We finally stop at the fourth floor, and we turn down the hallway, but a young nurse sitting behind the nurse’s station stops us.
“Sir, may I help you?” If this girl tries to stop me, I’m going to blow a gasket. Why is it so fucking hard to just let me get to her?
“No, I just need to get to my wife, Avery Porter.” I continue down the hallway, but then I’m halted by Claire when she puts her hand on my arm.
“Evan, maybe she’ll let us talk to the doctor before we go see her.” I really don’t want to talk to anyone else, but I guess she has a point. At least he would prepare me for what I’m about to see on the other side of the door at room 407.
I pull at my hair. “Yeah, alright.”
I walk back to the nurse. “Will Dr. Norton be up soon?”
“Yes, he just called and said he’s on his way.”
It is taking all my restraint not to run to Avery’s room. I need to see her. I need to know that she’s going to be alright.
“Mr. Porter?” An older man with black hair with patches of white throughout looks at me with sympathy in his eyes. I don’t want anyone’s fucking sympathy.
“Yes, can you tell me what’s going on with my wife?” At this point, I feel like I’ve hit a dead end. I feel like a hamster running in one of those balls. No matter how fast they go, they never actually get anywhere. Yeah, that’s me right now. I know that any minute now the adrenaline is going to wear off, and I’m going to crash from exhaustion.
“Come sit down.” He gestures toward the waiting room.
“No, I’m fine here.”
He nods in understanding. “Alright, your wife was injured pretty severely tonight. She has a severe concussion, a broken nose, and two broken ribs.” I know he’s still talking to me, but I can’t seem to hear him from the buzzing in my ears. As soon as I find out who did this to her, they’re dead.
“Motherfucker!” I’m sure every patient on the floor just heard me yell, but right now, I can’t bring myself to care.
“She’s going to be alright though. She’s been sleeping, but she’s conscious, so as soon as she wakes up you can visit with her. She was a bit confused, so she might not remember what happened to her, but I’m confident that she won’t have any permanent damage.”
I release the breath I didn’t realize I was holding.
“Follow me, I’ll take you to see her.”
“I’ll let you have some time with her first,” Claire tells me and then heads toward the waiting room.
I follow the doctor down the hallway.
He pushes the door open, but before I enter, I take a deep breath.
“You coming, son?” the doctor asks when I don’t follow him.
“Yeah, I just need a minute.” I pull tight at my hair as I lean my back up against the wall. I’m relieved to know that she’s going to be alright, but I know that as soon as I see her battered body, I’m going to want to go find the sick fuck who did this to her and murder them with my own two hands.
I finally feel a little calmer, so I walk into the room. I’m greeted with the sounds of monitors beeping, and I’m hoping that it’s a good sign. Dr. Norton passes me, telling me he’ll be back to check on her again soon. I round the corner, and my breath nearly hitches in my throat. My beautiful girl lays on the bed with her eyes closed.
Her right eye is purple and swollen, and she has stitches above her eyebrow. Her nose is wrapped in tape, and I can see dried blood in her hair. Whoever the fucker is who did this to her, just messed with the wrong family. I feel like I’m going to be sick.
As I’m staring at her, I’m thrown from my stupor when she wakes up crying uncontrollably.
In an instant, I’m by her side. “Shh. Shh. It’s okay, Av. I’m here.” I hold her in my arms the best I can while I’m bent over the side of the bed and gently rub her head, careful not to touch any of her injuries. I feel like someone has just pulled my heart out of my chest and stomped on it. I can’t handle seeing her like this.
“Ev?” she rasps out once she’s fully awake.
“I’m here. You’re safe. I promise,” I say soothingly into her ear.
She starts to cry again, the sight of her like this is enough to bring me to my knees.
I pull a chair up next to her bed and get as close to her as I can. “I’m so sorry. I’m so, so sorry,” I whisper and then realize that my own tears have begun to mix with hers.
I hear a nurse come in, most likely to check her vitals, but she leaves after we both ignore her.
We pull away from each other, and she stares up into my eyes.
“Where’s Zo?”
“She’s with Ryke at their house sleeping.” I smile at her.
“Did you get to see her tonight?” As much as we’ve been fighting, I know she’s glad that I’ve continued to see our daughter, but I want to be able to see both my girls at every possible moment.
“Yeah, I did. I fed her and got to snuggle with her a bit.” I sigh, and know the emotion is raw in my voice.
“Oh, sweetheart!” We both turn toward the sound of Avery’s mom as she enters the room. I’m guessing Claire called her, because honestly, that was the last thing on my mind.
“Hey, Mom.” Lucy stares down at her as tears stream down both of their faces, and then she leans down to grasp her into a tight hug. I want to say something but think better of it. Avery seems to be fine, and getting on my mother-in-law’s bad side is the last thing I want to do tonight.
As much as I want to be here with my wife, I think she needs rest, and I’m not sure if she wants me here right now.
Once both Avery and Lucy are done crying, I walk back to the bed and rest my hand on her shoulder. “Hey, I’m going to take off so I can get back to Zoey. Are you alright with your mom?”
I know it’s a shitty excuse, but I’m really not sure what I’m supposed to do right now. The overprotective asshole in me wants to tell her that I’m staying no matter what she wants, but I can’t do that to her. Not after everything she’s been through tonight.
I immediately see the pain radiating off her beautiful face.
“Oh, okay.” She turns her head away from me and stares at the busy traffic outside the hospital window.
“Hey, you alright?” I gently rub her arm.
She slowly turns to look at me, and now, she’s once again crying. This time, I’m the cause. God damn it.
Lucy walks out of the room, apparently realizing we need privacy.
“Please, don’t go,” she whispers up at me, and I know that there’s no way in hell I can leave her.
“You sure?” I search her eyes for any doubt she might have, but come up empty. “I wasn’t sure if you’d want me here.”
“I want you here. Please?” Her voice is pleading, even though she knows that I’d do anything for her. “I- I’m scared.”
“I’m not going anywhere.”
41
Evan
I’ve been staring at the damn TV for the last three hours. Yes, three long, agonizing hours. Avery was released this afternoon from the hospital, but as soon as we got home, she locked herself in our bedroom and hasn’t come out since. I had Claire run to the pharmacy so I wouldn’t have to leave her, not that she’s letting me do anything for her anyway.
She thankfully agreed to letting me take care of her since she has to be supervised, but she really hasn’t been herself. Not that I expect anything less, after everything she’s been through in the last twenty-four hours.
Getting bored of just sitting, I get up and head to the kitchen. I know I’ve got some beer in here that I bought before leaving. Avery doesn’t like what I drink, so I’m not surprised when I see that it’s still in the fridge. I pop the cap off and take a long swig, letting it burn my throat as it goes down. I need something to help calm my nerves. It felt like we were having a breakthrough at the hospital last night, but now, she’s shut down. The attack really did a number on her emotionally. The doctor she saw in the hospital, recommende
d therapy. I refuse to leave her side until we know who the hell is behind the shit she went through last night. Although, I’m hoping she doesn’t make me leave at all. I need to be here with my family.
My phone rings in my pocket. I take one last swig and then set my beer on the counter before answering it. It’s my detective buddy Anthony from the Phoenix PD.
“Hey, man. Any news?” I had called him this afternoon before we left the hospital, needing to get answers. Avery was my first concern, so I didn’t do anything about it last night.
He sighs heavily. “No. Man, this is going to be near impossible because the jackass clearly knew what he was doing. They found all the cameras before approaching Avery. He definitely wasn’t dumb about this.”
“God damn it.” I hope I didn’t just wake Avery. As much as I want to talk to her, she needs rest more. “So, what do we do now?”
“Tomorrow, the PD is sending five officers to the Horton Building and we’re going to start questioning other people who may have been there around the time she left. Not to say that it was one of her co-workers, but we can’t rule that out right now.” He pauses, and I hear typing in the background. “You said her friend found her, right?”
“Yeah, Carly Weston.” Carly came to the hospital last night practically in hysterics. Avery told her several times that it wasn’t her fault, but she was very difficult to console.
“Okay, that might help us.”
“Sounds good. Let me know whenever you hear anything.”
“Will do. Just focus on getting your wife better, and we’ll do the rest.”
“Thanks, man. I appreciate it.”
We hang up, and I grab my hair in frustration. This is such a fucking shit storm.
I’m exhausted, so I decide to call it a night and try to get a little sleep before Avery wakes. I’m sure it’ll be pointless even trying because my mind is going a mile a minute, but neither of us slept well at the hospital. She woke up several times crying, so of course, I couldn’t fall back to sleep after that.
I didn’t bring anything from Claire’s, and my clothes I do have here are locked up with my wife, so I strip out of what I’m wearing and lay on the couch in only my boxers.
I grab a throw pillow and set it behind my head. I stare out at the dark sky, knowing that I won’t be seeing much of the back of my eyelids tonight. Sleeping has been near impossible since I left on that terrible trip, and now that my wife is under the same roof as me, you’d think I’d be more relaxed. Unfortunately, that is not the case.
I miss seeing her and Zo together. I miss watching them late at night while she nurses Zoey back to sleep. I miss watching her mix up bottles for her, or dancing around the kitchen singing obnoxious lullabies off key, just to calm our sleeping baby. I’ve never seen a better mother than her, and the fact that I haven’t gotten to witness that lately, is eating me alive. I’d like to think that I’ll be home soon, but I don’t want to get my hopes up. I don’t know if she believes me yet. It still hurts to think that she believed I slept with another woman, but at this point, I just need her back. I feel like a vital limb is missing from my body when I’m without her.
I close my eyes, hoping to fall asleep. The point is most likely moot, but my damn head is killing me from all the stress from the last day. As I start to doze off, my phone dings from the coffee table.
“Fuck.” The only reason I check it is to make sure that it’s not Lucy texting me about Zoey. It’s my sister.
Claire: How’s Av?
Me: I don’t know. She’s been locked in our room since we got home.
Claire: Just give her time. She’ll come around.
Me: We’ll see. I’ll call you in the morning.
Claire: Alright. Let me know if you guys need anything. Love you big bro.
I throw my phone back on the table and sigh. It’s taking all the restraint I have to keep from going to my wife. I want more than anything, to go in there and hold her close and never let her out of my sight again.
I jolt awake out of a restless sleep. Screaming. I hear screaming. What the hell is going on? I run to the bedroom and rattle the door, apparently thinking that’ll cause the lock to budge.
“Av?” I shout, but get no response. She’s crying, and I can’t fucking get to her.
I sprint to the kitchen to get a butter knife to release the lock. I can’t seem to get the damn thing open fast enough. I have no idea what’s going on behind the closed door, but I know that I need to get to her.
As soon as the door opens, the sight before me nearly cuts me in half. Avery is sitting on the edge of the bed, holding her stomach as she’s hunched over. I’m not sure if she’s fully awake, so I decide against approaching her right away. I hear whimpering, and my heart nearly pounds out of my chest.
She finally settles back on the bed before she notices that I’m standing in the doorway.
“Ev?” she croaks out, and that’s the last straw for me before I go to her. I can’t stay away any longer. I need this woman as much as she needs me, and I’m done holding back. I’m done letting her push me away.
“I’m here.” I crawl in next to her and carefully pull her to my chest, mindful of her bandaged-up nose and broken ribs. It fucking makes me insane seeing her like this. I inhale the intoxicating scent of lavender on her skin and hair. I started buying her the stuff when we started dating, and ever since, it’s all that she’s used. Say what you want, but as soon as she runs out of it, I go to the girly ass store and buy her more. It makes her happy, and the damn smell is amazing mixed with her natural scent.
“You okay?” I whisper into her hair before kissing the top of her head. She doesn’t pull away from me. I’m not sure how long this moment will last, so I’m cherishing whatever I can get from her.
“I- I had a nightmare.” I feel a tear hit my naked chest.
“Nobody is going to hurt you again. Not if I can help it.” I rub my hand up and down her arm, trying to soothe her back to sleep.
“Thank you,” she says shyly, and I hate that she feels she has to be that way with me.
Her tense body soon relaxes into mine, which in return makes me relax into the bed. It’s been too long since I’ve slept beside her, but in this moment, it feels like no time has passed.
42
Avery
When I wake, I notice that the other side of the bed looks like it was slept in. It wasn’t a dream. When Evan brought me home yesterday, I locked myself in our room. I wasn’t trying to be a bitch, I just haven’t wanted to talk much about what happened to me. I promised myself that I’d talk to my husband and try to work things out with him, but now that he’s here with me, I’ve done nothing but push him away again. I remember him holding me last night until I fell back asleep. I hadn’t felt that safe in a long time.
I should probably get up to start my day. Evan wants to take me to see Zoey this morning. As much as I want to see my baby, I don’t want to get my mom’s hopes up. She’ll assume we’re back together, and she’ll be throwing a party for us to celebrate.
Finally, deciding to get up, I carefully lift myself from the bed and go to the bathroom to relieve my bladder and then start the tub, adding some of my favorite bubble bath. My pain seems to be manageable today, but I still have to remember to take it easy. I tend to overdo it at times, and I really don’t want to end up back in the hospital.
I strip out of my clothes and then un-Velcro my brace that wraps around my midsection. I stare at the bruises that mar my pale skin, and a rush of sadness hits me. I’ve felt so many emotions over the last couple days, but right now, I’m just trying to understand why someone did this to me. I don’t think I’ll feel better until we know who did this to me.
I carefully step into the tub and lower myself into the water. At first, the movement is painful, but once the warmth hits my body, I’m able to relax a bit. I lean my head against my bath pillow, now wondering how the hell I’m going to get out of this tub once I’m done. Shit. I didn’t think this
through very well.
My eyes fly open at the insistent pounding on the door. What the hell? Shit, I must have fallen asleep. The water is now cold, so I try to stand to grab for my towel, but immediately regret the movement.
“Oww!” I cry out as I hold my stomach. I’m shaking profusely while in pain. This is too much.
I’m scared to sit back in the tub because the movement will most likely only increase the pain. I’m mindful not to slip, but I continue to shiver as I know there’s no way I can get to my towel. Not on my own at least.
“Av?” I hear Evan from the door, and I’m relieved yet suddenly self-conscious, standing here butt naked. I know I shouldn’t feel that way in front of my husband, but he hasn’t seen my battered body yet.
In the next instant, I’m being wrapped in a warm towel.
“What happened?” he whispers into my ear, “Did you hurt yourself?”
“I- I just wanted a bath and must have fallen asleep. When you knocked on the door, I tried getting up, but it hurt like hell.” I’m ashamed at how careless I was.
I look up at his face, and I can tell he’s worried. “If you’re going to take a bath without me around, keep your phone near you so you can call for help. And damn it woman, don’t fall asleep in the bathtub.” He sighs.
“Can you help me out?”
“Yeah, come on.” He grabs my hand as I lift my legs out of the tub and then walks me out of the bathroom, careful to make sure I don’t slip on the wet floor.
He walks me to the bed and helps me sit. “Stay put, I’ll grab your brace for you.” He turns back to the bathroom, and I feel the familiar sting behind my eyes, caused from the tears that are fighting to get out. I want him back so damn much, but I don’t know if he still wants me. I don’t notice he’s back in the room until he speaks again, “Av, what’s wrong? You hurt still?” He kneels in front of me, between my legs as he runs a hand through my hair.
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