Unknown (Unknown Series Book 1) (29 page)

She seemed to consider and finally shook her head. Slowly, she raised her shirt over her head and I had to try not to stare. Not at her petite chest or the bones that showed, but at the greenish old bruises along her ribcage and collarbones. They looked like they were from severe injuries sustained a while ago. She squatted at my side and brought a hand up to her chest when she saw me looking. I quickly turned toward the tub.

My God . . . what happened to her?

Livia’s chin lowered as if in shame. This time when I turned to her, I met her eyes and gave her a smile. Then I leaned into the tub, pulled out my rubber band, and pushed my hair over my head. The other girls followed suit. Mom poured cups of warm water over our heads and we moaned and laughed as we worked our locks into lathers. We washed our faces too.

“Mrs. Tate, you are my hero,” Remy said when we were done and towels were wrapped around our heads. She gave Mom a huge hug. Livia thanked Mom and slipped her shirt back over her damp head before heading out of the bathroom.

“What happened to her?” Remy whispered.

Mom and I both shook our heads and shared a sad look.

“I don’t know,” she said.

“Me either. It must have happened in Guatemala.” I knew there were things Rylen wasn’t telling us, and it was none of our business.

We took off the towels and hung them, then brushed our hair.

“What can I do today to help?” Remy asked my mom.

“Well, it’s not much fun, but Abuela and I need to get some laundry cleaned. Just the essentials. We have to do them by hand.” She raised an eyebrow.

“I’ll totally help!” Remy said quickly. “We’ll be like pioneer women.”

Mom shook her head, clearly amused. “Try to keep that attitude. You’ll need it after the first hour.”

“Gee, wish I could help,” I said. “But I’ve got to go to work.” I winked and Mom shoved me out of the bathroom. Thankfully my shirt was back on because I ran right into Rylen in the hall coming out of Tater’s bedroom. I forced myself not to jump away.

“Hey,” I said. When he gave me his soft smile, I couldn’t help myself. I reached out and hugged him around the waist, enveloping myself in his smell. He fully hugged me back. Standing there in the otherwise empty hall felt strangely private despite a houseful of people. For a few seconds everything else was drowned out, and it was only us. Then I heard Tater’s laughter in another room and I slowly pulled away.

“Thank you,” he whispered.

“How are you feeling?” I shook my head. “Never mind . . . that’s a stupid question.”

“No, it’s not.” He rubbed the blond hair along his jaw. “I’m pissed, to be honest. I’ve got a lot of questions and I doubt I’ll get any answers. But I’ll get by. Long as I have you guys.”

“You’ll always have us.” I shuffled my feet. “Well, good luck this morning.”

“Thanks.” He plucked my nose and we went our separate ways.

See,
I told myself.
You can do this.
Keep it sisterly. No big deal.

Even though I’d told Livia she should visit the clinic, I was still surprised when I saw her. My face lit up in a true smile and I hugged her gently. We sat down in the small exam room, leaving the door open per the new rule.

“How are you feeling?” I asked her in Spanish. “Any sickness?”

“I feel sick all day, but I never vomit. I feel hungry all day, but when I try to eat it is too difficult. Except the sweet things from your brother . . .”

“The PopTarts?” I asked. “You can have them all! They’re yours.”

She gave an embarrassed laugh and looked down at her hands in her lap.

“That is normal, what you’re feeling. I’ve heard it can be like that.” I took out the blood pressure cuff and got all of her stats. She was doing well. I got a bottle of prenatal vitamins for her. “You have to take these with food or they can hurt your stomach. You can start with just half a pill.”

She took it and gave me a grateful smile, then stared down at the bottle. “Ry-
len
, he worries. I want to be healthy for him.”

“He’s going to be such a good dad.” It just sort of slipped out. I stared at the bottle of vitamins too. “I’ve always thought that about him.”

“He loves you.”

I looked up at her, shocked. “Yeah. I’m like a sister to him.”

She stared at me in a hard calculating way that took me by surprise. “You love him too.”

In my nervousness I slipped back into English. “I . . . I mean, yes, I do, but not—”

“Es okay. I know.” She responded in English too. She pointed to her eyes. “I can see.”

“Livia,” I said. My heart felt like it would explode with each pound. I forced myself to concentrate on speaking Spanish again. “It is nothing like that. I swear.”

“I believe you. But Rylen was not planning marriage. He saved me, but ruined his own life.”

“Wha—” I shook my head. “No. What do you mean, he saved you?”

Her face . . . I watched as her eyes unfocused, as if thinking about the past, and a grimace appeared, making her close her eyes. “My father. He was ashamed of me. He punished me in our market street for everyone to see. I was a helper to our doctor, much like you, and the doctor . . .” She swallowed hard, her eyes glistening. “My father wanted me to marry him. To seduce him so he would marry me.”

She sucked in a breath and covered her mouth. Her other trembling hand went to her stomach.

“Oh, my God,” I whispered.

“The baby is not Rylen’s,” she said. “The doctor made me his lover, but he would not marry me. He told my father I was a whore, and my father needed to punish me in public to keep our family name clean.”

“Wait.” My voice was low and dangerous, filled with anger. “Your
father
gave you those bruises?” I had never been more appalled.

She nodded. Her eyes fluttered open, filled with moisture. “I tried to fight. My cousins held me down. He cracked my bones. I was choking on blood, but Rylen stopped him.”

My heart was in my throat, pounding uncontrollably.

“Excuse me,” came a sweet voice from the doorway. Mine and Livia’s heads spun toward the face of our DRI woman. To my horror, she looked straight at Livia and began speaking in perfect, polished Spanish. “My dear, it is my job to keep records for all of our town. I could not help but to overhear—did you say that the child you carry is not your husband’s?”

I was on my feet, feeling like I’d been doused in fire. I opened my mouth and the DRI lady looked straight at me.
“Don’t speak,”
she said lyrically. “I am addressing Mrs. Fite.”

My mouth hung there, the words dead before they left my throat. I felt all of the anger deflate from my chest, leaving me with a cool numbness.

“This will stay completely private,” the woman told Livia. “Just between us. Was the father of Guatemalan heritage, like yourself?”

Livia confirmed this, looking worried.

The DRI woman’s voice softened, taking on a gentle tone I wasn’t used to hearing from her. “And how do you feel about this pregnancy?”

Oh my freaking . . . hell no . . . why was my mouth not working? This line of questioning was highly unprofessional.

Sweet Livia shrugged, seeming to struggle. The woman stared hard. “It seems you are not happy.”

Livia dropped her gaze, and the woman nodded.

“I see. Okay, then. Have you had your vaccination for the Red Virus?”

Liv confirmed. “Sí.”

“Good, that’s good. Well, I have one more preemptive shot to give pregnant women in these trying times. It is full of vitamins and minerals and will guard you against several flu strands.”

I narrowed my eyes, overcome with apprehension, and my voice finally burst out. “What shot is this?”

“It’s new,” she said without looking at me. She pulled out a plastic container with a single dose needle inside. My heart began to pound again.

“What’s the name of it? I’ve never heard of it before.”

Now she looked at me. She had lost her smile. “Are you an expert on all things, Miss Tate? Are you an obstetrician?”

“Of course not, I just—”

The woman switched to English and said curtly. “Please, let me work. I’m
helping
her.”

She smiled pleasantly at Livia, who shot a fearful look in my direction as the woman lifted her sleeve.

“Are there any side effects?” I quickly asked. “She’s not feeling well. Will it make her—”

Livia flinched as the woman poked her arm with the needle and squeezed the serum into her muscle.

“There now. Nausea and cramping might follow, but you will be just fine.”

She left the room and I had to lean against the table. Livia rubbed her arm.

“It’s okay,” I whispered. “I’m sure it’s okay.” I was being paranoid. I needed to calm down because I was pretty sure my actions were freaking her out. Before the DRI woman had come in, there was so much I wanted to ask Livia, but now was not the time. Not that I knew that woman was listening. “How did you get here?” I asked.

“Your papá,” she said. I helped her up and walked her outside. Dad was waiting in the car, reading an old Army magazine. I gave Livia a hug and what I hoped was a reassuring smile.

“Thank you for opening up to me today. I promise it will stay between us.”

She nodded and walked around to the passenger side.

Dad frowned when he saw our faces. “Everything okay?”

“Keep an eye on her,” I said quietly. “And please, make sure she gets a chocolate PopTart.”

He chuckled. “Sure thing.”

“How’d it go this morning with trying to get gas?”

He grinned. “Turns out it’s useful to have Tater around. He and the owner’s son played football together. We’re all set.”

“Nice.” I smiled.

“Love ya, Amber.”

“Love ya too.” I kissed his cheek and went back into the clinic, a place that used to make me feel useful, but now made me feel confined. And disgusted.

I spent the rest of the day teetering between calming myself down over that shot, and feeling gutted about Livia’s story. My heart was like this raw thing left jagged by too many emotions. Though it killed me that Rylen was married, I was so thankful he’d stopped Livia’s dad from killing her.

As far as the shot went, I had to stop letting my prejudice of the weird DRI people make me act like a psycho. I definitely needed to have more self-control over my reactions too. I finally felt a fraction calmer when it was time to leave work later that night.

I pulled up at our house and Tater flung open the front door. He leaped down the porch steps and sprinted over. The alarmed look on his face made me jump out of the car, going straight into work mode. Alert and ready. Mom was in the doorway waving me in. She appeared panicked too.

“What’s going on?”

Tater nearly collided into me. “Livia is sick!”

Damn it!
My heart sank clear down to my feet and for a second I couldn’t move. Tater grabbed my arm and I ran. She was on the lower bunk in Tater’s room, crying pitifully, her knees pulled up. Her hair was slicked back with sweat. She let out a scream and her body convulsed. Rylen and I met eyes—his helpless fear gutted me.

Mom had a cold rag in her hand, which I grabbed and ran to her. I practically had to push Ry out of the way to get full access. I sat at her side and wiped her forehead.

“I’m here, Liv.” She was in too much pain to do anything but writhe and cry.

“What’s happening to her?” Rylen asked.

“How long has she been like this?”

He shook his head and looked at Mom. “Twenty minutes, maybe?”

Livia was wearing dark jeans and her back was to the wall.

“Close the door,” I told Mom. It was just her, Rylen, Livia, and me. I scooted back on the bed to get a better look. Her pants looked wet. I gently moved her and I was just as I expected. Blood covered the sheets under her.

“She’s having a miscarriage,” I whispered.

Mom sucked in a breath. “She’s pregnant?”

Rylen’s face crumbled. He sat by her side again and used the cloth to wipe her face. “She’s been under a lot of stress.”

“I don’t think this is natural.” My mouth was bone dry. “I think this was a forced miscarriage. Ry . . .” He looked at me, his brow tight. “The DRI did this.”

I expected him to tell me I was crazy. And for Mom to tell me not to jump to conclusions. But Mom remained quiet and Rylen asked in all seriousness, “She said they gave her a shot today and you weren’t happy about it. You think the shot did this?”

“Yeah, I do.” The question was, why?
Why
wouldn’t they want her to have the baby?