Page 26 of Asher

“Hey, no tears,” Libby whispered. “This will be a good day for you, I promise. Your ophthalmologist asked me to remove these bandages because he’s that confident in you. He’ll have the final say, so have faith a little longer. You’re going to be fine, honey.”

Honey.That word was her undoing. Unable to speak and afraid she’d fall apart if she did, Marlowe simply nodded while Kelsey and Judy chatted with Farrah. They sounded like old friends,talking about their children and husbands and…. all the things Marlowe wanted but would never have. A family. Friends you could count on. Girlfriends who actually liked you. Maybe even loved you a little. Was that asking too much?

“You’re trembling,” Libby whispered again. Tugging the last strip of tape away, she set it on the rolling table that was now beside the bed. Marlowe hadn’t noticed that until now, when her room was filled with the soft sweet spirits of these special women. “Are you okay? Can I get you anything?”

Finally able to see out of both eyes, Marlowe reached up and clutched Libby’s wrist. “Yes, I’m…”I’m what? Scared to leave? Scared to finish what I’ve started? Am I a coward? A quitter?Or just scared you won’t like me if you really knew me?Her vision blurred. She blinked to get Libby back into focus. Something was wrong.

“Trust me, sweetheart, this won’t hurt,” Libby whispered, as she poured something cool and refreshing into Marlow’s eye, then blotted the excess with a soft cloth. “I’m flushing your eye, and then I’ll take pictures of the structures inside your eye.” She repeated the cleansing process. Gently. Kindly.

“Structures?”

“Yes, the mechanics of your eyeball. The cornea, iris, and retina, which was torn when you arrived. That’s what Dr. Burr repaired. Did you know that?”

“No,” Marlowe breathed. “I never asked.”I should have.

“Tip your head back. There you go.” In went a couple drops of something else. Ahh, instant relief. “Now blink for me. Look up at the ceiling.”

Marlowe did as she was told, and Libby peered through what looked like a magnifying lens at the end of a black handle.

“Very good. Doctor Burr was right. Your eye is healed. You’ll have to stay out of direct sunlight for a couple days, but no more bandage.”

Marlowe’s chest lifted with a sigh of gratitude when, with a delicate touch, Libby set a pair of dark glasses on Marlowe’s nose and whispered, “I’ve lived through some awful days, too. Days when I couldn’t see the sun and believed I was dying, that I’d never see Mark again. Days when there was no hope, and I truly wanted to die. So have Kelsey and Judy. We’ve all been where you are right now. We’re here for you, girlfriend.”

“But I… I’m…” Marlowe had no idea what she wanted or needed. Her fingers seemed frozen. She couldn’t let go of Libby. Because if she did, this beautiful morning would crumble into dust like so many others, and she’d be alone again.

“You’re safe,” Libby said quietly. “When you saved Farrah and her girls, you were saving yourself, too. We all want you to stay. Please don’t leave.”

Marlowe jerked back even farther then, needing to look Libby in the eye. To see the truth she hadn’t realized she’d missed until then. “Where’s Asher?”

Libby’s lips thinned. She blinked, and Marlowe knew. “He’s gone, isn’t he? He left without me. He and Alex and... and Harley and M-Murphy and…” She couldn’t remember who else pissed Alex off yesterday. “Asher left me behind, didn’t he?”The ass.

The ugly thing that lay dormant in her heart writhed with pent-up anger, so, so ready to strike. To demand compliance and honesty and obedience. That was the only thing that saved allof those Afghan women. They’d obeyed every last word she’d said because they’d had to. They’d followed directions explicitly, without asking stupid questions. They’d been open and honest because that was what real friends did. They’d trusted her to know what was best for them. But these women... But Asher…Damn him.

“Marlowe.” That was Kelsey, and oh yes, Marlowe remembered now. Kelsey was Alex’s wife, and Asher said someone tried to kill her last fall. That was when Alex built the intensive care unit down the hall. Asher thought Kelsey was special. He said she’d love Marlowe. How did a person destroy that impossible possibility just because she was pissed off?

“Did Asher plan this?” Marlowe asked the room, because, come on now. It wasn’t a coincidence that these women showed up the same morning Asher had snuck out of the country.

“Do you seriously believe you’re capable of traveling halfway across the world in your condition?” Judy asked sharply. Apparently, she wasn’t afraid to take the bull by the horns and deliver blunt-force trauma, just like she had yesterday with Alex.

“No, but…” Marlowe’s eyes, both of them, filled with tears she couldn’t hold back. “There are more women waiting for me to save them.”

“See, Kelsey?” Libby said. “She’s as bad as Alex, Mark, Harley, and—”

“And us,” Kelsey replied kindly. “Marlowe doesn’t know it yet, but I think she’s found her tribe, and we’re not going to leave her.”

“Stop. Please, just stop. Everyone, shut up,” Marlowe cried. “I don’t know what tribe you’re talking about.”

Libby’s arms were around her before she finished. “The silent, unseen tribe of military wives and girlfriends. The women who stand by their men and keep the home fires burning while they’re off saving the world. The women who make sure those warriors have a soft place to land when they come home.”

“The tribe of the desperate sisters you saved,” Farrah murmured timidly. “No matter where you go, I will always love you, my lovely grouchy sister.”

Out of nowhere, Marlowe hiccupped. “Darn it. That nickname’s going to stick with me forever, isn’t it?”

Libby kissed the top of her beanie. She kissed her. On the head. Like no woman had ever done before. “I sure hope so. We don’t mean to gang up on you, but with the men leaving as quickly as they did, we knew you’d be upset when you woke and Asher wasn’t here.”

“So we’re here instead,” Judy added. “Now, stop feeling sorry for yourself, and let’s get you ready for the first day of the rest of your life.”

“Okay. Sure. It’s not like I have a choice, do I?”

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