The morning passed slowly. Kim checked on Jane, but the girl still refused to talk. And Marcus said she would be released soon, so there was little Kim could do but hope the girl used the phone number on Kim's card or checked into one of the shelters Kim had recommended.
Needing a distraction, Kim headed down to the immunology lab. She had barely talked to Kayla since she had returned from her weekend with Steve. In some ways, Kim wanted to forget what Steve had said about the ISA mission. It did not change her anger toward the ISA; she had been furious with Tarrington since Shane's arrest. And she hated feeling that Shane had been duped. If she could forget what Steve had said, she could forget that her family had been pawns in the ISA's game.
Maybe Kayla would have something that helped, though Kim actually doubted Kayla had any other information or would change Kim's view of things. At the very least, it would be nice to talk to her sister.
Unfortunately, Carly said that Kayla had left with Steve for some type of appointment, so Kim made a mental note to check to see if everything was all right, and then headed back to the clinic. She had just reached her floor when she ran into her mother.
"Mama, what are you doing here?" she asked after they had hugged.
Caroline motioned to the other side of the floor. "Mrs. Steinway fell and broke her hip, so I came by to visit."
"That was nice of you," Kim said. Oddly, despite her need for a distraction, she could not think of much to say. "How's Papa?"
"Oh, Shawn's fine. He's handling the store." Caroline paused, and her eyes narrowed. "Kimmie, is everything okay? You look tired."
Kim sighed. She had been having difficulty sleeping, but did not want to reveal that to her mother. "It's nothing. Just been a hard day."
"It's not Shane, is it? I mean, he's home and recovering okay, isn't he?"
"I think so," Kim said. Realizing that sounded awkward, she quickly added, "He was getting ready for physical therapy when I left." She hoped that would stop Caroline from pressing the issue.
It did not work. Caroline took Kim's arm and pulled her to the door of the clinic. "I think we should talk." Once they were inside and the door was closed, Caroline asked, "Do you want to tell me what's going on?"
Kim turned toward one of the shelves filled with stuffed animals and picked up a plush monkey. "It's nothing, Mama. I had a patient who doesn't want help. . . ."
"Is that all to it?" Caroline asked.
"Yes," Kim said, her voice rising.
Caroline paused. "And that's why you're turning that doll into a pretzel?"
Kim looked down and realized that she had spun and shoved the monkey into a thin, twisted knot.
"You know." Caroline kind of laughed. "Your father does that when he's nervous or frustrated, and it's not because of a patient. It's about you and Shane, isn't it?"
"Why don't you believe me?" Kim snapped.
Caroline smiled softly. "Because only Shane can get you worked up like this. And you've seen and done too much counseling to have a patient get to you. Please, Kimmie, let me help you. You've always been able to confide in me."
Not always for the better, Kim thought, thinking about how she had kept secret about what happened with Victor at Caroline's urging. Funny that the situations now felt similar. Kim took a deep breath.
"It's about Cal - what happened when he held us captive."
Caroline's eyes narrowed. "Did Cal rape you?"
"No," Kim said quickly. "He didn't try to force me."
The look on Caroline's face switched to shock. Wide-eyed, but keeping a low voice, she asked, "Did you . . . I mean . . . Did you sleep with Cal?"
Kim shook her head vigorously. "No." But I would have. That was the crux of it, wasn't it? She stopped shaking her head and looked back down at the monkey, which was still a knot in her hands. "I said I would - if he didn't hurt Kayla. I . . . I even said I'd leave Salem with him. And I would have if it came to that."
"But it never did," Caroline said. "It was all in your head."
"I told him that." Kim set the monkey on a counter. "I would have been Cal's forever, and it would have happened if Shane and Steve didn't show up when they did."
Caroline stepped closer to Kim. "Who cares about what you would have done? It never happened, so you can't feel guilty about it."
"I don't think Shane will feel the same way," Kim said. "It'll dredge up my past again."
"Then don't tell him," Caroline replied. "Nothing happened, so why would you have to tell him?"
Kim turned and walked away. "I don't know, Mama. You know what secrets have done to me and Shane."
"This isn't like Victor," Caroline said. "Or with Jeannie. Nothing happened, so there's no way what happened with Cal could affect your relationship with Shane."
Kim harrumphed. "My relationship with Shane. It's not much of a relationship."
"But why?" Caroline asked. "You want to be with Shane. We all know it."
Of course, Kim did, but she doubted her mother would understand the fear of being pushed away. "Mama . . . it's not that easy, okay? I don't know if it's what I want anymore."
"That's crazy." Caroline grasped Kim's arm and spun her around. "You'll be miserable without him. And what about the kids? They deserve to have a whole family." Seeing the look in Kim's eye, Caroline said, "Okay . . . maybe that wasn't fair. But I want you to be happy, Kimmie, and you haven't been happy since before you went to Los Angeles. So how is that better?"
Caroline had a point, Kim had to admit. "I just don't know. I have to figure it out for myself."
"But you're not going to figure it out when you're always at work and Shane's at the house," Caroline pointed out. "Hey . . . why don't you go home right now and have lunch with Shane? He's probably bored being all cooped up like that."
"He's probably sleeping," Kim said. She had seen how much physical therapy took out of Shane. Usually, the therapist and Simmons had to help Shane upstairs after his session.
Caroline smiled. "Then you can bring him lunch in bed. Just spend some time with him. I'm sure he'd appreciate some company. And how hard could lunch be?"
"I guess. . . ." Kim had to concede another point. How hard could lunch be? "Okay, Mama, you persuaded me." She went over to her desk, pulled out her purse, and headed for the door. Just lunch, she repeated to herself. It doesn't mean anything more.
Soon after, Kim pulled up in front of the stately mansion, but she stopped the car short when she saw the other car parked in front. It was Roman's car. That means he and Marlena must be back. Grinning crazily, she parked her car and raced into the house. She spotted her brother and sister-in-law almost immediately.
"You're home," Kim said excitedly.
"Hey, Sis." Roman stepped forward, but frowned momentarily before he gave her a hug.
As Kim hugged Marlena, she realized they were both tense. Kim turned back to Roman. "What's wrong?" she asked. "Did something go wrong in Mexico?"
"Nope, nothing went wrong."
Kim's eyes went wide as she heard a man's voice from behind her. She spun around and slapped her hand over her mouth in shock. Her legs wobbled as she stared, gaping, at the man in the doorway.
He smiled and said, "Hey, Sis."