Ever Hopeful

by Lori Ryan

  Laura thought Martha would want to see her son, that she might show some sign of grief over losing him. But, no. Martha simply turned her back on Patrick’s body and spoke in a cold, commanding voice, to no one in particular.

  “We’ll be taking my daughter-in-law home now, where she belongs. Laura, come.”

  Laura gasped. Martha’s words were low—a warning and a command—one that was completely clear. Martha Kensington had no intention of letting Laura walk away with Patrick’s baby. Tension coursed through the room feeling thick and weighty as realization hit Laura. She wasn’t free. Patrick’s death had freed her from her husband’s torment, but the Kensingtons would never let her go.

  How stupid could I be? Laura knew in that moment that coming to the hospital had been a mistake. When she got the news, she should have left right away. No one would have thought anything of it if she told the police she wanted to be alone, that she’d go to the morgue when she was composed. If she’d done that, Laura could have taken the money she’d put away and the ID she’d hidden and left town before Martha Kensington could stop her.

  Dr. Samuels raised his hand, palm facing out. An appeasing gesture meant to diffuse, but a firm one nonetheless. “I’m sorry, Mrs. Kensington; I can’t allow that.”

  Martha looked stunned at the refusal. She drew her already-tall form up to its full height. “She’ll come home with us. She’s pregnant, doctor. She needs to be with family so we can care for the baby. We’re the baby’s family.”

  Laura opened her mouth to speak, although she wasn’t sure what she intended to say. But, the doctor was there for her once again, intervening with Martha in a way Laura wasn’t sure she could have. Her relationship with her mother-in-law was not a loving one. In fact, in many ways, Martha frightened her more than Patrick had.

  “Then I’m sure you understand, for the safety of the baby, I cannot let Laura go with you. She’s suffered quite an emotional blow this evening.”

  “Nonsense. We have a private physician who can meet us at the house.” Martha said. Justin shifted next to her looking from Laura to his mother and back again, seemingly undecided as to whether to support his mother or listen to the doctor.

  “Now, I’m sure you’ll agree with me; we all want the best for Laura and the baby. By the time you get her home, she could be in a state of shock, putting both Laura and the baby at risk,” Dr. Samuels said. “I’m going to keep her here under observation. We’ll monitor the baby for twenty-four to forty-eight hours and be sure there are no complications or ill-effects from the shock.”

  Chapter Three

  Laura was stunned. No one challenged the Kensington family. Not only had Dr. Samuels challenged them, it appeared to have worked. The Kensingtons had no response for Dr. Samuels as he waltzed her out of the room. She suddenly felt five years old as opposed to her twenty-five years, and she felt the need to cling to the doctor’s hand like a little girl would cling to her mother’s.

  “I don’t....” Laura didn’t know what to say as they waited for the elevator.

  “Don’t say anything. Wait ’til we’re on the elevator and don’t turn around and look at them. Just look straight ahead and walk away as if nothing is wrong,” the doctor said under his breath.

  Laura was silent as they rode two flights up. When the doors slid open, the older gentleman led her off the elevator to a small office. He shut the door and helped her to a couch, then sat across from her. At that point, Laura would be lying if she said she wasn’t shaking. She honestly had no idea what to make of what had just happened, but she was feeling more than overwhelmed by the events of the last hour.

  The doctor leaned forward and she felt compelled to look into the kind eyes of the older man. He didn’t know it, but he had been a big part of her decision to leave Patrick. Well, not the decision itself so much—that had been more to do with her pregnancy than anything the doctor had said—but he had given her the courage to begin her plan, to start thinking about leaving even before she knew about the baby. Laura’s head spun as the doctor looked at her, and waited patiently.

  Her husband was dead. For two minutes while she’d looked at his body, she’d felt relief. She’d thought she was finally free. But she wasn’t, and it was foolish to think freedom would ever come for her. Patrick’s mother would now be even more committed to keeping Laura and the baby in the fold because her son was gone. Martha would want to keep any part of Patrick that she could still control—Laura and her baby....

  No, that wasn’t exactly right. Once the baby was born, Martha would have no need for Laura. The fear that she had lived with for three years of marriage began to churn deep in her stomach, rising up her throat to steal the breath from her body.

  The doctor’s gentle voice broke into Laura’s thoughts. “Laura, do you need to get away from your husband’s family?” he asked cautiously as though he didn’t want to offend her with the assumption.

  Laura heard a small sob and realized it had come from her. She nodded. “Yes. I think I do.” How could this be happening? Could Martha really take my baby? Maybe Laura was just overreacting from the shock of seeing Patrick’s body. She must be. This couldn’t really be happening.

  “No. No, I’m sure I’m…. I don’t know,” she said. The Kensingtons were now down to Martha and Justin. Laura hadn’t seen enough of Justin to know what he would do. He had always traveled and hardly saw the family any longer. But, in truth, it was Martha she feared. Could Martha use her wealth and influence to take her child from her? Now that Patrick was dead, couldn’t Laura stand and fight instead of running?

  “I had plans to leave next week.” She swallowed and closed her eyes as tears dropped, but continued. She wanted Dr. Samuels to know she had been brave enough to leave. It was suddenly important to her that this doctor know she’d had the guts to walk away from Patrick. At least, she thought she would have had the guts to go through with her plan.

  “I sold jewelry Patrick wouldn’t know was missing, jewelry that normally sits in our safety deposit box between events. I bought a new identity and was ready to run next week.” Laura wrapped her arms around her belly, hugging herself tightly.

  “I think that’s wonderful, Laura. I knew you had it in you to leave someday,” he said, but Laura had a feeling he had been ready to give up hope on her. He’d been trying for close to a year and she had never admitted the abuse, much less given him hope she would leave.

  “Do you have family you can go to? Anyone who can take you in? Help you if the Kensingtons do try to fight for custody?”

  Would Martha do that? Fight for custody?

  “Laura, do you have family you can call?” he tried again.

  No. There’s no one left. Laura tried not to think about her brother. It hurt too much to know he was dead. Her mother had died long before Laura was old enough to remember her, but her brother had always been the one bright spot in her life. When his life was taken in a car accident only a few months after her marriage to Patrick, she’d lost the last of the family she cared about.

  Laura shook her head. “No. No family.”

  Her thoughts shifted back to Martha and the odd statements she’d made about the baby being her family, being a Kensington. “I’m probably overreacting,” she whispered softly, but there was little conviction to the statement.

  As she pictured what Martha Kensington might be capable of when it came to getting her grandchild, fear latched onto her, hard and deep and bone chilling. Martha Kensington wielded power within this state like no other and she had wealth to back it up. Laura would have money from Patrick’s estate, but there was no telling if that would be enough. No. She wouldn’t risk it. Couldn’t risk it. Not when it came to her unborn child.

  The doctor’s voice cut through her thoughts once more. “Can you get to the money you saved?”

  “I buried it in a pot in my greenhouse. It’s the one place he never goes. Went. The one place he never went.” He’s dead now.

  “I think we’ve bought a lit
tle time by telling your mother-in-law I’d check you into the hospital. I can drive you to your home to get the money and then we can get you out of here. You can get a good head start on the Kensingtons before they realize you’re gone.”

  Laura shook her head at the man sitting across from her. “I don’t understand. Why are you helping me?” Her voice shook.

  The doctor seemed to fortify himself with a deep breath before he answered. “When I saw you that first time in my ER, you reminded me so much of my own daughter. She’s just about your age. I couldn’t imagine what it would be like to know my daughter was being hurt like I knew you were.” Laura flinched but he continued. “I just want to help you start again. Whatever it was that brought you to this spot, that brought you to this marriage, you deserve some help in getting out of it.” His smile was tender.

  Tears burned at Laura’s eyes. Fear, humiliation, and confusion vied for top position in her mind. Laura stood and paced at the far end of the office, for some reason feeling the need to reiterate her plan to leave—to explain that she wasn’t just a victim.

  “When I got pregnant, I knew I had to leave. I knew I couldn’t risk staying there with the baby. Not with the way....” She couldn’t finish that sentence. She couldn’t tell anyone what her husband had been doing to her, even though it was clear the doctor knew some of it.

  Laura took a deep breath and made a decision. She needed to trust this doctor. He’d been trying to offer her a lifeline for months now, and it was time she took it. “Yes. I think I need to get the money and leave. I don’t want Martha Kensington anywhere near my baby. She raised one monster. I’m not going to let her have anything to do with raising my child. I don’t have much money put aside, but I have enough for a security deposit and a few months’ rent while I get work.” Laura didn’t bother to tell the doctor that the only thing she could get a job doing was waitressing or maybe working as a hostess in a restaurant. She had no degree, no experience other than waitressing and that was old experience, at that.

  Dr. Samuels stood and gathered his coat and keys then handed Laura her purse. As they left the hospital, Laura was plagued with doubt. Could she trust this man she didn’t truly know? She thought for a minute that she should probably just call a taxi to take her home for her things and then go to the airport, but when he told her where he would pick her up at the outer edge of the parking lot, she found herself leaving with him instead. The truth was, she didn’t want to do this alone right now and there wasn’t anyone else for her to turn to. Laura swallowed her doubts and grabbed hold of her conviction. She was leaving. She was finished being a Kensington. She was finished letting Martha have any hold over her. For better or worse, it was time to run.

  Chapter Four

  When they turned onto the street where she and Patrick lived, Laura was stunned. The front of the house was crawling with reporters. They spilled out onto the sidewalk as enormous antennae towered over news vans and pierced the sky. The news of Patrick’s death had gotten out.

  “Change of plans,” the doctor muttered as he turned down a side street a block before they reached the house.

  Laura turned and looked out the back window of the car and took a deep breath. She needed a new plan. She needed to grab hold of this situation and get herself out of there before Martha Kensington came after her. She glanced at her phone to check the time and thought to herself that she’d need to get rid of that too if she wanted to hide.

  She spoke more to herself than to the doctor at this point as she searched in her purse for her wallet. “The bank is closed, but if you can take me to an ATM, I’ll take out what I can and then figure out where to go from here. I think there’s a limit on what I can take from the ATM in one day. Five hundred dollars, maybe?”

  “I can take another five hundred dollars out of my account for you, so you’ll have a little more. You won’t be able to get a new identity right away, but we can get you to a safe place. Airlines are subject to very strict regulations nowadays so your husband’s family shouldn’t be able to find out what plane you took. By the time they realize you’re missing, you’ll be long gone.”

  “I can’t take your money,” Laura said, shaking her head. “Besides, it isn’t enough for rent and the deposit on any apartment. I can take money from my ATM and find a hotel to stay in nearby until I can get to the money in the greenhouse or the bank on Monday.” She felt weak and sick to her stomach at the thought of not leaving the area right away. She honestly didn’t know if she was being rational or not, but everything in her was screaming to put distance between herself and the Kensingtons right now.

  The doctor raised an eyebrow. “Do you really think that’s a good idea?”

  “No,” Laura admitted, “but I don’t see any other option.” She fought back another wave of tears. She would not cry again. No amount of tears would help the situation.

  “Do you have any friends you can stay with?”

  She shook her head. The friends she had in New Jersey before she’d married Patrick stopped calling when she made excuses not to talk to them or see them. The shame of having to lie to them about her marriage had made her tuck herself away from anyone who would question too much or see through her act.

  And the friends she had in Connecticut—well, they weren’t truly friends. Just country club acquaintances. None of them would take her in and hide her from Martha Kensington.

  They were quiet for a minute before the doctor cracked a wide smile. “I know a place you can go while you get on your feet.”

  Laura cringed. She had a feeling she knew what he was going to say, and the idea of going to a shelter, of answering questions and letting anyone else know what was going on made her stomach churn even more.

  “I’ve got a friend who owns a ranch in Texas. I spend a few weeks there every summer. It’s the perfect place for you to figure things out, to clear your head and start again, and I just know May would love to have you.” He drew a cell phone out of his pocket and keyed through the contacts before selecting one. “How do you feel about Texas?” he asked her, holding the phone in his hand without hitting send as though asking her whether to make the call or not.

  Texas? She couldn’t possibly show up on the doorstep of a stranger, even if Dr. Samuels said it was all right. There was nothing all right about it.

  Laura smiled, but it felt weak. Texas. If she didn’t go where he suggested, where would she go? Even if she took Dr. Samuel’s five hundred dollars along with hers, she couldn’t use her ATM or credit cards again unless she wanted to be tracked after she left. She wasn’t exactly swimming in options.

  “I promise,” he said, “May would really love the company.”

  Laura looked back over her shoulder toward the house. Even if she could push through the news reporters, the thought of going back into the house she’d shared with Patrick… She just couldn’t do that. She couldn’t turn back now.

  “Texas it is,” she said more to herself than to the doctor who was now speaking with someone on the other end of the phone.

  “May? It’s Josh. I need a favor.” The doctor listened for a moment before speaking again. “I’m sending someone to you. I need you to keep her safe with you at the ranch.”

  There was another pause as he listened, and then turned to Laura and nodded with a big grin. “I’ll see if I can get her on a flight right away and then she’ll take the bus from Austin. I’m not sure exactly what day she’ll arrive,” he said, glancing at Laura.

  The doctor listened again. “Thank you. Oh, and May? Don’t contact me for a while. I’ll get in touch in a few weeks. I don’t want any contact between us that might let someone track her right now, so let’s keep it to this one call.”

  Laura found her resolve when she looked over at the man who was helping her flee. She dug deep and found the strength she’d built up while living with Patrick over the past three years. She would not let his family take the baby, and she’d be damned if she’d let them have any part in raising her ch
ild. The woman who had raised her monster of a husband wouldn’t be coming anywhere near her baby.

  She’d go to Texas long enough to get her bearings and come up with a plan. She’d spend a few days there to figure out her next move. Then she’d move on, as planned, and find a job somewhere. She’d only stay in one place a few weeks at a time if she could manage it, until she was certain the Kensingtons had given up their search for her.

  Laura took a deep breath and nodded at the doctor. Texas.

  Chapter Five

  Cade Bishop always loved it when hours of patience paid off and he made a connection with a frightened animal. The telltale sign might be a low whinny from a horse or being allowed to check out the new kittens of a feral cat. Most often, it happened in subtle ways, with little changes in the animal happening here or there over time. But Ms. Red had offered her trust suddenly and completely this morning. For Red, the rust-colored mixed-breed dog he’d found hurt and wandering on the highway four weeks ago, her trust came as a floodgate opening rather than a trickle.

  For weeks, Cade sat calmly and quietly near Red’s food bowl during mealtimes. He never moved or attempted to approach her while she ate. There were no strings attached. No pushing. He simply sat and let her get used to his smell, to the sight of him, to slight movements. Sometimes she spooked and ran away. When that happened, Cade just waited. He knew she’d come back on her own, in her own time.

  Today, after eating, Red stood staring at Cade for a long time. She appeared calm, but those deep round-platter eyes of hers still seemed to take in everything. She looked as if she were weighing, balancing something in her mind. Maybe some risk versus some reward? Cade often wished he could read the minds of the animals he worked with.