Chapter 26

It was very late when Louise was finally able to leave the hospital. The interview she had had with the commission had been going on for hours and at some point Lou had thought that it would have no end. At least, it had gone better than she had first imagined. Louise had been able to talk coherently and answer their questions without stammering or getting nervous. The condition of her battered face hadn't been a problem either. At the beginning of it, Teaspoon had made a light comment about her bruised countenance which had made everybody smile, including her and from that point on Lou had felt more relaxed and had been able to perform successfully.

Louise breathed in deeply, filling her lungs with fresh air as she stood at the clinic door. It really felt good to finally escape those four suffocating walls. Her eyes lifted to the black sky where she could make out several glowing stars. The rain had ceased a couple of hours ago and the night promised to be a peaceful, mild one.

Lou started towards the entrance to the parking lot to retrieve her car. As she walked, her mind wandered to the confrontation she had had with Kid that afternoon. All through the rest of the day she had been chastising herself for her outburst and the tremendous slap she had given him. What the heck had prompted her to talk to him like that? Naturally he had felt offended, and his subsequent remark had served her right for sticking her nose in a matter that didn't concern her. She might not approve of his ways, but that didn't give her the right to judge him. 'Judge not, that you may not be judged' was what the Holy Bible said, but she sometimes had problems sticking to it. She often felt she was in possession of the only truth, and she really needed to be a bit more humble and accept others as they were. With Kid she had gone too far. Later she had had every intention to go and apologize to him, but she was actually very ashamed of her own behavior and hadn't had the guts to face him.

Louise walked into the deserted parking lot and headed for her car. The sound of heavy steps echoed very close. Lou stopped and turned round but she didn't see anybody. When she resumed her walking, the steps were heard again, closer and closer. She was starting to feel alarmed as she quickened her pace and the steps behind her did the same. "Who's there?" she called, stopping and looking around herself.

A few seconds passed and then a voice sounded, "It's me, Sister."

She saw a man coming from behind a car and as she recognized him, she frowned in confusion. "Vinnie, what are you doing here?" It was one of the poor souls that hung around the convent, the same one that had scared Rachel the day she had stayed there.

"I got lost," the man drawled with a goofy grin, his eyes continuously looking everywhere but at her.

"Come on," Lou said with a smile. "I'll drop you at your place." The man followed Louise as she continued towards her car when suddenly a hand grabbed her by the neck, pushing her against a car with great force. Louise let out a scream as her body hit the vehicle bodywork, and when she turned to look, her eyes came face to face with a very familiar figure.

"Sister, we meet again," a young man said ironically as he walked closer to her. "What a happy coincidence!"

"What do you want, Curtis?" Lou asked, doing her best to sound calm and cold when she actually wasn't. Her feet slowly slid to one side, moving automatically away as she tried to get a way out of there.

"Not so fast, Sis," the man roared while his hand clutched her neck forcefully and hit her head against the car. Louise whimpered painfully, feeling more and more scared by the minute. "You don't really want me to finish off what I started last night, do you?" the man asked threateningly as his free hand traced the wounds on her face.

"Curtis, you told me you wouldn't hurt her," Vinnie said in his squeaky voice as he came closer to them.

"Get out of here, idiot!"

"But you said..."

"Get the hell out of here!" Curtis barked, pushing him strongly, which made the other man fall on his back.

The murdering look he gave Vinnie was so frightening for his limited brain that he scrambled to his feet and clumsily shout of he place as he shouted in a sobbing voice, "I'm sorry... I'm so sorry, Sister Lou... so sorry."

Curtis turned his attention to Louise, who was trying her hardest not to be affected by his threatening presence. "Alone at last," he snickered, slowly coming closer to Louise, his body almost touching hers. In a reflex reaction she tried to take a few steps back but her body was already pressed against the car and she couldn't move an inch. "Where are my wife and son, Sister?" the man asked with a no-nonsense expression.

"I don't know."

The punch she received caught her off guard and her head bumped against the car once again. "Like hell you don't know!" he barked loudly, his voice reverberating throughout the whole place.

Lou was panicking as the old sensations came back to her full force. The smell of blood was so intense that she could almost taste it in her mouth. She was feeling nauseous and had to inhale deeply, trying to ignore the sensation that her body was covered in blood. Her mind reeled, wondering what this man intended to do. At this time of the day, hardly anybody could be found in the parking lot for the staff but Lou desperately wondered where the security guard was. Curtis wasn't acting very discreetly and if the security guy were at his post, the shouts should have already reached his ears.

"You, nuns from hell, can't keep my family from me! My wife's place is with me, her husband!"

"Not when the husband is an abuser!" Lou answered back loudly, not sure where she was getting the energy from to stand her ground and pretend that she was comfortable with the situation. In reality, she was feeling very weak and thought that at some point her legs wouldn't respond and she was going to fall.

"They're my property and you have no right!" the man continued and at the same time delivered another powerful punch to her face that threw her onto the ground. His right foot rose to kick her, but, foreseeing his intentions, Lou rolled across the ground, trying to get away from him. Yet, at some point Curtis was quicker and his booted foot finally hit her square on her head with great force, which made her lose grasp of the reality around her for a moment. The man quickly threw himself on top of her and turning her body face up, he straddled her. Lou's eyes opened in total horror and she almost stopped breathing as she felt his body press in her lower trunk.

"Please, leave me alone, please," she begged desperately as the tears brimmed her eyes.

"I'm gonna kill you, dirty bitch! You and your bunch stole what I most love and you're gonna lose something too, your life!"

From the pocket of his jacket the man took out a cleaver. The cold shine of its sharp metal surface reflected on her face ominously and as he lifted his hand, armed with the cleaver, all Lou was able to do was close her eyes tightly and let out a piercing, terrified scream while her reeling mind silently sent up the Lord's Prayer. The blow that she expected would end her life never came and in the fog her mind had become she managed to hear the cleaver clanking down beside her and feel his body strangely being lifted as if pulled by a strong force.

Groggily she opened her eyes and to her utter surprise she saw Kid, his face red with sheer anger, delivering blow after blow to Curtis, who the doctor had pressed against a column. For a few moments Lou couldn't move and simply kept staring at the scene before her eyes. She had never seen Kid so angry before or using violence against anybody. That good-for-nothing Curtis was practically plasticine in Kid's hands and fearing what he might do, Lou hurried to stop him. Clumsily she scrambled to her feet and came closer to him.

"Kid," she said, resting a hand in his tense shoulders, "just let him be. He's just a poor devil. Please."

Kid turned his eyes towards her and stopped his punches at once. Curtis fell heavily on the ground, but the doctor didn't even bother to have a second look at him. "How... how are you? He asked, his voice shivering from the anger he was still feeling.

Lou was still trembling with fear and could hardly talk. "I... I don't know," she finally managed to voice.

Not caring about anything else, Kid threw his arms around her petite body, hugging her close. He just wanted to make sure that she was really fine, unharmed. When he had walked into the parking lot and had caught sight of a man hitting Lou and threatening her with that huge cleaver, an uncontrollable fury had taken hold of his whole soul. Before he knew what he was actually doing, he had thrown himself against the man blindly. For the first time in his life, he had really wanted to kill a man, a man who was beating the woman who meant the world to him.

Lou let him comfort her and wrapped her arms around his waist. She had been so frightened, really believing that Curtis was going to kill her, but little by little her odd sensations disappeared and she tried to regain her composure. After a while, she tilted her head up to him. "Are you all right?" Kid repeated again and despite still feeling shaken, Lou managed to nod.

In that moment the security guard came running towards them and told the doctors he'd take care of the man and call the police. Lou accepted when Kid suggested going back inside the clinic. Her face showed new bruises and wounds from the blows and kicks she had now received. In his office Kid cleaned her bruises, especially taking care of a nasty gash behind her head, result of the several bumps she had taken against the car. Kid had even insisted that they take an X-ray to make sure that there was no further damage, which she agreed to unwillingly. Louise was still feeling shaken and had no energy to fight him, so she simply let him do as he wished.

Kid had cleaned her wounds with a firm hand but he was actually shaking like jelly inside. Never before had she been this close to her and naturally he had never had the chance to touch her face like he was doing now. His whole body reacted to her presence and Kid hoped she didn't realize the powerful effect that she still had over him. He told himself that he should see her as if she were just a patient. However, the image didn't work, but actually it had the opposite effect, as his mind wandered to the kind of examination he usually performed at his daily work. He silently scolded himself and tried with all his will-power to concentrate.

About an hour later a couple of police officers turned up in his office. Louise told them what had happened in the parking lot, all the details, but she consciously let the bit about Vinnie out, and as she talked, Kid stiffened, fearing what could have happened to her if he hadn't appeared. His heart pained terribly, thinking that if the worst had taken place, Lou's last memory of him would have been of those horrible words of his. The notion that she could now be dead filled him with so much grief and despair that he really felt like crying. He longed to take her in his arms, to make sure once again that she was there for real, safe and alive but he didn't move an inch and simply kept listening to her voice as she continued talking to the two police officers.

When the police had left, Kid suggested going to the cafeteria to have a hot drink. Despite her calmed demeanor, Kid knew that she was still pretty shaken and a nice herbal tea would do her good. They had their drinks in silence, both deep in thought. The place was deserted at this time of day and apart from them, there was nobody else but the cafeteria staff. Suddenly Louise realized that she hadn't had the time or occasion to express her gratefulness to him.

"Kid," she whispered, "thank you for saving my life. I'm sure that guy would have killed me."

Kid cringed at her words as the image of her lifeless, bleeding figure sprawled on the ground flashed before his eyes. "Can I ask you something, Lou?"

"Anything you want. After what you've done for me, you've earned the right to ask me anything," Lou replied, trying to raise the mood between them.

"When you talked to the cops, I didn't quite understand what you had to do with that Curtis guy."

"Actually nothing," Lou answered, turning her eyes to the window through which the city nightlife passed before her. "He's a crook, a drug addict and an abuser. His wife has suffered all kinds of physical maltreatment and his last famous deed was to burn down his own apartment with her and their baby son inside. Fortunately, nothing happened to them. He was obviously sent to prison and his wife and son have stayed at our center since that day. A couple of weeks ago he was released from jail and when he found out where his wife and son were, he came to claim what, according to him, was his by law. He's been pestering and threatening all of us during all this time. And last night he came with the intention of carrying out his threats. He stood at our door, crying that he was going to set fire to the convent and burn us all alive. Of course we called the police, but I feared what he might do in the meantime, so I had another one of my bright ideas and decided to face him on my own and try to calm him down."

"And he hit you," Kid filled in for her.

"Yeah, he did. You can't imagine the chaos he caused. Poor Sister Yvette! She's in her nineties and the poor dear almost had an attack."

"And what happened in the end?"

"The police finally arrived, but he scurried away like a cowardly dog," Louise explained. "Paula and her son have been relocated in another center where they'll be safe. This morning there were a couple of cops keeping guard at the convent in case he returned, so I imagine he just tried to find other means to get what he wanted or... get his revenge."

"I'm sorry," Kid let out sincerely and after a pause he added, "I can't say I don't know that kind of man." Louise frowned confused and her colleague continued with a tired voice, "My father was like him. Used to beat my mom, my brother and me. It still burns me inside when I remember all the times he hurt my mother... not only with his fists and I just couldn't do a thing about it."

"Kid, you were a child," Lou said softly, reaching to rest her hand over his comfortingly.

Kid felt his body tremble at the contact with her skin, and dared to intertwine his fingers with hers and to his relief she didn't remove her hand. With their hands joined, he continued after a beat, "I know that. Fortunately, he left us... but not soon enough. All I regret is that my mother didn't get to live the carefree life she deserved. She died too young, but sometimes I think I didn't do enough for her."

"I'm sure that's not it, Kid."

"You know something, Lou?" he continued with a somber air. "I've always dreamed of having my own family. I know I could be a good father and husband... nothing like my father. I'd kill... literally if anybody dared to harm my family... even myself. But well, you can see there's not been much of a chance to prove myself in that department so far." The doctor made a bitter gesture and directed his eyes to the window and the dark night outside.

"Kid, I know you'll have a fine family one day and you're gonna be a terrific father and a loving husband. They'll love you dearly," Lou replied without the slightest trace of doubt in her voice. "I just know."

Kid smiled sadly. Her words brought him a bittersweet sensation. The woman he was in love with was telling him she believed he'd be a good husband but her whole self expressed that she couldn't be that wife... ever. Kid didn't know what had prompted him to tell her about his father, that part of his childhood he hated. Nobody knew that side of him, not even Jimmy who had known him the longest. He didn't like talking about it, and it was something that he'd rather conceal from everybody. Yet, there was some special quality in Lou that made him want to tell her everything, even his darkest secrets.

They remained in silence for a few minutes. Lou knew that talking about his father had upset Kid, so she tried to change the direction of the conversation. "And tell me, what were you doing here at the hospital so late?"

As soon as he heard her question, he remembered. "Oh no!" he exclaimed, covering his face with his free hand.

"What?"

He lifted his eyes to her. "Gwen... I was supposed to pick her up. She finished her shift..." he glanced at his watch and concluded gravely, "two hours ago."

"Oh Kid, I'm sorry. I..."

At her apology he realized that he didn't actually care that he had stood up his girl. All he wanted was to stay here, holding Lou's hand forever and listening to her every word for the rest of their lives. "It's fine, Lou. It's not important."

"Thank you very much!" an angry voice resounded behind him and when Kid turned his head, he saw the woman he had just mentioned standing a few feet from them and looking visibly irritated.

Kid let go of Lou's hand immediately and rose to his feet. "Gwen..." he started awkwardly as he came closer to her. "I'm sorry. Let me explain..."

"I don't need your poor excuses or explanations!" the woman barked furiously. "I know all I need to know already." After waiting for what seemed like forever and trying to phone him to no avail, she had decided to try her luck in the hospital. The receptionist had told her that Dr. Kydd was in the cafeteria, and when she had headed for the place, she had spotted him through one of the big windows, holding hands and making goo goo eyes with that short-haired female doctor.

"Forgive me. I simply forgot," Kid tried again.

His excuse, which wasn't so much an excuse as the truth, didn't manage to appease her but had the opposite effect. "So let me have this right. I'm not important... you apparently forget about me as soon as I turn the corner. What else, Kid?" The doctor tried to protest but she wouldn't let him. "I know there's nothing serious between us and as far as I'm concerned, you can do every woman from here to China, but I'll be damned if I let you make a fool of myself. I have no time for your games and your lies, you stupid quack."

The woman swirled to go, but Kid quickly grabbed her by the arm, trying to stop her. "Please Gwen, wait!"

"Don't touch me!" the woman cried hysterically and her hand flew through the air and slapped Kid square on his face, and without further ado, she stormed out of the cafeteria, still groaning and moaning.

Kid turned to look at Lou, rubbing his sore cheek with his hand. Louise held her breath as she stared at him with wide eyes and on seeing the stunned expression of his face, she couldn't hold back anymore and burst out laughing. "I'm sorry... I'm not laughing at you... not really," she apologized among giggles. Her hand came to cover her mouth in an attempt to stifle her amusement but it was useless. Kid sat back on his seat opposite her and little by little he found himself laughing alongside her and really enjoying it. When their laughter subsided, Lou added, "Kid, don't worry. I'll talk to her tomorrow when she has calmed down."

"Don't bother yourself," Kid replied unenthusiastically. "I suppose I'm not that interested. She had a right to be angry. I never thought about her in these couple of hours...for a reason." Lou feared that he was going to start with his loving talk, about his desires, his feelings, and she didn't want to have that conversation again, especially when there was no point about it. He already knew what she thought and what her choices in life were. To her utter relief, he never hinted anything of what she had thought he would and instead he said with a bitter gesture, "Some day I've had. Two women slap me in the same day. What a great charmer I am."

Louise laughed again, especially since that comment was partly directed to her, who was one of those mentioned women. "Well, if it's any consolation to you, I've been beaten twice in less than twenty-four hours by the same man and almost killed. Guess you can't beat that, can you?"

Despite the terrible events she was mentioning, Kid found himself chuckling. "I can never beat you. You're always a winner," he said as his eyes kept boring into hers, the double meaning of his words evident to her and Louise didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

After today's hard experiences, she was feeling vulnerable and weak, and suddenly, she felt the tears pricking her eyes. Louise simply lowered her face from him so that he didn't notice. She then wiped the tears with her thin fingers, and lifting her gaze back to him, she plastered a smile… a smile that didn't really show the turmoil she was going through as if everything was happening again. Suddenly, she was feeling very sad and distressed. The reason? She actually didn't know but she just stayed there smiling and talking to Kid as if the world were just perfect.