"No one knows just what has become of her"

Chapter 11: Façade

Eric? How did he get in here? Where're Kenny and Butters? Where's Stan? I pulled back from Eric when his grip loosen around my wrist and pressed against the metal blocker on the far side of the bed. I had to be dreaming! This had to be a nightmare!

"Now, now, 'darling,'" Eric laughed that sadistic laugh that always made me wonder if I was going to die, "don't strain yourself."

"What the fuck are you doing here?" I yelled at him. "Where're Kenny, Butters, and Stan? What'd you do?"

He continued to laugh and I cringed. That wasn't good, it never was. "Technically, I did nothing. All I did was 'suggest' to the doctor attending to you that those three assholes were brainwashing you into believing I was abusing you. The nerve of those guys!" He laughed again.

I began to tremble. Those bastard doctors believed him? Wait! Then they got kicked out? Oh shit…I'm screwed. I yelped when Eric grabbed my throat and forced me forward, near his face again. I yelled at him to let me go and then quickly grabbed at his wrist when his hand tightened.

"You still can't tell me what to do, you little–" He stopped when we heard the door opening and then quickly brought our lips together, forcing his tongue into my mouth. I squeezed my eyes shut and struggled a bit. No, he couldn't kiss me! Get him away from me!

"Okay boys, break it up," Eric released me as the lights were turned back on, showing the doctor to us, "I can't have one of my more injured patients having sex in the hospital."

Eric chuckled. "Sorry doc. What's up?"

"Well, I need to have a short conversation with Kyle before I give him some more morphine for the pain." The doctor gestured to the door. "Eric, if you'll be so kind? If you're hungry, go down to the cafeteria. I'll join you shortly."

Eric nodded and stood. "Sounds good to me." With that, he left and the doctor took his seat.

He sighed and shook his head. "I don't know what your friends were thinking when they told us to call the police on your husband. We weren't exactly going to."

When he didn't continue beyond that, I asked, "Without viable reason? Because I can show you–"

"No!" He looked at me seriously and said, "You should know that your mother-in-law is this hospital's top contributor since she inherited that money from her dead father. Without that money, this hospital would barely keep its head above the water." My eyes widened. What was he saying? What does Leann have to do with this? "She might stop donating to us if her son was suddenly thrown into prison because of something that was said from here."

Tears filled my eyes. "You…You're not saying anything because of the money involved?"

"Bingo kid. We need the money, and what's the life of one person compared to the hundreds we save using Mrs. Cartman's money…?"

"You greedy bastards!" I screamed. I couldn't believe they were doing this to me! They were willing to hand me back over to Eric and allow the possibility that I might die blossom just so they could get some money? What the hell is wrong with this place? "I thought you're required by law to report–"

"Only if we see it, and I haven't seen anything." The doctor stood when the opened once more and the nurse from earlier stepped into the room looking concerned. He looked back at the nurse and smiled. "Ah, Amanda. Do be sure to give Kyle his morphine, he's in such pain."

She nodded. "Y-Yeah…I will." She watched as he left.

I sank back into a laying position and covered my eyes as tears began to flood them. Those bastards didn't care about me at all! Just like every other fucker in America, they were greedy for the dollar and didn't care who got hurt while they found the easiest way to get it. Godammit! A sob escaped me and I began to shake. I couldn't believe this was happening! I was going to die to minute I was released into Eric's care, I just knew it!

"Um," Amanda's voice came timidly from near the door, "Kyle?"

"Are you like them too?" I growled. "Do you want me to get hurt so this hospital can get funding from my husband's mother?"

"No." I looked over at her when she said that, a look of sorrow and determination was etching onto her face.

"W-What?" I sat up a bit. "Repeat that." I couldn't believe it, did she actually say "no?"

"No, I'm not like them." She rushed over to the door and locked it. "I want to help you. I saw your wounds Kyle," she walked back over to me, "and I'm willing to report Eric for you." She pulled her cell phone from her pocket and flipped it open. "You were safer with that man who brought you in than I believe you ever will be with your husband."

I couldn't believe what I hearing. Not everyone in this hospital was a corrupt, greedy bastard after all. I smiled slightly. "Thank you."

She returned the smile and then punched a few numbers into her phone. "This is Amanda Villé, a nurse at Hell's Pass Hospital…"

As she spoke into the phone, I turned my head to look out of the now open window at the clouded sky. Looked like it was about to snow. I smiled again. I knew Stan wouldn't be far away, even after being apparently thrown from my room and told to stay away. When the police came and took Eric away, I would be free to be with Stan forever. Nothing in the world could make me happier than to be with Stan without any fear or worry than Eric would drop himself back into our lives and ruin everything once again. The perfect life and the perfect end to this endless nightmare.

I heard Amanda flip her phone shut and looked back at her. "Well?"

She smiled warmly at me and I knew her next words before she even said them: "The police are on their way. You'll be safe soon."

My smile widened. "Thank you so much Amanda!"

She laughed a bit. "It's nothing. I'd hate for someone to get hurt because of the corrupt nature of the doctors around here."

Before anything else could be said or done, the doorknob jiggled loudly and then suddenly opened to the same doctor from a few minutes ago looking confused. "Why was the door locked?" His eyes fell to Amanda's cell phone. "Amanda, I told you before, no cell phones while you're working."

"Of course." She went to slip her cell phone back into her pocket as the faintest sound of police sirens reached our ears.

As if the doctor knew it, he looked between me and Amanda then snatched her cell phone from her. He hit a few buttons and then his eyes went large and full of fury. He knew she called. "You stupid bitch! What were you thinking?"

"Of the well-being of my patient!" Amanda yelled back.

I smiled a bit. Was the greedy doctor getting angry because this meant no more money for him? How sad. Noticing my shit-eating smile, the doctor sent a glare at me. "Little shit." He snatched a syringe from a small tray near the door. Morphine, or at least that what I assume it what it was. "We're not gonna lose our funding!" He grabbed my arm and drove the needle in with Amanda screaming for him to stop. He pushed the plunger down and then quickly withdrew the needle. "There. I'll go get your husband, then you two will be free to go. You're being released." He left again.

"Shit," I cursed. I couldn't see any way to get out of that mess. The sirens were still faint and Eric would be up here soon.

"Come on Kyle," Amanda said quickly as she took my I.V. drip out of my arm and helped me out of the bed. "Your friends left me an address they said they would be at before they were removed from the premises. I'll take you there myself."

I smiled again. She had to my favorite person in that hospital right now! Offering to take me away from here before Eric could get back to the room was risky, but well worth it. "Thank you so much!"

"No need." She handed me my pants and jacket. "Get your pants on. I'll help you with your jacket. Don't worry about a shirt for now."

I nodded and quickly slipped my pants on under the gown I had to wear; I quickly stripped that off and had her help me get my right arm into the sleeve of my jacket. I zipped my jacket up and then followed Amanda out into the hall, she ran off toward a stairwell at the end of hall she said was only used for emergencies. I got to the stairwell okay, but it seemed that the second I stepped onto the landing to go down the stairs, the morphine the doctor forced into my veins hit me. I fell to my knees and struggled to keep my eyes open. No, not now! Godammit, can't this wait until I'm in the car? Fucking morphine!

"Kyle?" She grabbed my hand and helped me back to my feet. "Is it the morphine?"

I nodded once. "Yeah…I'm getting tired…"

"Can you make to the bottom of the stairs? My car is parked right outside the door."

Before I could answer, a voice rang over to intercom for Eric to report to the fourth floor nurse's station and that Doctor Lang - the doctor attending to me - would meet him there. I forced myself to stay balanced and my eyes to stay open. "I have no choice. Let's go!"

Amanda nodded and ran down the stairs with me following. I was convinced I was going to make it. Dammit, I wasn't going back with Eric no matter what! Nothing, no amount of money or fame, could convince me to go back to that fat ass for even a second! I wanted to be with Stan and I was going to be, no matter what.

On the second floor landing of the stairwell, the morphine hit me again, this time it was more forceful though. I slumped against a wall and slid down to my knees. My eyes slipped closed.

Why can't anything go right for me? With that final thought still ringing in my head, sleep overcame me.

…

I groaned when I finally woke up again. And this time, when I opened my eyes, I was completely surrounded by darkness. Was I in a room somewhere? In a bed? No, I wasn't in a bed, that much I could tell. I was sitting on a concrete floor against a concrete wall. My left arm, for some reason, was over my head and it felt like there was something around my right shoulder.

When I tried to move my left arm down I found why it was above my head in the first place when I heard the jingling of chains and felt the cold metal of a cuff: I was being restrained. "Dammit!" I yelled to the concrete room. My curse echoed; the room was either empty or mostly empty. A basement?

Suddenly a door at the top of the staircase opened, sending in an amount of light. The first thing I saw was my broken Star of David necklace laying on the floor, the same one Eric broke a month ago after he pushed me down our basement steps. I knew where I was and who was waiting for me at the top of the stairs before I even glanced up at his smirking face.