My Saving Grace Pt. 07

Aunt Lily looked stricken, and Grandma hastened to her side to reassure her.

"Oh honey! I didn't mean that it was your fault! Leaving Trent was the best decision you could have made for yourself. In fact, you probably should have done it years ago, I'm sad to say. Nevertheless, it's going to make Trent even more angry at a time when he's already been thwarted once. It could be enough to push him into doing something that he might ordinarily hesitate to do."

Grandma eyed Elizabeth and Fleur this time, Fleur in particular.

"That's something the two of you need to keep in mind as well!"

"Oui, I have it very firmly in mind!" Fleur said. She lifted the hem of her T-shirt up just a little, showing the smooth curve of her abdomen...and the grip of the handgun she had tucked in a holster inside the waistband of her jeans!

"I will not let any harm come to my loved ones!" Fleur declared. "I have not forgotten the welcome most of your family offered me after my own cast me out! I will not let anyone take that away!"

Grandpa smiled, chuckling breathlessly. He clapped his hands together once in approval, and embraced Fleur. Fleur was startled, but returned the hug.

He signed, but Fleur hadn't learned sign language well enough to understand.

"He says you are a good grand daughter-in-law, and he is glad to see you are ready to protect others," Grace translated for her. "He's happy Elizabeth has someone like you!"

"Oh!" Fleur said, deeply moved. "Merci beaucoup, Pepere!"

"Well," Grandma said, after a few moments. "Your Grandpa and I should take off. The last few days have been pretty exhausting for us. All five of you watch your own backs, and each others' too! And don't forget to stay in touch!"

"We won't forget!" Grace and I said together.

Grandma laughed. "I probably shouldn't say this, but Lord help me, it's the truth: you two are such an incredibly beautiful couple!" She hugged us both once more, and then she and Grandpa departed.

I leaned back in the chair and sighed painfully. Grace quickly knelt at my side, resting a hand on my arm.

"The pain meds are definitely wearing off, but I'll be alright, my love," I said, answerin her unspoken question and reassuring her.

"Should I hit the call button for your nurse, Kev?" Elizabeth asked.

"No thanks, Liza. I'll take care of it later. That stuff always puts me to sleep," I said, remembering how it had been during my last stay here.

"Call us as soon as you are released, Kevin," Fleur said. "I mean it! Grandma's warning touched something in me. I do not have her instincts, perhaps, but I feel she is right to fear Trent. I don't want to sound dramatic, but I truly believe he's capable of trying to hurt you and Grace...or worse than just hurt!"

"I will," I said, and I meant it, "In the meantime, you take care of yourself, and my cousin, and my Aunt! I love you ladies, you know!"

"We know," Elizabeth said, smiling tenderly. She leaned down and kissed my forehead. Aunt Lily, and then Fleur did the same. Then, after they each gave Gracie a hug, they left. I was gratified to see that Fleur checked the hallway alertly before she stepped out. If Trent did try to hurt Elizabeth, I didn't think much of his survival probabilities. That woman meant business!

At last, I was alone with the love of my life. I scooted myself to one side of the overstuffed recliner so Grace could settle in next to me. She molded her body against mine, her warm softness soothing me the way nothing else could. Her right arm slid behind my shoulders, pulling me a little closer. I laid my head on her breast and closed my eyes, while she tenderly caressed me.

"Try and rest some, Sweetheart," she said, softly. "It will help you heal. It'll be lunch time in about an hour. Maybe after you eat, they'll let us take a walk together."

I hadn't been all that tired before, but her warmth and the comforting sensation of being so close to her lulled me into a peaceful, restful sleep.

###

Grace woke me gently.

"It's lunch time, honey," she said. "Come on, sit up for me."

I sat up and straightened out the recliner. Nurse Debbie set the tray on the rolling table for me, and Grace pushed it into position. I smiled and shook my head, savoring her tenderness.

"Thanks, Gracie," I said. But you didn't have to do that. I had my face slashed, not my arms and legs!"

She returned my smile. "I know, honey, but you've had it so rough lately, I figured it was the least I could do for you."

I squeezed her hand, gratefully, and lifted the cover on my tray. I started eating the chef salad with ranch dressing (Gracie had to have had something to do with that. She knows exactly what I want!) before anyone could start in on me. Hopefully, displaying a healthy appetite would convince them to let me go sooner.

"You two are so cute together, it's almost too much!" Nurse Debbie said. "You two remind me strongly of Chris and Hannah."

"You mean the Nurse, Hannah, that was here last night?" I asked.

"Yes," Nurse Debbie said. "If you get the chance to meet her husand, you should. You guys have a lot in common, from what I can see. Anyway, let me know when you're done and I'll get rid of the tray for you."

"Thanks," I said, as she stepped out.

As I ate my salad, I took the opportunity to fill my beloved in on my details about my surprise visit from Lance Forster last night. Grace listened with rapt attention as I described our conversation. As I finished, she shook her head disbelievingly.

"Kevin my dear, if anyone else in the world had told me a tale like that, I would've called them a liar to their face!" she said.

"Truth is stranger than fiction, Love," I pointed out.

"I know, but really," she said breathlessly. "I had an even closer call than I realized, didn't I?"

"It looks that way, Gracie. But that threat is -- for now, at least -- neutralized. I brought it up, because you can never have too many allies, and I see potential there. Especially if it turns out that there IS some way we can help him."

Grace nodded, deep in thought. "He could also be a serious liability, though."

"How so?" I asked.

Grace leaned back in her chair and sighed, gently passing her hand over her eyes. She was thinking about how to put psychological concepts into layman's terms. Finally, she shrugged.

"Physically, Lance is the Incredible Hulk," she began. "But he's not the alpha male personality type. Matt, for all his other flaws, was able to exploit that weakness in Lance's character. He was able to coerce Lance into doing things he clearly didn't want to do, with the threat of telling his family about his sexuality."

I nodded in understanding, and gestured for her continue.

"Many people, rather than going along with that kind of blackmail -- and that's basically what it was -- would have simply beat the living crap out of Matt, and told him something like 'if anyone in my family hears a thing about this, I'll kill your ass!'"

Again, I nodded. "Yeah, that's what I would have done if I'd been in his position. But the best solution would be to just come out and tell his family the truth, like we did."

"And that just illustrates my point," Gracie said. "So many of us, even people who should damn well know better, see a person with great physical strength and make the critical mistake of assuming they have an equally strong character, and it just doesn't always work that way! Lance is in the position he's in because he's weak, psychologically. He's so deathly afraid of his family's reaction to his homosexuality that he's unable to see any alternative to borderline criminal behavior."

She made a waving gesture before I could say anything. "Oh, I'm not saying I have no sympathy or compassion for his situation, because I do! I feel sorry for ANYONE who feels trapped in an impossible circumstance! But the simple fact of the matter is, he wasn't willing to take the most minimal risk to free himself when he had the chance. And now?"

Grace sighed again.

"Fear and weakness can be a fatal combination. I'm not sure he'd be of any use to us in our situation, Kevin," she said. "Of course, I do think we should offer to help HIM out, if it turns out we can, at any rate."

I was deeply impressed by my amazing sister. Grace was truly in her element. She was operating on ground she understood well, that her education had prepared her for, and she owned it! Displaying a perfect balance between compassion and pragmatism, she'd made a calm, reasoned analysis and conclusion that would be difficult -- if not impossible -- to discredit. For what seemed like the millionth time, I marveled at the fact that she was mine! God, I loved this woman!

"He's one more victim of abuse," I said. "I guess there's no end to it."

"There can be," Gracie said, touching my hand. Her eyes met mine, telling me without words that she admired my compassion. "After all, I think Lily will be free of it. The thing is, in order to break the cycle of abuse, the victim has to be willing to do it. Outside help can only do so much."

"Yes, I already knew that much. I wish things were different."

"Don't we all!" Grace said, with gentle laugh. Then she sobered some, leaning towards me again. "We should probably set that issue aside for now."

"So that leaves Trent," I said, finally bringing up the 800-pound gorilla in the room.

"Yeah, that leaves Trent." Gracie shook her head, her face turning grim. "Everything I've seen with my own eyes, and what I've heard from others would seem to incidicate he suffered some kind of psychotic episode or break. Cases of extreme stress or psychological trauma can do that, of course. Some people don't have the mental resilience to handle things, especially when so many things happen at the same time!"

She grinned at me and kissed me very gently. "We can't all be like you, my darling!"

"But Gracie, isn't it a little odd that he should just suddenly manifest this kind of behavior?" I asked.

"It's not common, but it can happen," she said. "What I think is more likely, though, is that he was always that way. The stress just brought him to the point where he no longer felt the need to hide it."

"So Grandma and Grandpa just missed it while he was growing up?" I asked, disbelievingly.

"Not exactly, love," Gracie said, her expression troubled. "We all are occasionally guilty of seeing what we want to see, even if we have to lie to ourselves. What I think, is that there were indicators throughout Trent's life that might have been indicative of these tendencies, but he concealed them. Remember, being evil and psychotic doesn't mean you're also stupid! There are lots of historical examples I could give. Grandma and Grandpa's love for their child probably helped to hide anything they might have happened to notice; they just convinced themselves it was nothing to worry about. If someone were to dig into his past, we'd probably find all kinds of things."

"You're going to be an amazing therapist, Gracie," I said, my love and admiration clear in my tone and expression. "You're really going to help a lot of people, someday soon. You are so intelligent and full of compassion! And you know when it's time for 'tough love."

"You're so sweet to me, Kev," she said, blushing at my praise.

"I try to be, because you deserve that and so much more! But in this case, I truly mean it. This must be what you were meant to do, my love. And I'm going to do everything I can to be sure you get the chance!"

"You're no slouch yourself, Kevin," she said, taking my hand. "I've seen some of your ideas and designs! You've got talent too! And beyond that, you're one of the bravest men I know. You keep your word, and you have a moral code that you will not violate. And when you love, you love completely! You didn't hesitate to risk your life for mine. How many women out there can say their lover put it all on the line for them, and mean it in the literal sense? Well, I can!"

Now it was my turn to blush. "You're more than worth it, Grace," I said, my voice a little thick with emotion. "I can't imagine my life without you, and I don't want to!"

"God willing, you never will, darling!" she said, fiercely. "And now, at least, we don't have to hide our love from our family, anymore!"

As one, we leaned into each other and kissed, passionately and wetly. I moaned in combined pleasure and pain as her hands cupped my face instinctively. Startled, she broke the kiss.

"Oh, Kevin, honey I'm so sorry! Hear, let me call the nurse and get your pain meds!"

###

Gracie got an overnight visitor pass from Security, and made herself comfortable in the recliner next to my bed. The staff was fine with it; I was apparently a lot easier to treat when she was around! It was 7:30pm, and the regular visitor's hours were rapidly coming to a close. I had finished my dinner, and Gracie and I were taking advantage of the hospital's Wi-Fi, watching a Netflix movie on my tablet. I was a little surprised to hear a knock on the door.

Gracie got up and opened the door. We were both extremely surprised to see Kelly standing there. She looked nervous, but determined.

"May I join you for a moment?" Kelly asked. "I won't stay too long."

Grace looked at me. I shrugged, and nodded my head in an affirmative gesture. Grace stood back, let Kelly enter, and closed the door behind her. Kelly took the straight chair on my right, while Grace reclaimed her seat in the recliner on my left.

Kelly surveyed my facial injuries and hissed, sympathetically. Silence reigned between the three of us for several minutes before Kelly finally decided to get on with her reason for seeing me.

"I wanted to see you, Kevin, and make sure you were okay. My friend Anne is a volunteer in Admissions, and she mentioned she'd seen your name," she said. "I'm here to tell you some things I should have said, the last time we spoke. And then I have something you and Grace need to see."

Kelly stared at her crossed legs for a moment, gathering her thoughts. Finally, she looked up and met my eyes.

"Kevin, first off, I need to apologize."

I drew a breath to speak, but she quickly held up her hand to stop me.

"I'm not going to apologize for refusing to marry you, or for leaving you," she said, calmly. "I think I was right to do those things, as I think you will come to agree, when I finish. What I AM here to apologize for, is the WAY I left you, and...for cheating on you. Especially the cheating part. I've been berating myself for that a lot, because you were so right: there is no excuse for it!"

"Sometimes I can hardly believe I did that. I asked you to save yourself...it was my idea that we would save ourselves for our wedding night! And I ended up giving what I'd promised for you, to another man. Kevin, I'm deeply ashamed of myself for that. I hope someday, you'll forgive me."

A tear escaped Kelly's eye, and brushed it gently away.

"Kevin, you are an amazing man," she began. "You have more good qualities than I can list. You treated me like a queen, since the day we met. I treasured our friendship. You were closer to me than anyone; I knew I could always count on you to keep my secrets, and I loved you madly. I still do, as my friend! But as we grew up, I gradually came to realize that I wasn't the right woman for you. I wanted to be -- God, I wanted to be!"

She looked earnestly into my eyes, desperately wanting me to believe her.

"Kevin, you knew what you wanted out of life all the way back when we met! You wanted the loving wife, the stereotypical little house in the suburbs with the picket fence, and the 2.5 kids...and I didn't, Kevin. I still don't. I should have told you, the instant I realized you seriously intended to marry me. But like an idiot, I held back. I convinced myself it was just nervous jitters. And you thought guys were supposed to be the ones afraid of commitment!"

She gave a soft laugh at her own feeble joke, and I smiled, in spite of myself. Even Grace lightened up a little bit.

"Those dreams aren't MY dreams, Kevin! I should have told you! But I didn't have the guts. I was afraid of seeing the pain on your face, when I told you that the love I felt for you had changed. I have no excuse. And my intentions totally blew up in my face. Instead of sparing you pain, I caused you the most horrible pain I can think of. It's a deeply terrible thing to find out that the one you love doesn't feel the same way. The cheating just made it a thousand times worse."

She paused again to wipe her eyes.

"Kevin, I'd do almost anything to take it back! If I had it to do over again, I would've set you free in high school! But I can't. I can't take any of it back, no matter how bad I want to. I'll always have to live with the knowledge of how badly I hurt you. And you did nothing -- NOTHING -- to deserve that! Even though 'sorry' is nowhere near good enough, I'm sorry! God, Kevin, I'm so sorry!"

Kelly stopped again and sobbed quietly into her handkerchief. After a moment, she composed herself, and met my gaze again with her red, puffy eyes.

"At least now, we can both say we're happy. I've found someone who's more compatible with my own dreams...and so have you!"

For the first time, Kelly looked directly at Grace. I was shocked to realize Kelly knew -- not guessed, KNEW -- about my true feelings for my sister! As if to confirm my thoughts, Kelly nodded her head once.

"Yes, Kevin, I know you and Grace are in love. And you are a wonderful couple! She is so beautiful, smart, and vivacious! It doesn't matter to me that you're siblings. As long as she treats you the way you deserve to be treated...as long as she makes you happy!"

"She does, Kels," I said, softly, using Kelly's knickname from our high school days. Her eyes lit up when she heard it, interpreting it's use -- correctly -- as meaning that I forgave her.

"Gracie loves me completely, holding nothing back! And I love her just as much!"

Kelly grinned for the first time, beaming her joy at the two of us. "Oh Kevin, I'm so glad! I prayed that what I did to you wouldn't make you unable to love!"

She closed her eyes and whispered a quick prayer of thanks. When she looked up, she smiled again, but it was a little less joyous.

"I've got something you need to see, but it's going to shock you," she warned. She reaced into her oversized purse and pulled out her tablet. She gestured to me to pick up my own, which I did. In seconds, I got a prompt asking me to authorize a file transfer. I accepted it and looked back at Kelly while I waited for it to finish. The file was big enough to be a seriously huge document, or several minutes worth of HD-quality video.

"I was downstairs last night when they brought you in -- that's where Anne saw me and mentioned who you were. (I'm doing my intership in the medical billing department.) At any rate, I wanted to see how badly hurt you were, but I couldn't get to you."

She paused to make sure I was following, and I gestured for her to continue.

"There was a police detective there, taking statements from your family members, because someone apparently thought you'd been assaulted. I saw a man talking to the detective, and I when I heard what he was saying, I thought I'd better record it. I'll let you two judge for yourself how much trouble it means for you. I just wanted you to know."

The file finished transferring, and I set my tablet back down. Grace and I stood together, and each of us took one of Kelly's hands.

"From now on," Grace began, "the past is the past."

"I've already let go of my anger, Kels," I said. "I wish you the best, I really do. Be happy, Kelly...and stay in touch!"

The three of us hugged tightly. Kelly shuddered again, another tear tracing its way down her cheek. But this tear was one of joy, of realizing that she had not lost a dear friend, after all. She knew, now, that her love was returned. It was a different love, now; the love of friendship, and with it, acceptance and forgiveness. Kelly was free of her guilt, secure in the knowledge that I was free of my pain. It had been lifted from me -- from both of us! - by the undying love of My Saving Grace!