An Illicit Gentleman II

                                       Chapter Thirty-Three

            Eve walked down the hall of the hospital an Officer escorting her.  By now she was sick of hospitals, sick of the sounds, sick of the smells, and sick of the pale sterol walls.  She had a shower and made sure she took longer than usual; she changed into some clean clothes and then answered the Detectives questions.  That’s when she found out Mats was dead and she didn’t feel the least bit sorry, she actually felt relieved because now it was over, for good.  After that they brought her down here and were now walking her down the halls towards the ICU where the Emergency nurse said they had taken AJ.

“We’re here for AJ Mclean.” The Officer told the nurse as they approached the station.

“I’ll get the Doctor.” The woman said with a light smile. 

Eve wrapped her arms around herself tighter as she watched the woman walk down the hall and enter a room, she wondered if it was AJ’s. She felt like she was going to cry again and she took a deep breath fighting back the tears and sadness that crept up inside her.  Closing her eyes she let her mind wonder to anything but right now, back to a time when he wasn’t lying in ICU, a time where he didn’t see or hear what had happened to her.

She sat in his arms as he cradled her, rocking her as she cried.  Never did she think a thought could hurt so much but every time she thought about what they had done to her, her whole body ached.  Only he made her feel better, only he made the pain go away.  Like right now as they rocked back and forth the words he spoke to her eased her mind, the smell of his cologne relaxed her tense body and the feeling of his arms wrapped around her brought back a feeling of safety. But this time, this time was different because of last night. 

She wanted him to show her she could be loved, that she wasn’t a toy and that she could feel something again and she did.  The way he made her feel no one had ever made her feel that way.  When they made love she would find herself wanting to cry it felt so good.  Especially last night, it had been almost a month since she had felt his touch, felt him inside her.  But that wasn’t why it was different; it was different because of what he said just before she had fallen asleep. Three words she thought she would never hear another man say to her with honesty but when he said it she knew he meant it.

When she felt herself being pulled away from him she looked up.  She realized the nightmare threw her into a tizzy and the look on his face made her feel bad.  “I’m sorry if I scared you.”

“You didn’t scare me, I’m just worried.” He said to her and she laid her head back down on his shoulder.  She didn’t want to make him worry either.  “Are you ok now?” He asked and she nodded.  She was ok now that he was here and she was safe in his arms.  “Can I get you to eat?”

Ugh eating was something she wasn’t into right now.  It was hard to eat anything when her stomach was in knots since the night in the van.  “Please Evie, you need to eat something.”  Mats calls her Evie but when he says It, it sounds so much better, even makes her heart flutter a little.  Lifting her head off his shoulder she looked at him.  He’s done so much for her; the least she could do was try to eat something even if it was just to help him to stop worrying.

“Ok.” She told him and she felt a bit of sunshine creep back into her when he lightly smiled.  He walked her down the stairs by her side with every single step.  As she sat down in the living room AJ got her a salad and she began to eat.  Now that she was more awake her mind wasn’t as concentrated on the nightmare but on the night before and the words he spoke to her.  Her stomach started to flop and she put the plastic bowl down.

“I can’t eat anymore.” She said as he sat up beside her.

“Ok” He said as his hand touch the small of her back and it gave her goose bumps.  Feeling better Eve decided she was going to take a bath, she needed to get dressed anyways.  “Are you ok?” AJ asked looking at her confused.

“Yeah” She nodded. “Just going to go have a bath and get dress.” She told him.

“Ok” AJ replied with a light smile.  This was it she was going tell him that she loved him too.

“I love you.” She heard herself say in her head but the words never left her lips.  It felt weird and strange she had never said those words to another man before not in this way, not with these feelings behind the words. Realizing the moment had past she turned around and made her way upstairs, cursing herself for what had just happened.

“Mrs. Mclean?” She heard the Doctor say and it broke Eve from her thoughts and she looked around quickly wondering how Denise got here so fast.  Then she realized the Doctor was talking to her.

“Sorry, I’m not all here.” She replied quietly looking at the Officer and then the Doctor.

“Understandable.” The Doctor said with a light smile.

“Is Alex going to be ok?” She asked.

“His vitals are stable and the Cat scan should be coming back within the hour, we’ll know more then.” He told her.

“Is he awake?” She asked.

“He’s in and out of it we had to sedate him.” He told her. “The Detectives are getting a statement from him, well trying too.”

“What? Why?” She asked shocked.

“He came to when we were putting him into a room and he began screaming in hysterics for you.” The Doctor said.  “He was screaming your name and getting himself so upset it was causing his blood pressure to go to dangerous levels and he kept hyperventilating.

“Can I see him please?” She asked wanting nothing more than to be in his arms right now.

“Once the police are done questioning him yes of course.” He told her with a light smile.

The Doctor walked her down the hall and stopped her outside of AJ’s room.  She squatted above the floor her back leaning against the wall, as her head rested against it too. Again she felt the tears and sadness forcing themselves up inside her but she pushed them down, fought them back and took a deep breath as the door in front of her opened.  Standing up quickly she looked at the cops as they walked out of AJ’s room.  She tried to get a look inside trying to see him but the big men in their poofy jackets blocked the doorway.

“He’s out of it; we’re not going to get anything out of him right now.” The one Officer told the Doctor.  “The only thing he keeps asking about is a person named Lily?”

“Lily?” Eve said confused as the Police men looked at her.

“This is Mr. Mclean’s wife, Eve.” The Doctor told them.

“Do you know a Lily or does he know a Lily?” The man asked.

“No” She told him lightly shaking her head.  “Who the hell is Lily?” Eve thought as she racked her brain trying to remember if he ever said that name. “Can I please see him now?” She asked getting frustrated.

The Doctor looked at the Officers. “Yeah, we’re done here, we’ll come back tomorrow hopefully he’s a little more aware then.”

Eve didn’t wait for anyone as she walked passed the Doctor and Cops to AJ’s door.  Turning the knob she opened it and walked inside.  A small feeling of Déjà vu rushed through her and she stopped, staring at him.  Composing herself she closed the door behind her and walked over to his bed sitting down in the chair beside it.  His head was wrapped in a bandage, a square gauze bandage covered his cheek, his eyes were black and blue, his nose was swollen and his bottom lip was cut and swollen. The tears and feelings she had been working so hard on fighting back burst out of her and she had no time to stop them.  She covered her mouth and tried to muffle her sobbing.

“Eve?” She heard him say his voice dry and groggy.

“Hi” She replied trying to force a smile threw her tears.

“Are you ok, he…”AJ stopped talking and closed his eyes and then took a deep breath.  “He didn’t hurt you did he?”

“No, no.” She replied taking his hand and pulling the chair closer to his bed.  “I’m fine just worried about you.”  Her eyes drifted down to the back of his hand as her finger traced along the skull tattoo. 

“Evelyn?” AJ spoke again and she looked up at him.  The look in his eyes was pain and sorrow and she knew what he was thinking.

“I know.” She told him as she placed the back of his hand against the side of her neck.  “But I’m ok now.”  He didn’t say anything but just stared at her.  “Why don’t you close your eyes and get some…”

“No” He interrupted her.  “I don’t want to close my eyes or go to sleep I do that and I see…” He stopped and his body tensed.  “I just want to go home.” He said sitting up.  “Like back to LA.”

Eve grabbed him by the arms and stopped him.  “You need to rest…”

“I said I didn’t want to, I just want to go home.” He snapped.

“Alex please.”

“I want to go home Evie, forget I even had this stupid fucking idea to leave.” He broke from her grip and stood up but the wires and tubes prevented him from going to far.  Until he ripped them off and pulled out the IV.

“Alex.” Eve said stunned as she stared at him.  Beeps and buzzes started going off and soon three nurses and a Doctor came running into his room.

“Mr. Mclean what are you doing?” The Doctor asked him as AJ looked around the room.

“Where the fuck are my clothes?” He yelled.

“Go get security; we need to get him back into bed before we sedate him again.” She heard the Doctor say as one of the nurses practically pushed her out of the room.

“Wait, wait, what’s going on?” She asked the nurse as the woman closed the door.

“Just until we get him calmed down and back in bed, then you can go back in there.” The woman told her as she stared at the closed door.  The nurse left her in the hallway and she could hear AJ screaming about going home as two security guys in white uniforms walked into the room.  Then she heard AJ yelling at the men and she closed her eyes as a tear fell.  She had never seen him like this even when he was drunk he never got this angry and she didn’t like it.  It was the same kind of angry her Mom would get, out of control kind of angry.

A couple of minutes later the nurses followed by the Doctor came out of his room.  “Can I go back in now?” She asked.

“Yes, we’ve sedated him and restrained him to the bed.”

“Restrained him, seriously?” Eve said with a little anger.  “Is that necessary?”

“He pulled out his IV, pulled off all the monitors and he was clearly out of control in there, yes it was for the safety of my staff.” The Doctor said to her.  “Dr. Lex will be in to see you when your husband’s cat scans get back.”

When she walked back into the room her stomach turned.  It was like a scene from a movie.  Everything had been reattached and his arms were kept at his side by two beige straps.  He lied there staring at the ceiling his eyes would flutter close and then open quickly.  She walked over to his bed side by the chair she was sitting in.

“I don’t wanna sleep.” He whispered over and over.

“Alex?” Eve finally spoke as she slipped her hand through the guard rail and took his hand.  His head rolled to the side and he looked at her.  “Who’s Lily?”  She asked and when the name left her lips he got a small wistful smile across his face.

“Lily.” He repeated and she watched as his eyes fell tiredly.

“Yes Alex Lily who is she?” Eve asked trying to not let jealousy over come her.

“I miss her.” AJ said with a tired sigh.

“Who is she?” Eve asked but AJ didn’t say anything.  “Alex?” She sighed as she sat back in the chair.   Who was this Lily and why is he missing her.