She hugged and kissed her sister before she rushed out of the shop. She had a new attitude already, but now her appearance showed it. Patrice hadn’t been this happy in a long time.
* * * * *
It only took twenty minutes to get back to the spa and she was right on time. Using the entrance in the front of the building, Patrice walked into a busy day spa. There were people sitting in the waiting area drinking mimosas or a glass of wine along with fruit and cheeses.
As she walked through the area, she noticed that both of the nail technicians were with clients as were the estheticians. Each of the massage rooms had the occupied sign illuminated on the door. Seeing this pleased Patrice even more. She continued walking through the hall until she got to the back. She found Marla seated at her desk in the office.
Patrice stood in the doorway. Marla looked up from her computer.
“I can see that business is good, so otherwise how are things going?” Patrice said, walking closer to the desk.
She could see that Marla was studying her.
“What’s wrong?”
“I love your hair.”
Patrice blushed. “Oh, thank you. It’s just a little something,” she said, pushing up the bouncing curls.
“It’s the bomb. Anyway, things are going great and I’m glad that you had a chance to see it first-hand. You haven’t been over here as much lately.”
“Yes, I know. We’ve got a new project and it has taken up all of my time,” Patrice replied. “I would like for you to make sure that the spa is decorated for Valentine’s Day.”
Marla sat straight up in her chair and leaned forward. “What? Really. Are you serious?” Marla said, stunned. “Valentine’s Day,” she whispered.
“Yes,” Patrice said slowly.
“I’ll get right on it. I have some wonderful ideas. Would you like for me to run them by you for your approval first.”
“I trust your judgment. Besides, I’m new to all of this,” Patrice said, moving closer to the door. “I just want it to exude romance.”
“Will do,” Marla said with a wide grin on her face.
“I need to get to my office. I’ve been gone all morning. I’ll see you soon.”
* * * * *
Patrice called Renee to let her know that they were going to wait until next week to have the staff test the product. She wanted to give Jacques a little more time to perfect it. She stayed in her office trying to complete some much-needed paperwork to be dropped off to the accountant so their books could be reconciled. She had her head down when Jacques came through the door.
“Excuse me, ma’am, but have you seen my girlfriend, Patrice?” he said, his tone of voice sincere. He moved closer to her. “She’s a beautiful woman about this tall,” he said, demonstrating with his hands.
Patrice had turned all shades of red watching him act out. She cleared her throat. “Sir, I’m very sorry, but I think the girl you’re looking for has left the building,” she said, playing along.
“Is she coming back?”
Patrice turned her head slowly from left to right. “No. It’s just me now.”
Jacques had gotten close before he reached out and lifted her hand. She went willingly as he pulled her to her feet and into his arms like they were getting ready to do a waltz. Kissing her lightly on the lips, he said, “Babe, you are simply gorgeous,” he said before kissing her once again.
“Thank you,” Patrice whispered, reveling in being in his arms.
“What do you want to do tonight?” he asked just before he dipped her.
“I’m a bit tired aren’t you?” she said in response.
“Yes. How about we try to finish watching that movie we started last night?”
“That would be a good idea.”
“Okay, baby, I’ll see you tonight. He turned her around once more before kissing her passionately and then he left. Patrice was in a haze when he walked out the door.
* * * * *
Driving over to Patrice’s place, Jacques decided to call her to see if she wanted anything in particular to eat. He figured that she was probably too tired to cook anything.
“Hey, babe, I’m on my way, but wanted to see if you wanted anything.”
“Yes, if you don’t mind swing by Portillo’s and bring me a chopped salad with grilled chicken.”
“Anything else?”
“No that’s it.”
Since he had to stop for her he decided to get something for himself as well. It had been a while since he’d had an Italian beef sandwich so he ordered that. He was really looking forward to spending the evening with Patrice. It was starting to be a routine with them seeing each other every night. Working with her wasn’t as hard as he thought from the beginning. Everybody had been staying in their lane and it was working out pretty well.
He arrived and she buzzed him into the building. He made his way to her apartment, where she had left the door cracked for him. He came in and took the food into the kitchen before walking behind her at the sink, kissing her on the neck.
“You go ahead and take a seat. I’ll get the trays and something for us to drink.”
“Sounds good,” he said, removing his coat.
He sat on the couch waiting for her to come in with the food.
He picked up the remote control and pointed it at the television. “Okay, let’s try this movie again.”
They both laughed. He leaned over and they kissed before he pressed the button to start the movie.
From time to time Jacques would glance over at Patrice and she’d smile back. He wanted to tell her about the deal with Roger, but because of everything that had happened previously, he decided to wait until everything was truly in place.
Their quiet and peaceful evening came to a halt when they were startled by the constant buzzing of the intercom. Patrice jumped up and hurried over to see if it was malfunctioning or something. Once she pressed the button, she couldn’t hear anything at first.
“Hello,” she repeated.
“I’m so sorry, I’m so sorry to disturb you, Patrice but I don’t have any place else to go.”
Patrice snapped her head back and looked over at Jacques, who moved quickly from the couch over to her. Her eyes met his. She shrugged. “I have no idea.”
“Who is this?” Patrice asked. She could hear the pain and agony in the familiar voice. Still, she had to be sure before giving access to the building.
“Nikki, Patrice. It’s Nikki.”
Patrice buzzed her in and walked to the door.
“What is going on, Patrice?” Jacques asked.
“It’s Nikki. I bet that bastard has hit her again,” Patrice explained.
“Hit her?”
She had planned on telling Jacques about Nikki’s first incident, but they had been so busy that it slipped her mind. There hadn’t been any other occurrences as of late, so she thought maybe things were okay. “I promise I’ll explain later,” she said, rushing to the door.
Although she assumed that Terrance had hit Nikki, Patrice wasn’t prepared for what she saw when she opened the door. Shocked at the girl’s appearance, Patrice gasped, throwing her hand to her mouth. Nikki’s lips were swollen as well as both her eyes. She also had a big gash on her forehead.
Shaking her head, Patrice tried to assess the rest of her. Her hair was mangled and tears were streaming down her face, all the while trying to hold her baby in her arms.
Patrice took the baby from her and stepped back. “Come in, sweetheart. Come on in.”
Jacques stood with his mouth agape. “Patrice, this girl needs a doctor,” he said, moving around her to help Nikki into the apartment.
Patrice could hear the concern in Jacques voice. “You’re right. She does.”
“I can’t go to the hospital. They’ll lock him up,” Nikki said.
“Help her into the kitchen, please, Jacques.” Patrice could feel Nikki’s daughter squirming in her arms, so she hurried to the nearest chair and sat with her.
The baby was reaching for her mother, but Patrice understood that Nikki was in no shape to hold her right now. She was now pressing her hand against her stomach and Patrice was sure that Terrance probably had kicked her.
Patrice looked down into the little girl’s face and could see the tracks where her tears had dried on her face. “It’s alright, sweetness,” she said, rocking her back and forth in order to calm her down.
The toddler’s whimpers started to get louder, so Patrice held her against her chest, smoothing her hair. She was trying to remember her name. Nikki had told her many times when she talked about her sweet baby girl, but with all the commotion, Patrice just couldn’t remember. “It’s okay, Katrina. It’s okay,” she finally recalled. She patted the baby on the back as she continued to attempt to soothe her.
“I am not going to try and twist your arm, Nikki, but you really need attention. Why did you come here if you don’t want help?” Patrice said, watching Nikki’s movements.
“I want help,” Nikki said, leaning back and forth as she held her arm.
“Then we’re taking you to the hospital,” Jacques said as he walked over to pick up his jacket.
Once Jacques said that Patrice could see the panicked look in Nikki’s eyes. “He’ll be arrested if I go to the hospital.”
Patrice popped up out of the chair, startling the baby. “Exactly. Let’s hope they find him tonight.”
“What about my baby? I don’t want them to take her from me,” Nikki said, reaching for the toddler.
Patrice hated seeing the frightened look in Nikki’s eyes. She had to think of something quick to calm her down. “I can ask one of my sisters to watch her until we get back from the hospital.”
Nikki rested her hands in her lap. “Thank you so much.”
Patrice tried to hold the baby against her shoulder while she dialed her sister’s number and kept her eye on Nikki, who had doubled over, all at the same time. She whispered a prayer while she waited for Faith to answer, hoping that no permanent damage had been done to her employee. When Faith agreed to keep little Katrina until they came back from the hospital, Patrice felt a small sense of relief.
Chapter Sixteen
It seemed like an eternity before they arrived at the University of Chicago Medical Center emergency room. After almost forgetting to get the child safety seat out of Nikki’s beat up Nissan Sentra, they dropped off the baby. Patrice could tell that something was very wrong with Nikki because she continued to sit with her arm pressed against her stomach, doubled over, screaming at times with pain. She couldn’t wait to get someone to examine her.
As soon as the car rolled up to the entrance of the hospital, Jacques jumped out and went inside to get a wheel chair. He helped Nikki out of the vehicle and Patrice followed behind him.
Jacques had been so kind, barely saying a word, but moving in to assist when the time came. Patrice didn’t know how this incident affected him. If it moved him as much as it did her, she knew that he was probably sympathizing with Nikki’s situation.
“I’m going to sit out here until you guys are ready to leave,” he said before kissing Patrice on the cheek.
Patrice wheeled Nikki to the reception desk so they could register her. The receptionist ran to the back to get a nurse to come out. After taking one look at her, they immediately wheeled her to the back. Patrice walked behind the nurse to the private trauma room.
“Are you a relative?” the nurse asked Patrice.
“No,” Nikki answered for her. “But she brought me here.”
After answering some standard questions and taking her vitals, Patrice just happened to be standing where she could see what the nurse was doing. She watched her scribble on Nikki’s chart PossDA. Patrice didn’t know for sure, but if she had to guess she would think PossDA meant possible domestic abuse. She didn’t say anything to Nikki because if she did, she wasn’t sure what the young woman would do.
“The doctor will be in to see you shortly,” the nurse said.
Once she left the room, Patrice pulled up a chair close to the bed. “Are you still in a lot of pain?” she asked.
Nikki nodded.
Patrice rubbed her hand. “You shouldn’t have to wait long. They need to see if you have any internal injuries before they give you any type of medication, so hold on,” she said, patting her hand.
Patrice noticed that Nikki kept her eyes on the door. She understood that Nikki was terrified. She couldn’t imagine being in that state of mind every day of her life. Always looking over your shoulder or wondering when something was about to jump off.
“Nikki, why did you refuse to come to the hospital at first? Were you trying to protect Terrance?”
“I’m not trying to protect him.” She turned her head away from Patrice for a moment. “Maybe it’s my pride. I’m so hurt, disappointed and embarrassed.”
“Swallow your pride, baby. This is a matter of life or death.” Her words may have sounded harsh, but Patrice didn’t want to even think about what could happen to Nikki if she didn’t talk to someone, tell them what happened.
Patrice had been so busy trying to reach Nikki, to get her to understand the danger that she was in, that she hadn’t paid any attention to the door until she saw Nikki’s eyes widen. Patrice turned to see what had gotten her so spooked.
“Good evening, Ms. Howard. I’m Detective Cunningham and I’d like to ask you a few questions.”
Patrice stood. She decided to step out so Nikki wouldn’t have to worry about being embarrassed and could tell the officer whatever he needed to know in order to catch Terrance.
“Patrice, where are you going?”
“I’m going to stand outside the door so you can have some privacy and talk to the officer.”
“No, no. Don’t leave me, please.”
Patrice hurried and sat, patting her arm. She didn’t want Nikki to get riled up. “Okay, okay, sweetie, I’ll stay.”
Sitting there listening to Nikki recant the countless times that her boyfriend had pulled her hair, kicked her and punched her in the face, Patrice’s stomach was getting more and more queasy. When describing the beating this time, she said it was the worst one yet. Patrice didn’t like hearing that at all. There had to be something they could do to stop him.
It struck her that Nikki looked at her as her family, a big sister. She was only twenty-two years old, seemingly out here in the world by herself. What a lonely place that must be.
“It’s typical abuse,” Patrice heard the detective say. “It seems to me that the beatings are escalating. You are in serious danger, ma’am. Do you know where your boyfriend might be right now? We’re going to have to pick him up.”
“He’s out of work right now. That’s part of his frustration,” Nikki said in his defense.
“Do you know where he is?” he repeated.
Patrice sat quietly, but all the while wishing, hoping that Nikki would just tell the policeman what she knew.
“Sometimes he goes to the union hall to see if he’s going to be sent out for work or he’s at the bar down the street from our apartment.”
Good. Patrice didn’t realize that she had been holding her breath until after Nikki answered.
“Thank you,” the detective said before turning to leave.
Patrice wanted to say something to Nikki once she saw the tears running down her cheeks. She just didn’t know what to say and wanted to be a help to the girl and not harm her.
A short woman with her hair pulled back in a ponyta
il came into the room. “Hi, Ms. Howard, I’m going to take you down to X-Ray.”
Nikki looked over at Patrice.
Patrice stood and bent over the bed. “I’ll be here when you get back. I’m sure they’re going to be doing a lot of tests. So relax.”
The woman pressed the lever on the bed to release the lock and rolled Nikki out of the room. Once they were gone Patrice went to the waiting area to give Jacques an update on the situation.
Once the huge wooden doors opened that led to the waiting area, her eyes collided with his and she rushed over to him. He received her with open arms. Patrice felt safe with him, which was probably how Nikki felt with Terrance at first. It was a shame that things turned out this way for her.
Jacques led Patrice to the nearest empty seat and they sat. “Is she going to be okay?” he asked.
“I don’t know, Jacques. I’m afraid for her,” she said, resting her head against his shoulder. “She is enduring more than just physical pain. After those physical scars heal, she’ll still have to deal with the emotional pain that she’s in.
“She’s in the right place, Patrice.”
Sitting up straight in her chair, she remembered. “Should I call to see how Katrina is doing?”
“I would think if your sister was having a problem with the child, she’d call you. Right?”
“Yes, I guess she would.”
Jacques covered her hand. “You’ve got to stop worrying. We brought her here so they can help her.”
The shift nurse came from the back and over to Patrice.
“Can you follow me please?”
Patrice got up and went with the nurse over to the side out of earshot of everyone.
“She’s got several broken ribs and some internal bruising.”
With her hands covering her mouth, tears welled up in Patrice’s eyes just thinking about the pain Nikki must be in.
“We’re going to have to keep her. Does she have a next of kin or someone we could contact?”
“I don’t know. She’s an only child and her mother is deceased, so I guess that person would be me,” Patrice added.
Be My Valentine: The McClendon Holiday Series, Book 3 Page 15