When she woke up, Lauren’s head was pounding so hard that all she wanted to do was pass out again and never wake up. There was a familiar face above hers and she squinted her eyes as the woman smiled.
“Dr. Stanton,” she said. “It’s nice to see those eyes again. Can you sit up for me?”
Lauren nodded, then winced, allowing the woman—Marci was her name; an EMT—to help her up. Marci’s hand went up to feel her head, touching gently and massaging slightly.
“Your boyfriend says you lost consciousness,” Marci said, “after you suffered an assault at the hands of one…Jack Snyder? Is that correct, Doc?”
“Y-yes,” Lauren said. “I think so. Where am I?”
“You’re still at home,” Marci told her. “Well, almost. We got you into an ambulance in front of your house. The bruises around your neck look pretty severe, but they should fade within a few days. Are you having any trouble breathing right now?”
“No,” Lauren said, even as she coughed. “Not that much.”
“Yeah, that’s normal,” Marci assured her. “Of course, you already know that, being a doctor and all. But we’d like to bring you to the hospital for observation, you know? Your windpipe isn’t crushed or anything, but you never know with these kinds of injuries. Would that be alright?”
Lauren shook her head. “I just wanna go home,” she said. “I have to…I have a dog.”
“I’m sure your boyfriend can watch the dog for a couple of days,” Marci chuckled. “You gotta take care of yourself right now, Doc.”
“He’s not my boyfriend,” Lauren retorted.
“Excuse me?”
“The man you talked to? The one you’re referring to as my boyfriend? He’s not. He’s just…he’s not my boyfriend.”
“Oh, my apologies,” Marci said. “I just assumed since he’s the one that called 911 and carried you out here. And he’s been looking over here every other minute to see how you’re doing. I just assumed that you two were involved.”
“We were,” Lauren muttered. “But not anymore.” She took a deep breath and coughed again. Marci handed her an oxygen mask and she breathed into it for a couple of moments, before turning to the EMT.
“Where’s Jack?” she asked.
“He’ll be coming out in a second,” Marci told her. “Your bo—um, friend knocked him out with the butt of a gun. He’s giving his statement to the deputy right now if you’d like to go over and give your thanks.” Lauren shook her head, her gaze flitting to her front door just as it opened.
Watching Jack Snyder—the face of her nightmares for so long—be escorted out in handcuffs, blood running down the back of his neck, was gratifying. She was immediately filled with a sense of peace that nothing else would ever have been able to give her, she was sure of it. She grinned at him as he passed by and it felt as if she could breathe easily now, despite the purple, hand-shaped bruises that circled her neck. Jack glared over at her as she passed, but she was too elated to care.
He was finally going to get what he deserved.
“Well, if you’re not going to the hospital,” Marci said, “would you like help getting out of the ambulance?”
Lauren nodded this time and allowed Marci to take her hand, helping her to the edge of the ambulance and then to the street. When she hopped down, she felt a slight ache in the back of her head. It was most likely from being deprived of oxygen for so long, but she’d recover. She’d recover better than she ever dreamed.
Once Marci was assured that Lauren could walk on her own, she allowed her to amble back toward her home. Halfway there, however, she heard her name and turned to find Marc Kelly looking at her, remorse written all over his face. He walked toward her and she stayed where she was. She neither welcomed nor denied him. She was sure that there was no stopping him, either way.
“Lauren,” he said, stopping about a foot away from her, giving her space. “Are you okay?”
“Wouldn’t you like to know…Angelface?”
He groaned. “I didn’t choose the name,” he said. “Those kinds of things get chosen for you.”
“Fitting, even still,” Lauren said. “You come into women’s lives, make them fall in love with you, use them as a sex object, and then it just turns out to be all a trick. I don’t know how I didn’t see it before. It was just so…obvious.”
“Lauren, I can explain—”
“I don’t want to hear it,” Lauren retorted, holding up her hand. “I just…I want you to leave. Get your things, go get your bike, and then get the hell away from me. I never want to see you in this town again. Understood?”
After a long, silent moment, Marc nodded. And then Lauren turned and walked away, not even sparing him another glance over her shoulder. She didn’t care if he was following her or not as she made her way into her bedroom, locking the door behind her.
She untied Emma from under the bed and calmed the frightened dog down with kisses and pats and hugs. Emma whimpered and whined and brushed her head against Lauren’s hands and licked Lauren’s fingers and face until she was satisfied to just fall asleep in her master’s lap on top of the bed.
Lauren sat up for a while, feeling the tears stream down her cheeks.
They were there partly out of joy. It was finally over. Jack would no longer be bothering her. She was safe to live her life on her own terms. She could go back to being a trauma surgeon or stay here, in Slightuckett, with Joe and all her neighbors and the patients that knew her by first name and always said hello at the supermarket. Or she could go somewhere else, where absolutely nobody knew her name, and make a fresh start. She’d only really have to stay around for the trial of her ex-husband, to make certain that he was put behind bars where he belonged.
But she didn’t need to stay here any longer than that. She could sell this house and go off and be happy and safe and…and alone. Without Marc. Without the Marc Kelly she had fallen in love with in the space of a few weeks. The Marc that had somehow made her feel safe in his arms even while playing her the entire time. The same Marc that had made love to her in this very bed—and everywhere else in this godforsaken house.
The same Marc that had ruined the view from her deck and the beach below it, just by being his stupid, aggravating, infuriating, traitorous self. The same Marc that had lied to her about everything, but had never tipped his hand. The same Marc Kelly that had saved her life, even after he’d almost helped in ending it.
She was alone again, but if the world was just full of Jack Snyders and Marc Kellies, then Lauren found she was just fine with that.