Chapter Six
Fanny
I stopped at the pier. The truth was I collapsed. At least the pavement wasn’t as cruel as they had been.
I continued on my hands and knees. I wasn’t too proud. Not anymore. Not after what they had done to me.
Eyes forward. Keep going. You’ve picked yourself up before. You can do it again, Fanny.
Mother? The voice inside my head that kept prodding me sounded a lot like her. I squinted through the slit of what remained of my vision. With both my eyes nearly swollen shut, I was lucky I could see at all.
Don’t freak out. Don’t panic.… It is held that valor is the chiefest virtue. And most dignifies the haver.
Alright. Valor it was, and dignity, even in the current state that I found myself. Thank you, Mom for insisting I memorize Shakespeare.
1. Crawl.
2. Breathe—even though each breath felt like I had to suck in the air through a straw—a straw that was on fire in the center of my chest where Nieto and his counterpart had kicked me.
3. Don’t think about it.
4. Don’t cry. I tasted salt between my lips but pretended it wasn’t there.
Only 1, 2 and 3, Fanny, feeling sorry for yourself only makes the rest more difficult.
My goal. I had to focus on my goal. Get to Hollie. Hide. Rest. Get better. Then get out of OB and never come back. I tried to gauge the distance to the sub-pump again. Why wasn’t it getting any closer?
A sudden gust of wind cut right through me, but I turned my face into it. The wet cold air felt good against my skin. The swelling was making my face feel like it was stretched too tightly over my skull. Pulling in another shallow breath, I tried to crawl forward some more. An inch. Two. Then a rest. Just for a moment. My eyes were drawn to the lights on the pier. They flickered like distant stars. The sound of the waves soothed me. And just on the edge of the wind, I imagined a steady beat like someone drumming. Or maybe that was only the pounding of my heart.
“Fanny! Oh my God! No!”
“Hollie,” I mumbled, lifting my head. Had I dosed off? Had I made it to my destination? But if I was inside the sub-pump structure, why was it still so cold?
“No! No! No!” she wailed.
“I’m ok. Shhh,” I tried to reassure her, but I sounded like a punctured tire with the air rushing out. She gathered me close. I hurt everywhere, but I didn’t complain.
“Help me!” she cried. “Someone please. My sister’s hurt. Help!” Her pleas were caught up and carried away on the breeze.
“What the hell!” I knew that deep voice. I tried to focus. It seemed important. But everything was dark now. I couldn’t pry my eyes open. My teeth chattered together. My entire body shivered uncontrollably.
Hollie said something, but I couldn’t process the words.
“She’s going into shock. She needs a doctor. Let me get her inside until the ambulance comes.”
“No hospital,” I protested. “Hollie, no.” I quieted as warmth suddenly enveloped me. I felt so light, so detached it felt like I was floating on the surface of a warm ocean current.
“I’m here,” my sister said, and I sagged with relief. “I won’t leave you. I’m right beside you.” Why did she sound so far away and strange, her voice scratchy like she had been screaming in a smoky concert hall all night? “Relax. Stop worrying. I’ve got you this time. Let me take care of us for a change. Let me be the strong one.”
~ ~ ~
“Ow. No. That hurts,” I whimpered. Woken from a dream where I had floated somewhere safe and warm, I tried to pull my tank back down. Someone had been running practiced fingers directly on the tender skin over my ribs.
“Just bruised. Not broken.”
“There, there little one.” I heard the deep soothing voice and felt my hands captured, enveloped by much larger ones that gently returned mine to my sides. “Don’t interfere. Gloria just needs to make sure you’re alright.” I felt my shirt being smoothed back into place.
“Poor girl,” a kind feminine voice said. “Rest now.”
A good plan. I didn’t argue. My back felt like it was cushioned on a soft surface but the rest of me felt crushed, crumbled and weighted down by a mountain of trouble.
“I cleaned her up. Washed her wounds. Put antibiotic on them. Only one that’s deep. The cut on her ear. The amount of swelling she has around her eyes concerns me. Her nose might be broken. But her pupils are responsive to light. It tells me those blows she took to her head likely didn’t result in internal bleeding. But you really should take her to the hospital to be sure, Ashland. I’m only a paramedic. I mostly just do physicals for life insurance now for your dad. There might be something I’m missing.”
Ashland Keys. “No!” I struggled to sit up again. “Where am I?” I still couldn’t see and that added to my panic. “Where’s my sister?”
“Shhh. You’re ok.” That deep reassuring voice again. “You’re safe. She is safe.” Strong hands curled around my shoulders. “Take it easy.” Not a suggestion, a command. His warm breath spilled into my ear. His gentle thumbs swirled a comforting circle into my skin. Tingles rolled through me as firm but undeniable pressure pushed me back down into the bed. Was I in his bed? “She’s here.” A barely spoken whisper, but I heard him. “In the other bedroom. Scared for you, but out of sight. She said it’s what you would want. She insisted on it.”
“Ok,” I exhaled a shaky breath as the comforting patterns on my skin continued. His voice and Gloria’s seemed to drift far away on a tide. My limbs felt languid. My thoughts scattered. I slid back into the void. It seemed the only thing I could do.