Page 14 of Little Deer
“What is your role in this?” Lucy asks. “How did you get involved in all of this?”
I give her a crooked smile. “That is a long story, but in short, your brother offered Gia in a marriage contract to our father. Long story short, we did some digging around and we found out about Gia and the other girls. You and your sister and cousins were a very deeply buried secret that finally surfaced, but it also meant that your family found out about it too, which puts you in danger.”
“And you’ve been finding all the girls to protect them,” Lucy summarizes.
“Yes.”
She slowly nods, but she’s clearly still processing it all. She opens her mouth to ask me something else, but a brisk knock sounds on the door before Sofia enters, a sharp looking woman stepping in behind her. “The doctor is here. Massimo, this time,you need to step out. I’ll stay here with Rori,” Sofia announces, her voice firm. “Papa and Pietro would like to speak with you downstairs in Nico’s office anyway.”
Shit. I want to argue, but I simply nod. I look at Lucy. “Think about what I said, Lucy, please,” I say softly. “We’ll talk more when I get back.” I round the bed, taking in the doctor.
She’s a woman in her early forties, deep blue eyes that are sharp and assessing, her body trim, her hair pulled up into a simple bun at the back of her head, and a nondescript medical bag in her hand. She gives off a no-nonsense vibe and the quick read on her I get is that Lucy should be in much better hands. I give her a curt nod and leave the room.
I glance over my shoulder and see Lucy watching me curiously, like she’s trying to puzzle me out. I give her a warm smile before I shut the door and blow out a breath. Alonzo is standing at the end of the hall waiting for me, gaze dark and foreboding.
I have to hope that what I said to Lucy will stick. I’d rather her be somewhat agreeable to staying here, but it doesn’t change the fact that she’s stuck here. We can’t allow the De Lucas to get to her or her son. Ever.
9
LUCY
Dr. Addison Fosteris exactly as she looks. Precise, brisk, and knowledgeable. She’s also efficient and within ten minutes of Massimo leaving has given me the all clear. “Your heart rate is a bit elevated, as is your blood pressure, but we’ll put that down to the situation,” she states briskly as she pulls away. “I still would like to examine you vaginally to ensure that you haven’t suffered any issues, especially only being six weeks postpartum. And while I know the question is a difficult one, I need you to tell me if you were assaulted. I want to ensure you’re comfortable at all times and don’t want to cause any further trauma by poking around or doing anything you’re not ready for.”
“No, I wasn’t assaulted,” I say, voice trembling. “The men, they…they talked about it, the ones who brought me there, but the ones that said they were my brothers never touched me. They only punched and kicked me.”
She nods, watching me. “Did they kick or punch you in the stomach?”
I nod. “I fought back when they took me, and I remember when they hit me in the stomach that it really hurt.”
“I’m going to check you to make sure that nothing was damaged. Sofia let me know that when you were originally brought in you were bleeding heavily, and that could be the trauma of the stomach blow and sedation they originally gave you, but I’d like to be sure. Alright?”
I nod stiffly. I've been doing much better since Soren was born, but I’m still sore and tender. Not to mention the stuff coming out of me is like the worst period ever, even if it is getting lighter.
“I’ll take Soren,” Kida offers, gently taking him from me. Dr. Foster had never once told me to let him go and worked around him easily enough, which has put me at ease, but I still feel anxious not having him in my arms.
“We’ll hold up the blanket,” Rori offers, stepping to the other side of the bed and grabbing the sheet, while Sofia grabs the other side and Dr. Foster grabs what she needs from her bag. Rori smiles at me. “We’re all girls here, but we don’t know each other that well yet, right?” I give her a weak smile.
I’ll give it to Dr. Foster, she’s gentle, considerate, and constantly looks over the blanket at me to check in. I really wish they had called her in the first place. When she’s finished, she announces, “Everything seems to be healing nicely, and I don’t see any signs of tearing from the birth to worry about it. Or have those already healed?”
“I tore a little bit but it healed pretty quickly.”
She gives me a small smile. “You’re fully healed from the birth, and you should stop bleeding any day. I don’t see any internal damage from the kicks or punches, but if you suddenly start passing large clots, you have them call me immediately. Alright?” I nod, but when she looks at Sofia and Rori, they both nod as well.
“What about my milk?” I ask when she cleans me up and helps me get redressed and back under the covers. “I breastfeed Soren, but I haven’t yet because I’ve been worried about what they gave me.”
“She was brought here about five hours ago,” Sofia tells Dr. Foster, giving a brief overview of what I was given and what the other doctor said.
Dr. Foster nodded. “I think you’ll be alright if you want to feed him now, but if you want to give it a couple more hours you can.”
“He’s refusing to take a bottle other than a little bit at a time,” Kida jumps in. “He’s not been eating much.”
“Would you like me to examine him while I’m here?” Dr. Foster asks me. “He’s probably alright, but the stress might have him out of sorts.”
“Please.” My heart pounds thinking that he might have made himself sick, and I take him from Kida to hand him to Dr. Foster. Dr. Foster lays him on the bed next to me, listening and smiling slightly when Soren kicks and hits at her in reflex, staring up at her.
“Everything sounds good to me,” she assures me. “He is a little dehydrated, but I think once he eats he’ll be back to normal in no time. If you’re nervous to breastfeed him, I have another type of formula that he might enjoy better that you can try. I wasn’t sure what you had so I brought what I had in storage at the clinic. It will last you for two feedings I would say, which should be enough for the drugs in your system to be completely gone.”
“Thank you,” I breathe out in relief.
