Merchants with Evil Intent (59 page)

*
     
*
     
*

      
Declan clasped his palms around her hand
and sobbed. He hadn’t cried since
he
t’was a lad and
now he cried like a wee one.

      
He didna care
who
saw him.

      
So, he cried for the loss of her
innocence, the loss of their child and he kept on crying because he knew not
what else to do.

*
     
*
     
*

      
Greg paced in the waiting room.

      
Her wounds weren’t life threatening, but
they were substantial. She’d need a shit-load of therapy once she awoke. The
doctor said her mind had shut down because of the trauma.

      
It would be a matter of time before she
awoke.

      
His jaws clenched. The fucker raped her.
He cut her and because the torture she’d endured at his hands, she lost the
baby.

      
Fuck. He didn’t know she was pregnant.

      
He sat on the plastic chair and held his
head in his hands.

*
     
*
     
*

      
John paced in Dr. James office, while
Grace and Patrick sat in leather chairs, holding hands.

 
     
“As
I’ve said, her injuries aren’t life threatening and there’s no swelling on the
brain. The effects of the drug will take time to get over so she’ll sleep for a
few days. She did, however, lose the baby,” Dr. James murmured.

      
John’s head jerked.
“Baby?”

      
Dr. James cleared his throat gently.
“Yes, Mr. O’Mara. Camryn was three months pregnant.”

      
John gaped at him and then implored Grace
and Patrick with his eyes. “My God, does Declan know?”

*
     
*
     
*

      
Camryn’s hand felt wet. She looked at the
sunny sky, frowning. It wasn’t raining.

      
Then she heard the muffled sobs again.

      
She absently rubbed her thumb over her
finger. Her hand jerked against her will.

      
“Camryn?” he rasped.

      
Slowly she opened her eyes. “Hey,
beautiful gel,” he murmured.

      
Her chest clenched hearing his voice. She
fought to keep her eyes open.

      
He leaned over and she could see tears
running down his cheeks and brought her hand up to wipe them away. He shouldn’t
cry.

      
Not for her. She was icky now.

      
She groaned. He’d never want her once he
found out what happened to her.

      
She closed her eyes again.

      
She needed to go to her happy place where
she hadn’t been cut, beaten and raped.

      
Where Declan still
loved her.

*
     
*
     
*

      
She drifted away again. He placed her
hand on the bed, wiped his tears and walked away. He needed air.

      
He found Greg in waiting room. He walked
over to him and put his hand on his shoulder.

      
Greg stood, measured Declan’s face,
rolled his misty eyes and pulled him into a hug.

      
Together the two grown, burly men hugged
each other, crying.

      
After several long minutes, they pulled
away from each other, wiping their faces on their sleeves.

      
“I need to get some air,” Declan’s voice
shook.
“Your turn to sit with her.”

      
Greg nodded and patted Declan on the back
as he strode towards her room.

*
     
*
     
*

      
“Hey Cam!
It’s
the big scary cop!” he choked out.

      
He surveyed the room and the machinery
attached to her. Tears pooled in his eyes again.

      
God, she looked horrible.
Both sides
of her face were swollen, she had two black eyes and
she was bandaged where the fucker slit her wrists.

      
He clenched his eyes when he thought
about the cut marks over her body.

      
He sat next to her, lowered his mouth to
her hand and kissed it.

      
She stirred slightly.

      
“Cam?” he asked breathless.

      
The corner of her mouth lifted.

      
His heart swelled.
“Cam?”

      
Her mouth moved, but no sound came out.
He leaned his head closer.

      
“Greg,” she mumbled.

      
The tears fell freely now, even hitting
her on the forehead. He hastily wiped them away. “Yeah, it’s me,” he croaked.

      
“Stop getting me wet.”

      
“Oh Camryn!
Christ girl!” he sniffled.

      
“Water,” she eked out.

      
He pressed the button for the nurse,
keeping a firm grip on Camryn’s hand. He didn’t want her to float away. He
needed to keep her talking.

      
The nurse arrived quickly. “She wants
water.”

      
Instead the nurse offered ice chips,
letting him feed them to her.

      
After two pieces of ice, she opened her
swollen eyes.

      
“Greg, you look like shit,” she croaked.

      
His green eyes filled with more unshed
tears and she gently caressed his cheek.

      
They were friends. He was her safety
zone.

      
“You had us worried,” he gently scolded.

      
She frowned. “Not like I did it on
purpose.”

      
“Babe, I know that.”

      
Her eyebrow lifted. “I must look horrible
for you to call me ‘babe’.”

      
He stumbled for something to say and came
up empty.

      
“That’s a first. You’re speechless,” she
murmured, closing her eyes. “I’m so tired and I hurt.”

      
“Sleep.
Your
body needs to recover,” he choked.

      
“Will you be here when I wake?”

      
He swallowed hard. “Me or Declan. We’ll
always be here for you.”

      
Her eyes flashed open. “Not Declan. I
can’t, he won’t understand. He won’t want me anymore.” She gripped his hand
harder, digging her nails into his palm. “I’m icky now, Greg. That man did horrible
things to me.” She started to cry and the machine she was attached to began
making funny sounds.

      
Two nurses ran in pushing him out of the
way and one escorted him out.

*
     
*
     
*

      
She awoke, lying on a green and white
quilt, on the strand. The scent of the ocean caressed her, soothing her. She
felt a presence next to her and turned.

      
“Hi baby,” Maggie crooned.

      
“Mom.”

      
Maggie looked towards the water, her eyes
squinted. “It’s beautiful here, aye?”

      
Maggie pulled Camryn towards her and
nestled her head on her chest, stroking her hair.

      
She felt Camryn’s warm tears fall to her
blouse.
“’Tis okay, love.
You’re safe now.”

      
“Am I?” Camryn sobbed.

      
“Aye.
I’m sorry
I couldna protect you from the bad man.”

      
Camryn pulled away to look at her mom.
“Why do you talk like you’re from Ireland?”

      
“We’ve a lot to discuss, aye?” Maggie
said through tears.

      
Camryn glanced around at her surroundings
and shrugged. “Looks like I’ve got time.”

      
Maggie nodded and waved a hand in front
of them, casting a large movie screen in the sky.

*
     
*
     
*

      
Two days later Declan and Greg were both
kicked out of the hospital by Grace. She told them she needed time with her
baby and that they needed showers.

      
They begrudgingly left, sniffing their
armpits in the process. Realizing she was right they both agreed to go home,
shower and meet later at Murphy’s.

      
Declan arrived first and was on his
second whiskey when Greg arrived.

      
After receiving his beer Greg lifted it
to Declan.
“Job well done, Irish.”
Declan’s eyebrows
furrowed. “That asshole will be behind bars for a long time. Between the two of
us we broke four of the fucker’s ribs and punctured a lung. Well, you also
knocked out four of his teeth.”

      
“Small solace for what he did to Camryn,”
Declan glowered.

      
“Yeah…”

      
An awkward silence fell between them.

      
“Irish, sorry about the
baby.”

      
Declan ran a hand through his hair. “I
didna even know.”

      
“Wow.”

      
“Aye.
I guess
there’s a lot I don’t know about the gel.”

      
Greg nodded and leaned closer. “Look, the
other day, when you needed air…she woke up and talked to me briefly.”

      
Declan’s eyes widened. “Ya didna tell
me!”

      
Frustrated Greg lifted his hand into the
air. “I didn’t know how to tell you. She said she doesn’t want to see you.”
Declan started to protest and Greg held up a hand. “She thinks you won’t love
her anymore once you know what happened to her. She said that she’s ‘icky’.”

      
“Did ya not tell her that wasna the case?
That I found her?” Declan glared.

      
“Relax, Irish. I didn’t get a chance
because the fuckin’ machines started chirping and the nurses ran in and ushered
me out of the room. That’s why she was on lock-down and we weren’t allowed in
there the other night.”

      
Declan gulped the liquid amber from his
glass. “Christ! How am I supposed to get her to understand I love her no matter
what? How do
I
feckin’ do that?”

*
     
*
     
*

      
“So you see?” Maggie asked.

      
“Wow, you’ve had an interesting couple of
lives, mom. By the way, I totally approve of Eoghan. He’s hot!” Camryn giggled.

      
“I know, right?” Maggie laughed.

      
“What if I don’t want to go back, mom?
I’m scared.”

      
“Camryn Margaret O’Mara! Of course you
have to go back! You’ve a long life ahead of you! A book to write!
A man to wed and babies to make!”

      
“Are you sure about Declan? I mean, how
can he
still love me when…when…” she chewed her bottom lip,
unable to finish her sentence.

      
Maggie took her daughter’s head between
her hands and looked sternly into her eyes. “He loves you unconditionally. Cam,
he knows everything.”

      
“I don’t know…” she hedged.

      
“Oh dear, I didn’t want to have to go
this far, but you’re a stubborn girl,” Maggie sighed as she lifted her hand,
another large screen taking over the sky.

      
“What are you going to show me now?”

      
“What Declan’s been going through since
he met you,” Maggie replied. “Camryn, I’m going to show you everything; even
the part where he found you in the hotel room.”

      
Camryn chewed her bottom lip.