Learning to Let Go

by Cynthia P. O'Neill

  We both watched as he twisted the wand this way and that, pausing to take a few measurements from the screen. “I’d say, based on what I’m seeing, that you’re at least eleven weeks along.”

  I quickly did the math and realized we’d conceived shortly after her attack from Chase, most likely on the yacht or at the beach house. Laurel looked completely dazed, struggling to comprehend everything going on.

  “What can we do about her nausea?” I asked. “And what about her low blood sugar?”

  “I’d recommend calling Dr. Chadler, her diabetic counsel, immediately and have him work in coordination with a perinatologist. With her having diabetes, the pregnancy may be high risk. That’s why her nausea is all over the place, because she can’t keep any food down and her sugar levels are all over the chart. That, combined with normal morning sickness, appears to be causing extra nausea and fainting. It’s a vicious cycle she’s fallen into, but I can help alleviate it and get you both pointed back to the right track.”

  A few hours later, Dr. Givens had removed the IV drip and prescribed some medication to help with the nausea, suggesting she eat plenty of saltine crackers and tea. He told her to remain in bed for the next several days and said he would take care of scheduling follow-up appointments for us with the doctor he recommended.

  I walked the doctor out, thanking him for his services and being willing to see us on a Saturday. When I returned, she was up out of bed and pacing the floor.

  “What the hell are you doing?” I almost yelled. “You’re supposed to be in bed, resting and taking care of our baby.”

  She sank to the edge of the bed, allowing tears to flow freely from her eyes. “You’re right,” she moaned. “Just when life starts to look amazing, like it can’t get any better, a wrench is thrown at us.”

  I moved in front of her, kneeling on the rug beside the bed. “You’re not happy about us making a child together? I thought you wanted a family?” Had all our talks been just that, nothing but words?

  Her shoulders shifted with her cries. “I did…I still do, just not this quickly. I’m not ready for this. Everything over the past six months has moved so quickly, leaving my mind in a whirlwind. I’m happy we met, that we’re getting married, but I wanted to wait a few years to have kids. I wanted to go explore the world and have some amazing adventures first, just be us for a while. Plus, there’s always the issue of that jerk, Chase.” She looked up at me, her eyes red and bloodshot, face pale and gaunt. “What am I supposed to do with all this?”

  I rose, pulling her into my arms. “Yes, this happened a little before we we’re ready,” I admitted, “but there’s happiness, not sadness, to be found in a time like this. The conditions of your security do not change, they’ll only be heightened because now you’re carrying the future heir to the Waters Medical Empire.”

  She smiled a bit and laughed at the last part. My hand came down and rested on her belly as I brought an ear to her skin and pretended to listen to our child talk.

  “You say you can’t wait to meet your mom and dad?” I said with a grin. “You know very well you need to stay in there for at least another six months. Just show mommy how much you’ll love her when you’re born.”

  My words seemed to work, as I felt her finally relax. I looked up to her, happy to see her finally content. “You do realize this means we’re going to have to push up the wedding; unless you mind having a baby bump in our wedding photos, of course.” I tried to wiggle my eyebrows to get the smile I was looking for and it worked.

  Her smile grew and small laugh escaped. “You would try every trick in the book to get me to marry you quicker. I didn’t know you’d resort to knocking me up.”

  “If I knew I could get you to commit to me sooner, I’d have definitely tried. Just look at this as a sign that we’re meant to be starting a new life together.”

  The rest of the weekend passed without incident. Laurel took to the bed rest with relative ease and Deidre hovered over her like a mother hen, pushing the fluids and whatever she could entice Laurel to eat. Even my security team seemed happy to be taking extra care to keep her secure. Something had definitely shifted around me and it was for the better.

  Or so I thought.

  I hated having to go into work on Monday and leave Laurel at the penthouse, but was promised by both Dillon and Deidre that they would look after her while Thompson accompanied me to a meeting that couldn’t be postponed.

  When I went to kiss Laurel goodbye, she seemed distant. She responded to my lips but not with the guttural qualities I’d come to appreciate about her. I could tell she was still fighting her inner mind; I would make a point to have Jocelyn come over and talk to her about her fears.

  “I love you, Laurel. I’ll be home soon.” Since she wasn’t accepting my full kisses, I gave her a peck on the cheek.

  “I love you, too. Try not to be too long.”

  There was fear in her voice. It tore at my heart, but I needed to see the meeting through and get back to my sweetheart.

  The meeting ran longer than expected. We were trying to persuade a neurological company to try our new equipment design in the hospital setting, offering it up as test equipment so we could get their honest opinions and have the word passed around about our latest creation. My arguments faltered today and I was thankful my father and brother were in attendance to provide the additional coaxing we needed. They tried to ask what was wrong and while I wanted to shout out to the world that I was going to be a father, something inside me told me I needed to head back to the penthouse.

  Everything appeared to be in order when I walked through the doors. “How’s Laurel doing?” I asked Deidre as she offered me a bite to eat for lunch, declining to first go check on my fiancé.

  “She’s been rather quiet. She ate some of her toast and a couple bites of peanut butter. I tried coaxing her into something hearty for the baby’s sake, but she said she couldn’t tolerate it.”

  Dillon quickly approached to give a status report. “We had a small incident with one of the cameras in your elevator. I checked it out and got it working again after about thirty minutes. Otherwise, things have been relatively quiet, with the exception of Grace coming by for a visit. She left a while ago, but wouldn’t look at any of us, only waving as she went.”

  My feet propelled me to my room, where I found Grace, cross-legged on the bed watching the flat screen in there. “What the fuck, Grace?”

  Grace held her hands up. “I know, I know. It’s against my better judgment, but she sounded desperate, crying her eyes out on the phone and begging me to come over. She said she needed me to change clothes with her so she could just get out and clear her mind in the fresh air. I argued with her, but you know how she is when she’s persistent. She’s only been gone a few hours and should be back soon.”

  I had to give Grace that. When Laurel put her mind to something, it was hard to change it, yet another reason I loved her so deeply. I glanced around the room to see if she’d taken anything with her, when a small brown envelope caught my attention with my name on it.

  Grace held her hands to her face and groaned. “Oh, no. Please don’t tell me she just played me. I’ll wipe the floor with her for that.”

  I opened the envelope with shaky hands and out fell her ring, earrings and cell phone, along with a message:

  I hadn’t noticed that Grace was reading over my shoulder when I heard, “Holy crap, she’s pregnant?”

  I quickly turned and shook a finger at her. “Yes, she is, and don’t breathe a word of it to anyone right now,” I warned. “Not until we have time to tell everyone together.”

  Her good hand rested against my arm, giving it a squeeze. “I’d never have let her leave this place had I known. I’m so sorry, Garrett.” Her face shifted into one of anger, “How could she be this freaking stupid? She’s not only risking her life now, but the life of your kid!”

  “Security!” I yelled.

  Within seconds, both Thompson and Dillon, along with
a couple of the newer members, ran into the bedroom, looking frazzled.

  “Laurel managed to sneak out of here this morning without anyone noticing. She’s left her cell phone and most likely her new car, and plans on using cash to run and give herself time to think. We all know that Chase is out there waiting for her. Find her, now!” I know I growled on the last part, but I was against the clock, knowing that he could have been watching and waiting for the moment that she was alone. The longer she was gone, the greater the chance for him to catch up to her. How had I scared her enough to use her safe word?

  “What the hell is taking so long?” I kept pacing the floor with Grace, awaiting word on the whereabouts of my beloved. It was bad enough worrying about her, but knowing that her health wasn’t the best and she’d walked off risking our baby as well was torture. When I got her back, I’d give her a spanking she’d never forget. How could she do this to all of us?

  Several hours passed without any word as to her location. My security team had managed to track her movement by hacking into the street cameras spread around at certain intersections, but lost her when she went past the field of coverage. Where was she headed?

  I tried to rationalize things and ask myself where I’d be headed if I had two life-altering shocks to my system in one day. If I wanted to keep my identity secret and blend in, I wouldn’t go to the airport or rent a car, since they’d required some form of identification along with payment by credit card. A taxi would be too expensive, unless she pulled out everything from her account, but most drivers would refuse to go much further than the Florida/Georgia border without a large payment in advance, plus it would be easily tailed and I’d hope she wouldn’t risk that.

  “I can see you’re deep in thought and don’t want to interrupt, Garrett, but I have a question.” Grace’s words were shaky as she leaned forward, Jonathan by her side, gripping her hand.

  I looked up from the computer in my lap. “Go ahead.”

  “Laurel left all of the jewelry and items you’d given her, but was frustrated that she couldn’t remove the bracelet. We searched high and low for the key to help get it off of her wrist and...”

  I cut her off before she could say anything further. “Jonathan, give your woman a kiss, she may just have found a way to find Laurel.”

  He didn’t take long to fulfill my request, rewarding Grace with a big smacker and giving me a high five.

  “Thompson,” I called, “activate the tracking device on Laurel’s bracelet—she still has it on.”

  I twiddled my thumbs as I waited for the information to pop up on Thompson’s computer screen.

  “We have her, sir. She appears to be moving, headed north on I-75. She should hit Georgia in the next couple of hours.”

  My mind ran through the possible travel options she had available. “That means she’s either in a taxi or on a bus. See if you can pull up any feed from the bus terminals within the past few hours and see if she’s amongst them. Also, call the cabs in the area and see if one has called in about a client headed north.”

  I was about to report her location to everyone else waiting in my family room, when I added, “When you’re done with that, get my jet prepared. Call my pilot, Captain Donaldson, tell him to be ready to leave within the half hour.”

  Thompson was already on the phone calling the cab company as Dillon searched the footage of the bus terminal. I hadn’t even left the room yet, so I looked over his shoulder and spotted her immediately. It didn’t matter that she wore a hoodie pulled over her head, the way she carried herself and tried hiding from the world stood out and appealed to me. “That’s her,” I said, pointing. “See if you can zoom in on where her ticket is headed.”

  We all watched in hesitation as the image grew closer and sharpened with each click of the keyboard. “It looks like she has a ticket heading to Cincinnati,” Dillon announced, “with multiple layovers, the first being Atlanta, Georgia.”

  “Good work, Dillon.”

  “I’m sorry I failed you, sir.”

  “It wasn’t your fault. Laurel is an engineering genius and most likely sent you on a wild goose chase while she slipped out. She has the ability to do whatever she puts her mind to. Had I been home, she’d probably have done the same to me. Let’s just focus on getting to her before that sick bastard does.”

  Dillon panned back out with the footage, when I heard Grace’s breath catch. Apparently she’d followed us into my security area.

  “What’s wrong?” I wondered.

  She pointed to the monitor, her finger shaking. “There, up in the right hand corner. It’s him. His hair has been lightened and he’s wearing sunglasses, but I’d know that smirk and possessive walk anywhere.”

  We watched in horror as he bought a ticket for the same bus. My heart was beating wildly out of its chest as we scrambled to call the authorities in Atlanta, along with the bus terminal there. We had our opportunity to nab him at the terminal, providing he hadn’t already done something to Laurel or forced the bus to stop somewhere along its route.

  “He’s not that stupid,” Grace said aloud. “I know what’s going through your mind; the same as me. He wouldn’t approach her on a bus full of people, he’d wait until she got off and was in the thick of the crowd to grab her.”

  I couldn’t respond to anything other than to look to Thompson and Dillon and motion toward the doors.

  We managed to get the plane in the air in record time and sped our way toward Atlanta. A car was waiting for us and had us outside the bus terminal about ten minutes before Laurel was set to arrive. My heart was beating out of its chest, my mind lifted up a silent prayer, hoping that someone would hear my pleas for her safety and that of our child.

  The local FBI and Sherriff’s office came out to work in coordination on capturing Chase. They had his picture, both past and present, and everyone was on high alert. Officers were stationed around the area at all exits and restrooms—you name it, it was covered. They had called into the driver, informing him that all passengers must remain on board while the bus was inspected for potential threats.

  I watched my life move in slow motion as her bus came to a stop and the officers boarded. They asked her to stand and exit the bus, placing a gentle hand on her arm and leading her away, while the others closed in on Chase’s position.

  Once she was safely off the bus and out of eyesight, Chase jumped up, wielding a gun and aiming it at the officers, yelling, “Where’s my wife? You took my wife from me.” He was more delusional than I first thought.

  Their guns took aim, but not before he fired a shot, kicked out the side emergency exit, and started running. Thankfully, she was nowhere near him. It took three officers to finally tackle him to the ground and cuff him, before leading him off into a waiting police car.

  I heard soft sobs coming from the shadowed alcove we had been waiting in. I stepped forward, realizing they were coming from Laurel. When her eyes caught mine, she came running into my arms.

  “Shh…it’s okay,” I soothed, rubbing her back. “He’s in custody now and you’re safe.”

  “How could I have been so reckless? I had no idea he was following me, let alone on the bus.” She pulled back, realizing that I shouldn’t be here. “How did you find me? And get here so quickly?”

  I raised her hand, kissing the inside of her palm and trailing my lips down toward her bracelet. “I had a tracking device put into your bracelet at graduation when I found out about Chase. When he attacked you the second time, I added a stabilization device, so if you were knocked down by any force deemed excessive, the bracelet would activate and send out an emergency signal to our computers.”

  Her eyes appraised me with caution. “So that’s why you made it impossible to take off unless with your key?”

  I reached up to cup her face with my hands, leaning down to her eye level before admitting, “I know it’s excessive and a bit overbearing on my part, but your safety means the world to me. You mean the world to me. I love you.” My l
ips teased hers gently, allowing my tongue to trace her lips before I tested to see if I could gain entrance. Her mouth parted and our tongues began to tangle in the most intoxicating way. I pulled back hesitantly. “Are you ready to come home and get on with our life or do you still need time to yourself?”

  She bit her lip for a moment, which she always did when in deep thought. “I love you too, but I would still like to have some time to spend with my parents. That’s where I was headed. I just needed to see them and talk with them for a few days to get some perspective on things.”

  I placed my arm around her shoulders and pulled her into my side, resting my other hand on her stomach as we began to walk toward the outer doors and to the car waited for us. “I wish you’d talked to me first,” I said softly. “I had a surprise all set up for you with your parents flying down in a few days for Thanksgiving. I already purchased their tickets and set up their accommodations in the hotel down the street from the penthouse.”

  She stopped in her tracks. “You did all that…” her voice paused and she looked around and started waving her hand as she continued, “and all this…for me?”

  “Yes. And I’d do it again because I love you, Laurel.”

  A smile crossed over her lips as she went up on her tiptoes and pressed a small kiss to my lips that quickly ignited into something more. I pulled away, knowing that if she continued, I’d have to find the nearest dark corner and have my way with her.

  “We should really get you back to the plane so you can rest while we head back to Orlando. You have your brother, Grace, and everyone else worried to death.”

  I got Laurel comfortable on the loveseat we’d occupied when she flew home with me to Orlando after her graduation, promising to move her to the bedroom to have a nap once we were in the air. A rush of memories of how we used that loveseat during takeoff came to the forefront of my mind, making me burn even more for her.