Conrad was planning to force Lana to go home with him. She didn't want to go and had made that clear. Her objections didn't seem to faze the older man. No doubt, Conrad always got what he wanted.

  Fear of losing Lana to her father clogged Drew's throat. The idea of not having her by his side during normal times felt wrong. He needed her.

  Drew punched his pillow angrily. He shouldn't be in this bed while Lana was laying in that hospital bed. What gave Conrad the right to dictate to him where he should be?

  The next day found him facing an unhappy Lana.

  “You didn't come back,” she pouted. “You said you were going for the nurse, and then you didn't come back.”

  He sighed. “I wanted to, honey, I really did.” Casting a glance to the door where her father could be on the other side listening; he continued, “Something came up.”

  Her eyes narrowed. “Something like my father?”

  Well, didn't she just hit the nail on the head.

  “He's just trying to protect you,” he told her.

  She rolled her eyes. “He's being controlling. He's another reason I came to Morgantown.”

  He squeezed the hand he was holding. “Once he realizes the threat has been removed he will change his mind.”

  “No, he won't,” she sighed, looking more than a little melancholy. “I'll have to confront him, and it will get ugly. He doesn't like it when things don't go his way.”

  It sounded as if Conrad and his father had a lot in common. No wonder he had been drawn to Lana from the very beginning. They had both lived in the same type of hell.

  **************************

  It had been an ugly scene when Lana told her dad that she refused to move back to Charleston. Her father had abruptly left, but not before he told her not to come running back to him crying when this all fell apart.

  What he did not say screamed at her; don't come home at all. He obviously refused to believe that staying was the best thing for her.

  Her mother h
ad followed him out in tears.

  Lana, arm in cast, had left the hospital just days after the surgery. She was unsure if her parents were even aware she had been released.

  It doesn't matter, she told herself, you're where you need to be.

  Chapter 24

  3 months later

  Lana cast one last look around the bedroom she had occupied while living with Ricky. At moments she felt bad for leaving him all alone; he had always been a sweet roommate. Not once had he not put the sock on the door handle when he had company.

  “You got everything?” Drew came into the room.

  “I think so,” she replied, as strong arms circled her waist from behind.

  “Ready to go home?” he asked his breath brushing her ear.

  Home was where ever Drew happened to be. As long as she had him she knew she would be more than fine. She thought he felt the same about her.

  Without saying a word she pulled away from him and led him out the door.

  Drew pulled her to a stop just before they reached their apartment. Standing outside the door was no one other than Shawn. Her immediate reaction was to turn and run the other way.

  Before she could run Shawn turned his head and spotted them.

  Crap.

  “What are you doing here?” Drew demanded to know, putting himself in front of Lana.

  Shawn held his hands up in a symbol of surrender. “I need to apologize to Lana...about before...”

  Drew turned his head to the side and whispered, “You don't have to talk to him if you don't want to.”

  Lana knew she could send Shawn away and nobody would hold it against her. Just the same, she felt as if she kind of owed Shawn. If it had not been for him telling Drew what he had discovered about his cousin; she could have easily bled out on that bedroom floor.

  “Let him talk,” she told Drew, grabbing his hand. “Just don't leave me.”

  “If you say so.”

  They led the way into the unlocked apartment and she took the last bag into the room that once belonged to Chris. Chris recently moved into Tammy's apartment to allow Lana to permanently move in with Drew. She refused to step foot into the room she had been shot in.

  “Get it over with,” she said, on the borderline of being rude.

  Shawn wiped his hands on the legs of his blue jeans. “About graduation...”

  Lana wrapped her arms around herself, stepping closer to Drew, drawing from his strength. She did not know if she was strong enough to face those memories on her own.

  “It should never have happened,” he blurted.

  You think?

  “I was afraid you would leave, and I would never get another chance with you,” he admitted sitting down in the chair that Chris always sat in. “I was messed up on a lot of shit that night and it caused me to misread a lot of signs.”

  How could you misread the signs of a girl begging you to get off of her?

  “I just thought you were trying to make me work for it, or you liked it rough,” he told her, running his hands through his spiky hair. “The next morning, when I was sober, I realized what I had done.”

  “Why didn't you try to contact her?” Drew spoke up, wrapping his arms around her shoulders and pulling her closer.

  “I was afraid I would just freak her out,” Shawn confessed. “Hell, we were kids, I didn't know how to handle the situation.”

  It was a weak apology, but oddly enough Lana understood. Her brothers had done a lot of stupid stuff under the influence of alcohol and lite drugs; not that her parents had ever known about those activities. Granted, as far as she knew, her brothers had never raped anyone.

  “I'm not saying I will ever be okay with what you did,” Lana admitted, “but I'm adult enough to forgive you. Hell, as bad as what you did was, it doesn't compare to what Devin put me through.”

  His eyes widened. “I'm so sorry I didn't go into that room sooner. If I'd had any idea that was going on, I would have put a stop to it myself.”

  She shivered at the meaning of his words. The thought of anyone killing someone on her behalf was just chilling.

  “Thanks, I think.”

  “Well, I think I'm done here,” Shawn said, standing up. “I want you to know, I am clean now. If you ever need anything don't be afraid to call.”

  It was a phone call Lana knew she would never make.

  Nobody made a comment until Shawn let himself out the door.

  “I wonder how he feels about his cousin being sent to the same ward his mother is in?” Drew asked.

  Lana allowed her head to fall back against his shoulder. “I don't think he cares that much. He practically admitted if he had discovered the truth about Devin sooner, he would have killed him.”

  “How are you feeling right now?”

  She shrugged her shoulders. “It's time to move on.”

  Truthfully, Lana wasn't sure what to feel. Things seemed to be lining up too well after all of the drama that had unfolded since she arrived in Morgantown. She couldn't help, but to wait for the next foot to drop

  All she knew for sure was she wanted Drew by her side for whatever happened.

  Epilogue

  1 year later

  “Hurry up,” Ricky shouted from the living room of his apartment. “We're going to be late!”

  Lana made one last inspection in the mirror. It was a complete turn-around from last year. There was no skin-tight, revealing black dress; instead, a red plaid long sleeved shirt cinched at the waist with a belt and a long blue jean skirt sat in its' place.

  This was her style now that she and Drew lived in his family's cabin. They had tried living in his old apartment, but after a month of nightmares Drew decided they needed to get away from the place that held all of the bad memories. The cabin had been a place that represented safety for her; so, there had been no choice of where they needed to live.

  The location of the cabin was also great for the band. The fallen Angels had gain popularity and had been playing shows near Wheeling and small bars in surrounding areas. On nights they played in Wheeling most of the band stayed with Drew and Lana.

  The cabin was also their favorite writing spot. Lana couldn't blame them. The scenery was amazing. It was well worth the commute for the bad, along with Drew and Lana to get to class.

  “You look hot,” Tracie said from the bed. “Now let's go before the vein in Ricky's head explodes.”

  The two women giggled as they walked out the door.

  Ricky was a control freak, even if he tried to deny it. It was probably a good thing he was gay because that controlling gene of his would drive a woman crazy. The friends often butted heads when Mr. Controlling reared his head.

  “Finally,” Ricky said in feigned irritation. “Let's get out of here.”

  Lana watched him use his cane to assist getting up from his chair and felt a moment of guilt. Her stalker had done that to him. If she hadn't run away to the cabin, Ricky would not have a permanent leg injury. It was a reminder of her dark past every time she was near her friend.

  Tracie put an arm through Lana's and guided her through the door. “Don't let him see that look on your face.”

  “It's my fault,” Lana whispered back.

  “How many times do I have to tell you nothing that happened last year was your fault?”

  Lana sighed. She knew Devin had made the decision to stalk her and cause others pain along with her; but no matter how many times she reminded herself of the facts, she couldn't help still feeling responsible.

  They both remained silent the rest of the way to the car. The drive to the club was just as silent. Lana knew she needed to lose the mood that had settled over her. Tonight was about friends coming together to celebrate her.

  Lana's jaws dropped when she walked through the door of the back room of the club. Drew had out-done himself. There was a country vibe in the room tonight. The tables had wildflowers in vases as centerpieces with decorative country themed table cloths. Over the
ir heads, white Christmas lights had been strung across the dark ceiling to make it appear they were under a starry sky.

  “This is amazing,” Lana breathed.

  “You should have seen it last year,” Tracie stated offhandedly, taking in the view.

  A sad smile formed on Lana's lips at the reminder of the birthday party that had never happened. Instead of dancing the night away while her man and his band performed; she had been rushed to the hospital with a gunshot wound.

  Tonight was her do-over. She really needed to shake this mood!

  “Happy birthday, honey,” Drew said, dropping a kiss on her mouth. He had walked up to her at some point when she was lost in the past.

  “This is beautiful,” Lana complimented him with a small smile.

  “I had a little help,” Drew stated simply.

  “A little help,” Tammy huffed walking over to them. “Try a lot of help!”

  “OK, I had a lot of help,” Drew admitted with a glare at his sister. “Happy now, sis?”

  Tammy smiled. “You know it.”

  Lana shook her head listening to the siblings bicker back and forth. They always did this whenever they got together. It made them sound like they couldn't stand each other, but in reality the exact opposite was true. Tammy had recently become the band's manager.

  “Where's Chris?” Lana asked, searching the crowd for Drew's former roommate.

  “He already ran off with some girl,” Tammy replied with an eye roll.

  Lana had the distinct impression the other girl's annoyance was covering up the fact that Chris' play boy behavior hurt her. Feelings could grow stronger once two people began living under the same roof. Only time would tell what was meant to happen with them.

  “Hey, Drew, you ready to play or what?” the lead singer of the band called from the stage.

  Drew sent a nod in the direction of the stage. “I gotta hit the stage.” He dropped another kiss on her mouth. “Save a dance for me.”

  “Always,” she promised as he walked away from her.

  ***********************