Smoke (Smoke Series Book 1)

by Mariah Esterly

  “I remember and I’m sorry that I didn’t tell you. But just because he’s an Extra doesn’t mean he did this.”

  “Gertie, he’s one of them. You shouldn’t be protecting him.” Liam ground out.

  Her chin raised a fraction of an inch. “I’m not lying when I say he didn’t do this.”

  He was quiet, his jaw clenched. Gertie could tell he wanted to argue with her, but he held back, no doubt to keep from exhausting her.

  A knock sounded on the door and the doctor came in. Liam was once again ordered from the room. This time he left a bit more willingly, stepping into the hall and pulling his phone from his pocket.

  An hour later the physician had thoroughly examined her. They’d done a whole body scan because, as the doctor said, “When you’ve taken a beating like you have, we just want to be sure that everything is okay internally.”

  Gertie didn’t even need to leave the room. Instead, they wheeled in a machine with a long arm that extended over her bed. The machine ran over her body while she lay absolutely still, trying not to fall asleep.

  The doctor patted her hand and said that he would be back later with the results.

  When she was alone, Gertie slipped from the bed and wandered around the room, looking for any sign of a camera, and thankfully found none. She peered into the bathroom. There were towels, soap and a shower.

  By the time Liam had returned she was fully clean, tucked back in bed, and dozing. She felt his fingers brush her hair back from her face, his lips whispered over her bruised cheekbone. She opened her eyes, found him looking at her with such warm affection that she couldn’t help but smile. “Do you have more questions?”

  He shook his head. “You go ahead and sleep. We’ll talk about it later.” He settled into the chair, stretched his legs out in front of him.

  “Are you going to stay here all night?”

  He gave her a soft smile. “I’ll stay as long as you want me to.”

  “Good.” She nodded and her eyes closed.

  35

  Liam

  Liam woke to the feel of soft fingers in his hair. A smile played over his lips as he lifted his head to look at Gertie.

  Gertie alive and here with him. He could still hardly believe it even though he was looking at her, couldn’t believe that they’d received the report that the girl from the news was wandering around 3rd.

  That had been the longest car ride of his life. But there she was in the middle of the crowd, looking so small and lost. He’d all but run to her, fighting tears as he’d held her close. He’d never considered himself as emotional, but Gertie brought that out in him. The relief of finding her alive was... overwhelming.

  “Did you sleep hunched over like that all night?” she asked, the concern clear on her face. He straightened, wincing at the pain in his back. Gertie’s brow furrowed as he rolled his shoulders and several cracks sounded throughout the room.

  He grinned, clasping her hand in his. “It was worth it.”

  She returned his smile tremulously. Tears shimmered on her lower lashes as she looked at him. “I thought you died,” she whispered. “I thought they killed you on the street.”

  He reached out and wiped a tear from her cheek. “Don’t cry, Gertie. Please, don’t. I’m fine. It’ll take more than that to kill me. I promise.”

  She shook her head. “There was so much blood. And they didn’t mention you in the news if you’d survived or not. I just…” She looked down to pluck at the blanket. “I just thought you were gone.”

  He shouldn’t ask. He knew he shouldn’t ask. She was being open and honest with him. He was feeling warm in his chest from her obvious concern for him. But he couldn’t stop the words from coming out, “They let you watch the news?”

  She paused for a moment, then nodded. “I think that they were taunting me or something, with footage of the kidnapping. Maybe they thought it would make me tell them something I hadn’t already.”

  Don’t do it, he thought. “What did you tell them?”

  She shrugged. “Not a lot. It’s hard to tell them things you don’t know. I suppose I could have lied to… to get them to not hurt me.” Liam felt his stomach clench and his jaw tighten as she continued. “I was afraid if I lied and they found out, they’d hurt me more.”

  “They kept asking you the same set of questions?”

  She nodded, not meeting his eyes. “Where is Vail? What do I know about him? What’s he doing? Who are his associates?”

  Liam closed his eyes for a moment. Don’t. “And you don’t think it’s possible at all, that he could have been involved and was testing you to see if you would break? That you would tell his secrets?”

  Her face became shuttered, and Liam felt a stab of panic that he had lost her. “I don’t know his secrets.”

  He should backtrack. He should pat her hand and tell her not to worry about it. She’d been through so much lately, he didn’t want to press her. But some force in him made him continue on. “Well, you seemed to know him pretty well in that video. I asked you to tell me about him, begged you really, so that I could help you and you lied. You lied to my face about not knowing anything about him.”

  He saw the moment that realization hit her. “It was you, wasn’t it?” She asked in disbelief. “You were the one that found the video of Vail and me in the alley? Before I was even taken you saw it. You were trying to get me to tell you he was an Extra, so that I wouldn’t get in trouble if it came out... When it came out.” He nodded once, grimly. “You gave it to the reporters?”

  Liam’s jaw tightened. “Yes.” The look she gave him made him go cold. “Gertie, I thought he had taken you. My only thought was to get you back, to help you.”

  “You wanted to help me so you, what? You turned Vail into a wanted criminal?”

  “Yes!” The word exploded from him far louder than he had intended. He lowered it and continued. “Yes, I did! If you give me a choice between him and you, I am going to pick you every time. Don’t ever think I would do anything different.” She stared at him, her mouth hanging open slightly. “Don’t you get it, Gertie? I would do anything for you. Anything to keep you safe, to make sure you survive.”

  “Liam,” Gertie started.

  He held out a hand to stop her. “You don’t have to say anything, Gertie. It’s fine. I get that you’re angry at me for this. But what I don’t understand is why you are so sure he isn’t a part of it. Why won’t you tell me the truth? Try to explain it to me.”

  She shook her head. “I just know,” she whispered. “Why can’t you trust me?”

  He stood up from his chair, and glared down at her. “Because you lied to me before.” And then he left.

  36

  Gertie

  She spent the next day in and out of sleep. The nurses kept the lights in her room low at all hours, letting her drift off whenever she felt the need. Only waking her to check her vitals and give her food.

  Most of the time, when she woke up Liam was there, if not him then a guard was posted outside her door.

  Things between them were still strained, but he refused to be gone from her long. As if afraid that if he wasn’t there, she would be snatched from him again. He’d come back about fifteen minutes after shouting at her, apologized and tried to explain his side of things a bit more calmly.

  At the end of it, Gertie told him she understood. That were she in his position she probably would have done the same thing for anyone that she cared about. People who helped or harbored Extras weren’t treated well when they were arrested.

  He’d been trying to protect her from that.

  On what Liam informed her was her second day at the hospital someone came to take her official statement of the events that had occurred. She again gave as honest answers as she could, and denied Vail’s involvement when they brought it up. She could tell that they didn’t believe her.

  “How did you escape?”

  She shook her head. “Honestly, I’m not sure. I was lucky I guess.”<
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  “You said you were strapped to the bed?” Gertie held up her arms to show the bruises that circled her wrists and nodded. “If you could verbally confirm, please?”

  “Oh, sorry, yes. I was strapped to the bed.”

  “How did you get those undone?”

  “With my teeth. I thought that they would come in and strap me back in right away but they didn’t. I had enough time to get up and grab the chair in the room, I used it to push them back when they came through the door. Just forced my way through.” She shivered, leaving out that she’d actually had enough time to break the chair into sharp pieces and that her shade had driven them into the invisible bodies. “We fought. I escaped.”

  “Just like that?” The woman who was holding the recorder seemed doubtful. “How many were there?”

  “Well, they were invisible, so it’s impossible to know. I think two.”

  The woman pursed her lips. “And you don’t believe that the known Extra Vail Denhelm was one of them?”

  Gertie shook her head. “I know he wasn’t.”

  “How?” She shrugged but didn’t answer. “Can you please vocalize your response?”

  “Sorry. I just know he wasn’t a part of it. He wouldn’t do that to me.”

  The female officer tapped her pen against her tablet, eyeing her. “Okay, Miss Penn, so you think it more likely that there are three Extras with the ability to turn invisible at will, then that Vail Denhelm, someone that you say you met randomly at a bar, had something to do with it?”

  Gertie raised her chin, meeting the woman’s brown eyes. “Yes.”

  The detectives glanced at each other. She knew they didn't believe her. That she was infatuated with Vail, maybe even that her captors had somehow brainwashed her to sympathize with them. Gertie didn’t care. She would go to her grave swearing that Vail hadn’t been involved.

  After a few more questions, the nurse came in to shoo everyone out of the room and check her vitals. The detectives only agreed to leave after Gertie said she would come into the station in 2nd and go over her statement again.

  She knew they were hoping to catch her in a lie or maybe to convince her that Vail had been behind her kidnapping.

  “We’ll be sending you home tomorrow.” The nurse commented, listening to her heart.

  “Really?” Gertie could have cried at the thought of going home. Being in her own clothes, back in her own space, but fear gripped her at the idea of being alone

  She’d thought Vail would have come to see her, when she’d been found. So far there’d been no indication that he was there, no brush of his hand on hers. To be fair, Liam was hardly ever away from her side. Maybe Vail just hadn’t felt safe making her aware of his presence.

  Either way, Gertie hoped he would show up before she was sent home. She didn’t want to be alone.

  The nurse left. Gertie flipped on the TV for noise and cycled through the channels. She stopped on a cooking show and settled back on the pillows, her head nodding to her chest.

  37

  Gertie

  Gertie started awake with the certainty that she was not alone. A quick glance told her it wasn’t Liam or one of the night nurses. Fear tingled down her spine. She took a deep breath and listened. A scuffle next to the bed had her swinging her fist in that direction. She made contact.

  “Ow!” She recognized the voice. Tears of relief flooded her eyes, unbidden. “Shh, Freckles, it’s me.”

  “Vail?” Her voice was shaky. She was in the hospital. She was safe. She wasn’t still captive in that room where she’d been tortured.

  “Yeah.” She felt his fingers wrap around hers, while his other hand smoothed the hair back from her face. She could feel his eyes taking in the damage, the bruises. “I hope you gave as good as you got.”

  She ignored him, pushed at his chest, even though she really wanted to pull him closer. “What are you doing here? They’ll be watching my room. They’ll know you’re here.”

  “I had a promise to keep, remember?”

  Her fingers curled in the fabric of his jacket. “Don’t be ridiculous, you have to leave. Now.” Despite her words, she didn’t let him go.

  “I know. You’re coming with me.” Clothes were being pressed into her hands, the blanket pulled off, his gentle hands helping her to sit. Gertie’s body screamed in pain, revolting against the movement. She heard Vail curse and looked down at the nasty bruises that covered her legs. She’d gotten used to seeing them, had grown immune to the sight of them, but looking at them through his eyes, she could hardly believe that she didn’t have more broken bones.

  As she sat up, her ribs ached making it hard for her to breath.

  “I don’t think I can go with you.” She gasped. “I can hardly move, it hurts too much.”

  “I’ll help you.” In moments, he’d dressed her in dark jeans, a black t-shirt and grey hooded sweatshirt, while Gertie bit back sounds of pain.

  “How did you get in?” She asked as he knelt in front of her and slid socks on her feet, followed by sneakers.

  “I came through the window.” The laces of the shoes seemed to tie themselves.

  “You shimmied up the drain pipe? I can’t go back that way.”

  “I know. We’ll go left down the hall, there’s a stairwell on the right that leads to the parking garage, from there we’ll go right and keep going until we’re out of the city.” She felt his hands on her elbows helping her to stand. A gasp of pain escaped her lips and her legs almost buckled. Vail caught her against him, supporting her weight until she could get her feet under her again. “Okay?” He asked.

  She nodded, bracing her hands on his chest to push away from him. “You should go out the window.”

  “No, Gertie, you can hardly stand. I’m going wit-”

  She held up a hand cutting him off. “If we run into trouble I would rather that you be out there, than in here. I won't be killed or arrested for trying to leave the hospital.” He cupped her face in his hands, careful to avoid her bruises.

  “Are you sure?”

  “I’m sure if you're with me and we’re caught, we’ll both be in trouble.”

  She heard him sigh, and knew he wanted to argue. His voice was tight as he said, “Tell me the route.”

  “Left down the hall, stairway on the right all the way to the parking garage, right on the street and out of the city.” She replied.

  “Good.”

  The window opened, and then Vail came back to her, his hands warm on hers. He flickered into visibility. Startled, Gertie glanced behind her, making sure the door to her room was closed. “Vail,” she breathed. “You shouldn’t-”

  “Yes, Freckles, I should.” His eyes caressed her face. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have let you go alone. I shouldn’t have left you.”

  Gertie shook her head. “This wasn’t your fault.”

  “It was though. It was my job to stay with you and keep you safe.”

  She reached out and brushed her fingers over his furrowed brow, easing the tension she saw there, then drifting down to his cheek, the dark stubble scraping against her fingertips. “You wouldn’t have been able to stop it. They would have killed you, and that… that would have killed me.”

  He captured her hand and pressed it against his face, holding it there.

  They stood like that for a moment, but a sound from the hallway drove them apart. Vail went invisible and moved to the door, pulling it open wide enough to peek into the hall. He came back to Gertie. “Tell me the way again.”

  She dutifully repeated the route back to him. He seemed reluctant to leave her, holding on to her hand when he should have been moving to the window. Gertie sighed, they had to go or someone was bound to come in, find her fully dressed and then raise the alarm.

  She pulled away from him first, heading toward the door. “I’ll meet you on the street,” she said over her shoulder. After making sure the hall was empty, she slipped out the door, trying to ignore the trembling ball of pain that was her body.
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  She was almost to the stairs when Liam rounded a corner and came into view. Gertie froze in the middle of the hall, then silently cursed herself. Freezing like that would make her seem guilty. She forced her shoulders to relax, gave him a small smile and walked toward him.

  “Gertie? What are you doing out of bed? I thought they weren’t letting you go home until tomorrow.”

  She stuffed her hands in the pockets of her hoodie and said, “they aren’t. I’m checking myself out. I don’t see the difference between twelve hours.”

  He looked like he wanted to argue, but again held back. He’d been doing that a lot with her, not pushing her or challenging her. Normally, that would have bothered Gertie, that he thought she was too fragile to handle a disagreement, but it worked in her favor this time.

  Liam nodded once. “Okay, I’ll take you home.”

  Gertie shook her head. “That’s okay. I can make it on my own.”

  He reached for her hand still tucked into her pocket. “No, it's not safe. Denhelm is still out there.”

  Gertie sighed, pulled her fingers from his grip. “How many times do I need to say that he has nothing to do with what happened to me? Nothing.”

  He held up his hands palms out in surrender. “Fine, we don’t need to talk about that now, but the people responsible are still out there, and you won’t be safe on the streets by yourself.”

  She considered him for a moment, her head cocked to one side. He wasn’t going to let her go alone. Stealing herself against Liam, against the hurt she knew she was going to cause him, she said, “I wasn’t safe with you before.”

  The pain on his face cut at Gertie’s heart. His jaw tightened. She resisted the urge to take the words back, to apologize for it. If she did that he would continue to press her to let him take her home.

  She ran her fingers through her hair in frustration, then glanced around to make sure there was no one who could overhear her next words. “Look, I know you won’t believe me when I say this to you, but you’re working for the people who did this to me. I don’t feel safe with you.” His face fell at that, and Gertie felt guilt stab at her heart. “I’m going. I’m leaving the hospital and going to see my family. I want to see my mother.” The tears in her eyes were real. “They haven’t been to see me. It’s been days. I want to see them,” she whispered.