seven
I instantly regretted the decision to open my eyes. The sun had moved into my house and hung out on my ceiling. I didn’t think the sun was bright white, but I had to have been wrong. Light filtered red through my eyelids in testament to how bright it was.
I opened my mouth and it felt like I’d tried to eat an entire bag of cotton balls. Or an entire sleeve of Saltines like that internet challenge.
Someone grabbed my hand. Who was in my house? Had to be Emma. She was the only other person who had a key.
“You’re okay. You’re in the hospital.”
“Hospital?” I croaked.
“Here’s some water.”
I cracked an eyelid a sliver and managed to get the bendy straw into my mouth. I moaned when ice cold water flowed down my throat. As I drained the industrial sized mug, she explained.
“My name is Kendal. I’m a friend of the wyr… man who rescued you.”
“That was a woman?”
She chuckled. “No, sorry. I … got distracted by a nurse outside.”
That made sense. I'd mashed up phrases I meant to say before. Like thanks and it was nothing ended up coming out thanks for nothing.
“Anyway, the doctors think you have a mild concussion and say they’ll release you soon. Do you have someone who can sit with you for a while?”
That was mild? It didn’t feel mild. I sighed. “What time is it?” My stomach plummeted as I remembered Sir Purrs-a-lot in the window. “My cats. I have to feed my cats.”
“My friend fed them while we were on our way here. He said everything was labeled, so you made it easy.”
My entire body slumped. “Thank you.”
“Of course. We wouldn’t leave them hungry. And it’s three in the morning.”
“Then no, I don’t.” Emma would kill me if I woke her up at three a.m. She was not a morning person.
“I know I’m a stranger, but I could stay, if you want. I promise I’m not a serial killer.”
“Isn’t that what a serial killer would say?”
She laughed. “Probably.” Her voice turned serious. “My friend will guard you with his life. Even from me.”
I squinted at her. “That doesn’t sound like much of a friend.”
She smiled. “He’s the best kind of friend, believe me.”
“Will I get to meet him?”
“I hope so.”
“I know I have a concussion, and my brain might not be working well, but you are confusing the shit out of me right now.”
She chuckled. “I’m sorry. It’s just…” She looked up at the ceiling for a long moment before her eyes met mine. “He’s very scary looking, and the last thing he wants is for you to be afraid of him. He’s scared that’s going to happen.”
“Oh.” I wasn’t quite sure what to say to that, so I closed my eyes and focused on the low hum of the equipment in the room. “Have the police been here?”
“They’re waiting outside to take your statement.” I heard her clothes rustle as she shifted in the chair. “This is a lot to ask of you, and you don’t know me from Adam, but I would really appreciate you not mentioning my friend. It would be fine if you did, eventually, for us, but…” She sighed. “The world we live in is very different, and mentioning him will draw you into it faster than I think you want.”
I popped my eyes open. “What, are you in the mafia or something?”
“No! Nothing like that.”
“Super-secret government organization?”
Her face brightened. “Yes! That, pretty much.”
I fell back on my impossibly thin pillow and regretted that decision when my head hit the hard hospital mattress. I whimpered as pain exploded behind my eyes. “Fine. I’ll keep your scary friend to myself. I’ve already witnessed a murder this week. The last thing I want to do is get caught up in some secret government bullshit.”
I heard the door open as the last word left my mouth. I didn’t bother sitting up. It was all I could do right then to keep the meager contents of my stomach where they belonged.
“Colorful language for a kindergarten teacher.”
“I’m not at work, am I?”
“You’re going to come in hot with judgment when she’s the victim?”
I wanted to cheer for Kendal, but it would hurt my head.
The man cleared his throat, and I risked raising one eyelid to get a look at him. He had starched his uniform to within an inch of its life, and his shiny badge made me groan and shut my eye.
“Apologies, Ms. Massey. I’m Officer Phillips of Damruck P.D. I’m here to take your statement, if you’re feeling up to it.”
I spun a finger in a circle. “Fine.”
“Can you walk me through what happened tonight?”
“I was unlocking my front door when I felt something behind me. When I turned around, a man said, “Bitch,” and hit me on the side of the head.” I took a deep breath. “After that, everything gets hazy.”
“What were you doing before unlocking your door?”
“Walking up to the door?”
I heard his eye roll. “Before that?”
“After work, I went to Big Muddy’s for a burger and fries.”
“The one on Mudflats Boulevard?”
“That’s the one.”
“And then what?”
“Then I drove home. Gathered my things, got out and walked to the door.”
He was quiet, so I peeked at him. He scratched furiously at a tiny notebook. Why did cops use such small notebooks? They weren’t stiff enough to provide a suitable writing surface and if anyone needed to write in odd places where a good, stiff-backed notebook would be handy, it was cops. Plus, it was so small you could probably only fit one or two words on a line. Unless your handwriting was very cramped.
“How is your handwriting?”
Both Officer Phillips and Kendal looked at me, then at each other.
“Do you want to grade my penmanship?” Officer Phillips studied the tiny notebook for a minute before turning it around for me to see.
The words swam on the page, but I could see that his handwriting was, indeed, cramped. At least it was neat. “B-plus. But actually, I wondered why you don’t carry larger, sturdier notebooks that would let you write more and provide a portable writing surface.”
He stared at the small pad of paper. “You have a point.” He shrugged. “These fit in our pockets, though.” He cleared his throat and hovered his pen over the paper. “Back to last night’s events. Did you see anyone following you? Notice anything unusual when you got to your house?”
“No. Everything seemed normal until the man appeared behind me and whacked me in the head.”
“Can you describe the man? Height, weight, skin color? What was he wearing?”
The man’s face flashed in my mind, and I winced. “Average height. Slender, but strong. Caucasian. Brown eyes. He had on a black sweatshirt and dark jeans.” I tapped my finger on the bed. “There was something else…” Images flashed through my mind like slides in a projector. They came to a screeching halt on one where my field of vision was mostly filled with concrete steps, but a swath of bright orange stood out. “Orange shoes. He was wearing bright orange shoes. The canvas ones.”
Phillips nodded. “You have an excellent memory. That’s very helpful. Can you think of any reason someone would want to hurt you?”
“Well, I did witness a murder two days ago. The detectives said I wasn’t in any danger from it, though.”
“That’s probably true, but it’s certainly an angle we’ll need to explore.”
There was that word again. Probably. It was probably a robbery gone bad. I was probably safe. The attack last night probably wasn’t connected. My head throbbed in time with my heartbeat.
“Are we done, Officer Phillips? I’d like to rest now.”
“Of course. If you think of anything else….” He slipped his card onto the tray table, nodded to both of us, and left.
Not long after, there was a steady stream of health care professionals in and out of my room, making the rest I craved impossible. Nurses came to check my vitals, a general physician came to check on my condition before a neurologist came and declared me fit for discharge. A different nurse came and went over instructions with Kendal. I’d need to be watched for at least twelve hours, preferably twenty-four.
Before I knew it, we were in a large panel van headed to my house. I felt strung up like a harp when we pulled into the driveway. Kendal glanced over at me and must have noticed the strain on my face.
“You can stay at my house if you don’t want to stay here.”
I gave a tiny shake of my head. “No. My cats are here. I’ll be fine once I get inside.” I turned toward her. “You don’t have to stay. I can call my friend Emma in an hour or two.”
“Nonsense!” She grinned. “I sat at the hospital with you. We’re practically sisters.”
I smiled. Somewhere in the tapioca that was my brain, I knew I shouldn’t trust her so fast. She could rob me blind while I slept. Finish the job the man came there to do. She could be a horrible person.
But I’d learned to listen to my intuition, and right now it was telling me she was good people.
Another slide clicked forward in my brain projector and a warm feeling of safety washed over me. “Did your friend lie down with me?”
“Yeah, he did. He said you were shivering, and he knew he shouldn’t move you, so he snuggled up to your back.”
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. “Do you think,” I cleared the sudden frog in my throat, “do you think he would come? Just while I sleep. I don’t know why, but I’d feel better with him here. I don’t have to see him. I promise to keep my door shut and my couch is pretty comfy. I have great blankets and pillows.” My ramble trailed off.
She put her hand on my forearm until I looked at her. “I think he’d love that.”