Running with Secrets

Untitled Part 28

Ellipses, or dot, dot, dot. This was the pre-determined message from Heath the captain was waiting for. He knew now that they were safe for the night. It filled him with relief to know they were packed away for the night, but he also knew Heath wouldn't feed him every detail. He'd learn to live with it. After all, the captain trusted his detectives to do their jobs. He quickly texted the response, closed his phone and went home.

*****
"I'll be back soon, Kristin." Heath said as he turned the door handle. I" don't have to tell you this but I'm going to anyway Don't answer the door to anyone, no matter what they say on the other side. I'll knock four times," he demonstrated the pattern on the dresser, "when I get back before I use the key card."

She only sat down in a chair at the desk and nodded

"Right." He sighed. "I'll be back." He turned the handle and was gone with the click of the door.

Kristin breathed in like she had been crying, but she had already done that today and wasn't sure there was any more to release. She was beginning to feel a headache  in her sinuses, she was certain. She lowered her head onto the desk as if she were in high school and tried not to fall asleep, but failed.

True to his word, Heath  returned and knocked four times, then opened the door with his key card. With the click of the handle, Kristin twitched, but didn't move. He placed Kristin's suitcase and carry on inside on the floor, along with his oversized duffel bag then closed the door behind him.  He took their bag of leftovers straight to the mini-fridge and couldn't help noticing how uncomfortable Kristin looked, folded over the top of the desk, then proceeded to stack their bags in the closet. He supposed he could wait to show her the clothes he picked out for her when he had gone birthday shopping for his sister. It was weird to him how he was nervous about how he hoped she'd respond.

Picking up the remote control to the television, he turned it on, making sure the volume was low, then he kicked off his shoes and removed the oversized backpack from his back and put it on the couch behind his traveling companion.

He was glad to have already checked in with the captain and received a text back. Now he could relax a little bit and perhaps get some sleep.

It was ten-forty-five when Kristin woke up with a kink in her neck and to the sounds of American Ninja on the television. She sucked in a decent amount of air through her nose and tried to straighten out her back and neck. Feeling the sting of the kink in her neck, she raised her hand to the area. "That's gonna hurt in the morning."

Heath looked over at her and said, "It's late, but I didn't want to wake you when I got back. Oh, and I put all the bags in the closet."

"Thank you." Kristin looked around. She moved to the closet and took out her suitcase. "It seems heavier than when I packed it yesterday."

"Yeah. I promise I didn't rifle through your belongings, the things I got, I just put the shopping bags in there when I went down to get them."

Kristin made an "okay" face and smiled a little at him as she opened it to find her pajamas. There were three shopping bags from stores she never considered shopping for herself. She's never owned anything from Boden, or Banana Republic, yet here were shopping bags from these stores with at least three things each in them. He was a generous man if he purchased things from these stores for his sister, AND a woman he barely knows. She'd look in them after she washed her face and put her pajamas on.

When she came out of the bathroom in her oversized night shirt and shorts, Heath said, "You look like I feel."  and immediately facepalmed himself. How could he possibly--

"....know how I feel, Heath?" She scolded him. "I've had my life nearly snuffed out by the man I was supposed to build my future with and in the process got PTSD from it and twice in the same day have had the same scenario play right before my eyes, both times rendering me useless and triggering an episode. I don't think you know half of how I feel." She dropped her dirty clothes into the suitcase.

"You're right." he didn't hesitate. It was going to be a long drive if they couldn't get along. "I'm sorry, I don't know."

"You're on my bed. I thought you said you had a sleeping bag." She folded her arms and tried not to look vulnerable.

"I did. It's in that backpack." He pointed to the sofa.

"Shouldn't you be getting ready for bed then?" She asked rummaging for her toothbrush and toothpaste.

"I will," he said, "after we talk."

"There's nothing to talk about." Her breathing was audible. "I'm trying to stay calm, but I don't think I can right now. It's been quite a full day."

"Yeah." Heath agreed. "That's what we need to talk about. You need to come up with a word or an action, or both to signal me you're about to lose it." He sat up and swung one leg to the floor. She noticed he still hadn't taken his leather jacket off to watch television. It seemed he'd be rather uncomfortable. "I am here to keep you safe, and whatever it takes I'll do."

Kristin couldn't say anything. She knew he had flashed his badge at dinner, but she didn't know what had happened after that because she was busy trying to hold it together. It took a lot of energy and was exhausting. 

"I have given my word to your uncle that I'll take care of you for your mother, and as much as you hate him, Matther Benson's life is on the line right now. People are trying to find him too to bring him to justice." She only looked at him, tears that she didn't know she had were lining the rims of her eye. "He has to bring himself in, but you have to trust us. The precinct. They're doing their best in the office while I get you to safety. So this is why you need to give me cues to when you're overwhelmed because I don't know that I'll be able to pick up your pieces before they become too small."

Kristin slumped her shoulders. Her defiant self fled at that moment. "Your less than eloquent words were perfectly understood." she suppressed a smile. "Now get off my bed. I'm going to sleep. I'll let you know my decision in the morning."

Heath pursed his lips together and nodded. He got his sleeping bag out and took a pillow from the bed. There were plenty of them for the king-sized mattress. Then he took his toothbrush and toothpaste from his own bag, hung up his jacket, and rummaged for his sleeping clothes, because men don't wear pajamas, and went into the bathroom to brush his teeth and get ready for bed.

When he came out, the light from the bathroom hit him so he looked more tan than he really was. Kristin tried not to notice through her partially closed eyes that he took particularly good care of his body. He was wearing what she would describe as cotton lounge pants. He liked plaid, at least, but didn't like to sleep with a shirt on. Maybe just because or just because it was late Spring, and beginning to be pretty warm. Speaking of warm, Kristin suddenly felt a temperature rise as she tried even harder to make herself sleep.

She listened to him unzip the sleeping bag so he could use it as a blanket, then heard him walk back around to turn off the light. "Good night, Kristin." She heard him whisper. "Have good dreams." She smiled at his thoughtfulness. This was a different Heath than the one she met at the hospital when he was moody and angsty.

He shook his head as he laid down on the couch and covered himself to go to sleep. You look like I feel. Only an idiot would say that to a person who has just had two PTSD episodes in the same day." Heath looked around in the dark, not that he'd be able to see anything. "Oh, hello, idiot. Nice to meet you. Hi, idiot to you too."

Kristin tried so hard not to laugh, but she smiled to herself so wide that she thought her face might rip in two. But instead, decided to to go to sleep.