Chapter twenty-two
Calling in a Favor
“Where are we?” I whispered, looking out at a grey building as we pulled into the empty parking lot.
Luke didn’t answer and just got out of the car. I opened my door, but when I tried to move my body collapsed. Thankfully, Luke caught me before I hit the pavement.
“Gavin, please,” He gathered me in his arms. “Just let me take care of you.”
I laid my head on his shoulder and gave in to his request. “Fine.” Everything hurt to much to argue, and I didn’t think it was possible for me to walk to wherever he was taking me anyways.
His footsteps where the only sounds as he carried me through a side door and and down a dark hallway to the basement. A light shown through the windows at the end of the wall. As we approached the door, I looked through large panels of glass and jumped in Luke’s arm. What the hell is this place?
A frustrated looking woman dressed in a white coat with her dark brown hair pulled back in a ponytail opened the door for us. “You owe me big time for this,” she snapped.
Luke walked passed her. “Where do you want me to put him?”
“I cleared an examination table over here.” She led the way to a metal table that sat between two other that appeared to be occupied.
“Luke, what the hell is this place?” I whispered, not liking the outlines of white sheets draped over the other tables.
He set me down. “Corner’s office,” he replied, with a shrug. “My sister’s an medical examiner.”
“So those-” I choked on my own words as I gazed from the wall with metal drawers to the covered figures.
“Body,” stated the woman plainly. “ Just finished this guy’s autopsy today.” She patted the form lying next to me. “Poor guy, got shot in the head.”
“I want to go now,” I breathed, grabbed Luke’s hand and moving as far away from her as possible.
Luke grasped my shoulders. “Look. It either her or the hospital. Melissa has a medical degree, so she knows what she’s doing.”
“Let’s take a look then.” Without warning, she pulled the blanket off of me. “Damn,” she stated plenty loud. “I’ve seen student cadavers on their way to be cremated that looked better than this.”
“Luke, I want to go.” I curled up in a ball and did my best to cover myself.
“Melissa,” growled Luke. “He can hear you, you know.”
She rolled her eyes and pulled on a pair of gloves. “And you wonder why I left the ER. Because here, the patients don’t talk back.” Not very gently, she forced me to lay out straight.
I turned my head as her hands ran over my shaking body. She poked and prodded a few areas. I bit my lip, but a few grunts escaped anyways.
“Underweight, malnutrition.” Her eyes ran to the blood coated groin. “Sexual assault. Damn, he might as well be one of my patients. Most come in better condition than this.”
“Luke,” I whimpered, turning away from her.
He eyes his sister. “Melissa. He just got rape thirty minutes ago. Try and be a little more considerate.”
“I’ve never seen the ribcage stick out like that,” she muttered, running her fingertips down my chest. “And his spine.”
I arched my body away from her and felt the tears start to form in my eyes.
“I guess most the people brought down here are slightly bloated usually,” she said with a little humor to her voice.
“Melissa!”
“This is how I work, Luke,” she retorted. “I talk into recorder all day. It’s a habit, so shut up and let me do this.”
We fell silent as Melissa contained her evaluation.
“Do you want me to run a rape kit?” she asked, looking at Luke.
He peered down at me, and I shook my head.
“No that’s okay. He doesn’t like police.”
“Does take a genius to figure that out.” She turned her back to us and walked away. “Bring him over here, and we’ll wash him off.”
Luke scooped up my naked form and carried me over to a table with a spray nozzle attached to the side. He laid me down and Melissa started spraying me off. The water felt like ice on my already raw skin. It burned as she scrubbed the dirt off me.
“It’s cold,” I breathed, my teeth starting to chatter.
“Can you make it hotter?” asked Luke, brushing my hair back from my face.
She stared at him. “He’s the first one to complain about it.”
“Melissa.” He eyed his sister.
“Luke, I’m going to say this one more time. I work with dead body, so I’m sorry if not everything’s accommodates to the living.” She washed me down but stopped before stopping at my private area. “Luke, I think it’s best if you do this.” She sighed. “I rather not traumatize him any more than needs be.”
He nodded and took a wash rag from her as she rolled me onto my side.
“Tilt you head back for me.”
I did as she asked and gasped when the water ran through my hair. Luke was gentle with me but I could hold in a cry when he touch my pucker.
“It’s hurts,” I whimpered, moving my legs away from him.
“Shh…” He kissed my cheek. “It’ll be alright. Okay?”
I nodded.
“It’s still bleeding too.” Melissa finish rinsing me off and took a moment to look at the damage. “He has a laceration along the internal wall. It’s looks like it close to the opening though, so I should be able to stitch it up with no problems.” Walking over to a shelves, she tossed a white sheet at Luke. “Dry him off with that.”
“Please tell me this hasn’t been used,” groaned Luke.
She cocked a hip and glared at him. “So what if it is.”
Luke didn’t respond and just did his best to dry me off before carrying me back to the other table. Melissa had cleaned it off and dragged a cart of surgical tools over.
Luke placed me on my side. “Do you have anything else I can wrap him to warm him up?”
“In my office, there’s a blanket on the couch.”
He nodded and left while Melissa filled a needle and set it to the side. I felt her prod my lower region and stick something inside of me. I clenched my jaw at the pain and hope she didn’t see the embarrassment in my face. Luke returned and lifted up my upper half and wrapped the blanket around me. He rubbed my arms, trying to generate some body heat for me. It felt nice to be somewhat warm.
“Is that better?” he asked, brushing wet strands from my eyes.
“Thank you,” I whispered, pulled the blanket around me.
“How much do you think he weighs?” she asked.
“I don’t know. Why are you asking me?’
“Because you’re the one carrying him around,” she shot back.
“One-fifteen, one-twenty. Somewhere around there.”
She nodded. “Keep him still, while I do this.”
Luke held my hip as I felt a sharp pinch. I kicked my legs a little until Luke placed a hand on them.
“You need to be still.”
“Sorry,” I muttered. I couldn’t see what she was doing and a part of me was thankful that I couldn’t. I wasn’t too fond of a woman messing around in that general area.
“Tell me again, why I’m up at three o’clock in the morning stitching together a prostitute.”
I flinched at her words and felt the tears fall.
Luke put a conforming hand on my shoulder. “Melissa, please. He’s right here.”
“So what,” she snapped. “It’s not like he doesn’t know.”
“Why are you being like this?” Luke turned his sister and folded his arms.
I heard her slam something down on a tray.
“For the last few months all you can talk about is him. But come to find out, the boy you’ve been raving about every time we talk is a street urchin. Running around selling his body to anyone with a dick.” She muttered the last part.
“It’s not like he has a choice, Melissa.”
I bit my lip to keep in a sob. I didn’t need her to know I was crying. She already thought I was nothing more than trash to begin with.
“He can get a normal job like any other person in the world.”
“No one going to hire an eighteen year old kid that doesn’t even have a high school degree.”
Melissa let out a heated breath. “You told me he was twenty-one,” she growled.
“I didn’t find out until just barely,” Luke said getting defensive.
“Please tell me my brother not a child molester.”
“No,” I chimed in a soft voice. “I was e-eighteen before we met.” I could hide the pain in my words and the inwards sobs became too much to keep hidden.
She signed and I looked back at her face as she just shook her head. “You’re too young for this. Hell I feel like I’m too young to even be dealing with this.” She went back to stitching me up. “Cases like these are another rise I took this job. Down here, I can tell myself that at least their pain is gone, but in the ER, there’s nothing you can do.”
“Thank you,” said Luke, rubbing his sister’s shoulder, before grabbing my hand.
“Do you really love him Luke?”
He leaned in and just held me as I struggled to keep quiet. “I spent the last week searching every corner of this city for him. I think that enough to show that I really do love him.”
***
Luke carried me out of into the parking lot with Melissa following behind us.
She locked the door and marched passed us. “Liquid,” she reminded us for at least the fifth time. “Only liquid for at least three days and after that you make sure he eats properly, and regularly.” She pointed her finger at her brother. “Next time I see him, he better have gain some weight.” She unlocked her car.
“I will. And Melissa.”
She stopped and looked up at him.
“Thanks for helping us. For helping Gavin.” He squeezed me tightly to his chest.
“If he means that much too you, Luke, to wake me in the middle of night then he must be important.” She gave us a smile before getting in her car. “Take care of him. I mean it.”
“I will.” Luke hurried to his own vehicle and somehow managed to open the door without dropping me.
I looked down at the red stain. “I ruined your seat,” I muttered.
“Doesn’t matter, it’s only a seat,” he said plainly while putting me inside.
I watched to walk around and get in the other side. “Is Melissa going to get into trouble for not telling anyone about this?”
Luke shook his head. “No one going to find out. Besides as you already know, I have many connections and well she has many more. So don’t worry about it.” He put the car into reverse and pulled out of the parking lot.
My eyes closed, and for the first time in weeks, I actually felt safe enough to sleep.