by Mia Darien
Kamry picked herself up. “Yeah, and you are one son of a bitch who shouldn’t be here either. You’re breaking the restraining order. You shouldn’t be here. Please leave.”
She reached into her pocket, grabbing her phone to call 911. He was on her before she could hit talk. He smashed the phone into pieces before giving her one good blow to the face. The last thing she remembered was hearing him laugh.
When Kamry woke, she was in his vehicle driving down the highway. She tried to move but before she could get anywhere, he elbowed her in the face and knocked her out again.
The next time she came to, she was laying against a wall. He was sitting on the side of the bed, drinking whiskey like it was water.
“Steven, where are we?”
He looked over at her, smiled and began laughing. “Somewhere you can scream all you want and they will never hear you.”
“Why are you doing this?”
“Because you owe me.”
She watched him walk around the room. Pacing back and forth slowly. He looked like he hadn’t showered recently and he definitely hadn’t shaved in a few days. He reeked of sweat and booze.
Her head was pounding and her ribs hurt each time she took a breath.
“Why are you just sitting there? I taught you better than that.”
She looked up and Jose was standing there, looking down at her.
“You know who I am now. More importantly, you know who you are as well. Get up and fight!”
“I can’t,” she whispered.
“You can’t fucking what!” Steven yelled, but Kamry didn’t look at him. She kept looking at Jose.
“I’ll help you,” he said, reaching down and grabbing her arm to help her up. “There you go. Stay on your feet and if he gets you down, you fight!”
Damn, she didn’t know who to be more afraid of: him or Steven.
Steven started laughing when Kamry raised her fists in the position that Jose had taught her. “What do you think you are going to do?”
“I’m going to leave here,” she said, her words trembling.
“Don’t you show him you’re scared,” Jose coached. “Show him that you are a strong woman. Show him he can’t victimize you any longer.”
She took a step towards Steven as Jose kept guiding her.
“Feed off of all that anger he has made you feel. All that fear you have felt. You are a survivor, Kamry.”
Steven swung and Kamry ducked, coming back up with a fist to the bottom of his chin, knocking him backwards.
“Stay on him, Kamry. Don’t let him get a chance to come back at you. You keep on him.” Kamry took a deep breath, heading towards him. She was going to show Steven he could not hurt her anymore. He could not scare her anymore. That he was nothing.
She swung again, pounding her fists into his face, his ribs, giving him liver shot after liver shot.
He kicked his leg out, knocking her down and making her land on the side where her ribs hurt, taking the air from her.
He mounted her, using both his hands around her neck. She couldn’t breathe.
“Use your hips, Kamry.”
She swung to the side, laying on her right hip. With her left leg, she managed to place her foot on his hip and push him back. She brought her left elbow down over his arms, breaking his hold on her.
“Don’t worry about gasping now. Stay calm. This isn’t over yet, Kamry. Use your other foot.”
She pulled her right foot up, kicking him in the chest with everything she had and knocking him completely off her.
“Get up!” Jose yelled.
Kamry stood, walking to Steven, and began kicking him in the ribs. The rage poured from her body with every last kick. She watched his face become wrinkled almost, his eyes squinting with each kick. She loved it.
She kept going but then she realized she was not going to kick him to death. She was going to do to him what he had done to her so many times. She reached down, rolling him onto his back and mounting him. She placed both hands around his neck and began choking him. No matter what he did, she held on. She watched his color go from red, to purple, to blue. He was weakening and she was loving the power she had over him. His arms dropped to the side and that’s when it hit her. She wasn’t going to be the one to kill him. She let go, and stood.
He gasped for air, grabbing his throat and coughing.
“Yeah, that’s right. I’m not weak anymore. You will never be able to hurt me again.”
“He will never be able to hurt any other woman or child again. I have some people that can’t wait to get their hands on him,” Jose said.
“What do you mean?” Kamry asked, but Jose didn’t have to answer. She heard a growling mixed with a low roar. “What is that?” she whispered.
“It’s his end,” Jose answered.
She watched as black shadows rose from the floor around him. He began screaming. “No, don’t take me. Kamry, help me!”
She smiled. “There is no help for you.” And then they took him. It happened quickly, and he was gone.
The room began to blur then. She didn’t know what was happening and she didn’t really care. He had gotten everything he deserved.
“Where did they take him?” She asked, hoping for the answer she received.
“Hell.”
What happened next, she wasn’t sure of. She remembered hearing a loud crash and then arms were around her waist, pulling her into the body they belonged to. The room began to spin and everything went dark.
“You did a good job, Kamry. Just rest,” Jose whispered.
A steady beep was in the background. Otherwise, silence filled the area. There was a clean smell to the air. She was waking up, and could feel her body being touched. Her hand, her cheek were being rubbed.
“Time to wake up, sleepyhead.”
“Jose?” Kamry looked around the room, finding his familiar eyes on her and then someone else in the chair next to her.
“Jose, where am I?”
“The hospital. You’ve been asleep for a bit longer than we had anticipated. Steven thought a good swift kick to your head while you were out would add to the multiple injuries you had.”
“Oh.” She was never happier than that day to see Jose. Had it not been for him, she never would have been able to get free.
Jose gripped her hand. “It’s time for me to go now, Kamry.”
There was both sadness and happiness in Jose’s eyes. “But, why?”
“Because I did what I stayed behind for.”
“Jose, what are you talking about?” Tears filled Kamry’s eyes.
“Kamry, I know that you know I’m a ghost. I had unfinished business and you helped me finish it.”
“I didn’t help you with anything, Jose. Whatever business you had is something you still have.”
“No. You were my unfinished business. And him.” Jose nodded to the man asleep in the chair. His head was facing the opposite direction, but she knew who it was. Garret.
“How did he find me?” Kamry asked.
“I may have dialed his number on your cell phone so he would hear you and track you down.”
“How did he find me, though?”
“I’m not sure. That’s a question for him.” Jose smiled. “Before I left here, I wanted to do two things. One, help someone that needed me. I thought that you needed me, but in all reality, I needed you. You reminded me that there are still many things out there worth fighting for. You were always a survivor, you just needed a push in the right direction.”
“I don’t understand what you are saying.”
“I had been watching you for weeks, pounding away at that bag. You showed so much heart and determination that I knew without a doubt, you were never going to stop. That’s very admirable. I’ve only seen that much determination two other times before. Once in myself and then once in Garret. I never thought I would see it again until you came along.”
“You’re not making any sense to me,” Kamry cried.
J
ose chuckled. “It don’t have to make sense to you. It was my business to finish.”
“What was the second thing that you had to do?”
“I not only watched you at the gym, but I saw you with Grandma. You took care of her like she was royalty. You cared for her. You made her laugh. You were there for her when I couldn’t be.”
“Ms. Maybelle,” she whispered.
“Yes. Garret is my younger brother and he was my second thing I needed to do. You see, when Grandma died, she was the last one in our family. I didn’t want Garret to be alone. And then I saw the chemistry between you two and knew that you were perfect for each other. Cupid in the making, I am.” He smiled.
Kamry turned her head towards Garret. She had felt a chemistry between them, but was she ready for a relationship again?
“Don’t over-think it. A ghost is standing here telling you to let go and follow your instincts. Allow your heart to lead you.”
“I know,” she whispered.
“Well, I hear them calling me.”
“Who?” Kamry asked.
“Grandma, Grandpa, my mother and father. They are waiting for me.”
“I don’t want you to go.”
Jose smiled. “You’re not alone. He’s a really great man. He deserves you just as much as you deserve him. I won’t be far. I’ll keep tabs on the two of you. They are very impatient. Take care of him for me, Kamry. I know he will take wonderful care of you.”
“Wait!” she hollered, watching him walk away. “Can I ask you something really quick?”
“Better hurry.” He smiled.
She could see his body becoming almost translucent. “Why did they call you hope?”
He laughed. “Because there is an old saying: where there is life, there is hope. Well, I lived by that motto in the ring. My first fight, I was the underdog. I was losing but I wouldn’t give up. I kept going until he was worn down. After I won, they were asking me questions and a reporter asked me what gave me the drive to keep going. I said, hope. It stuck.”
“Thank you.” She smiled, watching him wink at her then turn, take a few steps, and disappear.
Kamry laid there staring at Garret and then she smiled. Ms. Maybelle had rubbed off on her grandsons, and she suspected that Garret would be a cupid as well. She laughed, watching him sleep, and was thankful for meeting Jose, who would forever be known to her as Kamry’s Hope.
The first thing Jesse was aware of was something in her eyes. She didn’t remember going to sleep, or even going to bed, so she had no idea what was on her face.
Right away, she could feel that it was hot, and wet. She tried to lift her hand to touch it, but found that something was around her hand. In fact, she felt entirely trapped in place. Her brain was moving out of unconsciousness slowly, and couldn’t reconcile the facts. In fact, she was having trouble understanding what the facts were.
“Don’t move,” a man’s voice said from beside her.
She didn’t recognize the voice and that jolted her closer to being awake. Now she tried to open her eyes properly, and found that she couldn’t. There was something on them, almost gluing her eyelashes. Panic began to set in and she started moving.
“Don’t move,” the voice repeated. She felt a squeeze and realized that someone was holding her hand, but she knew that it wasn’t Tom.
“Who are you?” she asked, hearing her own voice and how small it sounded. There was a strange, tinny echo to it. “Why can’t I open my eyes? Where’s Tom?” She started to struggle again, but remained trapped and when she moved too much, it hurt.
“You were in a car accident,” the voice said. Jesse kept trying to open her eyes. It hurt her eyelids but felt like with each attempt, she was able to achieve more. The voice continued, “Tom, I’m assuming he was driving. He’s right beside you, but he’s unconscious. I’ve called the paramedics, sweetheart, you just stay still. I don’t know what injuries you have.” She felt the squeeze on her hand again. “Help is on the way.”
Why couldn’t she remember a car accident? She felt tears well up in her eyes, but it actually helped. It loosened whatever was sticking her eyelashes together so she was able to peel them open, and she instantly found the truth of the stranger’s statement. Before her was the shattered windshield. Turning her head slightly, she was able to see him.
Jesse didn’t know this man kneeling beside her open car door. She was sure that she had never seen him before in her life, but he on the ground with her feeble hand clasped in his. “Help is on the way, I promise,” he reassured her. His voice was kind and he looked at her like he was earnestly concerned, even though they were strangers. She felt tears choking her throat again, but they hurt and she swallowed them back down.
Weakly, she tried to turn her head the other way. She saw Tom. He was slumped back in his seat and she saw blood covering his face. The tears returned and she couldn’t stop them. “Tom?” she asked in that weak little voice again, choking back emotion. “Tom? Wake up, honey, please. Tom? Tom?”
“Wait till the ambulance gets here,” the stranger said again. “They’ll be able to help him.”
Jesse tried to remember what had happened, but everything was so hazy. The effort made her feel like she was going to be sick and she let her head fall back against the headrest as she tried to take a deep breath around the nausea.
She closed her eyes again. “What’s your name?” she whispered.
He once more squeezed her hand gently. “Anthony.”
Jesse forced her breath in and out, slow and steady. “I’m Jesse.” She bit down on her lip, swallowing hard against the pain. She wanted to crawl into the seat beside her and hold her husband until he woke, but she knew she couldn’t. Her seatbelt had her pinned and she didn’t feel like she had the strength to unfasten it. What else might be broken was a deep concern to her mind, and she didn’t want to move too much and make it worse.
Sirens echoed in the distance, but she couldn’t tell from which direction. She listened as they grew closer and louder, overwhelming her aching head. Tears rolled down her cheeks as she heard the sound of rolling tires coming to a stop, doors opening and shutting as she opened her eyes again to try to look out. Everything beyond that broken windshield was a blur, but she saw those dark figures drawing near.
“Tom,” she told them weakly. “Help Tom.”
“Excuse us,” a paramedic said as he came around to the passenger side.
“Help Tom,” she whispered.
“We are, ma’am,” he said. “We are. We’re also going to take care of you.” As he began working on her, she tried to look beyond him to find Anthony, but there was no sign of him.
Sniffing, she felt her throat tighten again. “Thank you,” she whispered to someone who was no longer there as she listened to the sounds of their rescue.
Comparatively, Jesse wasn’t as bad off. She was covered in bruises and lacerations, and had a sprained ankle from where it had been resting when the car hit that tree, but the driver’s side had taken more damage. Tom had taken the hit for her, like he always did—or always tried to. Jesse was up and about in just a few hours, limping around and feeling like she’d been beaten.
Her husband was another matter.
She sat by his bedside. He was still unconscious. No, he wasn’t just unconscious, he was in a coma. The doctors had used words like “intracranial pressure” and “bleeding.” All she knew was that it was bad, and they didn’t know what was going to happen. They were doing things like “monitoring the situation” and “preparing for contingencies.”
As he lay there, she wrapped one hand around his, the other gripping her Tree of Life pendant, and pressed her forehead against the bed beside him. The possibilities rolled out before her in stark terror as her mind tried to suggest she consider a life without him. Those thoughts were shut down as hard as they came, because she couldn’t do it.
Tom and Jesse had met in high school, had become inseparable almost instantly and had stayed that way ever sin
ce. Married just after they turned twenty, they were coming up on their tenth anniversary. They had been planning to...
They had been planning.
“Tom,” she whispered at the floor, unable to lift her head. She had known this man for over half of her life, and she couldn’t imagine the rest of it without him. The doctors might be planning for all contingencies, but she couldn’t. He would be okay, because he just had to be. She squeezed his hand, but knew he couldn’t recognize it for what it was.
She was still in that position, half-dazed with the surrealism of it all, when the door to this small Intensive Care Unit room opened. It might have been a visitor for the other patient, so she didn’t bother looking up. Even when the footsteps approached her, she didn’t look up. Jesse felt a heavy hand on her shoulder.
“I’m sorry,” the owner of the hand said. She recognized the voice of Tom’s boss down at the autobody shop where he had worked for the past five years. Marcus was a good man and had even become a friend. She murmured a “thank you” but couldn’t summon the power to do much more. The hand left her shoulder and she heard a chair scrape closer. “What do we know?”
“Not much,” she said. It was an effort to draw in a deep breath, but she managed to do so and relayed what had happened and what little she knew of what the doctors said. Marcus, not being a man of many words, just offered the appropriate grunts of sympathy or frustration.
“If there’s anything I can do,” he said, patting her shoulder with his bear paw of a hand one more time. After she mumbled another word of gratitude, he left.
This was roughly how it went for the next two days.
She moved occasionally, strongly encouraged by the nurses to take care of herself. It never equated to eating much, but they managed to keep her fairly hydrated with cups of ginger ale and ice water. Others visited—Tom’s coworkers and friends with the volunteer fire department, and her sister came by as well, a pair of friends stopping by later. There were choked up phone calls with Tom’s parents.
In Tom himself, there had been no change. He wasn’t any worse, and that was something, but he wasn’t any better either. There was no sign of his waking any time soon.