Chapter 3: The Healing Place
The emergency room at St. Jude’s was a blur of bright lights, antiseptic smells, and hushed medical jargon. Julian sat in a sterile plastic chair beside Lily’s hospital bed, his large hand completely enveloping her tiny one. She was hooked up to an oxygen monitor and an IV, but her breathing was finally deep and rhythmic. She was asleep, the exhaustion of the ordeal having pulled her under.
The door clicked open, and Clara stepped inside. She had been treated in a different wing. A neat white bandage was taped over the bridge of her nose, and a nasty purple bruise covered the left side of her jaw, but she had washed the blood from her face and changed into a set of hospital scrubs.
Julian stood up immediately, pulling another chair close to the bed. "Please, sit," he said, his voice thick with gratitude.
Clara sat down, her eyes immediately darting to Lily. "How is she, Mr. Harrington?"
"Stable. The doctor said if she had been in there another five minutes without her inhaler..." Julian swallowed hard, unable to finish the sentence. He looked at Clara, really looked at her. She was barely twenty-two, working to put herself through community college, and she had thrown herself in front of a monster to save a child that wasn't hers.
"Clara, what happened? Tell me everything."
Clara took a shaky breath. "Lily was running in the hall and bumped a table. A vase fell. Mrs. Harrington was furious. She grabbed Lily by the arm. Lily started hyperventilating, and then the asthma kicked in. I ran to get her inhaler, but Mrs. Harrington dragged her into the old cellar and locked the iron door."
A tear slipped down Clara's bruised cheek. "I begged her for the key. I tried to grab it from her hand. That's when she hit me. She hit me with the base of a heavy brass candlestick, and then she poured herself a glass of wine."
Julian closed his eyes, the guilt threatening to drown him. He had brought that woman into their lives. He had left Lily alone with her.
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"Clara," Julian said, leaning forward. "You saved my world today. I don't know how I can ever repay you, but I swear to you, Victoria will never set foot near either of you again. And you will never have to worry about your tuition, or your medical bills, or anything else, for as long as you live."
Clara looked down at her hands, crying softly. "I just wanted her to be okay."
