A/N: Ok, school has officially started so chapters won't be updated as quickly. I have ten classes that are eating away at my precious down time. Sorry, but I need the education in order to get a career in order to pay for all the things of life. /g/
Chapter Fourteen
Scarred Beyond the Heart
Part One
It was enough to make any man go crazy, but Roxton shunned the desire to snap even though the pressure was mounting. He refused to cave into the depression. The sorrow had won over Marguerite and look where it had led her: a frail, emotionally jittery woman with her tender flesh torn and burned. The thought of her slicing into her wrists made him shudder; and the memory of the repugnant smell of her burning flesh still violated his nose, causing his eyes to water. In her troubled sleep, she had withered in pain, waking only to shriek as the rod was pierced into her skin.
That was three days ago and Roxton held vigil at her beside, never budging except to use the bathroom. She awoke occasionally, disoriented and asking for Adam. It slashed him to pieces and he never had the heart to remind her that their son was dead.
The only positive was that she couldn't feel any physical pain. Challenger had explained to him gently: "John, I want you to understand something. Her skin is charred and ugly, but she's not suffering. She has third degree burns that destroyed her nerves. She can't feel a thing. Be thankful for that."
And he was, but he wanted more. He wanted her well.
Roxton leaned over her, covering her more snuggly and checking her pale lips for a bluish hue. Since the traumatic experience, she had slipped into shock numerous times and Challenger warned Roxton that one to many could result in permanent brain damage. What the professor didn't dare utter around the distraught husband was that she may have already suffered beyond repair.
Part Two
Another grueling three days slowly ticked away. Roxton had taken it upon himself to sponge bathe her daily, careful of the raw and hungry charcoaled skin of her wrists. It saddened him to think that she would forever have a physical remainder of her torment.
Roxton was sliding on her blouse when he felt a feather caress against his upper arm. Stunned, he peered down into his wife's eyes and was relieved what he saw in them: lucidness. He smiled wanly and gingerly slipped her other hand into the arm of the blouse. "Good afternoon, darling." He gently laid her back against the mound of pillows and began buttoning up her shirt. "Now you decide to wake up: after the difficult parts of washing and dressing."
Marguerite stared blankly at his fingers as they professionally buttoned her up. When she felt a tautness and slightly painful pressure on her wrists, she glanced down and gasped. "What happened? Was I burned?"
"Challenger had to do it in order to stop the bleeding," Roxton murmured, refusing to look at the repulsive dead skin. He had seen it enough. And as her body began to heal, it looked worse.
"The bleeding?"
Roxton sighed, gazing at his wife sympathetically. "After you slit your wrists, Marguerite. Remember? You were so detached after hearing about Dr. Burns/Barns – whatever the hell he calls himself – that you…you…" he indicated her wounds.
"Oh," she sounded distant and lost.
Roxton bit his lip then sat on the edge of the mattress, taking her tiny hands in his calloused ones. He gazed at her with a soft intensity. "I really thought I was going to lose you, Marguerite. For a moment there I did when you had stopped breathing. I never want to experience that again, darling. Don't you dare ever try anything like that again. Ever. I couldn't live without you. I really couldn't: not without Adam here. Do you hear me, Marguerite? The next time you do this, I won't hesitate to kill myself first."
Marguerite peered up at him. "I'm sorry," her eyes filled with tears, "but I don't even know who you are."
End Chapter Fourteen
Wishes: I struggled with this one. I was debating whether or not to let her live, but I knew if I killed her then everyone would hire henchmen to slowly torture me to death. Fab: Thank you so much. I was trying to keep it realistic and the way they keep pushing each other away and yet begging for each other to stay is real life. I'm delighted you like it so far. SierraSunshine: Holy shit. Three times in one day? I'm overwhelmed, but very honored. Zeus Fluff: Thank you so much, and I'm working as fast as I can. LoveMR: Like I told Wishes, I had the urge to kill her, but I knew that would only be endangering my own life. Lol. TheChosenOne3: Ha, ha, ha…I've been called a 'psycho' and a 'sadistic bitch' many times, but 'sadistic psycho' is a new one. Lol. I love it! And you can call the 'funny farm' regardless as to how this ends because my mom's always telling me that it is my real home. /g/