Page 16 of Chains

The nurse smiled at him, and batted her eyelashes, I would’ve rolled my eyes if the action didn’t cause severe pain in my head, making me wince.

“Are you okay?” my father asks worriedly, coming to sit by my bed.

“I’ve been better.” I mutter, my hand rising to my forehead to move a non-existent lock of hair out of my face. That’s when I felt it. Frowning, I touch my head gently, only feeling a dressing wrapped around it. My father looked at me with sadness in his eyes.

“They had to shave your head, sweetheart. They needed to relieve the building pressure in your brain.”

I looked at him blankly, letting his words sink in. They cut off my hair? I know it was stupid to feel sadness over the fact that what I felt was my best feature was now gone. Granted, I’ve kept my hair shorter for a long time now, as opposed to the long locks I had since I was a young girl. But the thought of being now completely bald under the dressing was upsetting as I swallowed the lump that threatened to draw me deep into a black hole. No! I needed to think positively about my situation. At least I was alive. Completely broken. But alive.

“What happened, Daddy?” I ask softly, as the man who had raised me looked into my eyes with sadness emanating from his. He took my hands in his and smiled softly, trying to cover the ticking of his jaw, that told me he was fighting to keep the anger at bay. He looked like he was having difficulty getting the words past his lips.

“That bastard assaulted you.” He faltered, finding it hard to go on.

“Caleb did this.” I reply on a whimper. His hand tightening around mine, almost painfully. “So then, why wasn’t he arrested?” I ask, almost in a whisper.

I felt my father’s body stiffen, and he tightened his hand on mine almost to the point of pain.

“No, that arsehole Chains did it,” he spits out.

If the whole situation wasn’t so tragic, I would’ve burst out laughing. The very thought that Chains was the one who did this was almost laughable. He was many things, but an abuser of women he was not.

I shake my head, running headlong in the defence of the man who, once upon a time, was my everything. Even now, after so many years of being apart.

“No, Daddy, you’re wrong. It was Caleb. He was the one who attacked me.” You could cut the tension with a knife, and it was a few moments before my father could speak after the shock wore off.

“Are you sure?” he barks, appearing as if someone had hit him.

I nod. “He hit me in the head, but I remember clearly who did this to me. And it wasn’t Bodie. How long have I been out of it?” I ask. Lying back against the pillows, feeling wiped out.

“You’ve been in a coma for a couple months, sweetheart. Because you had a hematoma pressing on your brain,” he replies softly, but the look in his eyes promises retribution.

I stare back at him, speechless. A couple months? It’s a shock to realize that I’ve been out of it for that long.

I look around, wanting to ask the question on the tip of my tongue, but afraid to. I’m certain my father knows what it is when his jaw hardens, but he forces a smile.

“Lexie was here. She only just left because I told her to get some rest. She’s the only one of the DCMC Briar Creek chapter left here in Dallas, the rest had to return a few weeks ago. Kon was here as well. Come to think of it, it felt like he was hiding something from me when I asked about Chains. He’s locked up, you know. Everyone believes he did this.”

I gasp in shock. The police had Chains locked up for the last few months, all because they think he was the one who hurt me? I can’t imagine what he’s feeling right now, and how much he must hate me.

“I need to tell the police the truth. Bodie has been in jail months longer than he should’ve been.” I cry out. “And since Caleb can’t be located, he's out there somewhere, probably just waiting to strike against me again.” I try to keep my voice level, but it’s hard to do when fear directs everything I feel right now. A look of determination takes over my father’s handsome face.

“I knew something wasn’t right when not once had Caleb come by to see you. In fact, no one’s seen him since they brought you in. I just never in a million years would have thought it was him that did this to you. Why didn’t you tell me what he was doing to you all these years?” my father demands.

“He threatened everyone I cared about. Please, Daddy, don’t get involved. Caleb is a very dangerous man.” I implore.

“That’s why I never told anyone what he did to me. He would always leave bruises in places you couldn’t see them.” It was humiliating to admit, but it had to be done. I wouldn’t protect him anymore. I was in a relationship with a man who supposedly loved me but would brutally beat me at every opportunity.

“I’m going to find the bastard if it’s the last thing I do. He’s going to pay for ever touching you.” My father tells me, determination on his face, as he retrieves his phone from the pocket of his jeans, typing a quick message, and returns it to his pocket.

“He never hit me this bad before.” I’m still making excuses for the man, and I bite down on my tongue. “At least not to leave visible marks.”

My father looks at me as though I had lost my mind, and maybe I had if I was making excuses for the man I thought I loved, who had turned into a monster.

“Oh, well, of course, since he only slapped you around a bit before. That’s different.” The sarcasm in my father’s voice was unmistakable, and I opened my mouth to give him a serve when suddenly the doctor from earlier walked back into the room.

“Mrs Thatcher.” He begins, and I lift my hand that didn’t have the cannula attached to it, before he continues.

I shake my head, more vigorously than I’d thought as I felt a sharp pain.

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