Masters accelerated, making his way to the town line. As fast as they were moving, the trip seemed to take forever. Everley ducked down as best as she could when Benny leaned out the window and started shooting. “Stop it!” she pleaded.
Benny had been angry plenty of times, and Everley was no stranger to his temper, but this was a side of him she'd never seen before. She knew everyone would insist that his insanity wasn’t her fault, but she couldn’t help but feel that it was.
“We just gotta make it to the town line,” Benny said as he continued shooting.
“Almost there,” Masters hissed, trying his best to keep control of the car. Bullets were now coming their way, shattering glass and whizzing over Everley's head. She scrunched her body further down, trying desperately to find a little bit of safety.
It was almost like the chase scenes she'd seen in the movies, where mobsters and cops engaged in dangerous shootouts. Everley hoped they were close to the town line. The closer they were, the further they were from innocent bystanders.
Suddenly, she heard a screech, and the bullets stopped, but the car was careening out of control.
Chapter 22
Everley wasn't quite sure what to think when she woke. The last thing she remembered was being thrown around when Masters crashed the car.
Oh god, she thought. I'm dead.
It certainly explained the blinding light. Were Benny and his father dead too? Or had they once again escaped unharmed?
Tears started welling up, and she began to cry softly. If the light wasn't blinding enough, her tears made everything fuzzy.
“Dammit,” she heard Heath say. Soon, someone was standing over her, and even though she couldn't focus, she knew it was him. Wait. Did he die too? That didn't make sense. He said something else, but she couldn't quite hear him.
Another figure appeared on the other side of her, and soon, more sounds started filtering in. An obnoxious beeping noise and some sort of PA system. Heaven seemed to be quite annoying. Unless… this wasn't heaven. Oh no. She was in Hell.
“Why is she crying?” Heath sounded so close, yet far away. He was right there, but it was almost like he wasn't.
“I don't know,” she heard Lee say, “she doesn't seem fully awake yet.”
She tried to say something, but the words weren't coming. That was when she felt someone playing with her hair and kissing her forehead. What the hell was going on? “Relax, sweetheart.” Okay, it was Heath. “You're safe now.”
“Are you dead too?” she finally managed to choke out.
Someone laughed, it wasn't Heath, so it had to be Lee.
“You're not dead,” Heath assured her. “Neither are we.”
“I didn't even have to operate,” Lee stated. “Just some stitches, a mild concussion and a mean temper.”
Slowly, everything started coming into focus. “I'm in the hospital?” Lee laughed again, and she scowled at him. “What's so funny?”
“You really don't remember?” Lee asked. “You were in here, trying to tell me how to do my job, calling me all sorts of names and insisting I release you immediately.”
“I don't remember any of that.” She frowned as she tried to piece everything together since the crash.
“You passed out eventually,” Lee informed her. “But only after the pain killers kicked in.”
That might explain why she couldn’t remember anything.
Finally satisfied that she wasn’t dead, she wondered about her captors. “What about Benny and his dad?” she asked.
“They'll live,” Heath stated. “Behind bars,” he added as an afterthought. “Ryan said as soon as they're patched up, they're going to jail. No bail this time.”
She felt a little guilty for hating the fact that they were still alive. Knowing they would likely be put away was of little consolation. She’d still have to deal with what would probably be a drawn out court battle. Reliving the trauma was the last thing she wanted to do.
“I'm keeping you here overnight because of that concussion,” Lee said, interrupting her thoughts, and bringing her focus back to her own health. “Barring any new developments, I'll be sending you home tomorrow. But really, Everley, aside from the stitches, you're fine. Like I said, you've got a mild concussion, and while I'm no psychic, I really can't see it lasting longer than a couple days at most.” He checked a few more things before telling her to get some rest, then left the room.
“Are you still mad?” she asked. He had every right to be. He had been against her involvement from the get go, and the fact that she was in the hospital only proved she should have listened to him.
“You're lucky to be alive,” he said, though there was no anger in his voice. Instead, he sounded as though he was exhausted. “Surviving a crash like that, with minimal damage, is quite the feat. Especially since you didn't have a belt on.”
“Sorry… I should have listened to you.”
“I'm not mad,” he said. “I'm too damn relieved to be angry. Besides, you did what you thought was right. Whether or not we agree on the method isn't the point. You were helping a friend. No one can fault you for that.”
She looked at him for a minute, and realized he wasn’t just saying he wasn’t angry. He really wasn’t angry. It didn’t make any sense. He had been right about everything, and should have been angry. “But-”
“None of that,” he scolded, “Lee told you to rest, so rest. I'm not going anywhere.” He pulled a chair over and sat down, fully intending to stay put.
***
“Good morning, sunshine,” Lee whispered as Everley opened her eyes. “Are we going to cooperate today?
“I still don't remember that,” she mumbled. Her head was aching, which she attributed to a mix of painkillers and soreness.
“It was pretty funny,” he grinned. “How are you feeling?”
“Sore,” she said. She couldn’t seem to find it in herself to match his jovial mood. Quite frankly, she was in pain, exhausted, and just wanted to go home.
“That's to be expected,” he said, ignoring the slight attitude she was giving him. “I'll get you a prescription for that. Can you sit up for me?”
“Do I have to?” she complained.
“Come on,” he coaxed. “If you want me to believe you’re well enough to go home, you’re going to have to show me you can sit up at least.”
“Where's Heath?” Everley asked as she reluctantly sat up.
“Sleeping,” he nodded towards a chair that Heath had claimed as his bed. “He's going to be pretty sore when he wakes up too, but the nurses couldn't get him to leave. From what I've been told, I'm surprised they didn't sedate him.”
“Oh,” she giggled, her mood brightening a little bit. If she was a terrible patient, she could only imagine that Heath was an even worse visitor.
“All right,” Lee said. “Eyes on the light.” He clicked on his light so he could check her eyes, and reluctantly, Everley let him run through his tests. She didn’t bother asking if it was really necessary, because she already knew the answer.
Lee took his job seriously.
She supposed it would be bad if he didn’t.
“You gonna give me the bad news?” she asked when he finished up and started writing his notes.
“Looks like you're going to live,” he decided, then frowned when he looked at her. “Really Everley, you’re lucky. It could have been so much worse, and honestly, most of us are surprised that it wasn’t.”
A soft grumble indicated Heath was waking up. After a long stretch, he blinked his eyes and took in the light that was filtering through the window. “What the hell happened?”
“You tell me,” Lee said. “The night gals said they were in this room every ten minutes until you knocked out.”
“They must've slipped me something,” he growled. “I was only making sure Everley was okay.”
“The machines are supposed to beep,” Lee told him, “it's when they start sounding alarms that you need to worry. Go ahead and lie bac
k down, Everley. You've got some visitors, want me to send them in, or would you rather they wait until you check out?”
“Can they just wait?” She didn't want to see anyone other than Heath at the moment. She was pretty sure there would be a commotion once she saw everyone, and right now, she didn’t feel like she could handle that.
“Okay,” he nodded. “I'll have someone bring you breakfast, and then we'll get working on getting you out of here.”
Not long after she'd eaten, Everley was on her way out. Her friends had been waiting for her, and all crowded her the second she and Heath got to the lobby. Ryan quickly pulled her away so he could talk to her without trying to talk over everyone else. “You're okay?”
“Yeah,” she said. “I'm fine.” She wasn’t really, either mentally or physically. In addition to the aches and pains of her injuries, she couldn’t stop replaying all her interactions with Benny over and over in her head. Wondering if there was anything she could have done that would have changed anything.
“I know you've been through the ringer, but there's a few things I want to talk to you about.”
“Can we talk at home?” she asked, noting the whine in her voice.
“Yeah,” Ryan nodded.
***
Ryan wasted no time in relaying everything that had happened during and after the car chase. He seemed just as certain as everyone else that she was lucky to be alive. “Both Benny and his father are looking at a decent amount of time behind bars.”
“How did I get out of there alive?” she asked, “I mean… accident aside… they were shooting at us. I get that Benny was going crazy, but I thought there was a policy against shooting when a victim might be in harm’s way?”
“That wasn’t us,” Ryan growled. “And Sheriff Carmichael’s pretty pissed at how that went down. Apparently, our ‘help’ didn’t get the memo that you were in the car. I don’t know how they missed it as several of us made it perfectly clear. Thankfully we were able to get them to stop before you got hurt. Still, I’m expecting a few officers to lose their jobs over that mess.”
He continued to tell her about the case they were building, and how Masters had almost died on site. Benny had slipped into a coma, but was expected to make it. Both would be taken in, the minute the doctor cleared them.
“I'm sorry,” Ryan said, “I know it was your choice to help us, but I should have been more adamant about keeping you out of it. I should have realized that everything could go horribly wrong, and I mean...I did, and I planned for it, but things got a lot worse than I'd imagined, and you know how I always plan for the worst. I know you trusted me to keep you safe, Everley, and I failed.”
“You didn't fail,” she said, “I'm here, and I'm alive, and that bastard is getting exactly what he deserves.”
“Everley-”
“It's over, Ryan,” she smiled, “we won. There's probably going to be a long war ahead of us, because you and I both know how wonderful the legal system can be, but right now, we're on top.”
“She's right,” Heath shrugged. “Even if we have to wait forever and a day for this to go to trial, those two will be sitting behind bars while they wait.”
“You're right,” Ryan said, “but don't try and convince me that using you as bait is a good idea ever again. Okay?”
“Don't worry about that one,” Everley agreed wholeheartedly.
Chapter 23
Eventually, ribs healed, casts and stitches were removed, and pain faded away.
Nightmares, however, seemed to plague Everley almost nightly. Heath did his best to comfort her, but as time wore on, he could see she wasn't sleeping as much. He'd walk into the living room in the middle of the night to find her barely conscious, watching an obnoxious announcer shout about vacuums or some other nonsense. Usually, she'd have a bottle of alcohol to accompany her, whatever poison she felt would kill the demons.
He couldn't let her continue doing this to herself. She never talked about the nightmares, but he was pretty sure he knew what they consisted of.
“Everley?” he asked, not sure if she was still awake or if she'd already slipped into a dreamless, alcohol induced sleep. It wasn't as late as usual, barely ten, but she was already settled in for a long night in front of the television.
“I'm awake,” she said, barely loud enough for him to hear.
Heath sat next to her on the couch, and noticed that tonight, there was no bottle accompanying her. “Sweetheart, why don't you come to bed?”
“I can't,” she sniffled.
Not every night was bad, but the thought of sleep was a discomforting one. He understood, having fought his own demons, but it was killing him to see her suffering.
“I'm right here,” he said, “Evie… please talk to me. It's been two months now, and I'm worried about you. Though, I'm glad you've decided against the alcohol tonight.”
“Only because I don't want to be hung-over tomorrow,” she said, snuggling up next to him. She was quiet for a moment as she laced her fingers with his. He thought that maybe she’d fallen asleep when she started talking again. “I can't make them go away, Heath. Unless I drown it all out, the nightmares just get worse.”
“You've been through hell,” he agreed. “But booze and sleep deprivation are only going to hurt you more.” It was a touchy subject. They'd been down this road before. The situation may have been different, but the way she bottled everything up was the same.
“I know,” she said, her voice sounding small and frail. “I don't know what else to do.”
“You could talk to someone-”
“Please don't tell me I need therapy,” she interrupted, “I can't handle another lock up.”
“I meant me,” he pulled her closer and held her tight. “But it wouldn’t be a bad thing to maybe talk to someone trained in this sort of thing. I know you had a bad experience last time, but it might help. They’re not going to lock you up, and you're not crazy, so don't start that.”
“Are you sure?” she asked.
“I’ll go with you if you want,” he said. “God only knows I probably need to talk to someone too.” While he knew that her experience was far worse than the worry he’d felt, the trauma of it all had done a number on him too.
She started crying, and he decided that was a start. If she cried, it meant the words would come eventually. Whether she talked to him or Dr. Cooper, the words would come, and she would heal.
They would heal.
“Okay,” she whispered. “We’ll call Dr. Cooper’s office in the morning?”
“All right,” he agreed.
Everley sat back a bit and looked up at him. “Heath?”
“Yes?”
“Do you think they'll stop?” she asked.
“The nightmares?” he asked. When she nodded in response, he kissed her forehead. “They'll fade eventually,” he said. “But you have to remember that I'm here. Talk to me. Talk to Harper. Ryan… anyone you trust. Maybe the whole reason you can't shake them is because you're letting them control you.”
“And I'm not crazy, right?”
He knew how it felt. Thinking you were crazy and feeling like the whole world was crashing down on you. She’d felt that way before too, and he’d be damned if she succumbed to the feeling again.
“Not even close,” he assured her. “Come on, why don't we shut off the television and go to bed?”
***
Everley was exhausted by the time she returned home the next day. She had stayed up all night telling Heath about her nightmares, finally falling asleep around four in the morning.
Even though she hadn't slept long, it was the first night since the incident that she'd been able to sleep peacefully. When she woke, she was exactly where Heath promised she'd be; safe in his arms.
It was a start.
“Hey sweetheart,” he said as she walked into the kitchen. He was standing over the sink, pouring alcohol out. It looked as if he’d just started, most of the bottles were still pretty full, like he’
d thought he had more time to empty everything.
“What are you doing?” she asked, even though it was fairly obvious.
“Sorry,” he frowned, “I just couldn't stand to see you becoming so dependent on it. I should have done it a long time ago, and I thought that we could both do without the added temptation.”
“Stop,” she walked up to him and took the bottle out of his hand. “I feel like it’s just a waste if we pour it out. Why don’t we just give it to someone instead?” He raised an eyebrow in question and she assured him, “Today. I’m sure one of our friends could use some of it. What we can’t give away, you can pour down the drain.”
“Are you sure?” he asked.
“Yeah,” she nodded. “I just… want things to go back to normal, and none of this stuff is helping.”
Together, they called around and found homes for all their unwanted alcohol. Knowing that her preferred crutch was no longer easily accessible made her feel slightly uneasy, but also stronger than she once thought she was.
“Maybe we should add drinking to the list of things we need to talk about,” Everley noted. Heath agreed. They’d both been down the road before and just now, she realized how easy it was to fall right back into the pattern.
“How was work?” he asked, changing the subject.
“Not bad,” she shrugged, “boring, as usual.”
“You should quit,” he suggested.
“And do what?” she asked, laughing, “I'm not like you. I don't have some fancy degree, so I'll take what I can get.” She had some college under her belt, but Benny had convinced her it was a waste of time. She'd gotten lucky in New York, landing a job that had decent pay, but Mer Harbor was tiny. There wasn't much to do unless you had a degree, wanted to commute, or were smart enough to run your own business.
“Do whatever makes you happy,” he said, “and don't try telling me that twiddling your thumbs at the station makes you happy.”
“At least I'm in good company there,” she smiled. “But I don't want to be there forever. Is a lot of change really good right now though?” She didn’t want to shake her already unstable foundation. “Maybe I should just get a little settled and go from there.”
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