Weeks had gone by and Esme had managed to skate by with minor bumps and bruises. She knew what to do to keep out of Charles's way and had turned the practice into a perfect art. Still, there were times where she couldn't have been any more careful and she ended up on the floor anyway. It was almost as though her husband had a carefully planned timeline for her doctor visits, but it was something that would have seemed suspicious to most people. Still, people minded their business when it came to husbands and wives.
It was January 25 when she had to revisit the doctor's office, this time with a swollen wrist and elbow.
"I just can't seem to stay on my feet." Esme smiled at the handsome, young doctor and he humored her story.
"I thought you promised you wouldn't be such a klutz." Dr. Cullen tried to laugh along with her, and only found warmth in the way she genuinely smiled at him.
He'd patched her up and their brief conversation ended with Esme calling him a lifesaver.
"I think you should make it your goal to stay out of this office for all of February," he'd told her with a grin.
Esme actually didn't mind the idea of returning. If there was anything that came of her physical altercations with Charles it was that she got a chance to have a real conversation with a loving man. As icing on the cake he wasn't all that bad to look at.
She crossed her fingers, "Hopefully."
He grinned, walked her out and picked up on her husband's possessive, handy ways when dealing with his wife. It was something that made Carlisle's stomach sink the same way as it had the first time they two of them came in.
February 27
Esme limped into the office with a swollen contusion on her shin and yet another injury to her face.
"Almost made it through February," she joked, yet this time her demeanor wasn't as cheery. She sat down in the chair in the examination room with Dr. Cullen. He helped her down into the chair and then sat in front of her.
Esme tried to smile, but the fresh nature of the injuries were too hard to ignore. "Thank you, Dr. Cullen."
He cleared his throat. "You can call me Carlisle."
She lifted her eyes to meet his and he could see where her lashes stuck together from the tears she'd spilled prior to coming in to the office.
"What's going on?" he asked finally, examining her leg first.
Esme sniffled in but didn't cry. "The ice in front of our house, it's..." her voice quivered, "It's terrible."
Carlisle stopped what he was doing and looked her in the eye. "Esme..."
She let a few stray tears drop from her eyes and then quickly wiped them away.
"It's your husband, isn't it?" Carlisle asked.
Esme tried to keep her eyes away from his, but she couldn't. She didn't immediately respond.
Carlisle struggled to maintain his composure upon seeing the beautiful, young woman break down. He could see how trapped she felt. "Let me help you."
"How?" she whispered.
"You can't live like this." He kept his voice quiet and went back to examining her lower leg, "I may need to put you on crutches." Carlisle rose and walked over to get her more ice, though this time he used a roll of gauze to secure it to her leg.
Esme watched as he moved around and then cleared her throat, "I doubt there's a break in the bone. I can put all of my body weight on it."
"I'd still like to give you crutches to walk with."
"I don't know if we can afford-"
"There's no cost." He looked across the room and Esme lowered her eyes to the floor. She didn't want the doctor to feel sorry for her.
"Well... thank you." She went to stand, but he headed toward her.
"Don't yet." He caught her as she rose partway. "Let me get the crutches and adjust them to your height. I'll still need examine your cheek bone."
Esme sat and nodded. "Okay."
Carlisle looked back at Esme and sat beside her again. He carefully rose his hand to her face to examine her face. "You don't deserve to live like this."
She wanted to confess everything and tell him what a monster Charles was. If nothing else came of it it would be therapeutic at least. She'd never confided in anyone about the constant battery that occurred at their home, though when she decided once to inform her mother she simply brushed it off. From then on Esme had remained silent.
"It's not that serious," she lied, closing her eyes as Carlisle pushed lightly on the inflamed area.
He didn't want to badger her, or pressure her to come clean but he didn't feel right about ignoring the situation. He could clearly read that fear was the only thing keeping Esme from crying out for help.
"Have you thought of going to the police?" Carlisle asked quietly.
Esme's eyes slowly opened as he removed his hand from her face. "Charles goes out drinking with the police." She sighed and looked down.
"Wouldn't it be worth a shot to put in a complaint?"
"Not with what the potential consequences could bring."
"What's that?" he asked.
Esme lowered her voice and glanced toward the closed door. "If Charles knew I said anything to anyone he would deny everything... and then things would get a whole lot worse for me." Her voice was certain and strong, but pain lingered in her eyes.
Carlisle took in a deep breath, "What if I-"
"Don't get involved." Esme touched his arm gently, "You're such a nice man, Dr. Cullen."
"Carlisle."
"Carlisle..." Esme's voice shook again but she didn't held off tears, "I don't want you to get hurt."
He stared back at her intently and then cleared his throat, "Let me get you some more ice for your face."
Esme watched him shuffle across the room and he returned momentarily with yet another bag of ice. He placed it against her cheek and Esme thanked him, accidentally covering his hand with her own.
For a minute neither of them moved, but when Esme heard the door open in the foyer of the office and then the sound of Charles's voice, she broke down and began to cry as silently as possible.
Carlisle wasn't wholly sure what to do, but it felt natural to put his arms around her, and Esme immediately sank into the warmth of his chest, letting her tears fall onto the front of his shirt.
"Tell me what you want me to do," Carlisle whispered quietly. "I can try to help you."
Esme took a deep breath against him and then sat back and dried her eyes. Her next sentence made his heart ache even more for the woman he'd gotten to know over the last few months. "Just be here to stitch me up when I need it."
