2 - The Doctor

Brett left at sun up to do his chores: he'd switched with Uncle Ned so he could be nearby in the barns for when Maisey woke up. His eye was yellowish green, starting to heal: it had been two days since he'd found Maisey sitting looking at the stars and she'd been unconscious since he'd brought her to his uncle's home. He saw Andy's truck pull in and turned the small John Deere toward the house to meet him.

Andy was the local doctor in Bindloss, not that there was much to the community, Andy was both doctor and veterinarian, he'd been by to check on Maisey three times since Brett called and told him what had happened. Annabelle, Andy's twin sister, stepped down from the passenger side. Anna helped her brother with some of his work. Brett had asked for her help with Maisey, he didn't think the woman would appreciate finding out a couple of strange men had dressed and undressed her after what she'd dealt with. Anna had agreed.

Brett cut the engine and hoped down, "Hey Andy, thanks for coming."

Andy shook his friend's hand, "have you noticed any changes?" Brett shook his head, and Andy frowned, "I'll be honest Brett, it worries me that she hasn't woken up, I think I need to involve the sheriff and see if we can't figure out what happened."

Brett knew his friend was right. He'd only really known her for a couple of hours when she had collapsed, he was worried. He just didn't know if he was more worried about what had happened to her before she got to Bindloss or if he was more worried about what would happen when she woke up. Whomever had put her into the condition Andy reported she was in deserved to be castrated: 4 broken ribs, a fractured hand, fading bruises on her kidneys and torso, scars from recent stitches above her left eye and across her left cheek, and the worst was to hear that at some point, whether or not she knew it, Maisey had been pregnant and lost the baby. Andy'd had to remove the dead fetus while she was unconscious.

It turned Brett's stomach to think of a man doing that to any woman and it horrified him to know how much pain she'd been in and he hadn't known the whole time they'd been sitting on her tailgate.

"You know what's best Andy," he told his friend.

"She probably would have died on the side of the road from her injuries," Andy reminded him as they went through the kitchen, Anna following behind them silently.

"I know," Brett said softly. "I've never been more grateful in my life for having gotten kicked out of the pub."

Andy chuckled and waited while Brett knocked on the guest room door and opened it, softly calling out to Maisey in case she'd woken. She hadn't. Brett always stayed nearby when Andy and Anna were there, he didn't want Maisey to wake up and panic because she didn't know who they were or where she was. He watched Andy check her temperature and heart rate; he turned away when they checked her ribs and other bruises, not wanting her to be able to accuse him of anything.

"Son of a biscuit, that hurts!" Maisey called out sharply, "Stop prodding me already Doc!"

Brett turned around in shock, "You're awake Maisey!"

"If he doesn't stop poking those ribs I'm going to pass out again!" she retorted. Andy stopped,

"Where the hell am I?"

Brett looked askance at Andy, "Will you let me keep checking you while Brett answers you?" Andy asked.

"Go ahead," she replied, "But I can tell you that my ribs are still broken, my jaw feels better, my bruising feels like it's almost gone, and my hand is throbbing like a son of a biscuit, but mostly I'm thirsty."

"You do realize it's incredible that you just woke up like that?" Andy asked her.

Maisey nodded, her expression somber, "Yeah, well, start with where am I, how I got here, how long I've been out this time and then I'll fill in some blanks for you, Doc."

Andy chuckled, "Do you remember Brett?" he indicated his friend.

Maisey turned her head and saw him for the first time in the daylight. He had a cowboy hat jammed down on his head that he removed when she looked at him, his eyes were bright green, his face reminded her of the actor who played John Bowie on The Alamo—but the version where John Wayne plays Davie Crocket. He looked like every cowboy she remembered from the movies: hard working, calloused hands, lean and muscular. His green eyes were kind and showed concern for her, the left showed almost no bruising.

"Hey there cowboy," she smiled carefully, and somewhat shyly, "I think I owe you an apology."

"Not a chance," Brett told her with a smile, "I'm just glad you're awake."

"I guess your aunt doesn't have to rise from the dead and skin you," she responded. Andy raised an eyebrow at Brett who shrugged. "I don't remember anything after I slammed away into my truck, what happened?"

Unsure why he did it, Brett sat next to her on the bed, her hand raised to rest on his bicep comfortably, "I waited for you to pull away," he told her, "but when ten minutes went by I went to the window and knocked. You didn't respond but you had your arms wrapped around yourself and you were rocking back and forth crying—I could hear you. I called my uncle. You weren't responding to anything I said. I lifted you out of the truck but you collapsed so we brought you here and got Andy to come: he's the Doctor."

Maisey's fingers tightened when he described it, he unconsciously put his hand over hers and she relaxed. It surprised her that she could feel comfortable around someone she barely knew. He nodded silently and took the water Anna gave her, drinking slowly after Brett and Andy helped her to sit up. She let Andy check her eyes and retake her pulse and temperature.

"Alright Maisey," Anna replaced her brother, "My name is Anna, I'm the nurse but I'm also Andy's sister and a long-time friend of Brett's. You're safe here, but I need you to tell me what happened before Brett found you."

Maisey's face paled and Brett squeezed her hand encouragingly. She met his eyes, "I don't know if I'm ready to tell you," her eyes were sad, Brett saw pain quickly masked behind the blue eyes. He brushed a strand of golden blonde hair from her check, "I'll try," her resolve strengthened. "It's kind of like a seizure," she told Andy and Anna, "but different. The fits started a year ago."

"Is that when the abuse started?" Andy asked?

Maisey's eyes flashed from Brett's to Andy's, "Maisey," Brett said, "I've seen the bruises, but if you want me to go I will, I don't have to hear anything you don't want me to."

Maisey took a deep breath, and closed her eyes, "I'm sorry I'm just not ready to share all of me with a stranger I just met, even if you did rescue me." Brett nodded and stood, giving her hand another gentle squeeze, she turned to Andy, "if it's okay Doc, I'd like to just talk with your nurse." Andy nodded and left.

She struggled not to start sobbing again. "Before I start," Maisey asked after the men left, "I have to know: did I lose the baby?"