The surgery went smoothly, and Harry was pleased that there wasn’t as much ligament damage as she first suspected. She felt comfortable with the initial prognosis she’d given Desi. With physical therapy and time, Desi would heal completely. After she got Desi into recovery, she headed to the waiting room to speak with the officer who’d been there for two and a half hours.
“Dr. Basantes?” He jumped to his feet and stuck his hand out as soon as she’d cleared the door.
From his rumpled appearance, Harry guessed the officer had spent the time sleeping in one of the plastic chairs while he waited. “Yes, and you are?”
“Detective Roger Landry, Doctor. I know it’s been a long day, but I was wondering if you’d mind answering some questions about Desiree Simoneaux?” He ran his hand down his jacket as if trying to smooth it out. Sadly, only a can of gasoline and a fire would get those wrinkles out.
“Simoneaux,” she repeated softly, trying to figure out where she recognized the name from.
“Doc?” Detective Landry said as if to get her attention.
“Sorry, I’m not sure what I can tell you aside from what Desi’s injuries are, but ask away.”
“We’ll start there, but there’s a lot you can help me with.” He asked her about hospital security.
“You think she’s still in danger?”
“From what I could find out so far, Mrs. Simoneaux never pressed charges against this asshole, but Byron Simoneaux isn’t exactly a stranger to law enforcement. If he makes bail tonight, I don’t want to give him the chance to come over here and finish the job.”
The name finally clicked. “She’s married to Byron Simoneaux? If I remember right, his dad owns a mechanic shop and gas station in Mid-City. That’s who you’re talking about?”
Roger wrote some more notes as she spoke and nodded. “That’s him, and it sounds like you’re familiar with him.”
“Not really, he’s a name and face from a very distant past.” Harry exhaled deeply and ran her hand through her hair again. “From the little I do remember about him, I’m just surprised that’s who Desi ended up with. I never realized they were close.”
“I’m sure given their history together, if she had a do-over, she’d make different choices, but tonight’s reality is what we have to deal with. From what I read of Simoneaux, when he gets out, he’s going to come looking for her. He said as much when they took him in. If he stops at his favorite bar first, then it’s anybody’s guess what he’ll do, so I need to set up some extra security if that’s okay. You have more than Mrs. Simoneaux to worry about, and I don’t want any patients or staff getting caught in the middle of this.”
“Tell you what, Detective—why don’t I have Desi moved to another hospital once she’s out of recovery? I’ll have one of the services move her over to Baptist under a different name and into a private room.” She scrolled through her contacts on her phone to find the information she needed. “The security over there is better.”
“If you give me the information, I’ll assign a couple of patrol officers to be there too, at least for tonight.”
“I’m sure our guys would appreciate it, but like I said, I’ll take care of it after that. If you need to talk to her, it’ll have to wait until tomorrow. I don’t know how these things work, but she’s pretty out of it right now and will be for quite a while.”
“Thanks, Doc. I’ll see you both tomorrow. It’s a shame what that asshole did to her. The boys in the precinct tell me this wasn’t the first time, but like I said, she’s never pressed charges no matter how many trips they make out there. Sometimes the fear overrides the pain of the beatings,” he said as he handed her his card and shook her hand again. “This time I’m hoping she’ll think before giving him a free pass, and maybe we can nail his ass to the wall. If she doesn’t, there might not be a next time.”
“Have you contacted her family? I knew Desi in high school, and she lived with her father and sister.”
“I’ll check into it and let you know.” He pocketed his small notebook and turned to leave. “Thanks for everything, Dr. Basantes. I’m sure it was a comfort to Mrs. Simoneaux to see a friendly face. It’s going to help put this nightmare behind her.”
She made the arrangements for the transfer, then called Kenneth and explained to his partner Tony what was going on. She was going to settle Desi for the night before doing rounds. “She’ll be in for at least a week, so having her at Baptist will make it convenient for me to supervise the recovery.” It would also make it harder for her personally, but she wasn’t going to think about that now.
“Do you want Kenny to meet you over there? He called a few minutes ago, and said he’s on his way home. I could get him to take a detour,” Tony said.
“Don’t bother. I’m sure he’s ready to get home after wiping snotty noses all day. Sorry about dinner, but I’ll call you guys tomorrow.” Harry tapped her phone against her chin and fell back into her chair.
The quiet let her think about this whole situation. The truth of what happened to Desi so long ago wasn’t a mystery anymore. She’d left her for the biggest asshole they’d gone to school with, and Byron Simoneaux obviously hadn’t improved with age. It killed her that Desi had gotten hurt, but she was pissed the reason she’d left her was for that loser.
Harry took a deep breath and headed to recovery. The right side of Desi’s face was bruised from her jaw to her temple, but she seemed to be resting comfortably. “What the hell were you thinking?” She crossed her arms over her chest and closed her eyes for a moment. The long day was starting to catch up to her. As soon as it was safe to move Desi, she could put this behind her and have someone else do the follow-up.
“Want us to page you when her room is ready?” the nurse asked.
“I’m having her transferred once she’s out of recovery.” She glanced at the radiologist’s report and found some good news in all this. Her ribs were bruised but not broken. “This is a domestic violence incident, and we don’t need to make it easy for her husband to try something else before we move her.”
“You got it, Doc. Makes you wonder what happened before this asshole got ahold of her that made her take this abuse.” The nurse jotted in the chart oblivious to her glare.
“Yeah, that must’ve been an even bigger asshole.” Or a complete idiot—it’s a toss-up at this point. She left to do rounds.
“Page me when she’s ready to go. Everything’s set at Baptist.” She did her rounds but remained distracted by thoughts of the past.
They had been nearly all the way through senior year when things started to go sideways.
“Okay, tell me what’s wrong.” They were lying side by side in the backyard where no one could see them from the house in the darkness. It was past midnight, and they wanted to talk but not wake Rachel. They’d been out here awhile, but Desi hadn’t said anything.
“Nothing.” Desi’s voice cracked, and she started crying, meaning it was something.
“Hey.” She wrapped her arms around Desi, not worrying if it was inappropriate. “Please tell me.”
“A year seems like a long time, but it’s not.” Desi turned her head and tried to muffle her crying against Harry’s T-shirt. “I’m so scared about what happens when you leave for school.”
They’d researched all the scholarships and grants, but none of them would cover everything, and they couldn’t count on Clyde for a penny toward college tuition. Desi had started worrying about it over the summer, and it wasn’t getting better.
“I told you—”
“Harry, I can’t let you pay my way through school. It’s too much.”
“You could come with me, get a job, and save. Baton Rouge is close enough that we can visit Rachel on the weekends.” She rubbed Desi’s back soothingly. “If I get a job too, we can swing it.” She glanced down at Desi when she didn’t say anything. “What?”
“Daddy won’t agree to that. He needs help with Rachel and the house. Without me there, Rachel will be all alone, and—” Desi stopped as if a fist of fear had closed around her neck.
“I can’t help you if you don’t talk to me. You know you can trust me.”
“I trust you with my life, but I can’t. Please, Harry, I can’t.”
“Okay.” She didn’t want to push, not yet. “Rachel’s a couple of years behind us. We’ll both save until she’s done, and if I push it, I’ll be back in the city for medical school. Once I am, I’ll get a place big enough for all three of us, but until then, I’ll be here every weekend and holiday.”
“You mean it?” Desi lifted onto her elbow and looked down at her. “This has me so scared. I don’t want to lose you.” Desi traced her lips with her index finger. “I’m terrified you’ll forget me.”
“You can’t lose what belongs to you,” she said, kissing Desi’s palm while praying she hadn’t screwed up. “Haven’t you figured out by now that I’m in love with you? That means not leaving you behind.”
“You do?” Desi’s voice was soft with wonder.
“I’ve loved you since the third grade, but now all I can think is how much I always want to be with you.” She pressed her hand to Desi’s cheek, relieved to see her smile. “If you need more time…” She was thrilled when Desi shook her head and came closer.
“I love you, and I want to be with you forever, but I’ve been afraid to say it out loud.”
Harry moved slowly and rolled Desi to her back. “That’s the best thing I’ve ever heard.” The opportunity she’d waited so long for was here, and she wasn’t going to let it pass without acting. She lowered her head, and Desi rose up to meet her, and the kiss was so much better than she’d ever fantasized about.
That simple act shattered the last secret between them. Now all she had to do was convince Desi to open up and tell her the rest of what scared her. No one was this skittish about their father unless there was something to fear. Even after all these years, she knew something about their father wasn’t right, though Desi had never said a word about it. There was no way she could leave for LSU if Desi and Rachel were in danger.
“What are you thinking about?” Desi lay back down but interlocked their fingers. “You kissed me, and you can’t take it back.”
“That’s not happening.” She kissed Desi again. “I’m thinking of ways to get you alone now that I know kissing is okay.”
“Really?”
“We can take our time, but you drive me a little nuts.”
Desi laughed as she brought Harry’s hand to her breast. “I thought you weren’t paying attention, and I’m lucky our refrigerator still works. How you haven’t fallen off the swing while you were staring at my ass is the true mystery.”
“You little tease.” She could feel Desi’s nipple harden under her palm, and Desi’s hand tightened on her back.
“It’s only teasing if you plan to stop.” Desi moved to take her nightgown off. “I don’t want to stop.”
“Are you sure?” She pulled her shirt over her head and tossed it aside.
“Baby, we’ve waited long enough.” Desi put her hands on her shoulders and brought their naked chests together. “And I’ve dreamed about us like this.”
There was enough light for her to see the small bow at the top of Desi’s underwear, and whatever reservations she had were gone. “I want you so bad.”
“I’m yours—always have been.” There was no hesitation when she put her fingers under the white panties and tugged them down. “Are you sure no one can see?”
“Not unless they come looking for us, and my parents are sleeping. Dad’s got early rounds tomorrow.” She got naked and put her hand at the top of Desi’s sex. “I love you.”
“Then prove it.”
Those words were too much, and she had to touch Desi the one place she hoped she’d only share with her. The wetness made her groan. “Tell me if you want me to stop.” She stroked Desi’s clit, but the light pink nipple so close to her mouth was too tempting.
“Uh, Harry,” Desi said in a harsh whisper when she sucked her in, “do something, but don’t stop.”
She slid to the edge of the blanket and almost dove forward when Desi spread her legs. This was her first time too, and she wanted to please Desi and not disappoint. It must’ve felt good from the way Desi was thrusting up into her mouth and holding the sides of her head to keep her in place. She was never going to get enough of Desi like this.
“Oh…oh, Harry…so good.” Desi jerked twice more, then went rigid. “Jesus, we shouldn’t have waited this long.” They both laughed when Harry moved back and covered Desi’s body with hers. “We’re doing that again, right?”
“Whenever I get you alone. It’ll be tough waiting now that I know how sweet you taste.” She kissed Desi, but she was wound so tight she was about to unravel. Desi kept one hand in her hair but the other trailed slowly down Harry’s side, then between them.
“Are you mine?” Desi hummed when she touched between her legs, and she was so ready.
“Always.”
For the next nine months, they made plans for the next year, and for all the ones to follow. While they waited for Rachel to graduate, they would have to live for long weekends and school breaks at LSU. Despite her father’s money, Harry was going on both athletic and scholastic scholarships. She was as good on the softball field as she was at solving math problems and had been heavily recruited.
“And I’m yours for as long as you want me,” Desi said.
“Death is the only way I’m letting go.”