Why is this so hard for me?Seeing her like this, it should make me feel better. Knowing that she’s been with Thomas for the last few years shouldn’t matter to me. None of this should matter to me.Sheshouldn’t matter to me.
When I’m done cleaning her wounds, I get up to my feet and bump into thecoffee table behind me. The noise wakes her, and her eyes flutter open. She looks up at me like she is about to say something, but her lips never move. So, I decide to speak instead.
“You sure you don’t need a doctor. You’re breathing funny. I don’t need you dying on my couch.”
“I’m fine. It’s just a bruised rib. It will be fine,” she says, her voice cracking at the end. “I won’t die from this. I’ll be fine.” I’m not sure if she’s trying to convince herself or me.
I’m about to turn around and leave when she coughs. Her face contorts into a mask of pain as she covers her mouth with her hand. As soon as she pulls her hand away, I see the bright red stain on her palm.Fucking Christ.
“You’re not fine. You’re coughing up blood. Let’s go, I’m taking you to the ER.”
“I’m sure it’s fine–”
“Get up,” I growl, not letting her finish. When she tries to get up on her own, I can see how much she is struggling. Barely able to push herself up to her feet, I grab her under the arms like a child and gently pull her up.
I help her to the truck, having to lift her into the seat. She winces at the movement but doesn’t complain.
“You fell down the stairs, got it?” I ask her when we are almost there. “I can’t have the cops involved. They’re looking for anything to pin on me at this point.”
“Got it,” she confirms right away. I’m not worried about Penny sticking to the lie as much as I am about some goody two shoes nurse calling the cops, thinking I beat her up.
I want to ask her why. Why she stayed with him, and why would she let him get away with beating her up. Did she really love him that much?
All these questions, but I don’t dare ask one out loud, because truthfully, I don’t want to hear the answer, mostly because I’m not ready to hear it.
Chapter 13
Penny
As soon asthe lady at the front desk sees us, she leads me to a private room in the back. I’m not sure if it’s Ryder or me she didn’t want in the waiting room. Probably a combination of us both. My face looks like I just did ten rounds with a heavyweight. Ryder is dressed like his usual self in boots, jeans, a dark shirt showing off all his tattoos, and a vest with patches telling everybody he is the VP of a biker club.
I’m pretty sure the only reason no one has called the cops is that Ryder doesn’t have bruised knuckles. Which makes me actually glad he didn’t hit Thomas.
We have been alone in a small room for what seems like an eternity. I’m lying on the narrow hospital bed while Ryder is in the room’s corner in a chair that looks too small for his large frame. He also looks extremely pissed and annoyed to be here.
The silence between us stretches on like the endless tiny white tiles that make up the ceiling. I started counting them a while back, and I’ve already had to start over twice because I forgot what number I was on.
The door finally opens, and a woman in scrubs enters the room. She looks to be my age, which is a stark reminder of the future I could have had instead of where I am now.
“Hi, I’m Amy. I’ll be your nurse for today,” she says.
“Hi,” I say so quietly, I don’t think that she heard me at all.
“We’re going to start an IV and get you some pain meds. Then the doctor will come and see you as soon as she gets a chance,” the nurse says, giving me a tight-lipped smile. “But first, we need you to give us a urine sample.”
“Okay…” I push myself off the bed, ignoring the sharp pain in my side.
“I’ll help you get to the bathroom,” the nurse announces, which has Ryder sighing in obvious annoyance. The nurse either didn’t hear or doesn’t care. Shecontinues to help me up and walks me out of the room. I have the urge to glance at Ryder on my way out, to assure him I’m not going to say anything, but I don’t because I can’t stand to see the hatred and disappointment in his eyes anymore.
The moment the bathroom door shuts behind us, the nurse grabs my shoulders and pulls me closer.
“You can tell me what’s going on. Don’t be scared. We can have the police here in no time. I can get you out of here right now–”
“It wasn’t him,” I interrupt her. “He didn’t beat me up, and neither did any of his friends if that’s what you’re thinking.”
“Someone did, though. You didn’t fall down the stairs. No one here is going to believe you.”
“They need to because that’s the only story they’re getting from me.”
