Her sisters opened the door a moment later, clearly looking puzzled because Molly wasn’t beside him. Apparently, she hadn’t called them. He couldn’t even try to fake a smile as he looked at them. He wasn’t going to tell them Molly’s story, but he knew Molly needed them. He knew how much she loved them and how it had killed her to lie to all of them. “Go see Molly,” he said, his voice sounding harsh and hoarse to his ears.
“What? Is she okay?” Addie said, the color draining from her face.
“Where is she?” Melody said, already grabbing their jackets off the coat rack.
“She’s at the inn,” he said, moving aside so they could get by him.
“Should we get Mom?” Addie asked, pausing on the porch.
He shook his head. “I need to speak with her alone. I think Molly really needs you two, more than anyone else,” he said.
A look of understanding passed through Addie’s eyes, and he knew she was remembering their conversation at the bookstore. She gave him a nod and then jogged down the walkway to Melody who was already waiting in the car.
He took a deep breath and walked into the house. The aroma of freshly brewed coffee wafted through the corridor, almost making it seem like this was a normal visit.
“Girls, who was at the door?” Marlene appeared in the doorway of the kitchen, a brightly colored apron with flowers on the front making her almost look like the picture of domestic bliss. But he knew it was all for appearances.
“They left.”
She frowned and stepped back into the kitchen, letting him enter. “What, where?”
He shoved his hands into his pockets, determined to remain calm and reasonable. “They went to see Molly.”
“Oh, did something happen? Is she ill?”
“My God, Marlene, how can you be so indifferent? You tried to destroy her. You tried to humiliate your own daughter for your career?”
“That’s not true. I was just speaking the truth.”
“You thought I didn’t know. You thought it would send me running and that you’d be able to get rid of me. She’s falling apart, because of this secret you’ve made her keep for nine years,” he said, hearing the accusation in his voice.
She lifted her chin. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. If you’ll excuse me, I have an evening appointment I need to get to.”
“I’m not going anywhere until you talk to me and figure out what you’re going to do to help your daughter.”
“Molly is a stubborn woman. I’ve tried to make amends, but she won’t have anything to do with it.”
“Did you tell her you were wrong?”
“I did nothing wrong,” she said, her hands going to her wide hips.
“She told me everything. She’s been put through hell, and you failed her, Marlene. You are her mother; you should have protected her. You didn’t protect her and you didn’t let me protect her.”
Marlene’s white face turned red, and she took a step toward him. “I did everything for my daughter. I did everything to protect her. The truth doesn’t always mean freedom. How dare you come into my home and accuse me of not being a good mother.”
“Because you told her to lie, to shut me out. You gave her no options. You told her what to do. You used her weak and vulnerable state as an opportunity to control her. If you were so right, then why has she stayed away from her family for almost a decade? She lost out on so many years, on her relationship with her sisters,” he whispered through clenched teeth.
She clutched the counter. “Don’t talk to me about things you don’t understand,” she hissed.
“What about the way you twisted it all around to make Molly doubt herself? You basically made her feel so confused, like she had somehow done something to cause that guy—”
She held up her hand in front of his face, and it took all his self-control not to push it away. “You don’t know, you weren’t there.”
“It doesn’t matter! It doesn’t matter what she was wearing, what she was saying, or how much she drank! She had a right to safety. How dare you. How dare you insinuate that she somehow did something to deserve that!” he yelled, not caring anymore about keeping things cool.
She turned from him. “Get out of my house. I kept my daughter out of the papers, away from scandal. I kept her in school; I kept her focused on her career.”
“You made her think it was her fault.”
“We don’t know—”
“We know. We know. It’s inexcusable, what he did.”
“Get out of my house, Ben.”
“Your daughters are with Molly now. I know she’ll tell them the truth. She’s at the inn. Go there tomorrow. You find Molly. You apologize to her. You tell her it wasn’t her fault. None of it.”
She opened her mouth and spun around to look at him, but he shook his head.
“No. You tell her it wasn’t her fault. And if you have to fake it, then fake it. But you absolve your daughter of any guilt you ever burdened her with.”
“You were always too opinionated and too self-righteous for my liking.”
“If you even think you have a chance in hell of winning that election next year, you’re completely delusional. Those people who witnessed your attempted shaming of Molly are good people—you disgusted all of us. Wrong people to try that with. You’re going down, Marlene.”
He walked out of the room with heavy shoulders, not knowing if he’d done any good or just made everything worse.
…
Molly handed her sisters another box of Kleenex after blowing her own nose. “I’m so sorry I never told you,” she said for what felt like the fiftieth time since she’d told them the truth. They all huddled under the quilt on the king-sized bed at her room in the inn, holding hands.
“Don’t apologize one more time,” Melody said, taking five Kleenexes.
“I hate that we never figured it out, that we just accepted what Mom told us. I was actually angry with you; I thought you didn’t want to be close anymore,” Addie said.
Molly’s heart squeezed. Her sisters had taken the news exactly the way Ben had predicted—they had believed her immediately, without questions, without judgment, without doubt. They’d cried openly and held on to her tightly, reminding her of all the times they’d had epic group hugs growing up. She had no idea how she’d been able to emotionally distance herself for so long. Being here with them made her vow to never be without her sisters again. So many years wasted.
“At the time…when I asked Mom for help, I think I was in a state of shock. I couldn’t think for myself. I went through the motions, but I looked to her to make decisions for me because I could barely even get out of bed.”
“She manipulated you,” Melody whispered, squeezing her hand. “She was so wrong. I think Ben is going to let her have it today.”
Molly shut her eyes and leaned her head back against the headboard. “Poor Ben. I…he doesn’t deserve to be involved in any of this mess.”
“I think Ben would do anything for you, Molly. He looked so angry. I can’t even imagine how that all went down today.”
She hated thinking about their last night…when she’d told him she was leaving. “I told him I couldn’t live in Shadow Creek anymore, this close to Mom. I told him I couldn’t have a relationship with him anymore. I told him he deserved a woman who could give him a family, who could come to him as a whole person,” she whispered, her voice cracking.
Addie blew her nose and waved around a clean Kleenex, letting them know she needed to speak next. Melody poured them all some more tea and then added a shot of brandy in each of their cups. She called it her “wellness blend.” “You’re a whole person; you are what Ben has always needed, and you are who he’s always wanted. It’s not just a coincidence he’s never gotten married. Half the women in this town would be married to him if he were to ask. He’s always wanted you. Always.”
“You should have seen the look on his face today,” Melody said. “He looked so angry. Honestly, I don’t kn
ow how Mom is going to handle him. But she created this mess, and there’s no easy way out. I’m packing my bags as soon as I leave here.”
If she were a bigger person, she’d try to defend their mother and preserve the relationship their mother had with Mel and Addie, but she wasn’t. She was comforted by their loyalty.
“Stay with me. I have an extra room. I’m not exactly all set up, but it’s better than staying with Mom,” Addie said.
“Dad. Omigod, he never knew,” Molly said, squeezing her eyes shut.
“I have no idea how she could have kept something like this quiet from him,” Addie said.
Melody frowned. “What do you think Ben said to Mom?”
“I don’t know, but I’m betting it was pretty bad considering we have been here for five or six hours and haven’t heard from either of them,” Melody said, getting off the bed and placing their empty cups on the table by the window. “I think we need to order some room service,” she said, picking up a menu.
“I don’t think this is a night for inn food. I think we need to call Luigi,” Molly said.
Melody put the menu down. “I think you’re right.”
Molly actually managed a smile and it felt good. “Meat-lovers. Ask for lots of napkins; it’s a little greasy.” It was so good to be with her sisters again and no secrets between them anymore. “I think that’s perfect. Spend the night. We have like a decade worth of real conversations to have. No more about me. I want to hear all about the two of you.”
Addie and Mel nodded. “Okay, let’s order two large meat-lovers pizzas from Luigi’s and then two bottles of wine from the inn,” Addie said, jumping off the bed with authority.
Molly and Addie nodded. “Perfect,” Molly said.
Half an hour later, the three of them had spread out the food in the quaint sitting area and Molly finished pouring the wine. She lifted her glass and told herself not to cry. “To the best sisters a girl could ever have. Thank you for never giving up on me.”
They all clinked glasses and sniffled, all of them promising not to let anything come between them again. Molly sat there knowing this was a new beginning for them but knowing there was still one very big part of her life that still needed repairing. She was going to see him, tomorrow after her shift at work. She was going to claim the man who promised to love her forever.
Chapter Seventeen
Ben knew his head wasn’t entirely in the game, because of Molly. But he couldn’t take time off from work anymore; he was needed. He also needed to do something that made him feel useful.
He needed to give Molly time. When the call came in that the women’s shelter on the outskirts of town was on fire, he knew in his gut it was going to be bad—and he knew if anything happened to Molly’s patients there, she’d be devastated. He knew the motions, he knew the routine, he knew the protocol by heart. The problem was that adrenaline and instinct weren’t enough in a situation like this—not in an old building that was very close to collapsing.
But adrenaline was what he went on as he heard one of the evacuated mothers shouting that her six-year-old was trapped inside the building. They had all been in the dining room when the daughter had run back upstairs to get her Elsa doll. It was Molly’s patient, he knew it. The fire had spread so quickly, no one could get up the stairs. He was prepared to have to search for the little girl, remembering how Molly had said she was extremely timid. A child that age, with a traumatic past, would surely be hiding.
Ben and Finn had never left a child behind, and today was no exception.
Adrenaline and determination pushed him as he made his way through the flame-filled upstairs corridor. He ignored the sweat dripping down his neck and back and the burning sensation of his ears beneath his Nomex hood.
According to what command had told them, the room was at the end of the hall. The house was large, but old, with separate wings.
It wasn’t much farther, he kept telling himself, as he and Finn crawled to that last room. They had been in and out of this building, dozens of people rescued, but they had to get to this kid. They had to get to her fast, because they knew with each minute that ticked by, her chances of survival were slipping, and their chance to get to her before they were commanded to evacuate would be gone.
He and Finn both knew this place was a ticking time bomb. The building was beyond saving. When they finally reached the door, Ben checked the door for heat using his thermal imaging camera. It was hot, but not enough to make him turn away.
He reached up and grabbed the handle with his gloved hand and pushed the door open. It was smoke filled, just like the corridor, and visibility was next to nothing. He reached for the camera hooked to the strap of his breathing apparatus and scanned the room. The only wall not lighting up was the one facing the front yard, which was perfect, since he had a feeling that was going to be their only way out of here.
The air horn on the fire truck blew, too soon for his liking. He and Finn ignored it as it blew once, twice, and three long times. And then the evacuation orders came in verbally over the radio speakers in his air pack. Dammit. They needed more time.
“Get her fast!” Finn yelled, and Ben knew he was damn lucky to have a brother as crazy as he was.
“Matthews! Get the hell out of that building now!” Command screamed in his ears.
He and Finn ignored the command and worked their way through the room. It was a small space, and Ben checked the closets. The window burst open, glass shattering. At least they wouldn’t have to waste time breaking it open. “Call in for a ladder, let them know we have one victim,” Ben said grimly.
Command repeated the call and they acknowledged. They saw the motionless little girl huddled in the corner of the room, trapped behind a beam that had fallen.
“Eliza,” Ben called as he crawled toward her, hoping she’d respond, the sound of the fire deafening. She opened her eyes, and he motioned for to stay where she was. “We’re going to get you out, okay?”
“Just stay still, honey,” Finn yelled.
She gave them a nod and started coughing. Her face was black, and he knew she was close to losing consciousness. More beams crashed nearby, and the little girl jumped, crying and coughing.
“Eliza, can you try to get closer to me?” Ben yelled over the roaring, hissing sounds around them. He knew the sounds must be frightening, and the entire situation was going to haunt her for years to come.
She shook her head, clutching that doll Molly had given her.
Dammit. “Okay, I’m going to reach through and my brother is going to lift you up and out of here, okay? Just stay there. I’m coming, sweetheart,” he yelled. The beams were massive, typical from the time period this home was built, and he knew very close to falling on any of them. Because she was too scared to try to inch closer, he was putting himself in danger of getting trapped. He had to get her through it safely.
“Pass her to me as you hoist her over,” Finn yelled, in position to receive her and then hand her off to the waiting firefighter on the platform.
Exhaustion was setting in, and he knew it was now or none of them were going to make it out of here. Ben knelt down and reached for her, using what he had left of his upper body strength to lift her through.
“Don’t leave me here,” she sobbed against him and clung to him tightly, and he knew he wouldn’t. He knew it, even as his knee gave out. Searing pain shot through him and suddenly everything felt as though it were happening in slow motion.
“I got you,” Ben said roughly, wincing as he lifted her over the beams.
Finn was clearing the sharp shards of glass from the window just as the aerial truck platform outside the window arrived. Thank God. They were going to make it out of here.
He handed Eliza over, unable to get himself off the ground. “Get her out of here,” he yelled to Finn. He felt Finn lift Eliza, and he clenched his teeth, preparing to crawl to the window. But it happened too fast, and he was moving too damn slow.
The sound of a roar e
choed in his head, and he was only vaguely aware it was his. He stared with eyes that stung, as a beam pinned his bad leg to the ground.
But he heard Finn. He heard Finn swearing and promising he’d get his sorry ass out of here.
…
“Thanks for staying tonight,” Dr. Luke Thomson, her friend and fellow doctor, said.
“Of course,” she replied, trying not to let her panic show as they walked past triage. She knew this was the calm before the storm. She was worried on a personal level. When the call had come in about the fire at the women’s shelter, she’d had to keep her emotions under control. But tonight would test her, because she knew Ben was working, and she knew the influx of people were coming from the women’s shelter. There was at least a dozen injured.
They walked quickly to the main doors in the ER, ready for the first patients. The place was about to implode. She was ready to face whatever was coming their way. There were already three in critical condition and when she heard one was a child on the way, she knew there was no way she’d be leaving the ER. Burn victims were always tragic and took so much out of her; it was a traumatic injury both physically and mentally. She had no idea how Ben and Finn did this for a living. And she had no idea what she was going to do if Ben was among the injured.
“Get ready for a long night,” Dr. Barrett, said, a grim look on his face as he joined them.
As the first patients started coming through on stretchers with paramedics, the three of them went off in their own directions, and soon all the ER bays were full. All the respiratory therapists—which weren’t many at a small hospital—were called in and already assessing patients.
Molly was pulled in different directions but kept looking toward the doors for any signs of Ben. He was fine. Of course he was fine. This was what he did for a living, and he always made it out. He was strong, healthy.
But as she treated patients and noted how many serious burn victims there were and how many were being intubated, her mind kept thinking the worst. And where was the child? Time passed, the critically injured were stabilized, and there was still no sign of the child. She knew that wouldn’t be good because it meant that she was one of the last to be rescued.
The Firefighter's Pretend Fiancee (Shadow Creek, Montana) Page 17