An Illicit Gentleman II

                                           Chapter Eighteen

            Eve laid on her side, the clothes she wore gave her no comfort, they felt stiff and new.  The blankets on the bed were not that comforting either and the cold stale air didn’t help.  She closed her eyes and tried to push out the noise of the nurses in the hallway outside her curtain.  The police picked her up a couple of blocks away, apparently there was an APB put out on her and AJ, the robe and PJ’s she walked around in were a dead give away.

            The Police took her to the local hospital, she was checked in and given some meds to help calm her down, and when she was settled they began asking her questions.  They immediately put out a search in the area where they found her and the surrounding areas. When they were finished asking her questions the two men left and she was alone.  She didn’t know how long she had been lying in the hard bed, she didn’t really care.  Someone said her name but she didn’t respond.  Why didn’t she grab something to hit the guy with, why didn’t she try and go back for him, why couldn’t she protect him like he protected her?  Her eyes closed and pushed out the tears as they flooded her eyes. 

“Eve?” A man with a strong voice said and it pulled her from the stooper she was in.  When she looked around the room she saw Kevin, Nick and Denise staring at her.  Seeing Nick and especially Kevin there made her feel worse but seeing his Mom there made her want to be sick.  “The Doctor said we can take you home.”  She looked at them confused for a minute and then slowly sat up in the bed.  A nurse came in with a wheelchair and told her she could stay in the hospital garb if she wasn’t up to changing.  She wasn’t up for anything but going home and crawling into her bed.

The car ride home was pretty quiet but she was glad for it.  Kevin drove, Denise sat in the passenger side beside him and Nick sat in the back beside her.  She rested her head against the window as she stared out at the city that past her by.  When they got to a street she recognized she sat up and looked out the front window.  A small calm came over her when she saw her house getting closer.  Then her heart started to sink, he wouldn’t be there.  She looked down at the hospital bracelet as her wrist began to itch.   When she felt the car stop she looked up and sighed when she saw her house. 

Opening the door Eve climbed out of the car, she noticed Kevin hurried to help her and she lightly smiled.  They walked to the front door and Detective Ozwith was there to greet her, with more questions no doubt.

“How are you Eve?” She asked as Eve walked right past her.

“Fine” Eve mumbled as she continued down the hall.

“Eve I need to ask you some questions.” The Detective said as she followed her down the hall.  Eve spun around, she felt it brewing when she saw the woman standing at her door, this woman was suppose to be watching her and him, this woman was a cop and she let Alex take off to the restaurant alone.

“Good cause I have some for you” Eve snapped as she stopped dead in front of the Detective.  “Why was he allowed to leave by himself?” Eve asked.  “What took you so long to get to the restaurant?”

“He took off on his own accord Eve, the officers here called me and I had to call and get swat and other officers down there.” Detective Ozwith explained.

“Stupid fucking protocol.” Eve mumbled as she turned around and walked into her room, slamming the door behind her.  She walked over to her bed and sat down, she wanted to scream and cry but whenever the urge came her meds kicked in and the urge went away.  There was a light knock on the door and Eve closed her eyes.

“Just go away” She whispered hoping that would make everyone just go poof.  But when there was a second light knock she sighed and stood up.  Walking over to the door she slowly opened it and looked out to the hallway.  Her chest tightened and her eyes etched in pain for a second when she saw Denise standing in front of her.

“May I come in?” She asked and it kind of shocked Eve.

“Yeah, sure” Eve replied stepping back as she let AJ’s Mom into the room.

“This is the medication the hospital gave us for you.” Denise said as she held out a small brown bag.

“Thanks” Eve said as she took the bag from Denise and set it down on her dresser.

“Should you take them?” Alex’s Mother asked.

“No, I’m still feeling the ones they gave me at the hospital.” Eve said with a light smile as she sat down on the bed.

“Do you need anything?” Denise asked.

Eve paused for a moment, the comment made her think about AJ.  “No, I’m just going to have a bath and try to sleep.” Eve told her.

“Ok” Denise replied with a light smile as she headed to the door and then she stopped.  “I’ll get one of the guys to wake you if they call.”

“Ok” Eve said as she watched Denise leave the room.  When the door closed she sighed and put her head in her hands.  Lying down on the bed she buried her head into the mattress and muffled her sobs.  She wanted nothing more than to be in his arms right now, where it was safe but Eve knew that wasn’t possible and she found herself wishing she hadn’t ran from the house at all.

Slowly she sat up and wiped her eyes as she began to calm.  She brushed her hair out of her face and took a deep breath.  Standing up she walked into her bathroom and turned on the light.  Leaning down she turned on the taps and adjusted the water letting it run as she grabbed a towel from the closet.  Sitting down on the edge of the tub she waited for it to fill and then turned off the taps.  She undressed out of the hospital scrubs and slipped into the hot bath water. 

Her body relaxed a little as she laid back and closed her eyes.  When her mind started thinking about the men that rushed into her room, she slipped under the water and laid there for a moment.  When she popped back up she brought her knees to her chest and rested her head against her legs.  Her eyes closed and she started to realize she was very tired.  Opening them she reached for the plug chain and pulled it and then stood up.  She grabbed her towel and stepped out of the water and unto the bath mat.  Wrapping the towel around her chest she opened the door and walked into her bedroom. 

Eve walked over to her dresser and reached for the drawer that held her pajama’s and night gowns.  She stopped and looked over at the small duffle bag that sat by her bathroom door.  Holding the towel around her she walked over to it and knelt down.  Eve pulled on the zipper and opened the bag.  She searched through the clothes, trying not to mess things up too much, and when she reached the t-shirts she pulled out a white one.  Standing up Eve walked over to her bed and took the towel off.  The t-shirt slipped down over her and stopped mid thigh.  Flipping her head forward she wrapped the towel around her wet hair and then walked over to her dresser again pulling out a pair of PJ bottoms. 

Climbing on the bed Eve slipped under her blankets and felt her body relax even more.  She opened her eyes and looked at the empty space in front of her.  She spent two years going to bed without him by her own stubborn choice but now it wasn’t her choice and she felt tears of regret fall.  Her thoughts went back to AJ, what was he doing right now, was he ok, or did they hurt him? Is he sleeping or unconscious, and did he know she got away and was safe at home. Pulling the covers closer to her, she wrapped them around her as tight as she could and closed her eyes.  It wasn’t long before the warm, heavy blankets, soft comforting mattress and the sent coming from his t-shirt relaxed her and she drifted off to sleep.