So here we are again. Remember, Pony is hurrying back to Linleigh's house after it occurred to him that someone was hiding in the closet, listening…
Disclaimer: S.E. Hinton owns The Outsiders. Too bad she doesn't own the movie, or she could get us that darn extended DVD already! (sorry)
Dedication: For Alli, Keira, and Tens, who gladly read anything I send them (goes both ways!), and for all my readers and reviewers. Scary thing going on with me right now, it is such a help to be able to retreat to a world where I control the outcome. You're all my motivation!
Moving on…
Pony's POV
I raced back to the house in half the time it had taken me to get to the point where I'd turned around. There were sirens howling off in the distance, but I didn't wait.
I jumped out of the car, probably didn't even close the door, I don't remember now, threw open the front gate, went up the steps, through the unlocked front door, and took the inside stairs three at a time, holding the handrails on either side of me like a mountain climber.
I could hear them as soon as I'd come through the front door.
"Don't yell at me, I told the little brat what to say!" Lisa was screaming.
"Well maybe she needs ME to teach her another lesson!" shouted a male voice, and I heard a loud slap and a crash.
I'd made it halfway up to the bedroom, where Lisa was standing in the doorway watching what was going on within. From inside the room I could hear Linleigh's quiet voice repeating over and over, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry…"
"You won't be sorry enough until I'm done with you," he snarled angrily.
Two more steps, one more step…I thrust Lisa out of my way and turned into the bedroom. He was standing next to the bed gripping a handful of Lin's hair in his fist while she dangled next to him, eyes shut tight and too afraid to put her feet down to take the weight off. A purple bruise was already rising on her cheek, and her arm was wrapped around her side.
I hadn't stopped moving, and he didn't see me coming. I didn't hear Lisa screaming behind me, didn't see where Linleigh had escaped to, didn't even notice the cops until two of them had me by the arms and were pulling me away from him. All I saw was the man who represented the bearer of the pain all of them had gone through – Linleigh, Vic, Johnny, Dally, Steve…and I didn't stop pounding on him until those cops pulled me away.
"Curtis. Curtis!" I blinked and took a few long, deep breaths. Officer Franks was holding the front of my shirt, forcing me to make eye contact. "We got him. Okay? We got him." Another cop was handcuffing the boyfriend, who peered fearfully at me through his one unswollen eye as blood dripped from his nose and mouth.
I closed my eyes and took one last calming breath. As I felt myself relax, as the raw fury drained away, Officer Franks nodded at the men who were still holding me, and they let go.
"No, no, no!" The panicked voice in the corner caught my attention and brought my mind rushing back to my true purpose.
"Stop," I said sharply. A fourth police officer was crouched in the corner on the other side of the bed, trying to coax Linleigh out. He was a young guy, probably younger than me, and he looked up when I spoke.
"I'll take care of it," I told him, softening my voice. "Thanks."
He stood up, and I took his place. Linleigh was curled up in the corner hugging her knees, eyes wide and fearful. I could imagine my entrance and behavior had taken her by surprise, and the sudden influx of uniformed men of authority had her looking like a trapped animal.
"Lin? It's okay, honey. It's me. Pony." I extended my arm. Her expression wilted slightly, and she let out a small sigh, then moved toward me and wrapped her arms around my neck tightly. I stood up and carried her out of the room, down the steps, and out of the house that she would never have to live in again.
"Mr. Curtis!" Officer Franks had followed me out the front door. "One of my boys will take you over to the hospital." One of the officers was right behind Franks; he hurried past me to open the door of one of the patrol cars. I slid in with Linleigh still hanging on to my neck. She didn't cry, didn't speak, didn't make a sound or a movement that wasn't involved with either breathing or swallowing.
I talked to her on the way to the hospital. She didn't need to be traumatized by a completely new set of surroundings and people, I could at least give her a heads up on what to expect. "We're going to the hospital now. The doctors and nurses there are very nice people. They'll take care of you. You can help them out by letting them take a look at you to see what they need to fix." I tried to keep my explanations positive and simple without making her feel like I was patronizing her.
While I talked, Officer Mead radioed ahead to let the emergency room know that we were on our way. We got there in a little over five minutes. The cop pulled right up to the E.R. entrance and jumped out to open my door. I slid out carefully and followed him through the automatic doors.
Two nurses met us right inside the doorway with a bed. "You can put her right here," one of them told me, patting the bed. I tried to set Lin onto the bed, but she wouldn't have it. I was her lifeline, and she wasn't letting go of me for anything or anyone. The nurse shook her head and waved me to follow her.
We entered a small room with another bed. I sat down on the edge of it.
"Linleigh? My name is Nurse Margaret. The doctor is going to come in and take a look at you. Can we put a gown on you? Look, it has lots of colors on it." Lin didn't respond, just held me tightly and pressed her face a little more firmly into my neck.
"Lin," I tried, "can you let go of me for just a minute? They just need to put the gown on you." Nothing.
I looked pleadingly at the nurse. "Does she have to let go?"
"We'll see what we can do. Linleigh honey? I'm going to take off some of your clothes so we can put the gown on and the doctor can see where you got hurt. Alright?" She carefully started removing Lin's pants, unbuttoning her shirt. Lin tensed.
"I'm closing my eyes," I whispered in her ear; I felt a subtle nod, and she relaxed a little. I remember that part of being ten. Specifically, I remember the embarrassing predicament I had put myself in at that age – thinking no one was around, taking my clothes off to look at myself in the bedroom mirror, searching for muscles, looking for new signs that I was catching up with Soda and Darry, wondering if everything was big enough – and then realizing in horror that my sixteen-year-old brother had walked in on me and was watching with amusement. You forget how small and vulnerable you can feel when you're ten, and what a strong sense of modesty you've got.
When it came to getting her shirt off and the gown on, Linleigh gave in enough to let go of me with one arm at a time. A minute later, the nurse was finished.
"Can I open my eyes now?" I asked Lin, giving the control to her instead of assuming it myself. She nodded slightly.
"Linleigh? I have an ice pack here. You can put it on the bruise on your face, it might help it feel better." Nurse Margaret looked to me, so I took the ice pack and nodded.
The nurse left, and it was just the two of us. I stroked Lin's hair silently, and after a few minutes she relaxed enough that she had slid down a bit, so her head was resting on my shoulder and she could see around the room. Her grip loosened until her arms were draped around my shoulders instead of clinging desperately to my neck. I handed her the ice pack, which she held tentatively against her sore face.
After about ten minutes of waiting for the doctor, Linleigh started shifting around. I didn't really even notice at first, but it was becoming obvious that something was going on.
"Linleigh, is something wrong?" I asked.
She stretched herself up close to my ear. "I need to go to the bathroom," she confided.
"Oh, okay. We can find a bathroom." Lin allowed me at last to put her down. She walked unsteadily beside me out of the room in her gown and socks. I stopped a nurse, who pointed out the bathroom.
"I'll wait right out here for you," I assured Lin as she closed the door. The emergency room was packed. Another ambulance had just arrived, and doctors and nurses were bustling around like bees in a hive.
It hit me then that I should call Melissa and let her know where I was. It was getting late, she would be expecting me home soon. I stepped over to the nurse's station, where one of them handed up a phone and dialed for me. I gave Melissa the details and got back to the bathroom door. It opened about two seconds later.
Linleigh looked pale and shaky, worse than she had when she'd gone in. "What's wrong?" I questioned. She didn't answer, just pointed behind her. I stepped into the bathroom and peered into the toilet; the water was tinged pink.
"Nurse!" I called, trying for Lin's sake to not sound worried.
One of the nurses who had been on her way into a room stopped and came back when I called. She looked into the toilet, then turned to me. "I'll have one of the doctors check her out right away," she assured me.
"Come on, Lin, let's get back into the room." She followed a step or two behind me. Once we were in the room I helped her up onto the bed. She sat quietly, legs dangling, absently twisting my wedding ring on my finger.
The doctor showed up a minute later. He was young and had the superior air of someone who's been at their job just long enough to feel like they are head and shoulders above everyone around them. I disliked him immediately. Nurse Margaret followed him in.
"Lay down on the table, now. Where does it hurt?" As he spoke, the doctor took Lin by the arm and nearly forced her to lie down on the table.
"This is Linleigh," I cut in, annoyed that he hadn't even introduced himself.
He glanced over at me. "Are you the social worker?" he asked.
"Yes," I answered sharply.
"Were you present when the beating occurred?" he asked, as if Lin wasn't laying right there in front of him listening to every word.
"No, I wasn't there when the beating occurred." Was he serious? "If I had been there, it wouldn't have happened." A pang of guilt shot through me. If I hadn't questioned her about the boyfriend, it wouldn't have happened.
The nameless doctor turned back to Linleigh. "I need to determine where the blood is originating," he told her, and I saw the panic rise in her eyes at the word 'blood.' He sat Lin back up like a rag doll, untied her gown, and slid it off to her waist. Lin flinched at his probing hands as her face reddened from the unexpected exposure. I wanted to strangle him, but at the same time I didn't want to scare Linleigh.
The doctor began spouting off observations, which the nurse jotted down on Lin's chart. "Bruises to the ribs, bruising indicating blunt trauma to the left kidney…" he went on.
I was getting my first look at the brutality she had endured in the short time it had taken me to leave the house and get back again. Aside from the bruise on her cheek and the swollen lip, her back and her left side were covered with deep purple bruises. She looked for all the world like she'd just been in a street fight.
"…shame these kids don't have the sense to tell someone when this kind of abuse is going on," the doctor was saying as he poked and prodded at Linleigh. He pulled on her arm a bit. "Lay down," he told her impatiently when she didn't move. "I mean, it would make life a lot easier for us if they didn't have to keep coming in here to get treated, though I'm sure in your position you feel the same way," he continued knowingly as he proceeded to pull Lin's gown the rest of the way off, leaving her lying completely naked on the bed. She turned her head away from me, tears welling up, as the doctor coldly analyzed the bruises on her hips and thighs.
I had reached the end of my rope. I grabbed my jacket off the chair and threw it over Lin. "Get out," I told the doctor.
He looked at me, startled. "Mr. Curtis, this is my patient. If you don't…"
"Get out," I repeated more forcefully. I turned to Nurse Margaret. "Is Dr. White here?"
She nodded, glaring arrows at the young doctor from behind. "I'll be right back with him."
The nameless tactless doctor turned and left the room in a huff. I turned to Lin, who was trying to sink as far into the bed as she could without going straight through to the floor.
"Lin, that guy is an idiot. Don't believe anything he said." I knew she trusted me, but his words and actions had stung her to the core. He had made her feel like trash, brainless insignificant white trash. I pulled the blanket up over her, then reached down and held her hand.
"Mr. Curtis?"
I turned to the familiar voice. "Thanks for coming, Dr. White. I was having a problem with the other guy." The look on his face made me think he had some idea what I was talking about.
"I apologize for that. Well now, who do we have here?" he asked pleasantly. He picked up Linleigh's chart and scanned over it. "Linleigh, my name is Dr. White, or you can call me Dr. Jeff. It looks like we'll have to do an IVP," he told Lin, and I was glad he didn't talk over her to me. "That means that we're going to take a picture of your insides, so we know why the water was a little pink when you went to the bathroom. The only thing you'll feel will be a little pinch from the needle. We need to put something into your body that we can find on the pictures. Is that okay?"
Lin nodded wordlessly, though she was eyeing this new doctor with fear and distrust.
"Good, good. Nurse Margaret will help you get back into your gown. Is it okay if I borrow…" he looked up at me.
"Pony," I told him.
"If I borrow Pony for a few minutes?" he asked.
Lin looked to me fearfully.
I reached into my pocket and pulled out my car keys. "Can you hold these for me while I'm gone?" I asked. Lin nodded and took the keys, holding them in her fist as if her life depended on it. They were her tangible guarantee that I would come back.
I followed Dr. White out of the room. "We're going to need to look at her kidneys, as I suspect that's where the blood is coming from," he explained. "I'm ordering an intravenous pyelogram. Dye will be injected into Linleigh's blood to be used as a tracer for the x-ray. We should be able to tell the extent of the damage from that."
"What happens after that?" I was still feeling shaky from seeing blood in the toilet, and was envisioning surgery.
"There's a good chance it will heal on its own if there hasn't been too much damage." Dr. White patted me on the shoulder. "I think she'll be fine in the end, physically. I'll have the nurse bring in some pain medication, it looks like Linleigh could use some."
"Thanks, Dr. White."
"Mr. Curtis." I turned to see Officer Franks heading toward me. "A detective should be here within the hour to ask Linleigh some questions. Is she doing alright?"
I filled him in on the details, finishing just as another hospital person entered Lin's room. "Look, I need to get back in there now," I told Franks. "Thanks again for the backup."
He smiled and patted my arm. "Any time, kid. Any time."
When I got back into the room the nurse and the person who turned out to be from x-ray were preparing Linleigh, inserting an IV needle and explaining the procedure. She was still clutching my keys tightly. Lin looked nervous, but she had relaxed considerably since we had arrived.
"Mr. Curtis, will you be coming along, or waiting here?" Nurse Margaret asked me when it was time to head over to x-ray.
Lin gave me a pleading look, which she really hadn't needed to do. "I'll come along," I said. I walked alongside the bed as they wheeled it through the hallways, around corners, and finally to a small waiting area marked "x-ray."
Everything went smoothly, and within twenty minutes we were on our way back to the E.R.
"Pony!"
"Hey Liss, what are you doing here?" Melissa and Vic were waiting for us in Linleigh's room.
"We thought maybe you'd be hungry." She held up a bag from a fast-food place.
"How'd you get here?" It suddenly occurred to me that I had left our car in front of Lin's aunt's house. The nurse situated Linleigh's bed and locked the wheels before leaving.
"Officer Franks sent one of his patrol cars over to pick us up. He drove us to the car, and here we are." She looked a little pale and tired. Vic was shifting around, bored.
"Guys, this is Linleigh. Lin, this is my wife, Melissa, and Vic, our foster son." Lin smiled faintly. The pain medication was working, both in reducing the pain and in helping her to relax.
"Are you hungry, honey?" Liss asked, moving to stand next to the bed. "I've got a cheeseburger and some fries in here," she added temptingly.
Lin nodded, so Liss pulled out the food. "Vic, here's yours, and Pony, we got you one of those bigger sandwiches, whatever they're called…" She can't keep a thought in her head for more than five seconds since she got pregnant.
"How about you?" I was worried that she wasn't eating enough, as sick as she was feeling.
"I've got some crackers, and I think I can handle some of the fries. Anyone want to share?" Vic and Lin both held their fries over.
We all just sat and ate for a few minutes. Linleigh was looking like she hadn't eaten in days, which sadly enough was probably not far from the truth. I hadn't even thought to get her some food, I was so concerned about her injuries.
"So what happened to you?" Vic asked out of the blue, indicating Lin's face.
I was about to make a comment to him about being rude, but Lin didn't seem to be fazed by it. "My aunt's boyfriend," she said simply.
Vic nodded understandingly. "Me, it was my dad," he explained around the French fry in his mouth. I was stunned. He had never said anything to any of us about his father's beatings.
They both continued eating like they had just been musing over the weather. Melissa looked a little ill, and I don't think it was from being pregnant.
"Mr. Curtis? Can I see you for a moment?" Dr. White had come through the open door and peered around the pulled curtain.
I stood up to follow him out of the room, Melissa right on my heels. He led us to an empty room and put a couple of x-rays up on the lighted board. "This is the dye, here. You can see where the problem is, in her left kidney. As I suspected, though, there isn't significant damage. She'll need to stay in the hospital for a few days, until her urine is clear, then it'll take another several days of rest before she can resume normal activity."
I breathed a sigh of relief. Melissa looked horrified. "How could someone do this to a little girl?" she asked, looking to me. I didn't have an answer. "How do you do this," she nearly whispered. "How do you see this kind of thing every day and not go crazy?"
"I don't know, Liss," I said truthfully. "Maybe I will someday. But for now, some of them need me to be the sane person in their life." It was the only thing I could think to say. My wife put her arm around me and sighed deeply, rubbing her abdomen. I leaned down and kissed her head. I guess we were both thinking of the baby growing inside of her. It wasn't even born yet, and I already couldn't stand the thought of it getting hurt.
"Do you know where the bathroom is?" Melissa asked after a few minutes.
"Yeah, out here." I led her to the bathroom, then went back to Lin's room. As I approached the open door I could hear Vic and Linleigh talking. I eased up to the door quietly. I don't like to eavesdrop, but the way Vic clams up, especially recently, I'll take a peek into his heart and soul whatever way I can.
"Do you like living there?" Lin was asking.
"I guess so. They're nice enough," Vic answered. They were both silent for a minute, and I almost walked in.
"You know, Pony saved me."
My breath caught in my throat. I wanted to laugh and cry, dance in the hallway and do cartwheels down the stairs. But I stayed where I was for another minute, listening.
"Yeah. He saved me, too," Lin answered.
Melissa's POV
On Tuesday night Pony, Vic, and I took dinner over to the hospital and sat with Linleigh until visiting hours were over. She was loosening up a bit around me and Vic. Pony was the only one she truly trusted. Her eyes just lit up when she saw him. It gave me a new respect for the guy I had married. That he could see the kind of pain he saw every day and keep coming home and finding beauty in the simple things was beyond me. But then, we grew up in different worlds. He knew how to handle pain. It was new for me.
"Vic, have you seen my purse?" I called down the hallway. I swear, this baby is stealing my brain cells, one by one. I can't remember anything these days.
Vic poked his head out of his bedroom and gave me a strange look. "Isn't that it, hanging from your shoulder?"
I looked down. Yep, there it was. I gave him a sheepish grin, and he tried not to laugh at me. "Thanks. Good thing my head is attached, as they say. Are you ready to leave?"
"In a minute. I just need to grab a few things."
"Don't hurry," I told him. "I'll give Soda a call now, so he won't be here for at least five minutes." Vic and I had had a half-day at school, so we were going over to the hospital to keep Lin company for the afternoon. It was so awful that she had no family members to visit her. I called Soda's garage to let him know we were ready to be picked up.
Vic came out of his room. "Sandwiches?" he reminded.
"Right. Can you grab the bag? It's on the counter."
I shuffled around on the hall table, then through my purse. Vic returned with the bag of lunch. I looked questioningly at him.
"Sunglasses?" he ventured a guess.
"Yeah…"
He pointed to my head. I reached up to find them resting over my hair. "Thanks."
Soda arrived a few minutes later to pick us up, and within ten minutes we were at the hospital.
As we walked through the hallways on our way up to pediatrics I wondered what was in the box that Soda was carrying.
"What's in the box?" Vic asked, echoing my thought.
Soda grinned at him. "Something for the lady," he answered mysteriously.
"What is it, a carburetor?" Vic persisted. "You're not gonna start asking her to help you fix cars already, are you?"
Soda and I laughed. I wish Vic would let his guard down more often. He can usually make me laugh, or at least smile, when he does. I just don't get it. Pony told me what Vic had said to Linleigh in the emergency room on Monday night. We knew he liked us, but that wasn't what he indicated openly, especially recently. He was helpful and polite, but treated us like complete strangers.
Linleigh looked up and smiled when Vic and I entered the room. I noticed she was looking a little drowsy, but they had her on some fairly strong pain medication. If nothing else, she had gotten a lot of sleep the last couple of days.
Soda came in behind us, and Lin tensed up a little when she spotted him. But he grinned widely at her, and I think she saw the resemblance to Pony, because she relaxed.
"Hi beautiful," Soda greeted, "I'm Sodapop, Pony's brother." He approached the bed and sat on the edge. "I heard you need a nighttime buddy to keep you company here." With that, he placed the box on the bed next to her. The nurses had told us that they would come in throughout the night to find Lin sobbing inconsolably and unable to sleep. The doctor had given her a sedative halfway through the second night. She was fine during the day, but the nights were bad.
Lin looked to me, then pulled the lid off the box when I smiled and nodded approval. She pulled out a beautiful brown teddy bear, dressed in a pink gown with a real red rose tied to its arm. I admit, I got a little teary. I don't know if it's the hormones, or what, but I've been very emotional lately.
Vic sighed deeply and rolled his eyes.
"What's your problem?" Soda asked good-naturedly, turning to face Vic.
"You just think you're so slick with women," Vic observed.
"Oh yeah? And I suppose you know exactly how to talk to women," Soda prodded.
"Yeah, I know exactly how," Vic said. "You were there at the movie for my birthday, it's easy." Lowering his voice about ten octaves, Vic belted out, "Yo Adrienne!" in what I found to be an excellent imitation of Sylvester Stallone.
Grinning, Soda nodded appreciatively. "You got the line down, Rocky. Now you just need the bod."
Vic shook his head at the insult, looking to Linleigh and smiling. She sat on the bed giggling wildly at him, and holding on to that teddy bear for dear life.
So that's it for now. Here's a survey: anyone think I should make a one-shot out of Pony's little flashback of being ten years old? I could add it to The Chaperone as unconnected, just some short views on different things that happened to the family over the years. Just say the word!
Thanks for reading! Now for my reviewers:
kiki-kirara: Thanks! Soda is a tough one to write, so I'm glad you liked how I portrayed him. He and Melanie will be in the next chapter too, along with most of the rest of the gang. Hope you enjoyed!
myhubbyisob: Glad you enjoyed! Hope I updated soon enough!
Tsuppi: Thanks, glad you enjoyed and saw everyone as realistic. Thanks for the comments, too. I had considered splitting the last one into two chapters, since the only thing I wanted to cover from the day after the hospital was Soda's encounter with Melanie, but since I had it all written I figured I might as well post it all together. Hope you enjoyed chapter 7!
darkdestiney2000: Thanks, glad you're enjoying! Hope you were happy with the outcome for Linleigh!
Rock: Don't worry about not reviewing each chapter – when I jump in on something a few chapters in I tend to leave an "overall" review. That was an awesome review, by the way, thanks! Glad I was able to keep you teetering on the right side of insanity. Thanks again, and I'll be listening for that shout of joy when I post this!
Tensleep: Yeah, you're a great teacher! Glad you enjoyed, and I'm happy to hear that Pony's sudden realization came through so realistically. Thanks for the compliments, I love that! I rock! Hehehe. By the way, if you're ever in a bind, I've got a great cookie recipe, they're the only ones I ever make!
Reviewer: Thanks, hope you enjoyed the update!
caillion: Yeah, evil, it's my middle name (haha!). Glad it's all coming across as realistic. Based on most of the men I know, there wouldn't be too many kids in the world! They make great dads though, so I guess Mom Nature knows what she's doing.
Keira: I'm so glad you liked how I wrote Soda! I'll try and put a little of all of us into Melanie, so we all get a chance at him! Vic is one of my favorites to write. Sorry, didn't mean to make anyone cry, though I guess that's good if I'm drawing out emotions. Sometimes I make myself cry, is that just odd? Yeah, I got Allison's review and emails, thanks! You guys are awesome, I totally love writing for you!
mrs sodapop curtis: Glad you enjoyed!
screaming666: THANKS! Hope you liked how it all turned out so far!
ktk2005: Thank you! No cliffhanger on this one, but a little foreshadowing. Hope you enjoyed!
Ale Curtis-Carter: Yeah, I know, we all love/hate cliffhangers. Thanks! Hope you enjoyed!
Scarlett7: Hehehe…the one time that having more to read is not a good thing! Hope you enjoyed!
kaz456: Thanks for the review, hope you enjoyed!
Chronic Sarcasm: Thanks, I'm glad you're enjoying the story! Yeah, that morning sickness is a bitch. Lasts all day and you find yourself eating sardines on crackers at two in the afternoon. I think Melanie needs some new friends, eh? Hope you enjoyed!
