White Wedding for a Southern Belle

by Susan Carlisle

  Waving again, she watched as the car accelerated then pulled to a screeching halt beside her. With relief that almost had her on her knees again, Ashley saw it was a police car. A uniformed officer hopped out of the car. It was Bull. She fell into his arms.

  “Help! Kiefer is locked in a warehouse. Marko kidnapped us. Call an ambulance. There’s an injured man in there too.”

  “Get in. Show us where.” He opened the back passenger door and Ashley climbed in. The policeman driving was already on the radio, letting other patrolmen know they needed help. When Bull was back in the car the driver stepped on the gas.

  She sat forward, looking through the wire mesh and out the windshield. Could she recall enough to find the correct building? They all looked the same in the dark. She had to remember. Had to get the right one. Kiefer’s life depended on it.

  “It’s down here. The third big building on the right. No, fourth. I came out between those buildings.” She pointed off to the right despite the fact no one could see her do it. “The one with the trash cans beside it.”

  The patrolman stopped the car in front of the large roll-down door.

  “You stay here,” Bull said, as he leaped out and pulled his gun. The sound of sirens filled the air.

  She watched as Bull and the other officer opened a smaller door beside the larger one and entered the warehouse. Watching with her nose pressed against the window, she waited. Time seemed to slow to a crawl. More police cars arrived and men flooded in. Still no Kiefer. Where was he? Was he all right? Panic became a living thing in her. She hung on to the edge of the car door and didn’t take her eyes off the opening to the warehouse. Was this how Kiefer had felt when he’d been waiting for her that night? Tears filled her eyes.

  Had Marko returned while she’d been gone? She couldn’t think like that. Not now that she’d found help.

  An ambulance pulled to a stop nearby. The EMTs unloaded a gurney and pushed it through the larger door, which was opening. Soon after Bull came out of the building and walked toward her. He opened the door.

  “Kiefer?” She was almost afraid of the answer.

  “Inside. He’s fine. Asking to see you.”

  Ashley ran into the building and stopped. Kiefer walked toward her.

  Happiness surged through her. She smiled as the band squeezing her heart popped open. She ran, tears streaming down her face, toward him. His arms opened wide. When she reached him he engulfed her, lifting her off her feet. Kiefer was solid, sure and safe. Best of all—alive. She never wanted to leave him again.

  “I thought... Thought...I was so scared...”

  He held her tight as if he never wanted to let her go. “Shh, sweetheart. I’m fine. You did good. I couldn’t have asked for a better partner.” Kiefer slowly placed her on her feet and looked at her. He studied her as if making sure she really was okay.

  “Did Marko come back?”

  “No, but Bull can tell you all about that. I have to go to the hospital with Jorge. I want you to go too and be checked out. Bull is going to see that you get to your parents’. No argument.”

  She would go gladly. If Kiefer wasn’t going to be with her then she wanted people around her who made her feel safe. Her parents could provide that. Despite them hovering when she’d been a child, she had felt secure. Smiling up at him, she nodded. “No argument.”

  The emergency crew came past them with Jorge on a gurney.

  “I’ve got to go.” He gave her a quick kiss and followed Jorge into the back of the ambulance.

  Bull joined her. “Come on. I’ll get you to the hospital and call your parents.”

  Ashley slowly walked to the car with Bull. Kiefer had said nothing about seeing her again. Had anything really changed between them?

  * * *

  It had been three days and still Kiefer hadn’t called. Ashley had begun to worry that he wouldn’t.

  Her parents had picked her up from the hospital. Her arm had been put in a sling again. Not because of her gunshot injury but because her shoulder had been hurt from being hyperextended when she and Kiefer had been tied together.

  Bull had explained on the way to the hospital that 911 had received the call, but before they could pinpoint the location, the battery had gone dead. All they’d had was a vicinity. When they had been called to a break-in at a pharmacy, they’d suspected it was related but they’d still had a large area to cover. They’d started searching the area. That was when they’d found her. On the way to the hospital the call came through that Marko and his driver had been picked up.

  By the time her mother and father had made it to the hospital they had been typical worried parents. This time Ashley had found it comforting. She’d appreciated the pampering, even though Kiefer hadn’t been there to offer some as well.

  The second day she was at her parents’ she went for a walk along her old block. It was warm outside but not hot and steamy yet. It was summertime and children were playing in their yards.

  She stopped and looked at the house next door. The one Ron had lived in years before. After what he’d done, his parents had moved away, no longer able to face their shame. The new neighbors had painted the place, but it still held the stigma of being where Ron had lived. How could anyone have known? Was there ever a way of knowing what people were capable of? Not really. Mostly she had to just believe in the goodness of mankind. That trust was something she’d had a hard time giving. Kiefer had more than earned it. Proved himself worthy.

  Still, she had misjudged Marko. No, that wasn’t true. She just hadn’t wanted to see it. He had given her all the signs.

  Ashley continued along the street, lifting her face so that the sun warmed it. It had been a while since she had really looked at the area. Little had changed yet somehow it seemed different. She went on another couple of blocks and turned right. There was her father’s small grocery store. Entering, she saw her father behind the counter.

  “Hey, sweetheart. It’s nice to see you.”

  “Hi.”

  “How about a drink?” He walked toward an old soda machine.

  “That would be great.” She accepted the bottle from him.

  “I’m not busy this morning, so come have a seat and stay a minute.” He indicated a stool nearby.

  Ashley took it and her father the other.

  “How’re you feeling?”

  “Better. Much better. In fact, I think I’ll be going home tomorrow.” She took a sip of her soda.

  “It’s been nice having you but I know you have your own life.”

  Ashley nodded.

  “I’m sorry about what happened to you. I never would’ve thought Marko would do such a thing.” A dark look came over his face. “But then, I’ve made that mistake before. I know you had a hard time with how overprotective I was when you were a kid. It was only because I loved you.”

  Had her father felt the same way she had when Marko had pointed the gun at Kiefer? Or when she’d had to leave him behind, knowing Marko could return at any moment? Had that been the same alarm that had consumed Kiefer when she’d been shot?

  She’d experienced that type of fear. “I understand that now, Dad.”

  “I hope so.”

  There had been no compromise with her father but Kiefer had offered one. Instead of accepting it, she’d all but slapped him in the face. She’d thrown away what could have been.

  A customer entered. Her father kissed her on the forehead. “I love you, honey. It can make us act in strange ways.”

  “Yes, it can.”

  A few minutes later Ashley put the drink bottle down and left. She didn’t return the way she had come but instead walked toward where Lizzy had lived. The house was still there but her family had moved away as well. Ashley stood looking at the house. In her mind she could see Lizzy running down the steps to meet h
er. Or jumping as she played hopscotch on the sidewalk where Ashley stood.

  It was time to let go. Lizzy and what had happened to her had shaped her own past, but now it was time to find a future of her own making. Ignoring the pain in her arm, she reached up behind her neck and unlatched the necklace. It slipped into the other hand and she dropped it into her pocket. Kiefer was right. She needed to think about what she wanted and needed. And that was him. He was her future. If she could convince him to give her another chance.

  * * *

  Kiefer had wanted to go straight to Ashley’s parents’ house the second he left the hospital. He had called but she had been asleep. Her mother had assured him she was doing fine. Knowing she needed rest after their ordeal, he had decided to wait. He had things he had to get straight in his mind, in his life, before he went to Ashley and begged her to consider giving him another chance.

  What he had learned was that life was unpredictable and could be cut short. Finding someone special was rare and worth fighting for. He hadn’t been able to handle everything by himself during their situation with Marko, but with Ashley beside him they had made a great team. It was impossible to stop bad things from happening to her but he could be there to support her when they did. He’d not been able to protect his mother because he’d been a child. She didn’t blame him and he shouldn’t blame himself.

  Ashley had told him more than once that he needed to face what had happened to his mother. He couldn’t confront that man but he could face the man that had threatened Ashley.

  The next day Kiefer sat on a metal jail chair in a cubicle, looking at Marko. After some fast talking on Kiefer’s part, he had convinced Bull to arrange the meeting.

  Kiefer picked up the phone on the wall. After a moment of hesitation Marko did the same.

  Marko jerked his chin at Kiefer. “What do you want?”

  “To tell you that your buddy Jorge is going to live. He’ll spend some time in the hospital but he’ll make it.”

  Marko shrugged from where he slumped in the chair. “Okay. So you could have sent a message. Why did you show up here?”

  “Because I needed to face you. For you to see me on this side of the glass and know you are on that side. To tell you that you’ll never again hold any power over me or Ashley. I’ll be there to testify against you and when I’m done you’ll be forgotten by me forever.”

  Marko bared his teeth. “You think I care.”

  “It doesn’t matter to me. What does matter to me is Ashley. If you so much as say her name, I’ll use everything in my power to see that you never see the light of day again.” Kiefer pushed his chair back and stood. “Now, you have a good day.”

  Kiefer walked out into the sunlight. The day had just become brighter.

  He rolled his shoulders and headed toward his car. As for Brittney and Josh, it was time to move beyond what they had done as well. They had been controlling his happiness and he wasn’t going to give them that power anymore. They’d been allowed too much importance in his life for too long. He was tired of having others feel sorry for him and he was disgusted by how long he’d felt sorry for himself. He’d found something good in his life, and he was going to hang on for dear life.

  Ashley would never betray him. She was loyal to a fault. To her community, her family and her friends. She would be the same to him as well. There wasn’t a selfish bone in her body. She believed in commitment. Had proved that by her devotion to the people in her life. Ashley was the type of person he wanted beside him forever.

  She had not only given him his self-esteem back but she’d given him a home. Not the sterile life that looked like his apartment but something comfortable like her place. He’d become part of Southriver in the short amount of time he’d worked at the clinic. People were no longer people who came and went. They were business owners, grandmothers, young families—friends. He’d had no idea he’d needed that until he’d had it and had been about to lose it. He needed Southriver as much as it needed him.

  Now it was time to convince Ashley that they belonged together. That was going to require a grandiose gesture. He had just such a thing in mind.

  CHAPTER TEN

  ASHLEY GLANCED AT the crowd filling the city council meeting room. There were more people than usual attending. She spoke to another alderman, hoping to garner some support for the clinic. She was afraid she was going to have a fight on her hands.

  Her and Kiefer’s ordeal had made the news. She’d done numerous interviews. To her surprise she’d even seen one with Kiefer. She had fully anticipated him to dodge such a thing, but he’d given a good solid sound bite, glossing over what had happened to them and turning the focus on the efforts being made in the Southriver area and what he did at the clinic. He’d made an impressive spokesman.

  Others on the council had also been interviewed. They had made it clear in one way or another that they weren’t in support of the clinic or the methods being used to make improvements in Southriver.

  Outside of seeing Kiefer on TV, she’d not seen him in ages. It hurt terribly. The clinic had been closed when she’d returned to her place. She had been told that Kiefer had been given some time off. He deserved that. She had also been informed that at this time there was no one to replace him. Ashley couldn’t bring herself to ask any more questions. Whatever she had hoped for with the clinic and Kiefer was gone.

  He’d not even called. Okay, that wasn’t true. He had spoken to her mother, but that wasn’t the same as him talking to her. All she could try to do now was accept what he wanted and that wasn’t her.

  All the media publicity had shone a light on Southriver, but it had been a negative one for the most part. That was a portion of what the council meeting was about tonight. The mayor and a couple of the aldermen wanted to rescind the funding. Their argument was that the city couldn’t afford to take a chance that what had happened to Kiefer wouldn’t happen to another doctor. The liability was too great.

  As painful as it was for the clinic to close, losing Kiefer hurt far worse. It was a constant ache that didn’t ease. More than once she’d been in her kitchen and had stopped what she’d been doing to look at the door to the stairs, thinking she’d heard his footsteps. It would take a long time for her to push memories of him out of her home and even longer for them to dim in her heart.

  She couldn’t think about that now. She had a council meeting to survive. A clinic and a neighborhood to protect.

  “Okay, folks. Everybody find a seat. It’s time for the meeting to begin,” the city council chairman said, hitting the gavel on a block of wood.

  A tingle went down her spine. She turned and looked out over the room. Kiefer had just entered. His gaze met hers and held. For Ashley all the activity in the room faded away. Her heart went into a wild pit-a-pat rhythm and her entire body hummed with awareness. Everything in her zeroed in on Kiefer.

  “Alderman Marsh, if you’ll take your seat we’ll get started.”

  Ashley blinked. Warmth filled her face. Kiefer grinned. Her hand trembled as she pulled her chair out from under the table. When she looked up again Kiefer was no longer visible. Had he left? Searching, she found him sitting in a seat a couple of rows from the back.

  What was he doing here?

  The meeting was being called to order. Her focus was divided between what was being said and Kiefer. Normally she was a highly attentive woman where her work as alderman was concerned, but this evening all her focus was on the man who hadn’t taken his eyes off her.

  “Ms. Marsh, in light of what happened recently, we feel it’s too risky to ask a doctor to work at the clinic,” Alderman Richards, one of the council members, said.

  That statement jerked her out of her Kiefer-induced trance. Alderman Henderson had been the most vocal about not supporting the clinic in the beginning. Now he was bringing others over to his side. She wasn’
t surprised he would be the one who would take advantage of the Marko incident to make his point.

  “We can’t let one problem close down the clinic. The people of Southriver should have the care they deserve,” Ashley responded.

  “Yes, but we can’t expect the hospital to put their doctors in harm’s way by working there,” another alderman said.

  She looked across the table at the woman. “You do know I live in Southriver? Was raised there.”

  “Where you live is your choice. The city council asking the hospital to send a doctor there is ours. We don’t want to put ourselves out there for a civil suit if he or she is hurt doing so,” Alderman Richards said, pushing his wire-rimmed glasses back up his nose.

  Ashley had heard all the political rhetoric before. “The people of Southriver deserve to keep the clinic. They were supporting it, using it and, more importantly, benefiting from it. More than once Dr. Bradford...” she looked at Kiefer “...identified medical problems that would have been left undiagnosed if the person hadn’t come to the clinic. The patients would have never gone to the hospital until it was too late. He’s even taken care of my mother when she had a severe burn. The clinic is making a difference. Will make a difference if we continue to support it. Close it and it will be the first step toward telling the people of Southriver they aren’t worth the trouble. They’re part of this city just as the rest of the districts are and deserve to be treated that way.”

  “Thank you for that impassioned statement, but the problem still remains that the clinic was a scene of a kidnapping and the doctor was taken at gunpoint. We can’t have that happen again or anything else criminal. The hospital isn’t going to put their employees into that type of danger.”

  Kiefer stood. His gaze met hers before he looked at Alderman Richards. “I’m that doctor who was kidnapped. Dr. Kiefer Bradford. And I disagree with you. The hospital is going to continue to support the clinic. I am going to continue as director and hope to encourage an additional doctor to join me. I believe in Southriver and what Ms. Marsh is trying to do for the community. I ask that the council continue their support. But even if you don’t, I’ll still be practicing in Southriver. And the city council won’t be able to take credit for the work being done there.”