Truth (77 page)

She had forgotten. There were too many
things competing for space in her head. “Oh yeah, I’ll do a quick
inventory and let you know if I think anything else is
missing.”

Harry walked Claire to her door and let go
of her large suitcase. “Are you sure you’re okay seeing your room
by yourself?”

Claire shrugged. “Yeah, I’m fine. Why don’t
you call for some food?” She thought a moment as she unlocked her
door, “Just no sushi, all right?”

Harry’s blue eyes squinted, allowing his
amazingly long lashes to linger near his cheeks, and his head
tilted to the side. “But you like sushi,” seeing her wrinkled nose
he asked, “How about Chinese?”

She nodded. “Chinese sounds great. Extra
rice,” she added with a smile.

*****

Parked across the street
from 365 Forest Avenue in his nondescript grey Camry, Phillip
watched the lights turn on in the large windows on the fourth
floor. He typed the text message while engaging his laptop.
MS NICHOLS ARRIVED TO CONDO. NO STOPS ON
WAY.
He checked his laptop. The sensors
would indicate if only her apartment opened or if both hers and Mr.
Baldwin’s opened. The sensors were new, but with the recent
break-in and an unlimited budget, no piece of technology was beyond
his scope.

There must be something
wrong with his sensors. Yes, Claire’s door just opened and now Mr.
Baldwin’s door opened. However, the data indicated Claire’s door
also opened twenty minutes ago. Phillip’s heart raced as he looked
up toward the windows. He pulled out his phone; Mr. Rawlings
answered on the first ring. Common pleasantries disappeared, “I
just read my sensors. She’s in her unit
and
it was opened twenty minutes
ago.” Phil’s voice came with deep breaths as he raced across the
street.

Ignoring Mr. Rawlings’ bellowing voice, Phil
hastily entered Claire’s building and approached the security desk,
“Has anyone been to unit 4 A recently?” The security guard looked
at Phil questionably. Phil repeated himself louder, “The unit that
was broken into last week? Has anyone been up there?” Phil could
still hear Mr. Rawlings yelling through the phone.

“
Yes, there was a
delivery. The man had the appropriate documents.”

Phil revealed the picture he’d sent Mr.
Rawlings, “Is this the man?”

The security guard looked at the picture, “I
don’t know. He had documents. Yeah, maybe... he was bald.”

“
Call 911 and get me up
there right away!” Phil’s voice rose above Mr.
Rawlings’.

*****

Tony could hear everything
and do nothing. How long would it take to get up four flights? He
disconnected from Phillip Roach and scrolled his contacts, finding
Harrison Baldwin. He hit
call
.

*****

Claire pulled her luggage into the foyer.
She’d forgotten about her room being a mess. Maybe Tony didn’t have
anything to do with it. If that were the case, she was glad she’d
been out of town when it happened. Suddenly, she wished Amber were
home.

Turning on lights, she headed toward the
kitchen. Even though Harry was calling for dinner, she thought a
little snack might help her nerves before she faced her wrecked
room and their conversation. She watched as the overhead lights
flooded the living room and darkened the outside world beyond the
large windows.

Which occurred first, the sound of his
footsteps or sensing his presence? Claire’s heart raced as she spun
around. She recognized the man immediately -- Patrick Chester, the
neighbor from Santa Monica. In an attempt to hide her panic, she
feigned indignation, “What are you doing in my house?”

He walked toward her, his beady eyes
narrowing while his smile widened.

She repeated her question, “What are you
doing in my house? Get out!”

He continued forward. She backed toward the
windows and assessed an escape. If she ran through the kitchen,
could she get back to the door and out before him?

“
You made me think you’re
Anton’s daughter.” Patrick laughed. The menacing sound made the
hairs on the back of Claire’s neck prickle. “You’re not his
daughter unless that’s what they call whores who seduce Sugar
Daddy’s!” His volume rose with each word.

The distance between them lessened as her
back pressed against the cool glass. “I never told you I
was...”

Without warning his hand forcefully
contacted her left cheek causing her to stumble sideways. She
caught herself against the glass before falling to the floor. He
grabbed her hair and pulled her back to her feet. Tears filled her
eyes as her scalp screamed in pain.

“
Shut up!” He shouted. His
foul breath making her stomach lurch.

She thought about her baby, “Please, you can
have whatever you want. Just don’t hurt me.”

“
I said shut up!” He
slapped her again, releasing her hair and allowing her to fall. Her
head bounced off the sill and onto the wood floor. Claire pulled
her knees into her chest, as she tried to shield herself and her
baby. Patrick’s foot connected her ribs pushing the air from her
lungs.

As she struggled for air she heard his
voice, “You’re coming with me. I’m going to get everything I
deserve....” His fist now entwined her hair, pulling her body
upward. She scrambled, trying to move -- to stop the pain. He
dragged her body across the floor. The room grew steadily darker,
while in the distance she heard Harry’s voice -- yelling. Pain
intensified -- in her head --- her chest --- a loud noise --
everything faded away.

I hope you aren’t too ugly.
What a collection of scars you have.
Be grateful. Our scars have the ability to give us the
reality
that our past is real.
- Red
Dragon

Chapter
52

Consciousness came slowly; she felt the
throbbing in her head and the intense pain in her side. As the
feelings intensified so did her nausea. Claire couldn’t remember
where she was... it felt wrong. Wanting to see her surroundings,
she tried to open her eyes. Why did she hurt so much? Why wouldn’t
her eyes open? Panic intensified her nausea. Instinctively she knew
getting sick would increase her pain; she tried to breathe and
distance herself from the agony. Beyond the darkness she heard
sounds. Her mind scrambled, beeps -- she heard beeps... what were
the beeps?

As the fog cleared, the beeps steadily
became louder and their origin registered. She was hearing
monitors. She also felt a strange sensation in her arm. Claire
tried to touch it, but her hand wouldn’t move. Why wasn’t her body
responding to her thoughts?

Voices... she strained to hear the voices.
Was it Tony? Oh, she wanted Tony. What about their baby? No, it
wasn’t Tony’s voice – it was Harry’s. Her body didn’t move; yet,
she felt tears escape from her closed eyes.

That feeling in her arm -- she remembered
it. She’d felt it before, but when? The pain in her head made it
impossible to concentrate.

“
How long will she be
unconscious?” Harry’s concerned tone disengaged Claire from her
thoughts, filling her with conflicting feelings.

“
That’s up to her. She’s
fighting her injuries the only way the body knows. Her energy is
needed to repair the trauma; she’ll wake when she can. In the
meantime, we’ll keep her monitored.”

“
You said she was
pregnant.”

Claire’s heart ached. Did
Harry say
was
?

“
Mr. Baldwin, Ms.
Nichols
is
pregnant. The baby is strong and healthy. Ms. Nichols is
fighting for two right now.”

Claire wasn’t sure what else they said. The
only thing that mattered was that her baby was healthy. She drifted
back to the place where her body didn’t hurt.

The beeping continued even
in her dreams. She rolled slightly and the tightness in her arm
intensified. Claire suddenly remembered when she’d had that feeling
... it was after her
accident
!

She concentrated on lifting her lids...
slowly they obeyed. The florescent beams lit the room as they
flowed from under the cabinets. The tubes in the crook of her elbow
came into view. She was right; it was the same sensation she had
after her accident. As her eyes continued to focus, she saw his
golden hair resting near the foot of her bed. Although sleeping in
a chair, Harry had his head resting on the bed with his hand over
her leg. She remembered him picking her up at the airport; they
were going to talk. She went into her condominium, and then...
there was fog. Claire closed her eyes... Patrick Chester. She
couldn’t remember anything else.

Claire tried to talk, “Harry?”

He didn’t move.

“
Harry?”

The blonde head bobbled as Harry raised his
head, and his light blue, tired eyes peered toward Claire’s face.
“Oh, Claire, you’re awake.”

He climbed toward her as he grasped her
hand. “I need to let everyone else know.”

“
Everyone else?” Her voice
sounded raspy.

“
Amber, Emily, John, and
Keaton are out there somewhere.”

Her heart sank. Where was Tony? Maybe he
didn’t know she was hurt. Of course he knew! Where was he?

“
Harry, what happened?”
The words were difficult to form with her mouth too dry.

He gripped her hand and brushed her knuckles
with his lips, “Claire, I’m so sorry.”

She was reeling from everything, “Why are
you apologizing? Can I please have some water?”

He reached for the Styrofoam cup sitting
nearby. Sipping the water from the offered straw, she relished the
coolness as it moisturized her throat. Experience told her not to
drink too much. She tried her question again, “What happened?”

“
Let’s talk about that
after we tell everyone you’re awake.” Claire nodded. There was no
need for urgency, somewhere in her memory she’d heard her baby was
all right.

Harry hit the nurse button. When the woman
in light green scrubs came into the room, she took Claire’s vitals
and promised more information after the doctor’s examination.
Claire wanted to ask about the baby; however, Harry’s presence made
her hesitate.

When Dr. Sizemore entered the room, she
asked Harry to leave. He kissed Claire’s forehead and walked into
the hall. She heard Amber, Emily, and John’s hushed voices as they
questioned Harry beyond the closing door.

“
Dr. Sizemore, I don’t
know what happened, but please tell me, is my baby all
right?”

“
Yes, Ms. Nichols. I’ve
already shared with Mr. Baldwin that your baby’s vitals are
strong.”

“
Mr. Baldwin?” Claire
asked, puzzled.

“
Yes, he said that the two
of you...” the doctor’s face blanched. “I know that I shouldn’t
have, but I guess I assumed. Ms. Nichols, I’m sorry.”

Claire couldn’t stop the
tears.
Oh my god! Harry knows I’m pregnant
and thinks it’s his!
Her thoughts came
with such velocity her head spun.

“
My head hurts –
Doctor.”

“
Ms. Nichols, you hit your
head very hard. You don’t show signs of a concussion; however, the
MRI indicated you’ve had one before.”

Claire nodded. That’s what
Dr. Leonard said after her
accident
. “Yes, I did. That was a
while ago. Does that matter now?”

“
Well, yes. Any damage to
your brain after a previous injury is significant. You also have
bruised ribs. You are quite lucky they aren’t broken. Again, I saw
evidence of past broken ribs. Ms. Nichols, were you in an
automobile accident, in the past?”

Claire inhaled; the action caused her side
to hurt. “I had an accident in 2010. Will any of that affect my
baby?”

“
No, we have pain medicine
that won’t hurt your baby. I want you to get some rest. If you do,
we can probably release you tomorrow or Thursday.”

Claire’s mind reeled, “Thursday? What day is
it?”

“
It’s Tuesday. You’ve been
unconscious for about thirty hours.”

Thirty hours, why wasn’t Tony here? As happy
as Claire was about her baby being healthy, Tony’s absence caused
equal sadness. “Please send Mr. Baldwin back in.”

“
I will, but you have an
entire waiting room of people. Would you like me to let them all
come see you?”

“
Harry told me they were
here.” She failed to sound happy.

Dr. Sizemore squeezed Claire’s hand, “You
have a great support system. I apologize for sharing your secret,
but everyone is thrilled.”

Although the aching in her heart made it
difficult, Claire tried to smile. “Thank you, Doctor, just Mr.
Baldwin, please.”

Dr. Sizemore left Claire’s room. Moments
later, Harry peered his light blue eyes around the tall, imitation
wood door. “May I come back in?” he asked bashfully.

Claire nodded through her tears. “Harry, I
remember your voice when Chester was hurting me; please tell me
what happened.”

Harry sat on the edge of Claire’s bed, took
her hand, and inhaled and exhaled. Chronologically he recounted the
events of Sunday night. “I left you at your door. Oh Claire, I’m so
sorry I didn’t go in with you.”

She touched his arm. “I remember you weren’t
too happy with me. It’s okay.”