A soft moan emanated from the young woman as her eyes fluttered open. She immediately covered them with her hands, frowning at the light coming in through the big windows.
“Hey, hey, take it easy,” said Fiona softly. “You had quite a bump on your head.”
“Yes. I remember them,” she said pointing to Quinn, River, and Finnegan. “Thank you for coming to my apparent rescue.”
“Do you remember anything at all?” asked Patrick. She looked at him frowning and then tilted her head toward the triplets. “They’re my sons. Sorry, we all look alike.”
“Wow. Thank goodness. I thought I might have a serious head injury.”
“You almost did,” said Adam. “Do you remember being hit on the head?”
“I remember not feeling well. Greg, that guy you saw had asked me out to dinner a few weeks ago.”
“Where did you meet him?” asked Quinn.
“At work. I mean, sort of. I’m a flight attendant for Coastal Airways. He was on my flight from Miami to Pensacola. He was friendly, asked me if I was going home or leaving home. Passengers ask that all the time. Most don’t mean anything by it, they’re just curious if we finally get to go home.”
“What happened at the end of the flight?” asked River.
“He said he was in town for a week and wanted to take me to lunch. Lunch is always better in my opinion, it doesn’t feel like as much of a commitment. I agreed to lunch, he seemed nice but I refused to let him pick me up.”
“Good girl,” nodded Patrick. She smiled at him, nodding.
“I met him at a little seafood place on the beach, we talked, ate, and I thought it was nice but there wasn’t anything special about him. Unfortunately, he did. He was calling me non-stop. I had another series of flights to do and when I returned, I figured the only way to get rid of him was to meet for dinner.
“So, I agreed on the same restaurant. I knew most of the waitstaff there. I told him I wasn’t staying, I just wanted him to know that although I appreciated the interest, I didn’t feel the same.”
“Did you eat or drink anything?” asked Finn.
“Just water. In a glass.” They all nodded, some even moaning. “Was that wrong?”
“When you’re concerned about someone you’re with, always ask for bottled water and never let it out of your sight,” said Margo.
“Damn. I went to the ladies room,” she frowned. “I didn’t think he was crazy. I just thought he was insistent.”
“Hard to tell the difference sometimes,” said Quinn. “What happened next?”
“He continued to argue that I belonged to him and I finally just stood and left. I drove to my apartment but felt like crap. I know that I locked the door.” She looked down at her clothing and frowned.
“What’s wrong?” asked Quinn.
“I was wearing this at dinner. Just shorts, t-shirt, and sandals. I must have fallen asleep in this.” She reached up, touching her ponytail. “My hair. My hair was like this as well. What day is this?”
“Thursday,” said River.
“I met him Monday night,” she said with tears. “Three nights he had me. Wh-what did he do?”
“Hey, it’s okay,” said Adam. “Nothing more than the bump on the head and he drugged your water, possibly drugging you for the last few days to keep you quiet.”
“How could you know that he didn’t, he didn’t touch me,” she whispered.
“I’m a doctor,” said Adam. “I’m going to ask that for now you trust me.”
She nodded at them, then looked at all the faces.
“I’m sorry. I haven’t even introduced myself. My name is April Lewis.”
“April, I’m sorry we’re meeting under such circumstances,” said Patrick. “I’m Patrick. That’s my wife, Margo and my sons you’ve met. Quinn, River, and Finnegan. Priscilla is River’s wife. Then we have Major, his wife, Elena and of course, Adam and Fiona.”
