Stuck with you

Chapter Eight

Kate's POV

The fact that Colonel Marcus Steele couldn't just sit somewhere and mind his own business had me thoroughly annoyed.

He sat behind me now, preparing to apply something to the wound on my back — I didn't even know what. God knows I couldn't tell him how it happened, not tonight.

"If it hurts," he said, stretching his left hand toward me, "just pinch me."

I looked at it, then looked away. This wasn't my idea to begin with. He was just so…

I couldn't even land on the right word before grabbing his hand and pinching it, hard.

"Marcus, it hurts," I said aloud. It really did.

He paused. "You have to endure it, Kitty."

"That's another lesson," he said, steadying me.

"Endure every pain. Whoever did this to you shouldn't get the satisfaction of seeing you cry."

The words landed straight in my chest.

Even as he continued, I dug my nails into his hand, but I didn't cry. He was right. I shouldn't.

____

Marcus's POV

I reached for the bottle of antiseptic. I could see how reluctant she was about the whole thing — though it wasn't the cleaning she seemed to dread. It was something deeper than that.

Such a nonchalant little kitty, I told myself.

I started cleaning, but stopped almost immediately to examine the wound more closely. This was worse than I'd first thought.

She'd been brutally beaten. The marks were obvious now, in the light — deliberate, deep, more than a single incident could explain.

I looked at her, already knowing what came next would hurt.

"If it hurts," I said, stretching my left hand toward her, "just pinch me."

I turned back to the wound before she could answer. The moment I began, she pinched down hard.

Damn it.

"Marcus, it hurts," she cried out.

I knew it did. I paused for a moment, giving her a beat to breathe.

"You have to endure it, Kitty," I told her.

"That's another lesson," I added, steadying her with my free hand.

She has a lot to learn, I thought, meeting her eyes.

"Endure every pain. Whoever did this to you shouldn't get the satisfaction of seeing you cry." With that, I resumed cleaning.

She pinched me hard again, but she didn't cry.

Stronger than I gave her credit for, I thought.

The morning came sooner than I expected. I'd already seen Kitty sleeping last night, but I noticed something about her during sleep — she was too alert, like she never let her guard down.

She's afraid of something. It's obvious.

"And who could have done that to her?" Tank asked. We were standing a few feet from the doctor, watching him treat her.

"I don't know," I answered.

"But I will find out," I said, my eyes still on the doctor. "I need you to head down to the neighborhood where I found her."

"Sure, I know what to do." With that, Tank excused himself from the room.

The doctor began to approach me.

"She will heal soon, but I have to tell you this," he said, moving closer.

"What is it?" I asked.

"She's being abused. Whoever did that to her did it more than once."

I knew it.

"You may leave," I told him.

As soon as the door shut, I walked toward her.

She was lying on her chest now, the wounds covered. I reached out to examine them.

"Did you want to kill me?" she said, turning her head.

I laughed, though I'd seen the pain she suffered earlier.

"Just checking up on you," I reassured her, stepping closer. "How do you feel?" I added.

"How do I look like I feel?" she snapped.

Poor Kitty.

The door opened. It was Leah, carrying two cups of tea, setting them on the table.

"Sweetheart, how do you feel?" Leah asked.

I watched Kitty shift as Leah went to help her.

Somehow I felt responsible for her pain.

I turned, leaving her to Leah.

____

Kate's POV

I'm so tired and furious — I don't know which emotion is greater — as I lie on my bed.

The doctor had recently put me on a drip, and now I'm trying to understand why this was necessary.

I glanced behind me. I could see Marcus standing alongside Tank. I could barely look at them.

My thoughts shifted to the fact that I was stuck here. Colonel Marcus now knew I was being mistreated, and somehow I felt there was no way he'd let me go without hearing the truth from me.

The doctor looked at me, then started to leave. I wanted to tell him not to say anything to Marcus, but I knew it was useless.

I could feel him saying something to Marcus now, even though turning to look wasn't easy.

The doctor soon exited the room.

He was coming.

I closed my eyes tight.

As soon as he reached me, I could feel his hands trying to touch the wound.

"Did you want to kill me?" I couldn't help but say, my head turning toward him.

He stopped.

"Just checking up on you," he said, reassuring me.

Somehow, I began to think this might not be as hard as I thought.

"How do you feel?" he added.

The question irritated me.

"How do I look like I feel?" I snapped.

The door opened. It was Leah, carrying two cups of tea, setting them on the table.

"Sweetheart, how do you feel?" Leah asked.

I struggled to sit up as Leah helped me. Marcus immediately stood and exited the room.

My eyes stayed on the door for a while. I didn't know why, but seeing him leave like that felt somehow—

"Kate," Leah called.

My gaze left the door and turned to her.

"Leah, I'm sorry," I said, looking away.

"You shouldn't apologize for anything, okay?" She was patting my back now.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Leah's question caught me off guard.

I shook my head. I can't just talk about it.

"He cares about you," she said. "And if you don't want to talk about it, that doesn't mean he's not going to find out.

My heart jumped. She was right.

I couldn't say a word, just stared at Leah as she smiled, still patting my back.

It had been a while since I felt this way, but I didn't really know why they all chose to be so nice.

But it didn't matter. At least they were nice.