Page 7 of Speechless
Finally, her toes twitched to life. A few more minutes and she would have full movement.
“Okay, let’s make sure we have plenty of sutures and sterile equipment to hand before we start. The sedative seems to have worn off to a degree, and I don’t know how long she’ll stay still once she comes completely round.”
Strong arms slipped beneath her shoulders and knees, pulled her to the edge of the table and off. She felt her stomach twist, her body braced for the fall to the floor and the pain she knew would come. Instead, she rolled carefully down those arms, back onto the table, only laid on her belly with her face pressed into a pillow.
She opened her mouth to protest as her limbs and head were repositioned gently to more comfortable angles. Nothing came out, not even a horrified squeak.
Fingertips grazed over painful welts and deep cuts. Her body stiffened and arched with each soft touch.
“If you can sit by her head, Sarah, and take her hands. Keep her calm. She’s as drugged as I dare and the painkillers should kick in anytime soon, but she’s not going to like me messing about with some of these.”
Damn right, she wasn’t! Jenna fisted her hands beside her head and squirmed as much as possible with her limited capacity for movement. She wouldn’t make it easy for them.
“Stubborn little mule.” Connor murmured next to her ear. “Go to my home office, Sarah. Second drawer on the left in my desk, there’s something that will keep her occupied for a while.”
The nurse’s presence disappeared, and feeling vulnerable, Jenna tried to curl into a ball. One big and cautious hand rested protectively between her shoulder blades, pressed down just enough to keep her in position, and to let her know she wouldn’t be able to outmatch this man, surprise attack or not.
“Just relax, Jenna. I’ll give you another sedative as soon as it’s safe to do so, but for now I need you to stay still.” His hand stroked down her spine lightly, over and over again, skipping over her hurts.
Beneath the touch of his skin, Jenna’s flesh trembled. Part of her wanted to arch into him, to rub herself against him like a cat in need of a good petting. The other part of her, the fragile, damaged, fearful part of her, shied away from his hand as though it burned.
“You have some weird ideas, Connor.”
Jenna jerked at the sound of the nurse’s voice. Somehow she’d been lulled into an almost trance-like daze, her mind adrift from the place where her body lay.
“Weird but wonderful. She needs to relax, and she understands what’s being said. We’re putting her on edge. If she calms down, she should slide back into sleep. There’s still sedative in her system, she’s just fighting it.”
Fingers ran gently through her lank hair, then something was pushed firmly into her ear. She shook her head like a mad dog, only to be stilled by a hand on her head.
“It won’t hurt you, Jenna. Trust me.” Gentle pressure forced her to turn her face, and her other ear filled. Sound muffled so Connor’s voice seemed distorted. “Close your eyes and let me take care of you.”
She felt his hand grasp hers, pry open her clenched fingers. A small square of plastic pressed into her palm. He guided her fingers over raised buttons and told her how to work the contraption. Then he tapped a fingertip on the square and music filled her ears.
A woman’s voice crooned softly amongst a strangely rhythmic melody.
Jenna closed her eyes and let the music carry her. The lyrics wrapped around her heart and drew her into the world the voice wove around her troubled mind. She felt her anxiety start to slip away until it became inconsequential.
By the time the melody ceased in her head, her fingers sought the button to make it play again. And again. It soothed her, even as the hands on her back awakened pain only to silence it once more.
*
Connor’s hands stilled for a moment as the pathetically lean and battered woman under his care slipped back into sleep. Taut muscles relaxed as he cleaned cuts and welts, plied them with cream and cooling gel. He heard her breathing catch and level out as the remnants of sedative coaxed her beneath the peace of slumber.
He was well aware he’d hurt her, more than once. She’d told him as much without ever making a sound. Even when her skin twitched and her body tried to curl into itself to escape the pain, not even a whimper had broken the air.
“Connor, are you nearly done?”
“Hmmm?” He lifted his head distractedly, his eyes unfocused slightly from concentrating on the mess in front of him. He blinked rapidly for a few seconds and managed to focus on his nurse. “Sorry, Sarah, what did you say?”
“Sheriff’s here. Wants to know if he can come in.” Sarah watched him patiently with her dark eyes, and Connor knew he amused her. Her expression said everything. “I told him the patient was currently unavailable to give him a statement, but he’s insisting…”
“Yeah, he’s big on being insistent.” Connor sighed and crouched in front of his patient. He stroked his fingertips over her face and, when she remained unresponsive, gave Sarah the go-ahead for his brother to come in.
“So this is the little mute,” Caleb said in his deep voice. Out of all three brothers, Caleb was the one most like their father from build to mannerisms to voice. “Have you managed to get anything out of her yet?”
Connor just rolled his eyes. “No. I’ve been just a little busy trying to piece her back together.”
His brother stepped up beside the table, hands on hips, and sighed heavily. He wore a simple white shirt and classic blue jeans, topped with his usual black Stetson and calf-skin jacket. He screamedSherifffrom his pores. “Someone’s got some shit to answer for. She going to be okay?”