Chapter Nine
"Hush little baby, don't you cry," Michaela sang as she sat in the children's ward, rocking a six-month-old infant boy in her arms. The baby had been brought in with a mild case of pneumonia, and she had been working since early that morning to drain the fluid from his lungs. He was strong, but he was young, so she was terribly worried about him.
He was a beautiful boy was curly black hair and piercing blue eyes. His eyes reminded her of Sully's. They were so full of life and strength and love.
The child let out a powerful cry before drifting off to sleep, and Michaela gently caressed his cheek and kissed him upon the forehead.
"Don't you worry, little one. You'll be better in no time. Your mother will be very pleased to see how well you're doing when she gets here this evening. The baby cooed in his sleep, and Michaela could hear that he had more fluid in his lungs. She sighed sadly, hoping that the medicines she'd been administering to him would do the trick. She placed the child back into his bed, and she began the delicate procedure to drain fluid from his lungs again.
A while later, the baby was in stable condition, and an older nurse walked into the ward, being careful not to disturb the sleeping children.
"Dr. Quinn," she said with a smile, walking over and admiring the gentleness the young woman doctor showed toward all of her patients.
"Yes?" Michaela asked, standing and stifling a yawn. Caring for an infant was tiring work!
"Dr. Lewis has arrived. He wants to speak with you."
"Oh, alright. Thank you for telling me." Michaela smiled at the nurse and watched as she left the children's ward. Michaela checked her patient's vitals one more time before stepping away and walking out into the hall. David was waiting with another bouquet of flowers in his hands. What was wrong with him? Did he not understand the meaning of the world 'friendship?' Michaela sighed heavily. "David, they're beautiful." He started to hand them over to her. She stepped away and shook her head. "David, they're lovely, but I can't accept them." She started to walk away, but he stepped in front of her. " I'm sorry, but I don't have time for this!"
"Please, just take them."
"No. I can't accept them."
"An offering of friendship?"
"Is that truly what this is?" When David didn't answer, she knew it wasn't the truth.
"Please, just have lunch with me?" Michaela shook her head.
"I can't."
"Why not?" Michaela was getting irritated, and she only wanted David to go away. Friendship was looking impossible right now.
"David, listen to me. I do want to be friends. But, I don't think that's possible if you're going to continue to call on me. I'm not interested in anything but a co-working relationship and possibly a friendship." She shook her head. She wasn't sure that would ever happen now. David seemed too tangled up in the past to let her go.
"Oh, Michaela. Won't you try to give me another chance?"
"I've tried to be your friend, David. That's all I was expecting, but I can see you want more." She shook her head softly. "I'm sorry, David, but the time for the two of us to be together has been and gone. That ended a long time ago." Michaela started toward the children's ward again. Spending time with her ill patients was much more constructive that this tireless charade with David. She really needed to be away from him, but alas, he followed her.
He pushed himself in front of her, blocking her from entering the doors. Michaela was growing concerned now, and as David stepped closer to her, she backed up and felt herself backing into the wall. But, David didn't stop. He came forward enough that she could feel his breath on her cheek. She flinched as he inhaled sharply, and she tried to push him away.
"David!" she exclaimed. He backed away as if he was shot. "Please leave. You're making me uncomfortable." She started for the ward again, but he grabbed her arm tightly. She was shocked, and David pulled her close.
"I never stopped loving you. I never will!" He forcefully pulled her into a kiss, and she didn't have time to breathe before he was trying to force his way into her mouth. Michaela pushed him back, and he came for her again. "I love you so much." Michaela's hands pushed on his chest, trying to force him away.
Lydia Grayson had been walking toward the operating room for a surgery, and she had glanced toward the children's ward in passing. She gasped when she saw Michaela struggling with David. She gasped, feeling frightened that a man she'd wasted her time on was hurting this innocent woman. She could have easily been the one he was attacking right now!
David, hearing Lydia's gasp, let Michaela go, and without another moment passing, she threw her hand back and brought it forward to slap him across the face. Then, Michaela grabbed her sore wrist in her hand and massaged where his fingers had squeezed. David glared at Lydia for a long minute, and soon, he leaned in and whispered into Michaela's ear.
"You never stopped loving me. I'll make sure you see that." David walked away, and Lydia rushed over to Michaela, not caring that this man was supposed to give her money to support her ailing mother; not caring about anything that had happened between them. After what she'd seen of him, she knew she'd made a terrible mistake.
"Dr. Quinn? Are you alright?" Lydia asked quickly. "What he did to you…"
"I'm fine," Michaela said quickly. "Dr. Lewis has had a stressful day."
"Don't make excuses for him," Lydia warned. "He had no right."
"I know that," Michaela replied. "I'm not making excuses for him. I know he had no right, and I'm going to see to it that this doesn't happen again."
"Would you like me to go to his superiors?"
"No. No. I'll settle this quietly."
"You mean, you're still going to let him work here after all of this?" Michaela turned to Lydia and placed her hand on the girl's shoulders.
"David Lewis has never hurt me before, and this came as a shock to me," Michaela said quietly. "For now, I want you to forget about what you saw. I'll find a way to deal with this on my own." Lydia finally nodded.
"You're sure you're okay?"
"Yes. Go on with what you were doing. I'll be fine." Lydia reluctantly walked away, and Michaela looked down at her wrist. It was starting to become blotchy in the places his fingers had gripped. She hoped the slight swelling would go down before dinner. She knew she couldn't keep such a thing a secret. People had to know what David did, but she hoped this could be settled before anyone else was hurt, even if that meant letting David keep his job.
She closed her eyes and leaned against the wall, waiting for her pulse to return to normal. Never in a million years would she have thought that David would have handled her in such a way. He'd never gotten physically violent with her in their years of courtship. Something had changed in David. He seemed to have an obsession with having her approval and love. The years they'd spent apart had done damage on him, while Michaela had been perfectly content in her life.
She was scared of what David was capable of now. She felt as if she didn't even know him. God, she had never felt her heart pound so hard in fright before, and she hoped she never felt that way again. She had to do something, but how was she to know that things wouldn't get worse if she got him fired? If he did this to her, she could only imagine what other damage he could do. There were too many people in her life that she loved too much. She had to protect them.
Taking a deep breath, she decided she would think about it later. Now, her patients needed her, and David didn't deserve to be thought about.
David watched her as she walked home that evening. He watched her look around nervously, waiting for Sully. She waited at the end of the sidewalk, and two minutes later, Sully joined her, apologizing for being late. He watched as she linked her good arm through his, and Sully glanced at her, curious as to why she was walking at his other side on that night. Her other arm was covered by her coat, but soon enough, the bruises would be shown.
He had bruised her. He had made her hurt the way she hurt him. But, she didn't yet know the extent of the pain he felt every waking and sleeping moment he thought about her, knowing he couldn't have her. Oh, maybe he couldn't have her, but he would have her! He would have her one way or another.
He pulled his watch out of his pocket and checked the time. It was a quarter 'til five. Perhaps he would show up at the house that evening. Mrs. Quinn trusted him, at least. Perhaps he would wait a few days until Michaela had had time to cool down. Somehow, he knew she wouldn't run and tell the first person she saw about what he'd done. It wasn't that she was a coward. No, she was the bravest woman he knew, and that was a challenge to him. He loved to watch her tremble but stick up for herself in the toughest of situations. That was what made her even more beautiful to him. No, she would go to her father, he was sure, but she'd be too concerned about her family to want to have him fired. She'd want to leave things alone, but David wouldn't. David knew that he was just getting started, and he wouldn't stop until Michaela was his again.
It was getting late, and Michaela knew she was running behind. She and Sully were leaving for dinner very soon, and after an hour of protest from Elizabeth, Michaela had managed to escape to bathe herself, fix her hair and put on a fabulous dress. She stood in front of the mirror, examining her work. She had brushed her hair out completely and put it up in curls. After she'd let it down, her gorgeous chestnut-colored locks flowed down her back in beautiful curls. She'd picked out a red dress, one she loved dearly but rarely wore.
This was a celebration dinner with Sully. Yes, that was all it was. If it was anything more, they could almost be considered courting, couldn't they? She didn't know, but they couldn't be courting, because he was leaving soon. Two weeks was just around the corner.
Michaela sighed and moved to her bureau. She put on the necklace her father had bought her for her sweet sixteenth birthday, and she moved to put in the diamond earrings that matched. As she was hooking in the last earring, her arm began to bother her. She winced at the pain, and after she put the back on the earring, she moved closer to the oil lamp and examined her arm. The swelling had gone down, but a few nasty finger-print-shaped bruises stained her skin on the underside of her arm.
A knock came to the door, and Michaela quickly stopped examining the delicate bruises. She gave herself one last look in the mirror before turning toward the door.
"Come in," she called. Sully slowly turned the knob and opened the door. What he saw before him was the most beautiful vision he'd ever seen. The light in the room glowed around her, making her eyes sparkle and her hair shine. The red dress she wore clung to her upper body and flowed out after her hips. She looked like a dream, and Sully was speechless.
Michaela smiled as she looked at him. He was wearing a suit she'd never seen him in before. It was black, and he wore a matching tie. He looked very handsome and very charming, and Michaela wasn't sure what to say, but the flush in her cheeks and the rapid beating of her heart seemed to say it all.
When Sully regained feeling in his tongue, he finally spoke.
"You look…beautiful," he said quietly, not sure if it was the right thing to say. Beautiful didn't even begin to describe how amazing she looked. Maybe a word that hadn't been discovered yet could better explain it.
Michaela blushed and blinked back her embarrassment.
"You look very handsome yourself," she replied quietly.
"You ready to go?" He didn't want to spend another moment alone with her in her bedroom, or else his feelings might get carried away with him.
"Yes. Let me turn down my lamp," she said, turning without thinking. It was then that Sully saw the dark bruises on her arm.
"What happened to you!" he asked, moving from the doorway and over to her side in less than a second. He gently touched her arm, and she pulled away. "I'm sorry."
"No, you didn't hurt me. Just the memory of it…" Sully took her hand and led her toward the bed. Michaela slowly sat down, and her eyes, full of tears, stared up into Sully's. Sully knelt down beside the bed.
"Who did this to you? Michaela, tell me." He knew in his heart who it was, but he had to hear it from Michaela's lips. Michaela felt her tears beginning to fall. She couldn't keep this from Sully, though she knew that if he knew, he'd go after David and put himself in danger. "Michaela? C'mon. Was it David? It was, wasn't it?"
"Yes," she whispered. Sully swallowed hard and started for the door.
"Sully, where are you going?" Michaela asked, standing quickly.
"I'm gonna deal with this."
"No!" she exclaimed. Sully eyed her.
"What do ya mean, 'no?'"
"I mean, I don't want this to go any further."
"I think it did go further when he put his hands on you. Worse than that, he bruised ya. I don't wanna see him hurt ya again." Michaela didn't have time to think about those words, because she was too frightened of what might happen if Sully confronted David.
"Please, hear me out," Michaela begged. "I don't want you to go, because if David becomes angrier, he might not stop with me. I don't want to see the people I…the people I love get hurt." Sully, not stopping to think about her words either, continued toward the door. "Sully! Please!" Sully sighed heavily, knowing he needed to do as she asked.
"Ya could get him fired for this. Did ya have witnesses?"
"Getting him fired might make this worse, and I don't want to do that. I had one witness, but I asked her to stay quiet."
"What! Why? That don't sound like you. You've gotta be scared to death of him!" Michaela shook her head sadly.
"I never had a reason to be. I'm not afraid for myself, really. I'm afraid for you and for my family. David is a very resourceful man. I can't imagine what he's capable of now. I never believed he was capable of hurting someone. Oh, Sully, all I wanted to do was give him another chance at friendship. I never dreamed it could end like this."
"You've got a good heart Michaela. Ya trust with everything ya have, even if that person ain't worth bein' trusted." Sully took her hands in his, and he turned her arm over, gently examining the bruises. "They look pretty bad."
"They look much worse than they feel," she assured him. She felt a hot tear trickle down her cheek, and Sully reached up to brush it away. She blinked, and their eyes met, and Sully pulled his hand away from her.
"Ya didn't deserve this, Michaela, and David deserves to pay."
"I know he does," Michaela whispered. "But I'd like to settle this quietly."
"People gotta know what he did," Sully urged. "What if it happens to someone else?" Michaela felt the tears coming again. "At least let me tell your pa." Michaela nodded gently. She gave his hands a squeeze. "Maybe we ought to stay in tonight if ya ain't feelin' up to goin' to dinner."
"No, I'm feeling up to it," she promised. "I want to go out and forget about everything that happened today." Sully gently squeezed her hands as she had done to his. He pulled each hand to his lips and placed a soft kiss to them. Michaela smiled a little, and Sully pulled her into a hug. "Thank you." Sully was just about to tell her that he'd always be there for her, but he realized that it wasn't true. He was leaving soon, and they'd be hundreds of miles apart. What would happen to her after he was gone? What would happen when David decided to hurt her again?
"C'mon. Let's go talk to your pa." Michaela led the way out of her room, and Sully followed her downstairs with his hand on the small of her back. But, in a moment of weakness, Michaela bit her trembling bottom lip and reached for Sully's hand. She grasped it firmly as they walked into the parlor to talk with her father.
Josef was reading one of his surgical textbooks, and Elizabeth was working on a cross-stitch pattern when Michaela and Sully entered the room. Josef was the first to look up, and he saw Michaela standing with Sully, and she was trembling with tears in her eyes.
"Mike? What happened?" He stood and went to her. Elizabeth, seeing the sight, put down her project and moved to her husband's side. Michaela looked at Sully, and he nodded. She closed her eyes and lifted her arm out, turning it over to show the bruises to her parents. Elizabeth gasped, and Josef stared at them, speechless.
"Ya gotta tell 'em, Michaela. Tell 'em what happened." He needed to hear it too, because she hadn't exactly told him how it had happened.
"Michaela?" Elizabeth asked, waiting for an answer. Michaela felt Sully squeeze her hand again, and she felt brave again.
"David," she whispered. "He grabbed me, and he kissed me. He was very forceful…" Josef started toward the coat closet. "Father?"
"No man puts his hands on my daughter the way David did to you. I'm going to take care of this."
"No!" Michaela shouted. Josef stopped in surprise.
"Josef, David didn't do this," Elizabeth replied. "She doesn't want you to go to David, because she knows he'll tell you the truth. She's making an excuse for Mr. Sully." Michaela's eyes went wide, and she snapped her head around to look at her mother.
"What did you just say?"
"It's obvious that you're frightened of Mr. Sully! Look at you! He's gripping your hand." Sully pulled away from Michaela. "Michaela, if he's hurt you…"
"I told you who did this, Mother! It was David! Sully would never…"
"Ya don't gotta do this, Michaela," Sully assured her. Michaela shook her head.
"Sully is a good man! He would never do what you're accusing him of doing!"
"It certainly wasn't David! You know David! He's a gentleman, and he would never hurt a fly."
"Maybe not a fly, but he certainly did this." Blinded by anger, she shoved her bruised arm toward her mother. Josef walked back over toward them.
"Elizabeth, you surely can't be saying that you would believe a man who ran out five years ago, breaking our daughter's heart…over a man who's been nothing but a gentleman since we've known him." Elizabeth was silent. Josef shook his head. "Look at you. You never used to be like this, Elizabeth." Josef turned his attention away from his wife and looked sternly at his daughter. "I'm going to handle this."
"No! Please," Michaela said quietly. "I've been very dependent on you for a long time."
"That's not true."
"Perhaps not in every way, but because of you, I was able to secure a job at the hospital. But, I don't want to put that in jeopardy, and I don't want to put you in jeopardy. I never thought David could do this, so if he can do this, he could be capable of other things we don't know about. I'd rather not put my family and friends in danger. I'll settle this on my own and quietly.
"I don't like this, Mike. I've agreed with you on many things, but this…what if he hurts you again?"
"He won't," Sully spoke up. "Not if I have anything to say about it." Michaela looked at her father.
"Promise me you won't say anything yet. Promise me you'll stay quiet and pretend you know nothing. I need to deal with this in my own way." Josef finally nodded.
"I hope you know what you're doing. If he hurts you again, I can't stand by and do nothing." Michaela nodded in understanding. Michaela looked at her mother but said nothing. She left the parlor, and Sully followed behind her.
"We really don't gotta go out tonight."
"Yes we do," Michaela replied. "If you wouldn't mind waiting, I have some powder upstairs that I can use to hide the bruises." Sully nodded. "I'll wait as long as I have to." Michaela smiled at him thankfully, not truly understanding the full power of his words.
As they were finishing up their meals in silence, Michaela felt Sully's eyes on her from time to time. She knew he was worried, and she was grateful that he cared so much. She felt bad that he was worrying, though, and she wished there was something she could do to make him feel better.
"Maybe I better stay for a while longer," Sully suggested, finally breaking the silence. Michaela looked up from her meal.
"What? No, Sully. You can't do that," Michaela said quickly.
"I don't feel right about leavin' after what's happened."
"Don't worry about me. I'll be fine," Michaela promised. She grinned a little, her spirits lightening a bit. "If not, I can always get Albert to protect me." She winked at him, and Sully couldn't help but let a chuckle escape. But, he soon sobered and reached across the table to take her hand in his.
"Michaela, ya saved my life once, and I don't wanna have to be in the position where I have to save yours. I don't want him to hurt ya, because the last thing I'd want is for you to hurt." He cleared his throat. "I don't trust that David won't try to hurt you again."
"I'll be fine. I don't want you to worry about me when you leave," she explained. "I can take care of myself, you know." She sighed. "I hate to see you so worried. Just because you're leaving doesn't mean that this will happen again."
"Ya know I'm coming back, right?" Michaela's eyes went wide.
"You are?" she asked. "Why? I mean…you're going to live out in Colorado…"
"Only when Welland Smith needs me. I'll be back to visit so much that you'll be sick of me." Michaela grinned and shook her head. She could never be sick of him!
"Why would you want to come back here, Sully? This place hasn't exactly been wonderful to you." Sully smiled a little. God, he could have told her right then and there. Instead, he picked her hand up gingerly into his and brought it to his lips. He placed a soft, lingering kiss there, and Michaela felt her skin grow warm from that spot all the way up to her blushing cheeks. She quickly reached for her champagne glass with her free hand and took a sip as Sully released her. A sweet tune began to fill the air, and men and women filled the dance floor. Michaela smiled at Sully and swallowed the rest of her champagne. "Would you like to dance?" Sully looked out at the floor.
"I ain't much of a dancer," he replied.
"I'm sure you're a very good dancer," Michaela replied. Sully shook his head, but he couldn't resist that beautiful smile. She stood up and reached for his hand. She gave it a little tug, and he finally wiped his mouth, put down his napkin and stood up.
"All right, all right," he said with hesitancy in his voice. Michaela grinned, and Sully led her out to the dance floor. One arm encircled her waist, pulling her close, close enough to feel her chest rising and falling against his. Michaela's breath caught in her throat as she slipped her hand inside of his. They began to dance, and though Sully was a bit clumsy, he was a fast learner.
They danced and held one another close until their feet ached and their hearts were light. They danced until they could barely stand anymore, and then they walked home together, arm-in-arm, temporarily forgetting about the day's events and Sully's upcoming departure.