White Wedding for a Southern Belle

“I’m sorry,” she mouthed to him.

He nodded and turned back to his patient.

Marko leaned against the wall where he could see both of them. “Get busy.” To his driver he said, “You go watch outside.”

The guy left.

Ashley went to a door that she guessed led to a bathroom. It turned out to be a small kitchen area and there was a bath off that. The place was nasty. Apparently someone had been living there for a few days, if not longer. Open food packages were everywhere. How was she supposed to find anything in here sanitary enough to hold water? Searching under the sink, she located a mop bucket, and pulling it out, she put it under the sink faucet. The water ran brown.

“Yuck.” She jerked the bucket out from under the tap, emptied it while leaving the water running, then waited for the water to turn clear.

Marko stuck his head in the door. “Get busy.”

“I am. Everything in this place is nasty. Marko, let us take your friend to the hospital. He’s going to die if you don’t.”

“No more talking. Get busy.”

The water had started to run clearer and she shoved the bucket under the faucet again. Using her hand, Ashley washed the bucket the best she could. With it full, she carried it back to Kiefer and set it down next to him. He glanced at her as he continued to apply pressure to the patient’s abdomen. “Good girl. I need you to go around to the other side of the bed.”

It had been moved into the middle of the room.

“Take my bag. Pull that chair up close and put the supplies on it.” He indicated the wooden straight-backed chair behind a metal desk.

This could be her chance. If she could just figure out some way to use the phone. Glancing at Marko, she then looked at Kiefer. His expression said clearly that he trusted her. That he knew she would do what was necessary. She wouldn’t disappoint him. Wouldn’t let him down this time. Ashley went to her knees beside the bed and started pulling supplies out.

“I’m going to need the scissors first and the bandages.”

She removed items until she found what Kiefer had requested. Her fingers brushed the cell phone as she pulled a box from the pack. Could she push numbers without Marko noticing? No, the time wasn’t right. She’d have one chance and she would need to make that count. She handed Kiefer the scissors and bandages.

“I’m going to need a suture kit and the bottle of saline.”

As he cut away the man’s shirt and started to clean around the wound, Ashley continued to unload the backpack. Thankfully she had Kiefer and the bed between her and Marko. If she could just slip the phone out far enough to touch 911... Her heart beat faster as she reached into the backpack again. Her fingers circled the phone. Her hand shook. She gave a quick glance at Marko. He was still glaring at them, watching too closely. Not yet. She laid the backpack flat on the floor, setting the phone close to the zipper opening.

“I’m ready to suture. I’m going to need your help. Put some gloves on,” Kiefer said.

Ashley did so. Her fear must have shown on her face because he reached across and squeezed her hand. “We’ll get through this.”

“Stop all the talking and get going,” Marko said, shifting impatiently.

Kiefer put a hand on their patient’s shoulder. “Jorge, I don’t have any way of making you more comfortable. I’m sorry. This is going to hurt.” He said to Ashley in a resigned tone, “Please open one of the suture packages.”

Over the next hour she watched as Kiefer meticulously closed the wound. Jorge groaned through the first few stitches then passed out. Kiefer said little other than to occasionally tell her to move a finger here or dab a bandage there as he worked. If she hadn’t known he was a good doctor already, she had no doubt of his abilities now.

Kiefer looked back at Marko. “That’s the best I can do under the circumstances. He needs antibiotics that I don’t have. If he doesn’t get them soon I can’t promise what will happen. We’ll just have to wait and see. If you really care about Jorge you would take him to the hospital.”

Marko snorted, “And go to jail. That’s not going to happen.”

Ashley started cleaning up the area. There were a few supplies left to pack away. Pulling the backpack to her, she was careful not to knock the phone out of the bag. Bumping the chair, she caused what was left of the supplies to fall off. Leaning over, she acted as if she was gathering the supplies. She pulled the opening of the pack back and touched 911.

“What’s the deal over there?” Marko commanded.

She reached under the bed. “Nothing. I’m just getting a box.”

Ashley’s breath caught in horror. She hadn’t changed the volume. Opening the bag, hoping Marko thought she was storing the box, she found the phone again. Fumbling, she searched for the buttons on the side of the phone and pushed the bottom one.

“What’re you doing? Give me that.” Marko headed in her direction.

Ashley palmed the phone.

Kiefer took that moment to stand, bumping against Marko. It gave her time to push the phone under the mattress.

“Get out of the way. I should kill you.” Marko pushed Kiefer.

Pain swamped her. She wouldn’t survive if something happened to Kiefer.

“Give me that.” Marko pointed the gun toward the backpack. “What do you have in there?”

“Nothing but the supplies the doctor told me to put in here,” she said as evenly as she could.

Marko jerked it out of her hand and dumped the contents on the floor, kicking them around. “I said not to try anything.”

“Look for yourself. There’s nothing there.” Kiefer came around the end of the bed and offered her a hand.

She slowly rose, her knees stiff from being on the concrete floor for so long.

“What’re you doing?” Marko growled.

“Helping Ashley up. We both need to stand. We’ve been kneeling a long time.” Kiefer gave Marko a defiant look. “So what’s the plan now? The police will be looking for us. Jorge shouldn’t be moved. You’re stuck. You need to turn yourself in. Why don’t you let Ashley go and get help?”

Kiefer was still trying to protect her. She appreciated it but she wouldn’t leave him. This was all happening because of her. Why couldn’t she have accepted Kiefer’s warnings that Marko was a threat? She’d give anything to turn back time, make this go away. Have her and Kiefer returned to the intimacy they’d shared. If they got out of this she would do everything in her power to make it up to him.

“No more talking. Get over there and be quiet. I need to think.” Marko pointed to a corner.

Kiefer held her hand as they moved to the farthest spot from the door. They stood against the wall. Her knees were just starting to recover.

The driver of the car came in and Marko conferred with him too low for her to hear, glancing at them a couple of times.

Kiefer turned slightly, putting his back to them. His mouth came close to her ear. “Phone?”

Ashley nodded briefly as she watched Jorge. Kiefer’s brows went up in question. She mouthed, “Under the mattress.”

CHAPTER NINE

KIEFER SLID DOWN the wall to sit on the floor. He tugged on Ashley’s hand, encouraging her to join him. She did, coming shoulder to shoulder with him. They were both tired physically and emotionally. Fear had fed an adrenaline rush. Now that it dropped, exhaustion took over. Neither extremes were healthy.

They needed to get to the phone somehow. Finding the right time was going to be the tough part. If Marko would only leave the room. Getting Ashley to safety was his top priority. There was no way of knowing if her 911 message had gone through. He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close.

Ashley looked up at him with those big eyes full of misery. “I’m so sorry I got you into this.” Emotion was thick in her voice. ?

??I should’ve listened to you when Marko came into my house. I thought I saw him that night I was shot but I didn’t say anything.”

She was such an idealistic soul. That was part of the reason he loved her and yet shouldn’t. It didn’t matter now. He gave her shoulder a squeeze and kissed her temple. “We’ll get out of this. We’ll be fine. Hang in there.”

“I hope so. I owe you big-time.”

He gave her a wry smile. “And I plan to collect.”

“Shut up, you two! I need to think.” Marco pulled the chair out from around the bed and put it in front of the closed door.

“It looks like we’re going to be here awhile,” Kiefer whispered. “We might as well get some sleep.” He stretched out his legs.

“Thank you for all you have done. You were amazing.”

“Shush. Sleep.”

Ashley laid her head against his shoulder. It wasn’t long until she was breathing evenly. He was glad to have her in his arms again but this wasn’t the way he’d wanted it to happen.

Somebody kicked his foot, jiggling him awake. Kiefer didn’t know how much time had gone by but he guessed it was in the early morning hours. He looked over at Ashley. Her eyes were open. Fear filled them.

“Tell me what kinds of antibiotics Jorge needs,” Marko demanded from above them.

“Jorge needs to be in the hospital, getting intravenous ones,” Kiefer said.

“That’s not going to happen. What’re the names?”

Kiefer named off a few common antibiotics. “They won’t be strong enough to keep the infection under control. He needs to be in a hospital.”

Marko’s face became distorted and he pointed the gun at him. “Shut up about the hospital. He’s not going. Do. Not. Say. It. Again. Stand up. Both of you.”