She tried to hide her laugh, but failed. “All right, what did you do, Baptiste?”
“We did to a classmate, Ralph Peterson, what I was planning to do to you.”
“What’s that?”
“Fake a quarantine.”
“What?” she said, trying to quiet down her laughter.
“I’m serious,” he admitted, laughing just as hard. “Talk about anal retentive. Even as easygoing as K-Mart can be most of the time, Pete managed to get on his nerves, too. So, we decided our friend needed a little distance away from everyone for a few days.”
“Baptiste, y’all really didn’t do that, did you?”
“Yes, we did. One day after class, K-Mart and I found Pete and told him that he’d tested positive for encephalitis. After that, we locked Pete up in a room and rationed his food, and he ended up eating like one meal a day. He was so messed up by the time it was over with he spent a week in the psych ward.”
“Oh, stop. Man, you are lying.”
“No, I’m not. If you think I’m making this up, just ask K-Mart.”
“Did anyone ever find out?”
“Oh, yes, and as our punishment, the dean made both of us volunteer at a local health clinic until we graduated. That’s how I started working with drug-addicted teen mothers and their babies.”
After they settled down, Vic lovingly looked over at him. “That’s how you met T-One and T-Two, isn’t it?”
A.J.’s look of humor fled, and a somber expression took its place. “Yes. They were brought into the emergency room one night. They were the worst cases of child abuse and neglect I’ve ever seen,” he uttered softly, his voice thickening. He glanced at Vic. “But you know what?”
“What?”
“Despite the agony they were going through they held hands and wouldn’t let go of each other. Anyway, I stayed at their bedside. I’m not sure how many days now, but I had to be sure they’d make it through.”
She lightly stroked the side of Bébé’s face, who had drifted off to sleep. “Then what?”
“I left the hospital one day, headed straight down to Social Services, and applied to become a foster parent. Once I looked into their little eyes, I fell in love with those two munchkins. Their mother’s parental rights were being terminated anyway, and within six months she was dead. They would have ended up in foster care one way or the other, and I wanted my home to be the one they came to.”
“Oh, Baptiste…”
“They required a lot of care at first.”
“What kind of care?” she asked, curious.
“They’d suffered so much abuse and trauma they hadn’t learned to talk.”
Tears rolled down Vic’s face. “What did you do?”
He blew out a hard breath. “I knew I couldn’t give them what they needed and work, too, so I resigned my position the day they were released from the hospital and brought them home with me.” He shifted in the rocker until he faced her. “Honey, remember the day we first saw Bébé and CeCe?”
Vic nodded.
A.J. stared down at CeCe, who was now fast asleep, and cradled her closer to his chest. “I felt the same way about them as I did when I first saw Taylor and Tyler. Somehow I knew they’d be a part of my life.”
Vic sobbed softly, remembering that she’d felt the exact same way, but hadn’t wanted to scare him off by voicing her feelings.
He proceeded to tell her the fear he’d felt when he made the offer to Valerie to care for her babies. “This is my life, Honey. Living and working in the community, trying to help little ones…it’s who I am. I realize taking care of Taylor and Tyler is a big responsibility, and now we have Bébé and CeCe—”
“Taking care of all of these babies is what I want, too, Baptiste.”
* * *
“Baptiste, you hear that?” Later, around eight that evening, Vic lay atop Baptiste’s bed, staring at the ceiling.
“Yes. It’s called quiet.” A.J. was stretched out beside her, elbow bent and his head resting on his palm. “They must all be asleep.”
After they’d gotten Taylor and Tyler off to school, Vic and A.J. had come back home and spent the morning with Bébé and CeCe, becoming more acquainted with their personalities. In between the girls’ feeding and naps, they had become more familiar with each other. Neither of them had a desire to halt their passion. A.J. discovered that if he slid a pillow underneath Vic’s hips while he made love to her and nuzzled a particular spot between her ear and neck, she shattered like a pane of glass.
Vic rolled on her side to face him, her eyes roving over him, her hand stroking slowly over his crotch. “You think they’ll give us twenty minutes?”
“God, I hope so,” he groaned and covered her mouth with his. He deepened the kiss, but was interrupted by the ringing of the doorbell. Pulling away, they both sighed in frustration before A.J. stood and answered the door.
Zach strolled in a few moments later and took a seat at the dining room table. “Did I interrupt somethin’?”
“Yes,” Vic chuckled, winking at Baptiste. “We’ll resume later.” She focused her attention on Zach. “Listen, you hungry?”
Zach patted his stomach. “Naw, just left from over at Alcee’s house. Mama Z fed me today, but I could stand some dessert. Whatcha got?”
“Boy, you eat more than Baptiste.” Chuckling, Vic shook her head and headed off to the kitchen.
After Vic left, Zach leaned back in his chair and released a frustrated sigh.
“What’s wrong?” A.J. asked, concerned.
Zach ran a weary hand across his face. “The boys from the lab came up empty-handed trying to identify the paint chips. Damn, I need to find the car Scooter and Valerie drove that night.”
Returning from the kitchen with a slice of homemade apple pie on two plates, Vic had overheard Zach’s comment. She gave one plate to Baptiste and the other to Zach. “Zach, I heard what you told Baptiste. Maybe I can help.”
Zach didn’t stop eating. “Help do what?”
“Help you find the car,” Vic replied.
Zach frowned in confusion. “How?”
“Hypnosis.”
Zach lifted his brow. “On who?”
“Me.”
“Honey—”
“Baptiste, come on now and listen. Hypnosis might help me remember more about the accident or something about the car that Scooter was driving.”
“But, Honey, you said yourself you only got a glimpse of the back of the car before it drove off.”
“I know, Baptiste, but hypnosis might help me remember something I saw.”
A.J. shook his head.
Vic braced her hands on the table with her eyes narrowed. “Baptiste, I know you’re not sitting here telling me I can’t do something.”
“You’re right,” A.J. retorted and shot to his feet. “I’m not sitting.”
“Baptiste,” Vic uttered in a warning tone.
A.J. shook his head, again, rubbing at the base of his neck. “I’m sorry, baby, but I’m just not feeling you putting yourself through hypnosis.”
Vic glanced over at Zach. “You just said you needed to find the car, right?”
“Yeah,” Zach drawled.
“Come on, Baptiste,” Vic said with a pleading look. “It wouldn’t hurt for me to at least try, right?”
“Honey, you’ve been through a lot—”
“I know what I’ve been through, Baptiste, but baby, I made it. And right now, two other people are involved as well. One’s fighting for her life and the other is fighting to save it. They’ve gone through more than I have. They need my help, and I plan on giving it to ’em.”
Zach glanced over at A.J. from across the table. “Brother-in-law, Baby Girl might be right on this one. I told ya the other night the missing link to all of this is that car.”
Vic looped her arms around Baptiste’s neck. “Baby, if you hadn’t stood with me, I wouldn’t have made it. Stand by me on this one.” She cupped his face in her hands. “Please.”
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“Brother-in-law, if it makes ya feel any better, there’s been times when the police have used hypnosis to help victims remember information that their memory suppressed.” Staring intently at A.J., Zach added, “Let me at least check into it, okay?”
A.J. released a sigh so inaudible he barely heard it himself and sat heavily. He begrudgingly relented, in part because he knew once Vic made up in her mind to do something, nothing short of death would make her back down. He also knew that she was right. They had to identify the car. He pulled her onto his lap, wrapping his arms around her waist. “Make no mistake, I’ll be right there.”
“You took it,” Tyler yelled from in the bedroom.
“Did not,” Taylor shouted back.
Zach shook his head and laughed. “Thought Thelma and Louise would’ve been asleep by now.”
Vic chuckled and gave Baptiste a sultry look. “We hoped so, too.”
“So, is this what I have to look forward to?” Zach asked, wiping his mouth with a napkin.
A.J. chuckled as he peeked around Vic and looked over at Zach. “Yes. Just wait until you and Moni add a second one.” He caressed Vic’s bottom. “Well, I guess I need to go and determine the source of this battle.”
“No, stay and finish talking with Zach and listen out for Bébé and CeCe. I’m on this one.” Vic left the dining room and headed down the hall. “All right. Now what’s the problem here, people?”
Zach watched Vic until she was well out of hearing distance. “Brother-in-law,” he whispered, leaning over, “ya don’ talked her out of leaving, right?”
A.J.’s eyes twinkled with delight as he sat, recalling the passion and love they’d shared the last several hours. Smiling, he bobbed his head up and down. “Zach, trust me, I don’t believe you have to worry about that anymore.”
Zach pushed his empty dish away, sighing with satisfaction, and rested his hand on a full stomach. “That’s good ’cause ya woman can burn. If ya ever get tired of her cooking, send her my way. Ain’t had cooking like this since I left my mama’s house.”
A.J. chuckled.
Zach’s eyes slid shut. “And ya sure she ain’t gonna move, right?”
A.J. nodded. “Oui.”
* * *
Vic stood in the middle of Taylor and Tyler’s bedroom with her hands on her hips. “Ladies, what’s going on in here?”
The décor of the space was French antique done in multiple shades of pink and white. The walls were sorbet pink, and the elegant floral fabrics and canopy-topped twin beds added an undeniably feminine charm.
Vic studied Taylor intently to be certain the wheezy sound she heard wasn’t another asthma attack. Satisfied that all was well, she bit down on her bottom lip to keep from laughing out loud. Taylor and Tyler sat on their beds with their backs to each, arms folded across their little heaving chests.
Vic needed the facts, and she needed them fast. Asking Taylor was not an option because her logical way of thinking would pose a thousand other questions before she even got around to answering the initial one. So, Vic opted to query Tyler first. She’d have the hardcore truth in about two seconds flat. “All right, T-Two,” she said, looking at Tyler, “what’s going on?”
Tyler looked up at Vic and tossed her thumb over her shoulder. “She started it, Honey. She took my doll.”
“Did not,” Taylor shouted back.
“Did, too,” Tyler countered. “She took it without ’mission, Honey.”
Vic chuckled. “It’s called permission, T-Two.” Then she glanced over at Taylor. “T-One, is that true?”
“Uh,” Taylor hedged.
“T-One,” Vic said, “the answer is simple. It’s either yes or no. Did you take T-Two’s doll without permission?”
“Honey, she’s not playing with it. It was just sitting there, and the baby doll didn’t want to sit by herself. The baby doll needs me—”
“All right, T-One, I get the picture.” Vic hid a grin behind the back of her hand, then sat on the floor and beckoned both girls to her. She patted her lap and waited for them to settle themselves before turning her attention to Taylor. “T-One, if you want to play with something that belongs to someone else, you ask their permission. Understand?”
Taylor nodded. “Yes, ma’am.”
Vic smiled. “Okay, now I want you to tell T-Two you’re sorry.”
Taylor mumbled under her breath, “Sorry, T-Two.”
Vic glanced over at Tyler. “T-Two, do you accept T-One’s apology?”
“No.” Tyler huffed and turned her head away.
“T-Two…” Vic’s voice was stern, yet gentle.
“All right, I ’cept—”
“That’s accept, T-Two,” Vic amended.
“I accept your ’pology—”
“It’s pronounced apology, sweetie,” Vic corrected.
Tyler sighed. “I accept your apology, T-One.”
“That’s more like it.” Vic hugged both girls to her chest. “Listen, we are a family now, and that includes Bébé and CeCe, too. I don’t care if the world falls down around you, I expect all four of you to grab hands and hold on to one another for dear life. Understand, Honey?”
Smiling, Taylor and Tyler looked up at Vic. “Yes, ma’am.”
Taylor looped her arms around Vic’s neck. “Love you, Honey.”
“Yeah, love you, Honey,” Tyler affirmed.
Vic gave both girls a big bear hug. “Love my babies, too.”
“Honey?” Taylor said, with a quizzical look.
“What, sweet pea?”
“You not leave us, right?”
Vic blinked back tears as she shook her head. “Nope. Honey’s here to stay.”
Chapter 13
Friday morning, Vic checked in with the police officers assigned to guard Valerie when she went to Highland Hospital to visit her. She brought along a digital camera loaded with several pictures of Brianna and Chloé that she and Baptiste had taken. Afterwards, she took the elevator up to the intensive care unit to see how Nicole, the accident victim, was doing. She didn’t learn until she spoke with one the nurses that Ron had performed a difficult but successful surgery to remove Nicole’s brain tumor and the chances of Nicole pulling through had dramatically increased. As soon as she opened the door, she spotted Ron talking with Nicole’s parents by her bedside and turned to walk away.
Ron caught sight of Vic from the corner of his eye. “Vic?”
Vic halted when she heard Ron call out to her and turned to face him. “How’s Nicole doing?”
“She’s in a drug-induced coma, but she’s stable. I believe she’s going to make it.”
So much had transpired in the last forty-eight hours that Vic silently admitted she hadn’t given much thought to what she would say if she ever saw Ron again. She glanced up at Ron. “How are you doing?”
Ron swept his hand toward the waiting area. Together, he and Vic walked in silence down the corridor. After Vic settled in a seat, he sat next to her. “I’m okay.” He paused and swallowed the lump in his throat. “Vic, I-I just want you to know how sorry I am for the pain I put you through.”
As Vic nodded, she couldn’t help noticing the dark circles underneath his eyes. “You look tired.”
“I am,” Ron replied as a loud growl rumbled inside his stomach. He chuckled. “I guess I’m hungry, too. After I grab a bite to eat, I’m going back to my hotel room and get some sleep. My flight leaves later this evening.”
“Ron, you’re a gifted surgeon,” Vic admitted without hesitation, lacing her fingers together to control the trembling. “Thank you for helping Nicole.” Fumbling with the strap on her purse, she looped it across her shoulder, and stood. “I-I better head back down to Nicole’s room. I want to see how she and her parents are doing.”
Ron nodded, rising to his feet and started to speak, then hesitated before he finally asked, “How are you doing, Vic? Are you happy?”
With the thoughts of the family she’d always longed for now in her life via Baptiste
, Taylor, and Tyler, along with Brianna and Chloé, a bright smile surfaced. “I’m good, Ron. And yes, I’m very happy.”
“You’re positive?”
“Absolutely.”
“Vic,” Ron uttered softly with his head bowed, “I hope one day you’ll find it in your heart to forgive me. I was the one who made the mistake for not being honest with you, for not being honest with myself. When we first met, I was in denial about who I was.” He glanced up at her. “You deserve to be happy.”
Vic reached out and placed her hand atop his. “I am happy, Ron, more than you could ever imagine.” She wasn’t so naïve that she didn’t realize that it would take time to come to terms with the past. Nor had she forgotten that the first step toward the healing process was to open up to other people who’d gone through the same experience as she had. But she was strong enough to know that she had to release herself from the bondage of the past and move on. She held Ron’s gaze and it happened. It was just like her mother had said it would be. Looking Ron square in the eyes, remembering all the pain she’d suffered, a peace she thought she’d never feel toward him came over her.
“Ron.” Her voice was clear and strong.
“Yes?”
With tears shimmering in her eyes, she said, “I wish you well.”
* * *
Vic entered Nicole’s room a half hour later. After ending her conversation with Ron, she’d headed down to the hospital’s accounting department. The night before, she and Baptiste had discussed and agreed to make arrangements for all of Nicole’s bills to be forwarded to them.
Once she entered Nicole’s room, Vic spoke with her parents and encouraged them to go and grab a bite to eat, assuring them that she’d stay with their daughter until they returned. She settled in the chair next to the bed and spoke to Nicole even though she was in a coma. As a nurse, Vic knew there were different levels of consciousness and she hoped that by speaking to Nicole she’d be able to hear her.
A nurse came in, and seeing Vic talking to Nicole, gave her a curious look, but didn’t ask her to leave. As she checked the monitors and noted the information on Nicole’s medical chart, she glanced over at Vic, surprised. “Hmm,” she murmured, “I think our little patient here is responding to you.”
When a Man Loves a Woman (Indigo) Page 14