by Katie Dowe
“So she is still showing houses?” Selene asked her husband casually. The months had flown by and it was now the ending of July. The summer heat was relentless forcing people to stay indoors. She and Blake had come to a kind of a wary truce and he was trying to be a husband for her after she had declared that she was going to kill herself.
“I think so.” He looked up from the sales report he had been perusing. The die had been cast and the boy had been named CEO of the company. He had to admit that he was very good at what he did and was steering the company into the right direction. But he had a feeling that Selene had not quite accepted it especially after they had been told that Garth and Olivia were having a son.
“Why does she have a need to do it? It is not like her husband is a beggar.”
“Some women need to feel independent.”
Her body bristled as she looked at him. “Are you saying I am not?”
“Are you?”
She stared at him and then burst into tears. With a sigh of impatience, he got up and pulled her into his arms. “You asked for it,” he told her gruffly as she buried her face into his chest.
“I know I am not the woman you wanted, Blake, but I love you more than my life,” she said tearfully.
“Hush,” he said distractedly. She was getting clingier and he was thinking he might have to get rid of her!
*****
“What do you think, Mrs. Heywood?” the sprite looking woman asked her as they stood just inside the doorway and looked at the water washed blue of the room. It was large and airy and the murals painted on one side of the wall depicted serenity and peace. There were shelves stocked with stuffed toys and toy trains that had been sent over by the toy department of Romano and clothes as well, enough to last their son until he turned three years old. Not to mention what the wives had brought for him.
“I think you did a very good job.” Olivia wandered into the room and looked around. She put her hands on her belly automatically as she walked around.
“Your husband was not sure of the mural,” she said anxiously.
“Don’t worry about it,” she said with a wave of her hand. “I love it.”
“Thank you.”
She went over and looked up at his name spelled out in blue and white puffy material. “Blaine Oliver Heywood,” she whispered for a moment, forgetting the woman in the room.
“A very nice name.”
Olivia turned to the woman. “Yes, we think so too.”
*****
She was alone when she got the call. The housekeeper had come and left and she was soaking in the bath with the intention of going into the nursery to add her touch. She had finished and gotten dressed when her phone rang. “Mrs. Heywood?” the unfamiliar voice said to her.
“Yes?”
“Oh, thank goodness!” the voice gushed. “I have been trying to find you ever so long. I need to sell my house.”
“I am not doing that anymore.”
“Mrs. Heywood, you do not understand. I am getting married in a week and I need to get rid of my place. Brandon and I want to start fresh. He has the cutest little place with a back garden and we are going to be living there but we need the cash to pull it off.”
“I am sure I can recommend-”
“Please, Mrs. Heywood. I am begging you. Just come and take a look and tell me what you think. If you still decide not to go ahead then I will not bother you again.”
She hesitated a moment and then made her decision. “When?”
“Thank you so much!” the woman squealed and for a moment she thought she recognized her voice. “Tomorrow at noon.”
*****
She opened her mouth several times to tell Garth when he came home later that evening and closed it. He had told her to give up showing houses and had taken it for granted that she had. He had been distracted lately and not telling her what was going on. She had come to the conclusion that it had to do with the combined houses and office buildings that both his company and Bradley Wellington’s company were involved in. They ate dinner that the housekeeper had prepared and after that he had excused himself and gone into his office. She stared after him hurt and angry that he was neglecting her. Every time she thought he was coming close to telling her how he felt he disappointed her.
“Fine, Garth,” she huffed and went to their room. She found the Twilight movie and lost herself in it until she fell asleep. He came in soon after and stood there watching her before he took the remote and turned it off. He was a damned coward, he thought to himself as he pulled the sheets over her. He had been trying to come up with the words to tell her how he felt but so far he had not been able to do so! He dug his fingers through his hair and with a sigh he turned and went into the bathroom to take a shower.
*****
“Hello?” Olivia stepped carefully over a hose in the yard as she made her way to the front door. The only person she had told about coming here had been Glenna who had asked her if she was crazy! “Hello?” she said again as she tried the red oak door and found it open. It was a charming two story building with vines climbing all over the weathered walls. She had not seen a vehicle parked when she was coming in and remembered that she had not remembered to get the woman’s name! If she did not show up in fifteen minutes she was gone. She stared up at the high ceiling with the glittering chandelier and admired the pretty staircase. It really was a nice place. She climbed up slowly and reached the landing. The bedrooms were to her right and she opened the first door to discover a beautiful rose pink room with a bed surrounded by gauzy shell pink nets. It would be easy to sell, she thought as she closed the door. She peeked into the others and decided she had seen enough. She had reached the third steps when she heard a sound behind her. Before she could turn around she felt a heavy push at her back! She screamed as she tumbled down the stairs, her hands going to her belly automatically. When she got to the bottom she thankfully lost unconsciousness!
Selene stepped over her inert body and dug her sandaled feet into her to make sure she was unconscious and then with a shrill laugh she left closing the door behind her.
*****
“Mother, have you heard from Olivia? She is not picking up,” Garth said as soon as he came out of the meeting. He had tried calling her before he went in and when he came out he had asked Jennifer if she had called.
“No, darling, maybe she is out with her friends.”
He tried Leesa and several of the other wives and they told him they had not seen her. He called her again and she did not pick up. The housekeeper had told him that she had left out some minutes to twelve and it was now almost four and he was not hearing from her. He stood up and took his jacket. “I am heading out. If Mrs. Heywood calls please tell her to call me.”
He went to the house but she was not there. He turned back out and as a last resort he called Glenna. “Have you heard from Olivia?”
“Not since she went to see about a house.”
“What house?”
Glenna hesitated.
“Dammit, please tell me. I have not heard from her and I am worried.”
She told him and he hung up.
He saw her vehicle parked at the gate. It was almost five and if she had been here for twelve what the hell was she still doing here? He practically ran inside and stopped short as he saw her at the bottom of the stairs!
His heart almost failed him as he ran over to her. She was so still and there was blood trickling from her mouth. “Olivia, no please, baby, wake up!” He fished his phone and called 911. “My wife! She needs help.” He gave them the address and started to pull her into his arms but he realized that he could not move her. “Don’t die, baby, please don’t die!”
Chapter 10
He died several times that day. To him the ambulance took hours to get there and he almost hit the EMTs as they came in. He heard words like her heartbeat was faint and the baby was not moving inside her. He did not care as long as she was alive. He left his car right there and rode wi
th her in the ambulance. He held her cold seemingly lifeless hand in his and felt fear like he had never felt before gripped him tightly. He had not told her he loved her! He had not made love to her last night and held her to him sleeping with her in his arms. He had been so worried about the damned project and not behaving like a besotted fool that he had not told her he loved her.
He let go of her as she was quickly wheeled into the emergency room. They were going to try and save his son. Her neck had not broken but the trauma of the fall had caused her to lose consciousness. They were going to try and save her, hopefully here were not any internal bleeding. Hopefully! He hated the word.
He was sitting numb inside the waiting room when Bradley and Jeremy came in along with their wives. “We have called the others,” Leesa said, hurrying over to sit with him. He did not appreciate them being here. He wanted to be alone to pray and begged some Supreme Being to save his wife.
“They are still operating on her,” he said tonelessly. He was trembling but was not even aware of it.
“How did it happen?” Bradley asked him.
Garth looked up at him confused. “I suppose she fell. I told her to stop-” He broke off abruptly.
They did not say anything but sat there with him. His mother and Glenna came and he hardly noticed as the other wives and husbands came. He had stopped noticing anything. It was three hours later before Doctor Whittingham and another doctor came out. He got to his feet slowly, his hands clenched. “They are both okay.” He walked over to the doctors and hugged them with tears in his eyes. “Your wife is still unconscious and I cannot say when she will wake up. Your son is with the nurse in the nursery.”
He left the others without saying a word and went to find her. She looked so still and he was no used to her like that. They had cleaned her up and she was wearing a hospital gown. He sat on the chair and took her hand in his. “You gave me quite a scare,” he said hoarsely as he held her small hand against his jaw. “Olivia, what am I going to do with you?” He looked up as the nurse brought his son in.
“He is such a beautiful child,” she murmured as she handed him the baby.
“He sure is.” A sleepy mixture of green and brown eyes stared up at him and Garth passed a gentle hand over his patch of blonde hair. He blinked and closed his eyes, yawning slightly. “He is tired.”
“I will put him to bed.”
He kissed his son on the forehead and handed him to the nurse. “Our son is so beautiful, baby, just like you.”
*****
It took the third day for him to start to panic. He had been sitting with her taking his work in and he talked to her endlessly. His mother and the other wives came over to make sure that Blaine was okay and even Blake had come over minus Selene.
“What is going on? Why is she not waking up?” he demanded of the doctors as he came out of the room where his wife lay silent in the bed. “It’s been three goddamned days. What are you no telling me?”
“In traumas like these the body retreats into itself for protection.”
“What the hell does that mean?”
“Garth, please calm down,” Doctor Whittingham told him as he looked at Doctor Wayne. “Her pulse is steady and there are no internal damages. She will wake up when she is ready.”
“Are you trying to tell me she does not want to wake up?”
“No,” Doctor Wayne said calmly. “She went through a terrific trauma and it is understandable that she is still out of it.”
“What can I do?”
“Talk to her and she will hear. Talk about things she likes.”
*****
“I am surprised the brat did not die,” Selene said with a pout of her lips as she climbed onto the bed next to her husband.
“That’s not a nice thing to say,” he said looking at her frowningly.
“Nice?” Selene said scornfully as she looked at him. “You want nice? I wished the bitch had died as well. I failed us.”
He recoiled and stared at her. “What are you saying?”
She laughed and got off the bed. “What do you mean?”
Blake muted the program he had been watching. “How exactly have you failed us, Selene?”
She spun around the room, her blue eyes bright and her nightgown billowing around her. “I pushed her down the stairs!” she said, her mad laughter ringing out.
“Stop it!” he said sharply, feeling a slice of fear. “It’s not funny.”
“I called her and pretended that I had a house that needed to be sold and begged her to come and see it and the greedy little bitch fell for it.”
Blake got off the bed slowly, his body stiff with fear. “You pushed her?”
“I told you I was going to get the company for us but I failed,” she said with a pout.
“What have you done?” he shouted.
“I did it for us!’ she shouted back, her eyes glittering. “I did it so you could love me again. Do you love me now, Blake?” she asked him childishly as she came towards him and curled her hands around his neck. “Do you?”
“Of course I do,” he forced himself to say, realizing that she was hanging on by a thread. “You have done well.”
“I will succeed the next time. I will get rid of both of them.” Blake held her in his arms and knew he had to play along until he could turn her in!
*****
“I watched all of the Twilight movies straight to the end. I now see what you saw. I agree with you, Edward suits Bella more and I found it strange that Jacob is going to be with their daughter. Dammit, Olivia, please wake up! Our son needs you and I need you to make me live. I need you to make me realize that life is not all about a company it is more than that. I need you to watch these movies with me and explain them to me. I need you to tell me that I need to lighten up. Baby, please wake up. If you don’t wake up how are you going to know that I love you?”
“Did you listen to the song?” her voice asked him softly.
“I listened to it a dozen-” He stopped abruptly and looked down at her. His body trembled as he looked into her beautiful brown eyes. “You are awake. You are awake, Olivia!” Before he could help himself he gathered her up into his arms and the tears spilled from his eyes. He let her go suddenly. “Am I hurting you?”
“No, but if you don’t come back here I am going to hurt you,” she whispered as she opened her arms to him. He came into them and pulled her to him, his body shaking uncontrollably. “I thought I had lost you,” he said brokenly. “I saw you lying at the foot of the stairs and thought I had lost you.”
“Not a chance.” She clasped him around his neck and stroked him. “Wait, you said our son!”
“Our son was born a week ago.”
“I want to see him.”
He leaned over and kissed her firmly on the mouth before ringing the bell.
*****
Later that night after she had been checked out thoroughly and their son had finally gone to bed and the visitors had left, Olivia snuggled into his arms. “I have still not forgiven you for going to see to a house after I specifically told you not to,” he said softly. “You fell and could have died.”
She eased up and looked up at him. “I did not fall, I was pushed.”
His arms tightened around her. “Olivia, what are you saying?”
“Someone pushed me from behind, Garth. A woman called and told me that she was getting married and wanted to sell her house and I should meet her there at noon and when I went there she was not so I went in and went upstairs. I was coming down when someone pushed me.”
“Are you sure?” he asked her tightly, his chest hurting. Someone had tried to kill her!
“As sure as my name is Olivia Gail Heywood.”
He smiled a little at that. “We have to call the police.”
*****
They were all gathered inside her room. She had fed her son and he was sleeping. The detectives were there to question her even though Garth would have preferred that they left it until she went
home. “It’s okay, baby, I want to do it while it is still fresh in my mind,” she reassured her husband.
“Mrs. Heywood, I am Detective Blagrove and this is Detective Hanson,” the tall athletically looking man said, indicating to the short squat man with the balding head who stood just inside the room. “We understand that you told your husband that someone pushed you down the stairs of the house you went to look at?”
Olivia nodded and reached for her husband’s hand as he stood by her bed. It just hit her that someone had tried to kill her.
“Are you positive?”
“Am I positive that I felt someone shove me from behind?” Olivia looked at the grim looking man with raised brows. “I am positive.”
“Who were you there to meet?”
“A woman called me and said she wanted to sell the house.”
“We have checked into the people who own the house and apparently they are away in Europe on vacation. They have no intention of selling the place.”
“What are their names?” Olivia demanded.
“A Mr. and Mrs. O’Sullivan,” the man said looking at her notes. “What was the name the person gave you?”
Olivia shook her head dazedly. “She did not give me her name. She only said that her fiancé’s name was Brandon.” She looked up at her husband apologetically. “I am sorry, baby.”
He squeezed her hand but did not say anything.
“You did not see another vehicle when you got there?”
“No,” she said slowly. “I went upstairs and peeped into one of the bedrooms and was on my way down when I heard a sound behind me. When I started to turn around to look that was when I was shoved.”
“We are checking the perimeters for footprints but it appears that there have been a lot of foot traffic there for the past few days,” the detective told them. “You have no idea who would want you harmed?”
“Not a clue,” she responded with a shaky laugh.
“When will we hear anything?” Garth asked them abruptly.
“When we do, Mr. Heywood,” they promised.
*****
“It’s good to be home,” she said as she sat on one of the comfortable chairs in the nursery. Garth had their son cradled in his arms and his mother was downstairs with the housekeeper making sure that lunch was prepared.