Page 41 of Inherited Light
I ran my thumb across her hand to soothe her until her grip loosened in mine and her hand fell to the bed. I tucked it under the blanket and stood. Now would be a good time to go to the store. I just had to pray I got there and back before she woke up again. I left her cell phone on the stand by her head with a note I’d written earlier on top. It said, ‘Ren is at the store for ice. He will be right back.’ At the last second before I left I added, ‘Call him if you’re scared’.
I left her snoozing and double-checked to make sure the alarm was set. The house was eerily quiet and I would be much happier if a dog like Brutus was in the room with her. I closed the door behind me, hearing the soft click of the lock as it engaged. The outdoor light was as bright as ever and I quickly surveyed the rest of the yard using the flashlight on my phone. Whoever was here earlier would be stupid to come back, but you can never underestimate the power of stupidity. When I had checked all the nooks and crannies of the yard, and found no one waiting to do Cat harm; I jumped in my truck and put it in reverse, letting it roll down the driveway into the street before I started it. I didn’t want to wake her up, even though it was unlikely with all the meds in her system. This early in the morning the streets were deserted. It looked like a ghost town as I drove, houses dark and only the occasional dog barking to break the silence. The trip to the store indeed took two minutes and I parked by the door, since the store had no other patrons. I grabbed two bags of ice from the cooler and carried them inside. A table sat in the center of the store holding various baked items the local bakery dropped off every morning. I decided we would need breakfast, so I grabbed cinnamon rolls and orange juice for later.
I hauled it all to the cashier and he started to scan it. “Late night?” he asked and I looked up from my wallet.
“More like an early morning,” I said, my hand going to my neck.
He nodded along as he scanned. “I remember closing down the bar and getting to work a few hours later to open the store. I’m too old for those kinds of nights now.”
I shook my head, grimacing when it hurt my neck. “I wish I had closed down the bar last night. Someone attacked my friend and me when we got home. I’m getting her ice for her sprained ankle. The bastard who did this is going to pay.”
He paused as he put the items in a bag. “Did they catch the guy?”
I threw some bills on the counter, a frown on my face. “No, at least not to my knowledge, but I think I know who it was.”
He picked up the bills from the counter, took his time straightening them and punched a few buttons on the register until it opened. “Let me guess, an ex?”
I accepted my change and closed my wallet, grabbing the bag of food and ice. “You’re good,” I said, chuckling. “I suppose you hear all kinds of stories working here.”
“Oh, there are days,” he agreed, laughing with me.
I waved and hit the door running. I didn’t want to leave Cat there alone longer than need be. As I drove back to the house, I wondered if the attacker had left any footprints. I made sure to stand on the deck to fix the light bulb and avoid the area around the ramp when I checked the house earlier. The police arrived at the hospital and Cat and I spoke to them about what happened. We didn’t have much to give them at the time, but they said someone would be out tomorrow to check for any evidence to help them find the attacker. Cat insisted it was Xavier, but it doesn’t make sense. There’s no way he would have hurt Cat. He would take me out without the slightest hesitation, but not her. I could see him taking her and running after he knocked me out, but no way would he hurt her.
I rubbed the spot on the back of my neck. The lump was smaller, so the ice I had put on it earlier had helped the swelling some. I had a little bit of relief from the pain and planned to lay down with another round of ice and pray by morning it felt even better.
I parked in the driveway and grabbed the ice and bag from the seat of the truck. I had taken her keys with me and unlocked the door, holding my breath when the door opened, but no sounds reached my ears as I punched in the code to the alarm. Once I had the door closed and reset the alarm I carried the items to the kitchen. I stashed the juice in the fridge and divided the ice into several smaller bags, including one for myself. I took the bags back to the bedroom with me and fixed a new one over her ankle. The ice bag from the hospital was soft and I laid it by her face, lifting her hand up to hold it there. I kicked my shoes off, slipped out of my jeans and lay down. The alarm on my phone had been set for four a.m. and with any luck, by four a.m. we’d both feel better. The way my head hurt I knew there was one thing I wouldn’t be doing tomorrow, and that one thing was pounding nails.
I put the plates in the dishwasher and wiped down the counter. When we woke for the fourth time it was nearly eleven, but since I texted everyone and told them what happened before we left the hospital, no one disturbed us. Only they didn’t know I was here, instead thinking I had gone back to my own apartment last night. Now that the sun was up, and the pain had mostly passed, all that was left was to sort out her van. She had to stay home with her leg up, which meant I couldn’t take her with me. Chances were good a tow truck would be involved, or a truck from a tire store would have to come with a spare to fix the flat one. She can’t have her leg down for the hours it would require. I slipped my phone out and opened a group text to Cinn and Foster. “Hi, it’s Lorenzo. I need a favor. Are you busy? Would you come stay with Cat while I get her van fixed at the gallery? She doesn’t want to be alone.”
The text bubble popped up instantly and I waited in the kitchen until they finished. “We’ll be there in fifteen minutes,” was Cinn’s reply. She didn’t ask questions, which meant more to me than she would ever know.
“Thank you, I owe you one,” I typed back.
“You owe me more than one, I’ll just add this to the pile,” she typed, adding a winky face. I laughed and shut the phone off, putting it back in my pocket as I jogged to the living room.
She sat on the couch, her leg propped up on a pillow, and a book in her hand. We shared breakfast together on the couch and while I cleaned up, she stared at the paperback as though she was reading it, but she wasn’t. Her eyes kept drooping and coming open again, drooping and coming open again, like a little kid trying to fight sleep. I sat and she leaned into my chest.
“I’m tired,” she said as though I couldn’t see her drooping eyelids.
“I know, honey. I’ll help you back to bed and while you’re napping, I’ll go deal with your van.”
Her hand tightened into a fist around my shirt. “I don’t want to stay here alone. I’ll come with you.”
I kissed the top of her head and held her loosely around her back. “I have someone coming to stay with you while I’m gone. You can rest while they watch for any trouble.”
She leaned back to address me through slit-like lids. “Who’s coming?”
“Cinn and Foster. Foster will go with me in the truck back into Little Ivywood and drop me off. Then he’ll drive the truck back here and wait with you until I get back. You can sleep and not have to worry about anyone disturbing you.”
“Cinn isn’t well either. Maybe I should just go with you.”
I patted her face a couple times. “Cinn is going crazy sitting at home. She’s happy to have something to do. Brutus will be along to guard you, too. He knows his job and he won’t let anyone get near Cinn or you.”
“You think I’m being a child because I don’t want to stay alone, don’t you?” she asked suddenly. Her mood swings were giving me whiplash, but the doctor warned me about it.
I kept the smile steady on my face. “No, I don’t think you’re being a child. You’re injured and tired from the medication. There’s an excellent chance you might not hear someone who’s trying to break in if you were sleeping. Until we know who did this, and why, you won’t be alone.”
“Are you going to come back here with my van?” She asked the question as though she was confused, even though she didn’t know why, and even though I had already told her.
