A Touch of Dawn - Chapter 2 & 3 by Erica Sutherhome
posted by Adam Scull
February 27, 2014
Chapter
2
Jack sat in a plastic chair out in
the hallway. He pulled on the ends of
his hair and covered his face, sighing.
He had already received the news from the doctor, and it was just what
he’d expected. But, it never got easy,
hearing it. It was still as fresh as his
first case. According to the doctor, she
had been raped far too many times to count and they had to stitch her where her
soft, feminine skin was torn. He
shuddered with that reality. She wasn’t
pregnant or disease-ridden, and that was a wonder. But, sometimes in these situations, the human
body could fight an invasion on that level.
They had given her antibiotics, some
pain medicine, extra vitamins for strength and some sleeping pills, but nothing
more. Guess there wasn’t a cure-for-all
for the worse trauma imaginable.
The
one thing he had found unbearable, though, was her tears. He had heard her crying hysterically in the
room several times. It wasn’t the result
of what had happened to her, though in a way it was the reason for it. Her circumstances hadn’t hit her fully yet. No, it was the shame of feeling human touch,
however kind it was, a humiliation she could not bear for a long time. He knew this from experience. Touch was equated with an invasion, with
terrible cruelty, a reminder of that worthlessness, and until she saw otherwise,
it was going to be rough for her.
The door opened and he got to his
feet, suspecting it was one of the staff.
Maybe he could wring more news from them. Sometimes he felt so powerless as a
consultant.
But,
Caitlyn came out then, the nurse behind her, and he saw her clearly for the
first time. Caitlyn’s hair was still damp
from the shower and the hospital had lent her a pair of blue scrubs, a robe and
some house slippers. He sucked in a
breath.
She
was striking with pale skin, large, luminous brown eyes and straight brown
hair. She had dark circles under her
eyes, but that was to be expected. It
was her that he couldn’t get over. He
wasn’t supposed to notice it, but she was beautiful. It was a damn shame that her innocence had
been taken so swiftly. Even as an adult,
a person could be so violated that they were never the same again.
Curiosity was in her eyes as she
stared at him. “Are you Jack?”
He nodded. For one, he still wore the uniform he wore on
rescues to make people more comfortable.
“Sorry you couldn’t see me clearly until now.”
She shook her head. “It could not be helped.” Her eyes closed and she lifted a hand to her
temple.
“The lights again?”
“Yes.”
“They’re worse inside the hospital
than out. Once we get in the car, you’ll
feel better. I mean, if you want me to
take you home. I could just as easily
have a uniform take you.”
She shrugged. “The current arrangement is fine.”
Jack slowly made his way over to
her, then drew her to his side until her face was pressed against him. “I can get you out now, if you’re ready.”
“Yes. Thank you,” came her small voice. He heard pain and weariness there, which made
his throat tighten.
A doctor saw him and headed in his
direction. Jack waved him off. “Please.
I’ll take care of everything later.”
With a nod and a grim look, the
doctor turned away.
He tightened his arm around
Caitlyn’s back and led her down the hall to the emergency doors. “Easy,” he said as she tried to navigate the
steps without her vision.
“It’s strange, this. I haven’t walked around much for awhile. I mean, I did a little in that cellar. But, not much.”
A long breath came out of him. “Did they feed you?”
She shrugged. “Some.
Not much.”
“You’ve lost weight then.”
“I don’t know. I…”
She shuddered. “I’m not sure I
want to look in a mirror right now.”
“I’ll be your mirror, if you like.”
She laughed a little. “Do I look as
terrible as I feel?”
“No, Sweetheart. Other than the fact
that you’re obviously tired and you’ve been through something awful, you look
okay. You were patched up down there, I
assume. But, from what I can tell, most
of the scars are on the inside.”
She pressed her face into his jacket
and he wondered if she was trying to stifle the urge to cry.
He spotted his car, then led her
straight out to it. He urged her into
the vehicle, then closed the door behind her.
He got into the driver’s side, reached over and clicked her seatbelt
into place. He did the same for
himself. Then he shut his door and
turned the car on. He waited until
they’d left the parking lot before he spoke. “Okay. I think you can open your
eyes now.”
Chapter
3
Caitlyn could see the town a little
in the darkness. There were streetlights here and there, but they didn’t hurt
her. It was so odd to see things
now. It was pretty routine what he was
doing, she could tell that clearly enough. But, it meant more than she knew how
to express. He had taken her out of that
dark place. He had removed her from the situation. Now, she would have to deal with life
again.
Oh, God. The idea of it was so daunting. Life.
Real life. Not being in a cellar,
kept for someone’s needs. Doing something for herself instead. How was she
supposed to do that?
“Where are we going?” she asked
Jack.
He seemed to hesitate. “Your apartment was vacated long ago. Supposedly, the landlord would not
cooperate. I thought of taking you to
your mother’s. Is that all right? We could get you a hotel room instead, if
you’d prefer that. If it would make you
feel better, I could have an officer placed outside the door for security.”
She shuddered. There was one thing she knew
instinctively. She should not be left to
her own devices. After what she’d been
through, her grip on herself was tenuous.
She had struggled to stay sane in the cellar. But, if she had the opportunity, she might
try to kill herself. Part of her wanted
the release from life. And part of her
was terrified of dying. “I should
probably go home.” Home. Wasn’t that a strange word?
He nodded. “Okay.
We can do that. I already called
your mother after we found you. So she’s
expecting you. She would have gone to
the hospital, of course, but I told her you should be treated before you had
visitors.”
Her stomach clenched a little. So her mother knew she was coming. What would
the woman expect of her? How could she
possibly live a normal life?
She glanced over at Jack. He had an olive tone to his skin. He had dark hair and blue eyes. His face was a bit scruffy as if he hadn’t shaved
in a couple of days. It made him more
attractive. Mysterious. But, really, what did it matter what the man
looked like? She had too many issues to
worry about her reaction to him. She had
been raped. How in the world was she
supposed to deal with that, and somehow move on?
“How far away is she from here?” she
managed, trying to give her mind a distraction.
“A good twenty minutes.”
“Oh.
Okay.” She sighed. “How long has it been? I mean…how long was I gone?”
He sucked in a breath. “Three months.”
Was that all? It was unfathomable. She shook her head. She couldn’t wrap her mind around that
information. “How was I found?”
“Your case was never dropped, though
the officer in charge was afraid the trail was cold. The police knew who had taken you, just
didn’t know their location.” He sighed. “One day, a random citizen called in claiming
to see one of the men that had been on television. We had put out a bulletin to see if anyone
would find you.”
She had been on TV? That was strange. “And then what?”
“We looked into it, of course. Traced the receipts to the establishment
they’d seen him in. He was using an
alias though. We eventually found the
house they were using. And here we are.”
She was quiet for a moment. It was a lot to take in. She just couldn’t dwell on it all right
now. She wet her dry lips with her
tongue. “I don’t remember my
family. My life. I only remember fragments from the past. But, nothing informative.”
“I know. It will come back to you.”
She nodded, then bit her lip, aware
that ever since she’d been rescued, the tears were closer to the surface than ever
before. “Is it always like this? The way it was today?”
“It never gets any easier.”
The strange tone in his voice caused
her to glance at him. She couldn’t
dismiss the brief flash of pain in his eyes.
“I’m sorry.”
He frowned. “What do you have to be sorry for?”
She shrugged. “It must be hard on you, too, is all.”
He didn’t respond to that.
She sighed. “Is this what you specialize in?”
“What?”
“Kidnappings.”
He gave a brief nod. “Yes.”
They were quiet for several more
minutes. Caitlyn was exhausted. She leaned her head back against the seat and
closed her eyes. God, what she wouldn’t
give for oblivion. Her life back. Her memories.
Why couldn’t she remember who she really was?
“Your eyes still hurt?”
She looked at Jack, saw the naked
concern in his eyes. “No. Not in the dark.”
He nodded and grew quiet again.
It was for the best. Caitlyn feared she would be terrible company
besides.
“We’re here.”
Her eyes snapped wide and she
glanced out the window to see a small one story house. The details were fuzzy at night, but it
looked cozy. But really, what did it
matter where she was as long as she was out of that cellar?
“Are you ready?” he asked gently.
“I think so.”
She followed Jack out of the car,
felt better when he put his arm around her as they walked up to the house. The lights were on inside. They stood on the porch for a few
moments. She glanced at Jack. “What will she want from me?”
He shook his head. “You’re her daughter. I think she just wants you safe.”
Caitlyn wanted that to be enough,
but suspected her mother would want her to remember her life. And she couldn’t do that right away. She feared she never could.
All of a sudden, the door opened. She saw a brief swatch of dark blonde hair
before the woman flew at her. She wasn’t
prepared for the embrace or the tears from her mother.
****
Jack frowned. No way was Caitlyn ready for this
reunion. She was barely coming to terms
with what had happened, let alone the fact that she was finally safe. Now she would have to heal. It was hard to do that with her mother’s
emotions overwhelming her. But, he
supposed it would be much worse if she didn’t care about her daughter.
The woman pulled away, tears
streaming down her face. “Oh,
Caitlyn. My baby girl. What did they do to you?” she asked as she
examined her daughter’s appearance.
Jack fielded that question by
clearing his throat.
She blinked. “Oh, I’m sorry, Officer.”
“Actually, it’s just Jack. Jack Thomas.
I’m a consultant with the police.
We spoke on the phone earlier?”
“Oh.
Well, thank you so much for bringing my daughter home.”
“You’re welcome.”
She frowned after a bit. “Is there anything I can do for you, Mr.
Thomas?”
With a glance at Caitlyn, he led the
woman aside. “Kidnappings are very
traumatic on the victims. That is why I
offer my services anytime this happens.”
She crossed her arms over her chest. “What…kind of services?”
“Counseling, anything I can do to
help a victim get back in touch with the world.”
She nodded. “I do appreciate it. But, I’m sure we’ll be fine. I can help my own daughter.”
He frowned. “I’m afraid you can’t. Not alone.
And you’ll see the reason soon enough.
What happened to Caitlyn was terrible, and I'd be amazed if she could
cope with it.”
The woman’s face hardened. “We’ll handle this on our own, as I said.”
He had dealt with overbearing
mothers before. “Sure, but just think
about it.”
“Fine.”
Jack turned back to Caitlyn. “You need anything, you let me know. If you just want to talk, that’s fine. If you think of anything, call me.” He handed her his business card.
Caitlyn managed a small smile. “Thank you, Jack.”
He hated gratitude sometimes,
especially in relation to a kidnapping.
Or a rape. Or both, he thought
with a grimace. “Don’t thank me. I just want to help you if I can. You just get on with the business of living,
okay?”
She nodded.
Mrs. Johnson tugged at Caitlyn’s
arm. “Come on, honey. Let’s go inside.”
“Yes, Mother,” she replied stiffly. And he could clearly see the agony in her
eyes as her mother led her away. He knew
she wasn’t ready for it yet, but he hoped the family home would allow her to
break through into some happy memories.
