The things he had said to me. The way he had threatened me... I hadn't told David but I knew I was going to have to. But after everything that had just happened between us and the way he was blaming himself for what had happened in the first place, I was unsure how I could tell him. What if he blamed himself even more? And worse, how far would he go to protect me? The last thing I wanted was David getting himself into trouble with the law because of me or getting hurt because of something Robert did.
I chewed my lip nervously as I waited for someone to come and tell me I could go back to my room. If David was moving me out of the hospital then where was he taking me to? I could only assume it wasn't back to the island hotel. Perhaps he was taking me back to the city and my own apartment. A sigh of relief escaped me as I imagined curling up on my own sofa with a large glass of wine. If I needed anything right now it was my own familiar surroundings. I was worried about Robert and what he planned to do but a naive part of me hoped he’d had enough. Today in the hospital and the close call he had encountered might have been enough to frighten him off. I hoped it was true. But it was a very small hope.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
"The car will be here shortly." David's tone was curt and cold.
Swallowing, I pushed the last of my clothes back into the bag he had brought to me earlier in the week. I hadn't needed much in the way of clothes. Spending time in a hospital was good for the dry cleaning bills. Standing straighter I studied David's back. He stood rigid and on guard, his back facing me as he watched the people moving up and down the hall. It was as though he was preparing for Robert to come back at any moment.
Robert's threats drifted back to me then. He had promised to get me when David was at his most protective. That the guilt of knowing no matter what he did that he couldn't save me would crush him. I swallowed back the fear and cleared my throat. All it was, was threats. Robert wasn't here now, he couldn't hurt me. I wouldn't let him.
"We need to talk," David said. The words came out so low I barely caught them. The only reason I heard him was because I was so attuned to his every movement and breath. I knew every beat of his heart and each breath he took. We were connected. He was a part of me now.
I sat on the edge of the bed and prepared to have him talk at me. He was so angry from earlier that it made sense that he would talk at me. Anger made him even more dominant than usual. He turned and caught sight of me watching him intently.
"Not here. We can talk privately in the car..." He moved to me and my heart lifted thinking he was going to reach out, to touch me in some small way, but he didn't. Instead he grabbed my bag from the bed and lifted it into his grip. "Are you ready?"
He didn't wait for an answer and instead turned and moved swiftly to the door. I followed him at a much slower pace. Stepping out through the door it was then I caught sight of the large burly man dressed head to toe in black. If he had intended to blend in then he was failing miserably. I stifled a giggle with my hand as I followed David down the hall and into the elevator.
We remained completely silent as we exited the elevator and moved to the desk where I would sign the last of my release forms. Most of the paperwork had already been taken care of, all except for this final slip of paper.
The doctors had been reluctant to just sign me out of their care. Private insurance provided the best possible care but it also meant that the doctors sometimes became over cautious. They had fretted that this morning’s ordeal would cause symptoms that might appear later. Shock had a nasty habit of creeping up on unsuspecting victims. But I was ready for it. I knew part of me was still in shock after what had happened. And I had no doubt that the dreams would be truly horrific. The more my memory was jogged into place the more the fear of what was to come tried to paralyse me.
I took the pen the nurse offered me and leaned down over the papers on the desk. My hand began to shake making it impossible to scrawl my signature across the box. I clamped my free hand across my wrist and tried to hold it steady but it was no use. The more I tried to steady my hand the worse the shake became. It spread then, up through my arms and down my torso into my legs.
I gripped the counter as the nurse looked at me with concern. David's hand slipped over mine. His chest pressed reassuringly against my back and he steadied my entire body with his embrace.
"I have you, Carrie. It's alright." He brushed my hair aside and whispered the words directly into my ear. I instantly started to relax, my entire body melting in against him. Without thinking, I dashed my signature across the bottom of the page and David manoeuvred me away from the desk. He kept his tight grip on me as he walked me to the door and out into the sunshine.
The feel of its warmth on my skin served to steady me further and inch by inch the fear and adrenaline relinquished its hold on my body leaving me feeling bone-achingly tired. Making it to the car, I sank into its soft seats with a sigh of relief. I wanted to sleep wrapped in David's arms. I needed sleep. Although I had spent three whole days unconscious, I was still exhausted. And now that the adrenaline and the high after Robert's newest attempt were fading rapidly I was even more exhausted.
David slid into the seat beside me and pulled the seatbelt around my body and clicked it into place before he did the same for himself. He sat as close to me as was possible without actually pulling me into his lap, and slid his arm around my shoulders.
"I know what he said to you..."
David's words hung between us like a small, angry black cloud. It snapped me out of my exhaustion and a headache began to spread behind my eyes. I could feel the tension singing through David's body. The way his hand rested across my shoulders—it wasn't calm or relaxed. The press of his thigh against mine pushed his anxieties through the denim of my jeans.
"Why didn't you tell me?"
"How could I? I knew how you would react. And we both know it's just idle threats..."
The car moved away from the curb and the look David shot me was filled with anger.
"He has tried to kill you twice. He broke into the hospital and attacked you in the hospital and gravely injured a nurse. He promised to get you. That he will kill you, when I am doing my utmost to protect you. That it won't matter what I do, he will kill you anyway. And you think that is an idle threat?" David let out a frustrated sigh.
"I think it's idle because the police will catch him long before then. I can't allow the fear of what might happen rule my life..."
"You don't understand, do you? Carrie. He is dangerous. You should have told me what he said. You should have at least trusted me enough to tell me..."