Inseparable

by Missy Johnson

  After a few moments, he came back to me at the foot of the bed.

  “I might call Aaron, try and get some information out of him. Meet me downstairs in the café later for a coffee? I asked. He nodded, leaning in to kiss me.

  “See you later.” He smiled, his fingers trailing down my hand until they let go. I stood by the window, watching him as he hugged his father, feeling so lucky that I had found such a wonderful man.

  Aaron ended up meeting me for a coffee, in a small café just down from the hospital. Apparently, the coffee in the hospital was pretty bad. I’d been waiting at the table for a few minutes when he walked in. He spotted me, and smiled, ordering his drink and then joining me.

  “Lily.” He smiled, sitting down. “How are you? How’s Dane?” He asked, concerned.

  “I’m good, and Dane is…coping.” I finally said, smiling. “Did you find anything out, about what might’ve happened to Steffy?”

  “The detectives briefly interviewed her. She’s pretty overwhelmed, and scared. She should be released tonight from hospital. It won’t be long until this story leaks to the media, and Steffy’s parents have been advised to take her somewhere private to recover.”

  “The media is going to be crazy.” I mumbled. Of the fifteen girls recovered yesterday, all were runaways, except Steffy. What happened to them was in no way any less of a crime that what happened to Steffy, but to the media, a girl abducted at six, a man charged with her murder who died while in prison, and the girl being found alive ten years later was a massive story.

  “They will, so it’s important Steffy be kept out of the spotlight as much as possible while she recovers,” he agreed, as the waitress brought our coffees over. Stirring a sugar into my coffee, I listened as Aaron told me more about what had been discovered in the warehouse. It made me sick to think what all those girls had been through. How could someone treat other people in that way?

  After leaving Aaron, I texted Dane that I’d be back at the hotel, and went to find Kella. She and Fraser were in their hotel room, packing their things.

  “Frase just spoke to Dane. He offered them his plane to get Steffy out of New York. Apparently Danes parents have a cabin in Stacy Beach where they’re going to stay until things blow over with the media. Frase also knows a guy who’s organized one of the top trauma psychiatrists in the states to work with Steffy,” she added.

  “Is there anyone you don’t know, Fraser?” I said, laughing in spite of the somber mood we were all in. Fraser grinned.

  “Then I won’t mention the pediatrician I’ve organized too,” he winked at me. I laughed again, still stunned by Fraser's generosity.

  “When are you guys heading off?” I asked.

  “When the pilot gets back tonight.” Kella replied. “What are you doing?” She asked me. That was a good question. I figured Dane was going to want to spend some time with his family, so for me that probably meant heading back home. Maybe I could talk mom and Anna into coming up for a visit.

  “I will head back with you guys and give Dane some time with his family.”

  Dane came back to the hotel for his suitcase, and to give me a proper goodbye before heading off to the cabin with his family.

  “I’m going to miss you, sexy.” He whispered as he pressed his lips against mine. Smiling, I put my arms around his neck, my fingers playing with the hair above his collar. He leaned down, our lips connecting in a long kiss.

  “I’m going to miss you too.” I smiled. He looked so happy, and I felt lucky that I was able to contribute to his happiness. “When will you be back?” I asked.

  “I think in about a week, or so. It really depends on how Steffy goes, and how mom and dad are.” He cocked his head to the side, his beautiful eyes catching the light in the room. “I’m going to want to get back to you as soon as possible.” He murmured, smiling. He kissed me again, this time with more urgency, as if he were trying to make up for all the kisses he’d miss over the next week.

  “Call me when you get there.” I watched as he picked up his suitcase, and walked to the door. He smiled.

  “I’ll call you every day.” He chuckled. “Twice a day, even. I love you Lily.”

  “I love you too.” I said softly as the door closed behind him.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Lying on my bed, I texted Dane, wishing so badly that he was here with me. He’d been gone over a week, and though we spoke every day and texted constantly, I missed him like crazy.

  Mom and Anna were coming up today for a few nights, and I couldn’t wait to see them.

  I had explained everything about Dane and Steffy to mom, even Abby’s dreams. She had been shocked, and I was sure there was a little bit of guilt there for not believing me in the past. My phone buzzed, my stomach fluttered when I realized it was Dane.

  “Hey you.” I said, smiling, pulling my knees up to my stomach.

  “Hey back.” He said. “What are you doing?”

  “Not much. Lying down. Mom and Anna are on their way up for a couple of nights. How’s Steffy?” I asked, just as I did every time we spoke, even if it was four times a day.

  “She’s not bad, Lil. She’s not saying much, pretty quiet, but she was sitting up with mom and I before, watching Community, laughing, which was so great to hear.” He added. My heart swelled. I was glad Steffy was getting better slowly, and hopefully that meant he’d be back in my arms soon.

  “And you? How are you?” I asked, wondering if he had been sleeping. “You better be looking after yourself.” I joked. He laughed.

  “I am. I can’t wait to get back home though.” He said, yawning.

  “I can’t wait to have you home.” I answered, sighing.

  “Have I told you how amazing you are, Lil?” He asked suddenly. I laughed. “No, really, Lil, you are amazing, and I love you.” He added seriously.

  “You’re the amazing one.” I said, a giddy smile on my face. I always got like this when he told me he loved me. Hearing those words, no matter how often he said them, made my heart go completely crazy. “Love you too, Dane.”

  Mom and Anna arrived just after lunch. A soon as I heard the car pull up, I raced outside and waited impatiently for them to get out of the car so I could hug them both. I felt as though the whole day had been wasted waiting. Waiting for mom and Anna, waiting for Dane, just waiting for something.

  “It’s so good to see you guys. I’ve missed you.” I cried, embracing them both at the same time. Anna laughed and tried to squirm away. “Oh not you don’t, brat!” I grabbed hold of her tightly, peppering her with big wet kisses as she laughed. Mom smiled as she unloaded the car.

  “How are you feeling, honey? How’s Dane?” She asked, concerned.

  “He’s good. Steffy is slowly talking, which is good.” I added. Mom shook her head sadly.

  “It’s been all over the news.” She said, her voice laced with shock, and disbelief. I groaned.

  It had been all over the news, and on the front page of every paper. Somehow, my name had managed not to pop up yet, but I was waiting for it. I felt like as soon as I let my guard down, hundreds of reporters would jump out of nowhere shouting questions about my dead sister.

  Aaron assured me my name would not be released, but what if other people spoke out? Like Cole Chambers?

  I showed Anna around the house, and mom seemed impressed that it looked a little more homely that it had when she was last here. After the grand tour, we sat down. Anna talked my ear off about school and sports, and her friends.

  “Hey, you didn’t answer my Facebook message!” I said, accusingly, suddenly remembering she hadn’t replied. Anna rolled her eyes.

  “Facebook? That’s for old people. All my friends are on Tumblr.” She said smugly. Only my fourteen year old sister could make me feel so old. “But for you, I’ll check my Facebook occasionally.” She added, as though she were doing me a huge favor. I laughed, giving her a nudge.

  “Gee thanks.” I said sarcastically.

  For the next
few hours, we caught up. It was this kind of thing I missed the most, yet at the same time this kind of thing reminded me the most of Abby.

  Mom had started a new job, which paid more and meant shorter hours. She was even dating, according to Anna, an accusation that mom strongly denied.

  We ate dinner (I cooked a roast chicken), both mom and Anna surprised I’d actually managed to do it without burning it. And it actually tasted okay! After Anna had gone to bed, mom and I sat up, talking.

  “Are you going okay, Lily?” Mom asked seriously. Right away, I knew she was asking about Abby.

  “I’m fine, mom. Really.” I added, as she looked at me uncertainly.

  “Would you tell me if you weren’t?” She asked softly. I made a face. Probably not. Mum laughed. “Well, at least you’re being honest.” She tried to joke, although I could tell she was hurt.

  “I want to be able to tell you things, it’s just…” I stopped, wanting to word this correctly, the last thing I wanted to do was hurt mom.

  “You sometimes feel as though I maybe don’t get it?” Mom supplied. That was exactly how I felt.

  “Yes.” I said, surprised, and thankful, she understood.

  “I’m sorry if you feel I haven’t been there for you since Abby died.” Mom began. She held her hand up as I went to defend her. “No, Lily, let me finish. I should’ve been more of a support for you after Abby died, and I’m sorry I wasn’t. When you were seeing her, I’m sorry I dismissed that so quickly.” Mom put her hand over mine. “Can you forgive me?”

  “There’s nothing to forgive mom. You were grieving the loss of Abby, and then your marriage, and trying to raise Anna and me. I never felt as though you weren’t there for me, and when I was seeing Abby, even I thought I was crazy.” I said, trying my best to reassure her.

  “This has been good, Lil. I needed this, and I think you did too.” Mom hugged me, then headed to bed. Glancing at my phone, I saw I had missed a call from Dane. I readied myself for bed, and once in my room, I called him. He answered almost right away.

  “Hey sexy.” He said, his voice warm, full of love.

  “Hey.” I said softly. “How are you?”

  “Good. Mom and dad will be taking Steffy home tomorrow, probably.” He said.

  “That’s great news.” I smiled. “Does that mean I will have you back, too?”

  “Yeah.” He hesitated for the slightest second. “I will probably spend a night at home, and then I’m all yours.”

  “I can’t wait to see you.” I sighed, lying down in my bed. Closing my eyes, I listened to his voice, imagining he was here next to me, holding me.

  “Me too, Lil.” He murmured softly. “Love you.” We both hung up. Curling up in bed, I drifted off to sleep as I thought about Dane.

  Opening my eyes, I saw Abby sitting on the end of the bed. Sitting up, I smiled at her.

  “Hey you.” I said, happy to see her again. It had been a few days since she had visited me, which made me nervous. I wasn’t sure why. I guess I was just used to seeing her every day.

  “Hey Liligirl.” Abby smiled, her green eyes looked so full of life, which was ironic, all things considered. “How’s Dane?”

  “He’s good.” I said, glancing over my shoulder at him. “You haven’t been to see me.” I said, almost suspiciously. She rolled her eyes at me.

  “Lil, I’m always going to be here for you. Anytime you need to talk, I’ll come.” She began. I sensed there was more coming. “You need to move on, Lil. I can’t be the main part of your life anymore. Your focus needs to be Dane, just as his focus is you.” Her words came out softly, but I felt as though she was shouting them at me. What she was saying made a lot of sense to me, which was partly what made hearing it that much harder.

  “So, what are we talking? Once or twice a week?” I asked hopefully, not wanting to let go of her completely. I wasn’t ready for that. Abby sighed, and grinned.

  “Sure Lil, once a week, then.”

  I showed mom and Anna around town, including, at Anna’s insistence, the spot where Dane had broken my toe. Mom had looked slightly annoyed when she’d found out I hadn’t tripped over, but Dane had in fact, broken it. We went back to my place for a coffee, before mom and Anna got ready to head back home.

  “Thanks for coming, mom.” I said, giving her a hug. Anna stood by, rolling her fourteen year old eyes in embarrassment. I laughed, positive that I was once like that.

  “Come here, Anna.” I said, holding my arms out. Reluctantly, she hugged me. “Call me when you get home.” I said as they both got into the car. I waved as they took off down the street, suddenly feeling homesick. Trudging back inside, I tried to focus on catching up on some of the schoolwork I’d missed out on over the last few weeks. At least my professors had been pretty understanding in giving me an extension when I was able to produce a medical certificate, thanks to another friend of Fraser’s.

  It didn't take me long to give up on my work. Picking up my phone, I called Gem, something I should've done way before now, but had been so preoccupied with everything. She had left me several messages, and thinking back about how it looked to her, one day I'm here and the next I'm unreachable, I was surprised she didn't call the police.

  "Lily! Where the hell have you been?" She demanded, both annoyed and worried. "I've been trying to call you for days!"

  "I am so sorry, Gem, I should've called you and I completely forgot." I said, feeling like an idiot. I explained everything to her, from racing to New York and finding Steffy, right through to my dreams and Abby.

  "Wow, that's…I don't even know what to say." She gasped. "I saw on the news about the girls they found, and it made me think of Dane, but I never for a second thought it might be Steffy." The court case meant the media weren't able to mention Steffy by name, but I wondered how long it would take for the whole story to break.

  Gem and I spoke for a while longer, arranging to meet for a coffee the following week to catch up. After our conversation, I went into the kitchen to work out what there was to eat.

  Opening the cupboard, I cursed myself for not shopping while in town with mom and Anna. The only thing in the whole house that was edible was some instant noodles. Even I couldn’t get them wrong. Parking myself in front of the television, with my bowl of noodles, I watched old episodes of Friends, while wondering if four in the afternoon was too early to go to sleep. Just as I was about to give up and go to bed, my cell rang.

  “Hey.” I smiled into the phone, caller ID already telling me it was Dane.

  “Hey sexy.” He said. “I miss you.”

  “Miss you too.” I laughed. “How’s Steffy? You’re back at your parents’ home now?” I asked.

  “Yeah. We just got back. I was thinking I might stay here for a few more days, just to make sure everything is okay. I keep thinking as soon as I leave, something’s going to happen, you know?” He sounded stressed. I wondered if this was part of the guilt he was feeling for being home when Steffy had been kidnapped.

  “Stay as long as you need to.” I said, trying my best to reassure him. An idea was starting to form in my head. His parents only lived half an hour from here. What was to stop me from driving to see him? The idea of actually meeting Steffy face to face was completely daunting for me, but something I really wanted to do.

  “I have to go, Dane. I will call you soon, I promise.” I tried to keep the excitement out of my voice, so as not to give away my plan.

  “Okay Lil. Love you.”

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  After calling Kella, and getting permission to borrow her car (and getting his parents address from Fraser), I quickly packed a bag and jumped in the car. The drive to his parents was actually only twenty minutes, so it was even closer than I thought.

  The entire drive I kept imagining the look on Danes face when he saw me. For the briefest moment, it crossed my mind that maybe he wouldn’t appreciate me turning up at his parents’ house, but I pushed those thoughts out of my head.

  As I d
rove through the streets of Templeton, I took in the big houses and sprawling green lawns. This is where Dane grew up. I passed the elementary school he would’ve gone to, and the high school he would’ve graduated from.

  Down Elizabeth Street, Dane’s parents’ house was on the corner. High fences surrounded the front yard. The house itself looked massive, something you’d expect in a TV show. The electronic gates required me to announce my arrival. So much for the big surprise.

  I parked on the corner, and walked up to the gates, pressing the small intercom button. I recognized Dane’s fathers’ voice right away. He sounded guarded, as if he had been fielding calls from the media all day.

  “Hi, Mr. Hanson. It’s Lily Somerton, Danes, uh, friend?” I squeaked, suddenly extremely unsure of how to announce myself.

  “Oh! Lily! Come in.” He gushed. The gates opened, and I walked through them, and down to the concrete path that led to the front door. Before I could knock, the door opened, both Dane’s parents appeared, smiling, and happy.

  “Lily.” Mrs. Hansen hugged me. “Dane didn’t tell us you were coming to visit! Is he with you?” I looked at her strangely. As far as I knew, he was here, with them. At least, that’s what he told me half an hour ago.

  “No, I came here to surprise him.” I said, smiling at her. She took my hand and led me inside. Their house was lovely. It made Dane’s place back home look like a tiny little shack. We walked into a living area that looked as though it was rarely ever used.

  “Sit down and I will get us some drinks. Tea? Coffee?” She asked. Danes father came in and patted his wife on the arm.

  “You sit down with Lily, and I will get the drinks. What would you like, Lily?” He asked me.

  “A coffee would be lovely, thanks. White with one.” I added, as I sat down on one of the cream leather couches. “How are you guys? And Steffy?” I asked, trying not to jump on the thing that was bothering me most. Where was Dane?