The blood pressure cuff released its vice like grip from Abbie's arm. Jenny stood next to the bed watching the nurse intently. Hawley, still hanging around, sat in a chair crunching on a bag of chips with his feet up on the side of the bed blocking Jenny in a corner. While Crane, very much aware that his presence caused Abbie a bit of anxiety, stood as far away as possible pretending to look out the window as he kept a watchful eye on her.
"Everything seems normal," said the nurse. "The doctor will be in to see you shortly. I'm sure she'll go ahead and release you."
"Thank you," Abbie smiled.
"Excuse me," said Jenny. "But what happened to her other nurse? Her name is Melissa."
"I'm not really sure, but I just transferred in. A lot of the staff just left suddenly."
"Is that normal?" said Jenny. "I mean for so many people to just up and leave like that?"
"I guess not, but I don't question it." The nurse walked out.
Jenny kicked Hawley's legs free from the bed and started to pace.
"What is it?" Abbie asked.
"I need to find that nurse. Nothing here makes any sense. Nobody is worried, nobody is asking questions or trying to find out how you woke up and no one else has, and now the entire staff has been replaced just like that. Doesn't any of it worry you?"
"I'm fine now. Isn't that enough?"
"There are so many questions only that nurse can answer."
"That's assuming she was even mortal to begin with," said Hawley.
"It's just weird," said Jenny. "It feels too easy."
Abbie laughed. "Trust me, it wasn't easy, okay?"
"One mustn't go courting danger." Even the sound of Crane's deeply beautiful voice made Abbie twitch a little.
"You shouldn't leave an enemy stronghold in tact either," was Jenny's retort.
"Relax, Mills." Hawley kicked his feet up again. "If whatever this is wants you or Abbie, then we'll see it again."
"You can either get your nasty feet off my sister's bed or I can rip them from your body. Your choice."
Hawley quickly dropped his feet. After a few moments, he made his way to Jenny and started rubbing her shoulders. "You're wound up so tight. Calm down and we can think this through."
Her head snapped up. "You did not just tell me to calm down."
Hawley backed away and exchanged a knowing glance with Crane. Women are crazy.
Abbie reached out her hand. "Jenny, you really do need to calm down. You've been through a lot."
Jenny sat next to Abbie, hand in hand. "You don't get to tell me to calm down either."
"Let's take the win. We'll figure it all out in time."
"If you say so." Jenny let out a huge sigh, but just the thought of leaving it alone didn't sit right with her.
Abbie shot up from her sleep barely able to breathe. She looked around at her familiar surroundings, but couldn't quite shake the feeling that someone was still trying to kill her. She felt something warm touch her hand and she jumped completely out of her bed.
"Abbie, it's just me." The bedside lamp clicked on and Abbie looked into the eyes of her sister.
"Jenny?"
"Bad dreams again? You haven't slept much since we brought you home from the hospital."
Abbie looked all around the room. "Hospital?" She thought back. It was starting to become clear. "I was in the hospital."
"Remember? We brought you home."
"We?" She took in a jagged breath. "Crane."
Jenny nodded in encouragement.
"And Hawley." She took a very deep breath to calm her nerves, but Jenny could still see her hands shaking. "What are you doing in here?"
"You kept tossing around and screaming. I thought a familiar presence would help and it did, for awhile anyway."
Abbie shook her head and walked to the door.
"Where are you going?"
"I need some air or water… something."
"Crane's out there."
Abbie froze.
"You might wanna cover or something. I'm not sure he can handle that."
She looked at her sleep attire, black tank top and tiny cotton shorts. She glanced back at Jenny who had a giant smile on her face.
"Or you could just go out there and give him a show."
Abbie scowled and grabbed the small white blanket at the foot of the bed wrapping it around her.
"Party pooper."
Abbie walked made her way into the front room. She looked around. The lamp was still on. A shirtless Hawley lay sprawled out across the sofa taking up as much space as possible and she found herself wondering why he was still around. Crane had fallen asleep in a newly purchased recliner with a book precariously perched between the arm of the chair and the tips of his fingers as if the book were reaching down to join one already on the floor.
She made her way over to him while looking around still expecting something strange to happen. She watched him sleep for a moment, blanket slipping from her shoulders. It amazed her how he could just doze off anywhere, but he was a soldier. She watched his eyes open and then the slow forming of recognition.
"Lieutenant."
He positioned himself to stand, but she pushed him back and sat in his lap instead looking into his deep blue eyes.
"I'm so sorry, Lieutenant. If only I had done something more to…."
She put her hand to his lips preventing him from saying anything more.
Slowly he wrapped his arms around her letting the book slip to the floor in a joyous thud of where it most wanted to be. She reached up and gently touched his discolored cheek. He flinched.
"Sorry," she said. "I don't think I knew what I was doing."
It was difficult for his words to escape. "That's quite all right. I probably deserved it." They both smiled and he let his head drop down to hers. "Why did you strike me?"
She hesitated. "To be honest, I thought you were trying to kill me."
His head shot up. "The very idea, I would never!"
She chuckled. "I know. Sounds ridiculous." The smile left her face as her eyes seemed to drift off into the distance.
"And yet?"
Her eyes were on his once again. "You did try. Several times."
He started to squirm.
"Tried to cut me up, pushed me off a cliff…."
"That's quite enough," he interrupted.
She leaned into him. "It wasn't really you. I know that. Corbin told me…."
"Corbin told you? As in the late Sheriff?"
She pushed away and shot him a look that he clearly understood as stop interrupting. "He said he was the piece of himself left behind in my heart, a shadow of the man I once knew."
"And he was the only one who helped you?"
She recognized the implications in his tone, the sadness of being the source to any form of her pain. "He told me that whatever attacked me would try to break me down psychologically. And the best way to do that was to have someone I care about betray me in some way. What it showed me…. That thing had access to my mind. It knew everything I was planning and thinking… It was so hard to tell what was real."
She took a moment to think back on the awful ordeal. Crane tightened his hold.
"It must've been horrible for you."
"Made purgatory look like a fourth of July picnic." She formed a nervous smile.
He noticed her trembling. Her breathing had changed and the pressure from her hand on his increased proving surprisingly painful.
"You should be resting."
"So should you. You look so tired." Her fingers traced under his eyes and around his cheek until her hand found purchase at the nape of his neck.
Head to head and nose to nose, he closed his eyes and tightened his arms around her. His fingers strangled the blanket and clothes at her back as if he could keep her from leaving him again. He wanted to hold her tighter, but was afraid of hurting her small frame.
She reached behind her opening the chair and sending their feet up and then reached back up to turn off the lamp.
"Lieutenant?"
She gently shushed him pushing him back into the chair before repositioning herself so they could both comfortably occupy the same space. She spread out the blanket to cover them both before placing her head on his chest. He made sure she was properly covered. They both closed their eyes.
"Despite everything," she whispered almost to herself. "I never gave up hope on finding my way back… to you."
He let out a soft chuckle. "I'm glad you did, Lieutenant."
Jenny made her way back to the bed as quietly as she had left it to spy on her sister.
Morning had arrived and Jenny was awake unusually early. She snuck into the front room to check on Abbie who seemed to be sleeping very soundly in Crane's arms.
"They've been like that all night," whispered Hawley.
Jenny jumped not noticing he was also awake and getting ready to leave again.
"Every time Abbie so much as twitched a finger, Crane was all over her." He slid on his shoes. "I think she had a few more nightmares but it seems like he's really helping her with those."
"So you're leaving? Just like that?"
The slightly raised voice caused a chain reaction. Abbie stirred then Crane shifted to pull her into him but neither of them woke up completely. Hawley crossed over to Jenny trying to keep from waking the sleeping pair.
"Just passing through, remember," he said.
"You're always just passing through."
"You were so focused in that nurse that you neglected the patients, okay. I've got a lead."
"How did you get a lead?" Jenny asked as if she couldn't believe it was possible. "When did you get a lead?"
"You've got enough to worry about."
She gave him a stern glare.
He let out a sigh. "Okay, fine. It's happened before. One of the mothers said her daughter went through a similar ordeal and woke up just fine about a week later, but she wasn't exactly the same girl that went in. She was acting sort of strange, doing things she wouldn't normally do, and talking in her sleep."
Jenny looked in Abbie's direction. "What sort of strange?"
"She didn't say."
"Well, what did the girl say in her sleep?"
"Mostly calling out for help, telling her mother she needed to beware of all temptations or something like that. The mother told the nurse all of this the day her husband was admitted."
"Was it Melissa?" Jenny practically spat the name.
"The woman is going to let me talk to her daughter about what happened."
"Why would she even tell you all of this?"
He leaned into her smiling. "I can be pretty persuasive."
"Not that persuasive." She pushed him away.
He chuckled and grabbed his jacket. "I'll let you know what I find out." He paused to watch Crane and Abbie for a brief moment before heading out the door.