The Doctor's Little Girl

by Mary Hope

  “I’M SORRY MISS, but this is the last stop for the night,” the bus driver said. He stared at Nina with helpless pity in his eyes.

  “But sir...I can’t just get off here. It’s in the middle of the woods.”

  Nina Harper stared out the tall glass windows of the bus. The rain was pouring down and every minute turned the skies darker. Wouldn’t be long and it would be completely dark out. “It’s also raining. Don’t you see that?”

  The driver nodded, tipped his hat up on his forehead and stared outside. He let out a deep sigh and his shoulders sagged. Then he turned away from Nina so that he didn’t have to look her in the eyes.

  “Miss I’m sorry, I really am,” he said, “but this is the last stop for the night. I have to have everyone off the bus.”

  Nina’s eyes filled with tears, but she said nothing.

  It looked so cold out, windy, as though any moment a bolt of lightning might strike. The thought sent cold water through her veins. She started to sweat and her stomach fluttered with something like panic.

  “I could lose my job over it,” the bus driver added.

  “But sir…”

  Nina hesitated. She stopped talking.

  Her intuition whispered to her that the driver was not going to change his mind, no matter how much his conscience tugged at him. He didn’t want to lose his job and Nina understood that.

  But she also knew that she had a phobia that she could not control.

  An irrational, terrible fear of storms.

  She wasn’t sure how to tell this stranger the truth about her.

  Nina grabbed the seat beside her with a sweaty palm. She blurted, “I’m afraid of storms…”

  The only sound between her and the driver was the rain as it fell. A million soft taps hit the metal roof of the bus and the melody filled the air between them.

  “I have a phobia of them.”

  “Of rain?”

  “No,” she said, “thunder.” And her eyes drifted outside again to the heavy gray clouds, “lightning.”

  He looked surprised at this admission. “I’m sorry miss, I really am. But Littletown was three stops back and you missed your stop and well, now I have to see you off this bus.” The driver gripped at the steering wheel nervously.

  “But can’t I ride back?”

  “No miss.”

  The bus driver looked her over once more, this time with a little more skepticism. Then he ducked his head and looked out the front window. “Looks like it’s just going to rain tonight. I don’t think we’ll see any thunder,” he said. “You should be… safe.”

  Safe. Yea right.

  Nina couldn’t remember the last time she’d ever felt safe, especially in the city. That’s why she’d come to this place, or tried to at least. Her cousin had told her of the special life she’d lived here. She wanted to see for herself.

  But this place wasn’t turning out any better so far.

  The bus driver tipped his hat up on his head, visibly losing some of his patience.

  Nina wanted to cry.

  Outside was filled with tall trees as far as she could see, encasing the long winding highway like two high walls.

  “Where are we? I don’t understand how I missed the stop to Littletown.”

  “Littletown is tucked away in the woods. Real private. You should have told me you were heading that way,” he chided her, “I don’t get many people who ride all the way out here.” The bus driver motioned out of the bus toward the trees, and Nina assumed there must be a town behind it all.

  “I just need to find my cousin. She knows I’m coming and she expects me. We were going to meet at a diner in Littletown. Couldn’t you at least give me a ride back on your way out of town?”

  “Miss I could be fined, or lose my job,” he shook his head in resignation. “My hands are tied, I can’t do that.”

  His lack of information and willingness to find a better solution frustrated Nina.

  She sighed, and peered out the window again.

  She would just have to take her chances and hope that she could walk back to Littletown before it got too dark.

  Or before the storm came.

  But the drizzling rain outside did not look good and it made Nina nervous. She wrapped her long tan coat around her shoulders, and stepped off the bus in the middle of the woods.

  BLAKE MERRIN got home from a long and fulfilling day as head doctor of Littletown’s premier—and only—medical clinic.

  He smiled, thinking of the last patient he treated for the day. James had brought in his little girl Tina. She’d stubbed her big toe while running and playing around the house. “She’s quite the handful,” James had said with a big smile on his face.

  He’d made playful small-talk with Blake, but the concern was clear in the man’s eyes as he watched his little girl’s face during her surgery. Blake had been as careful as he could, aware he was handling the health of a little in the charge of another man.

  And the whole time, Blake couldn’t help but think of how much he wanted a little of his own. A girl to protect and keep safe and guide. After all, he thought, he was a doctor and if she ever had accidents he would be able to keep her healthy.

  He watched James’s little during the surgery, and how she’d stuffed her face into James’s shoulder because she did not want to watch. She was adorable, beautiful, precious.

  And she wasn’t Blake’s.

  When Blake was finished with the surgery, he’d bandaged Tina’s foot. Then he gave James a prescription for Tina, and instructions that would help her heal as quickly as possible.

  “She’ll be back to being a handful in no time,” Blake had reassured Tina’s very worried daddy. “Don’t worry James. It looks much worse than it is. Come back in a few weeks and we’ll take a look at Tina’s progress.”

  Blake sighed.

  He slid the key into the front door of his large two-story house, and stepped inside.

  The place was too large, he thought. Too much house for just one man.

  Seeing Tina’s exuberance even though her toe hurt, and the way she clung to her daddy for comfort during the surgery sent a twinge of something akin to jealousy through Blake.

  Not real jealousy of course. He was happy for the couples in Littletown, and it’s why he’d moved to the small community in the first place. He loved practicing medicine, and when he’d discovered that the town had no medical facilities, he was determined to open a clinic so the people didn’t have to drive to the city for medical care.

  But still there was a part of Blake that longed for a little of his own. Someone to take care of when he got home, someone to worry about during the day. To have a little of his own that would run around the house and be his own handful.

  He went into the kitchen, and began to make something to eat. This was part of the night he didn’t look forward to—coming home to an empty house with no one waiting for him. No one to wrap their arms around him, calling him daddy and being glad that he was finally home.

  Blake uncorked a small bottle of wine, and poured himself a glass. He took his plate to the living room and sat down in front of the coffee table.

  He turned the TV on, but not before glancing briefly at the empty dining room table across the large room. He sighed again.

  The places were set and the tablecloth was clean. Too clean.

  If he’d had a little of his own, Blake would insist on eating at the table, and no TV before finishing. He knew he wasn’t setting a good example, sitting in front of the TV with his dinner.

  He finished the last of the wine after dinner, and fell asleep in front of the TV just as he did most nights.

  NINA WRAPPED her coat around her little body, doing her best to avoid the lar
ge puddles that had begun to form on the side of the road.

  She walked down the slight bank along the edge, hoping that the foliage above would shield her from the worst of the rain.

  Where was Littletown?

  Nina’s heart raced. She must have been at least a mile or two away.

  She looked up at the darkened sky. It was raining hard. She hoped the bus driver was right, that there was no thunder and lightning coming. But something irrational in her brain insisted that it would. That the bolts of electricity would come crashing down hard, right on her head. There was nowhere to run, nowhere to turn.

  And Nina was all alone. Wet. Cold. Hungry.

  The rain started to pour down harder; the droplets ran through her hair and made her scalp cold.

  She walked under the trees, protecting herself from the elements as best she could. But she was still certain that if the lightning came, no amount of trees could keep her safe.

  Nina did her best not to panic and kept walking down the road.

  The pine needles crunched under her thin shoes. She took a deep breath in, trying her best to enjoy the smell.

  It’s so fresh. So clean. It smells wonderful, she told herself.

  She closed her eyes for a moment, taking in several more deep breaths. She had to come across that town sooner or later. But where was the road?

  Suddenly the sky seemed to open up, and something cracked through the air. Thunderous and terrifying.

  Nina jumped.

  Lighting.

  Moments later a giant billowing wave of thunder followed it above the trees.

  Oh no!

  Nina peed down her leg, until her entire bladder was empty. She couldn’t help it. Her body reacted to her fears and she was helpless to stop it.

  She began to run, deep into the trees and away from the road.

  Where was that town?

  Nina called out for help, yelling and struggling through the trees. The branches and underbrush seemed to grab at her like a hundred bony hands, pulling on her and slapping her.

  Again the lightning came, sending a loud crack through the air. Thunder followed quickly. The sound echoed through the air, and Nina felt as though she might pass out.

  She kept pushing through the branches.

  Thank god!

  Suddenly the forest opened to a perfectly manicured yard with a pool. The house was very big and from the looks of it, very empty.

  There wasn’t a light on at all.

  Was anyone home?

  Nina fretted. She was so scared.

  Should she knock on the front door?

  Surely no one would want to help her. She was well acquainted with disappointment, and she expected little from other people. And it wasn’t like she deserved special care. She knew that too.

  It was already completely dark out. How long had she been walking? She’d lost track of the time.

  She would only anger the people who lived in the house. She was sure of it.

  But she couldn’t stay outside. She would have a heart attack if she had to stay out in the storm. She had to find cover, no matter what.

  Nina ran up the large deck attached to the back of the house, and peered inside. It was huge, and very clean. It didn’t even look lived in.

  She peered around at the quaint neighborhood. The houses were all nice, and spaced apart nicely between the trees. It looked like a community development of some kind, those kind of communities that always had vacant, open houses. The ones that sat empty until someone bought it and moved in.

  Nine peered inside the window one more time.

  No one lived in this one. Good.

  She would take cover tonight, and then early tomorrow, when the storm passed and she’d gotten sleep, she would leave.

  She wouldn’t bother anyone, or ask anyone for help. She’d just take what she needed, and nothing more. Then she’d be on her way again just like she always was.

  Nina tried to open the door, but it was locked.

  Damn.

  Her hands were shaking from fear and her whole body felt numb.

  Think, Nina.

  She stepped toward the window next to the back door. It was open slightly.

  Thank god.

  Nina pulled the window up, and pulled herself up and over the sill.

  But she lost her footing, and fell onto the floor in a loud THUD!

  The windowsill slammed shut behind her.

  Nina laid on the ground, thankful to be out of the storm, and thankful that no one lived in the large and vacant house.

  BLAKE OPENED his eyes.

  He sat up on the couch and rested his hands on his knees.

  What was the noise?

  Lightning cracked loudly from somewhere outside. Thunder followed and it made the house crack and groan.

  Must have been the storm that me, he thought.

  Blake laid back down on the couch, and closed his eyes.

  Thud thud thud.

  He sat up again.

  Ok, that definitely wasn’t the storm.

  He stood up, then quietly rushed to the fireplace and picked up the iron poker that rested on the mantle.

  He gripped the handle tightly, and began to walk just as quietly toward the source of the sound. It almost sounded like footsteps, though he didn’t understand how that was possible. He was sure he’d locked everything up, and crime was practically non-existent in Littletown.

  People moved here to live a peaceful, loving life. Not to break into each other's homes.

  Thud thud thud.

  The sound was faint, but very sentient. It had to be a person, walking around his house.

  Blake brought his other hand to the poker so that he held it with both hands. He gripped the handle, readying himself to defend his house.

  It was a strange feeling for a doctor, to even think of inflicting harm and injury on a person. His whole life was dedicated to caring for people. Healing them.

  But something primal surged in him then, something that was more man than doctor, something savage that lived on the outside of acceptable society. Adrenaline surged in his blood as he neared the hallway.

  He was thankful he’d taken his shoes off earlier; it made it easy to get down the hallway silently. He was sure he’d heard the noise coming from the washroom.

  Movement.

  Blake could hear something rustling in the room. Like the sound of a coat.

  “I know you’re in there,” he bellowed.

  The movement stopped dead in its tracks.

  “What do you think you’re doing in my house?” he demanded.

  Whoever it was didn’t say a word.

  Blake lifted the iron poker above his head, and in one fell swoop he rushed into the washroom.

  He’d expected a man, a burglar on the other side of the wall. He had been so ready to take the guy’s head off.

  But what he saw stopped him in his tracks.

  He let the iron poker drop limply to his side. His body went numb and his mind swirled with a thousand questions.

  It was a girl.

  A young woman; wide-eyed, scared out of her mind and shaking as she sat underneath the table he’d set up to fold clothes on. She held her knees tightly to her, tucked into the corner and staring up at him.

  NINA’S BODY went into shock and it made her bones feel numb. She stared up at the very large man in the doorway. He was a heaving mass of muscle and most definitely alive. She couldn’t believe she had assumed the house was empty.

  Had he spoken?

  Somewhere in her mind Nina knew he’d said something, though she couldn’t remember what it was. She squinted her eyes, trying to recall. The fear of the storm was already too much, but this man had sent her over the edge and was as though some part of her had left her body in fear.

  “What are you doing in my house?” the man said. The words came out softly; in an instant his voice had switched from anger to a calm curiosity.

  “I...I was scared,” Nina whimpered. “I…
I was taking a bus to Littletown and I missed my stop. The bus driver kicked me out, even though there was a storm coming and it was the middle of the woods. I don’t like storms, I’m sorry, I… I didn’t know where else to go.”

  Adrenaline coursed through her veins and Nina gathered her body in closer to her, waiting for the man’s reaction.

  And what he did next was the strangest thing.

  He laughed.

  It wasn’t a loud laugh, but a throaty sound under his breath. His eyes turned serious.

  Concerned?

  Nina wasn’t sure. It was too soon to start making assumptions in her favor.

  “I’m not laughing at you,” the tall man said, as though he could read her mind and sought to calm it. “But that doesn’t really answer my question.”

  “Wh...but what do you mean?” Nina drew her legs tighter to her chest.

  “Well, people don’t normally break into other people’s homes just because there’s a storm.” He gently rested the fire poker onto the ground, leaning it onto the wall beside him. Then he stooped down to her level, and rested his elbows on his thighs.

  “Tell me why you’re really here,” he said. Then he added, “Please.”

  Nina gulped something invisible. She felt she might at least owe him that explanation, seeing that she broke into the man’s house and he had been kind enough not to get very angry with her. If anything, he seemed worried. Like maybe he cared.

  But he couldn’t. Nina knew that was impossible.

  “No I really meant what I said. I was on the bus, and the driver said I had to get off. The last bus stop isn’t very far from here.”

  “The bus,” he repeated her. He set his jaw, as though he was trying to understand and failing.

  “Why were you on the bus?”

  “I left the city.”

  There was something too kind in the man’s eyes. Nina looked away.

  Her heart was palpitating and she felt embarrassed.

  This man had beautiful light brown hair and blue eyes. Even in the dim light she could see that his eyes were a stunning blue. And he was big. Even as he crouched to her level, he was still looking down at her at an angle.

  Nina glanced at him again. He was wearing what looked like hospital clothes. His pants were a thin blue fabric, and he wore a white tank top that revealed his large, well-chiseled arms.