Edward parted the branches in front of him and held them so she could step through the dense foliage. Just then, Brooksie caught sight of something moving by her foot. She jumped, startling Edward.
“What is it?” he asked, following her gaze to the patch of weeds beside her.
At first, he thought it was a snake poking its head out of the patch of weeds. He drew her behind him as he peered closer at the moving object. It was then that he saw a reptilian arm continually swiping at the tall weeds.
“It’s an upside-down tortoise,” Edward said, “You discovered a big land turtle.”
She peered past him and noticed that it was indeed a turtle head that had been sticking out of the weeds, an angry turtle head nonetheless. It was making a hissing sound as Edward approached it.
“This guy is huge,” Edward said, admiring the angry beast, “His shell is as big as a basketball.”
“I think you should leave him alone. He keeps snapping his mouth like he’s going to bite you,” she said.
He snuck around toward the tail end of the tortoise while Brooksie took shelter behind a tree.
“If I don’t flip him over, he’ll die. There’s no way he can right himself,” he replied.
“Will he chase us down for bothering him?” she asked, peeking around the tree, “He really seems upset now.”
“He just thinks I’m going to hurt him. You stay right over there and when I flip him, he’ll probably try to run away,” he said, reaching out and taking a hold of the shell, “Just remember, he’s as slow as a tortoise.”
Edward appeared equally as frightened of the hissing tortoise as Brooksie. He attempted to flip the tortoise quickly before jumping back. The creature rocked a bit before returning to its original position.
“Let’s just forget about the angry beast. If he’s going to keep hissing like that, I’d just rather let him die,” she said.
“He thinks we’re trying to hurt or kill him,” he said, rushing to the tortoise again and giving him another quick heave.
This time, the creature flipped completely over. Brooksie screamed as the tortoise “sped” toward her. She leapt from behind the tree and ran to Edward. From the safety of a large boulder nearby, they watched as the tortoise headed into the woods. Brooksie clung to Edward all the while.
“You know something? You are my hero, Edward. I’m not just talking about the turtle either. I know you probably think this is just some crazy girl talk, but it’s true,” she said, “We barely know each other in the grand scheme of things and yet… well, you’ve been so willing to do whatever it takes to help me.”
He shook his head as he helped her down from the boulder.
“I’m definitely not a hero. It’s all self-serving. I’m…” he started to say, wondering if she would be upset with his honesty, “I selfishly want to keep you all to myself for the rest of our lives. I’m actually a horrible person in the regards that if you died today, I’d be more concerned about the disaster that befell me instead of… well, instead of the disaster in your own life. No, I’m no hero.”
She reached out and took his hand in hers as they navigated over the moss-covered remains of an ancient fallen tree.
“Ultimately, I think that’s how we all feel inside when we love someone,” she said, “We like to believe that we think of others first, and in most cases, maybe we really do. But no, that’s not selfish at all. I love you, Edward. Whatever happens – I love you.”
“Don’t be talking like there’s a good-bye in the future, Brooksie. I love you too, and we’re somehow going to be able to say that a million more times.”
Together, they emerged from the woods and directly into the intersection of a gravel roadway. It crossed over the asphalt road they had been following. A street sign at the intersection told them that they had been following Mill Road. The gravel road before them was Field Avenue.
“I think I know where we are now,” she said, “We’re headed toward Richland Heights, just outside of Silver Falls. I passed through here on my way to Silver Falls.”
“So we’re headed back to Silver Falls? We don’t want to go there!” he stated, “We definitely don’t want to go there.”
“I think that’s exactly where we’re headed,” she said, pondering her surroundings, “I’m almost positive I was headed in this direction when I came here. I was definitely driving on this road though. Maybe we should turn around.”
She scratched her chin as she stared at the street sign. Edward paused in the road as he debated whether to trust in her sense of direction. She turned to him and held her hands out in question.
“I don’t recognize anything around here, so I’ll follow your lead,” he said.
She glanced over his shoulder for a moment and then nodded toward the forest beside them.
“A truck is coming. We should get off the road,” she said.
He took her hand and ambled toward the ditch at the side of the road. The truck sped past them, leaving a miniature dust storm in its wake. Brooksie felt the wind at her back just before the shouting erupted.
Both of them turned toward the hay-filled truck, only to discover a man leaning over the side railing. He was slapping his hand against the side of the truck and shouting for the driver to stop. It was only when the truck started braking that the man turned back to them. That was the moment she recognized his face.
Lowell had been hitching a ride in the back of a hay truck! He was already climbing over the wooden railings before the truck ever stopped.
“Go!” Brooksie shouted to Edward, “It’s him.”
They darted into the forest again for the third time.
“Patti!” Lowell shouted, “Sweetie, come back. I just want to talk!”
As they sprinted to the densest part of the woods, they could hear Lowell call out her name.
“Patti! Just stop for a moment and listen! I know you can hear me,” he shouted, apparently running into the woods behind them, “Just say something already, you foolish, ignorant… Listen, Patti. I’m sorry.”
* * * *
Lowell tripped over a log, falling face first into a wet, slimy pile of leaves. The gun flew from his hand and landed next to the shallow creek before him.
“Why do you have to be this way? I made you!” he shouted as he rose up from the ground and wiped his hands on his pants, “Now listen up, you cheap floozie. I have money and I’m using it today. I can do anything I want. You think you’re so hot? Is that it?”
His throat was burning from all the yelling, but he knew she could hear him. He had heard them running up ahead just a short while ago. Lowell knelt to pick up the gun before running in their same direction.
“You think you’re the one holding all the cards? Well listen up, Patience Webb. Today, your brother dies. So, keep on running. You win!” he shouted, leaning against a tree while he tried to catch his breath, “You win! I’m leaving now and I’m going to kill Ben. After that, I’m taking a train to South Bend, Indiana. I’m going to kill your parents then I’m going to kill your sister Nena. I’m going to get away with it because I have money. I have your money, hot stuff.”
“Leave my family out of this, you slimy toad!” she called from far off, “Come and get me if you want me so bad. Are you afraid?”
Her response confirmed what he thought - she had heard all of his threats. That was all what he needed to know.
“You win, Patience Webb. Just be satisfied with that,” he shouted into the forest.
Then in a frantic burst of rage, he raised the gun and fired all the rounds as quickly as he could pull the trigger. He fanned the gun back and forth, firing until it would do nothing but click. Even then, he continued to pull the trigger several more times.
* * * *
“…Come and get me if you want me so bad. Are you afraid?” she shouted, cupping her hands around her mouth and shouting in his direction.
“Forget about him and let’s keep moving,” Eddie whispered, “Now he knows where we ar
e.”
“What am I going to do? He’s going to kill my family. That man is pure evil and I know he could really do it,” she cried, “He came into my room and told me that I would be stripping for some photos the next day. Then, he ran off to Lu Lu Barker’s trailer to have sex with my best friend!”
Eddie looked into those tear-filled eyes and finally understood the hurt. He finally realized why those eyes held such a permanent sadness.
“You win, Patience Webb. Just be satisfied with that,” Lowell’s voice called in the distance.
She turned toward his voice and cupped her hands at her mouth. Just then, gunshots rang out in rapid succession. Eddie grabbed Brooksie and yanked her behind the tree as she screamed at him. For a moment, he thought he may have tugged her arm out of socket, but that was before he saw the blood on her dress.
The shooting continued as they took cover behind the tree. He pulled Brooksie to him and pressed his hand over her mouth. She shook with the sobs as she tried to fight his restraint. He carefully lowered both of them to the ground, keeping his hand pressed firmly to her mouth.
“Stupid Floozie!” Lowell shouted.
She finally stopped fighting Eddie as they lay together on the damp leaves. Brooksie continued to shudder from the muffled sobs.
“Shhh,” Eddie whispered into her ear, “I’ll take care of you, Brooksie. Please just give us a couple minutes. Please, dear Lord.”
They lay there by the tree for a little while before he felt confident enough to remove his hand from her mouth.
“He shot me!” she gasped.
Eddie sat up and looked down at the blood on the right side of her skirt. Without even thinking, he lifted her skirt as she rolled onto her left side.
“He shot me!” she cried.
She reached back and grasped his wrist in a moment of modesty. Her skirt was already almost up to her hip.
“I’m looking at nothing except the wound, Brooksie,” he whispered, “I swear to you.”
She released his wrist. He lifted the skirt higher and finally located the bleeding holes at the front and back of her upper thigh. The bullet had gone completely through.
“Is it bad?” she cried.
“If there’s such a thing as a good bullet wound, this would be it,” he said, dabbing it with a semi-clean portion of her skirt, “It’s just below your hip and on the outmost edge of your leg. It almost missed you completely.”
“But it didn’t.”
“We need to get this covered so it stops bleeding,” he said.
He quickly unbuttoned his shirt and then removed his T shirt.
“He’s going to kill Ben,” she mumbled, “Anyone willing to shoot his own fiancée would definitely kill someone.”
Eddie bit the edge of his T shirt and then tore it down the side.
“I doubt he even realizes that he shot you. Otherwise, he’d be coming for us right now,” Eddie said, biting the other side of the T shirt.
He ripped the shirt down the other side.
“This doesn’t look good at all,” she grumbled.
“Actually, it’s not really that bad,” Eddie whispered, gently lifting her leg and tucking the T shirt beneath it.
“I wasn’t talking about the bullet wound. I was talking about you and me half naked in the woods,” she said.
He chuckled as he tied the shirt around the wound.
“I need more fabric. Can I rip out this inner layer of your skirt?” he asked.
“You’re the doctor,” she muttered, “Do whatever you need to do.”
He grasped at the seams and pulled them apart. This white lacy lining must have been used to imitate a slip being worn beneath the skirt. He bit one of the stitches and tore it free. She started to cry again as he folded the white strip of fabric into a square pad.
“I’m so sorry, Brooksie. I wish it had been me,” he said.
She shook her head as he slipped the makeshift pad beneath the tied T shirt. This pad, he was pleased to note, covered the wound nicely and provided a good amount of pressure. Eddie readjusted her skirt and gently rubbed the side of her leg.
“Are we going to…” she started to say as she sat up, “We need to get to a phone. I have to warn Ben.”
“He owns Ben, Brooksie,” Eddie warned.
She glared at him for a moment, considering her words. Her eyes were then drawn to the blood on her skirt. Her thigh was throbbing, though the initial sting was now gone.
“He thought he owned me once, too. He doesn’t own anyone, Edward,” she stated, “Like I said before – surely he tricked Ben somehow.”
Eddie put his shirt back on and started buttoning as he stood. He then reached out a hand to Brooksie. She pressed her hand to the wound and winced at the sharp pain.
“I’ll be your crutch, Brooksie,” he said, keeping his hand out to her.
She reached up and put her hand in his. He pulled her up while she bore her full weight on her left leg. A small groan escaped as she draped her arm around his neck.
“Just let me know if it hurts too much and we’ll rest for a bit,” he said.
She nodded as they took a cautious step. He watched her reaction as they took another step.
“It’s just a bad bruise. Only a bruise,” she tried to convince herself, “We can do this.”
“You’re sure?”
She nodded, “Just get me to a phone please.”
* * * *
Her leg continued to throb as they negotiated their way through the woods. Although maybe a half hour had passed before they reached the river, it felt like an eternity. They exited the woods about twenty yards from a large building.
“There’s a mill of some sort,” Edward said, pointing toward the water wheel, “And there’s smoke coming from the chimney.”
“Somebody’s home,” she said.
“How’s your leg?” he asked.
She looked at him and sighed. He gave an apologetic nod.
“Would you be offended if I said this has probably been the worst day of my life?” she asked.
He chuckled as they started toward the building.
“I’ll be ecstatic if we get a chance to talk about this day as a horrible memory from our past,” he said, “If that happens, I promise to take no offense.”
A young lady, perhaps in her early twenties, opened the door while she carried on a conversation with someone inside. She stood in the doorway for a moment before laughing and turning toward Brooksie. It took the lady less than a second to take in her tattered, bloodied appearance.
“Dear heavens! What happened?” the lady asked, her accent betraying her English descent.
Her sympathetic, yet horrified expression crashed through the dam that Brooksie had built up over the last half hour. Brooksie burst out in tears as the lady rushed to help.
“Mother, get out here!” she hollered.
“We were attacked,” Edward said, knowing that he had to include himself as a victim. If not, he could have easily been seen as the attacker.
An older woman wearing a bonnet and a large cape dress rushed from the building. Her expression was that of a woman who couldn’t be surprised by anything. She simply looked over to Edward then waved them over.
“Come on in here and let’s get you two cleaned up. Who did this to you?” she asked.
Brooksie was still trying to regain control of her emotions. She couldn’t understand why she was still crying.
“Would you believe me if I told you it was her agent?” Edward said.
“Agent?”
The lady held the door open as Edward assisted her into the building. Her daughter followed behind.
“C-can I use your phone?” Brooksie asked.
“Well, of course,” the lady replied, “I’ll go ahead and call the police for you.”
“No,” Brooksie said, “My brother is a police officer and… and…”
“Her brother started all of this,” he added, “If you could just keep this silent for a bit until w
e figure out what to do, that would be great.”
The lady and her daughter stared at the two of them as they all stood in what appeared to be an oversized kitchen. The place smelled of warm pies and fresh cookie dough. Although the place was most likely a home, it probably served as a bakery just as well. The three stoves and the massive counter space alluded to that.
“Let’s get you cleaned up first,” the lady stated, “Come with me.”
“Ma’am, if I could please just use your phone first,” Brooksie said, “My… the person who shot me is going after someone else. I – I need to warn him.”
“Mother,” the daughter whispered, “Are you sure it’s safe to-”
“We’re not criminals and the bad guy is long gone,” Edward offered, “I’m Eddie and this is… this is Patience Webb from Hollywood.”
Brooksie reached up and took off her tattered wig. She tossed the offensive thing onto the floor and then started plucking bobby pins from her hair.
“Oh my,” the daughter said, “The whole world is looking for you.”
“And unfortunately her agent found her,” Edward offered, “She’s hiding because he wanted to steal her dignity and sell her as a commodity. He thought she didn’t have a mind, a heart, or a will of her own.”
“And now he wants to kill me,” she said, “As you can see, if I come out of hiding, I can be killed.”
Saving Brooksie Page 14