The Scarred Wife's Racing Five

Chapter Thirteen

POV Sawyer

The room was silent while her eyes darted from one corner to another. She was looking for something…anything that could hurt her like it was instinct. I wasn’t prepared for Noah to show up today with some random woman, but when I saw the defiance in her eyes, something inside me clicked. Like a missing piece I have been desperately looking for but this is the first time it’s had promise.

“So, let’s start with the basics.” I said as I leaned back on my desk.

“Like?” She snapped back and I chuckled.

“I will have my nurse check your vitals, height, and weight. After that, we can start the normal exam. Prior to that, I need to know your name, age and why you came in today.” Professional…stay professional.

She nodded slowly and took a deep breath. “Fine. My name is Holly, and I am twenty-six years old. I was dragged in here by the Neanderthal outside and I don’t want to have a check-up today. Why I came to town is my business.”

I nodded at her response and pulled out my tablet to write down the more prudent information. “I see you are favoring your right leg. Any reason for that?”

She nodded again. “I am. It’s an annoying injury more than anything.”

“Then we will need to x-ray that leg to make sure there isn’t anything seriously wrong with it.”

“There isn’t anything wrong with it. I need this pain. It’s perfectly normal.”

My hands tightened on the screen as I listened to her assessment. “Why does that sound like this is a normal occurrence for you?” I asked, and she turned her head to look out the window, keeping silent.

I walked up to her and rested one hand on hers. She flinched, but her eyes didn’t meet mine. “Listen, I’m assuming you don’t talk much about your life and past. I completely understand that some things may be a little too personal for you, but I am here as a professional to make sure you are safe. Nothing you tell me will leave this room. That is a promise.”

“I’ve had enough men promise me things that never came true.” She hissed and I faltered. The fact that she is here in front of me is a feat and I would be an i***t not to notice. How she made it to our corner of the world is nothing short of a miracle. For once in a very long time, I want to keep something safe. I want to be there for her. I feel like…she deserves it.

Unlike someone else I knew.

“That isn’t something that anyone should live through, and I’m sorry. I may not know what happened to you personally, but I am no stranger to broken promises.” I added with a dry chuckle.

Her head finally turned as she looked at me. Actually looked at me. Her defense chipped. “Trust me, it can’t be that bad.”

“It can.” I hesitated before glancing over her battered body. It didn’t take a medical degree to see she had been abused by someone. “I’ve seen bruises like yours far too many times to not notice when someone just needs another to hear them and to see them. Let me be that person for you. I want to help you. You don’t deserve to suffer alone.”

Her head dropped as she looked at her fiddling fingers. “Let’s just have the nurse check me so we can get this over with.”

I held back a sigh of defeat and rested my tablet on the desk. “No worries. I will call her now. Just know I’ll still be here to listen.”

I headed out of the room and walked up to the nurse’s station. Lucy was one of the more seasoned nurses, and she never had a problem staying late if I needed her. She looked up at me with a big smile and stood to her feet. “I will get her vitals and we can work from there. That poor girl.” She said softly as she grabbed her clipboard and purple pen with a fuzzy design on the top.

“I know. I wasn’t able to get much out of her, but maybe you can get her to open up. You seem to have a way with people.”

She laughed and started heading towards the room. Before she made it to the door, she turned slightly to throw another comment over her shoulder. “I wouldn’t be your head nurse if I didn’t.”

That is something we agree on.

I headed to the waiting room and took a seat next to Noah. He didn’t say anything, but after knowing him for almost twenty years, I could tell when something wasn’t right. “Do you want to explain where she came from or do I need to do my own investigating?”

“I found her on my way back home like some tossed out animal.”

“Tossed out animal?” I asked.

He rubbed his hands through his hair, but the oh-so-familiar stone-faced expression didn’t fade. “ She told me she ran away.”

I nodded slowly, putting the pieces together in my mind. “There’s probably a family member or lifestyle is involved. My bet is on a family member since she’s twenty-six. But the main question is, why didn’t you come to me sooner?”

“She never let on to anything being wrong with her, and it’s not like I have a front row seat to her body, Sawyer.” He growled back and I studied his worried look as the pieces snapped in place.

“Dr. Adams, she’s ready for you.” Lucy said, her smile completely gone.

I stood up and patted Noah on the shoulder. I’m sure I’ll get more of an answer over drinks. All of us.” I pushed, and he snapped his head up as he really listened to me this time. Good.

I walked up to Lucy, and she turned out of the way before shaking her head. “She might not say much, but all those scars…it says it all. How could someone do this to her?” She whispered harshly.

“I don’t know, but I’m hoping she will trust me enough so I can find out.” When I made it back into the room she was sitting back on the table with her eyes glazing over a poster on the wall. One of those cotton wraps slung over her body. “Ready?” I asked her, and she turned to look at me.

“No, but I have been thinking about what you said earlier. The whole keeping things between us. If…you can promise me that, I will let you help me, but if not, I swear to you now, I will get up and leave.”

“I swear.”

“When I was three, my family decided they didn’t need a third child. So, they threw me at a firehouse and left me there to be picked up by local authorities. Since then, I was thrown around in the system from one foster home to the next. I didn’t care about anything but surviving. When it got hard or…physical, it was another reminder of what not to do. Every scar, bruise or broken bone isn’t something that needs to be thrown away by some doctor who claims they want to help me. It’s something that needs to be kept, so I remember never to find my way back into that dark place again.”

I took a seat on the small chair across from her and took a deep breath. “Thank you for sharing. I think the best thing we can do for now is wrap that leg and get you a salve for the rest of the damage. If you want to keep your battle scars, I’m completely fine with it, but you shouldn't have to be in pain to do so.”

“Oh, and you have some miracle cure that will help with that?”

I laughed lightly and opened the cabinet behind me. “Of course I do. Care to try it out?”

She stared at me for a minute before a soft smile fell over her gentle lips. “I’d love to.” At that moment, I was sure of it. I need to protect this woman. Even if I can only become the friend she never had.