ALL I NEED
Chapter Twenty-Three
"What actually happened,
Miss?" Susan asked shyly while she wrapped a piece of cloth around the
palm of my hand, dressing the wound carefully after washing it the next
morning.
She had just finished helping me
get dressed. I still couldn't believe what had happened last night. When I
arrived home, my parents had not yet returned and my brother was nowhere
around. Larry had offered to stay with me until someone arrived, worried about
the possibility that Henderson could show up at any moment, but I knew he wouldn't
show up. His head had been bleeding badly and it would take a while for him to
feel good enough to threaten me again. So, he left, and I asked for Susan's
help to apply first aid to my cut.
It wasn't a very long or deep
cut. It was more like a deep scratch on the palm of my hand, and didn’t bleed
anymore. The only thing noticeable was that it would hurt when I moved my hand,
but within a few days, it would disappear. I told her that I had cut myself
while leaving the car, as simple as that. She seemed to buy the story because
it was late, but the next morning, she inquired again.
"I told you already," I
replied, trying to sound convincing. She narrowed her eyes and shook her head,
finishing the dressing.
"Well, Mr. Henderson is
downstairs with your parents. They want to talk to you," she said
carefully, and looked at me, watching my reaction.
I swallowed dryly, but nodded my
head. She stood up and I went right after her, pulling my loose hair behind my
shoulders and taking a long, deep breath before following her downstairs. She
directed me to the parlor, where I found my mother, my father, Mr. Henderson,
and Cal sitting on the sofas. As I stepped into the room the three men politely
stood up and I merely nodded my head. I looked at Mr. Henderson. He had a
bandage in his forehead, on the left side, close to his hair. He looked
directly into my eyes and I avoided his gaze.
"Sit down, Catherine."
My father gestured for me to sit beside Cal, and so I did.
"Mr. Henderson told us of
the robbery yesterday." My father spoke again. I almost smiled, impressed.
"Y-yes," I said
quietly, trying to sound casual. I shot a look at Mr. Henderson, who was still
looking straight at me. I saw Cal rolling his eyes by my side. He didn't buy
it.
"We are already making the
charges against Mr. Brown and--"
"What?" I asked in
shock. He couldn't possibly say...
"Don't worry. He won't do
anything to you." My father frowned. Cal quickly grew interested in my
surprised look.
"But..." I didn't even
know what to say.
"It's all right. Unfortunately,
he will respond to the charges in liberty, because he has a university degree
and seemed like a good young man, and his lawyer is very good." My father
kept going distractedly, but I wasn't paying attention anymore.
I shot a look at my mother and
she had a slight smile on her face. Then I looked at Mr. Henderson, and he kept
up his façade...if someone needed to go to jail there, it was him, yet there he
was, in my parlor. Cal looked at me exactly at the same time as I looked at
him. He frowned and nodded his head, as if asking me if it was all true. I
shook my head slightly and looked at Mr. Henderson. He nodded. He already knew
what was going on.
I couldn't say that Henderson was
lying, but I couldn't say that he was right and let him ruin Larry's life. I
took a long breath, looking straight at the carpet in front of me. I could hear
my father's voice, but I wasn't paying attention. I simply didn't know what to
do.
"I think Catherine is not
feeling very well." Cal's voice brought me back to earth. I looked at him.
He nodded confidently at me.
"Yes. I'm not very well
today," I said faintly. Henderson watched me with a slight smile. Sadistic
bastard.
"You can leave. We just
wanted you to know what is going on," my father said calmly. I nodded and stood
up. Cal stood up right after me.
"I will take her to her
room," he said, and took my hand, gesturing for me to leave with him.
*****
"What exactly
happened?" he asked me as soon as he closed my bedroom door.
"Mr. Henderson thinks I’m
having a love affair with Larry," I said faintly, sitting on the edge of
my bed.
"You aren't?" Cal
raised an eyebrow, approaching me.
"Of course not. Don't be
absurd." I frowned as he stopped beside me.
"Why don't you just tell him?"
"Because he will find out
about Harry." I looked away from his eyes, trying to think of something.
"Catherine, you have to
forget this officer," Cal said carefully, as if afraid of my reaction.
"Don't start, Cal." I
shot a look at him. "Our mother already knows about it, as you well know,
and there's nothing you two can do. Or any of you can do, for that
matter."
"But what happened
yesterday?" He changed the subject quickly, due to my upset look.
"You mean the wounds?"
I asked, moving my hand slowly. He nodded. "Henderson tried
to...well..."
"He did not." His jaw
dropped. I didn't even have to finish. I nodded, ashamed of the situation, not
able to look into his eyes anymore. "And you..."
"I hit him with a glass of
water. I asked him to stop, but he was a little drunk and out of his
mind," I said, still not looking into his eyes.
"But he didn't
actually--"
"No. He did not get what he
wanted." I shot a look at him and he got the message. I didn't want to
talk about it.
"How did you get back here
yesterday?"
"Larry was at the mansion.
Henderson had hired a few people to scare him. He helped me to leave and
brought me home."
"Does Lowe know about
this?" he asked, and for the first time I thought about it. Larry couldn't
tell Harry about it. If he did, I was not sure of what Harry might do to
Henderson.
"I don't know," I said
thoughtfully, and he looked away from me. "Only if Larry told him."
"You know he could lose his
mind."
"I know, and you know."
I looked intently at him, suggesting he remember that day on the Carpathia,
when Harry stood up against him.
"And you already know what
Henderson is capable of doing..." he said, and I nodded, looking away from
him again, hoping that Larry had not told Harry about the incident.
"I need you to go talk to
Larry, Cal." I looked up at him after a brief silence. He narrowed his
eyes. "Well, if Harry finds out, it won't be bad only for him or for me,
but for you, too."
And it was true. If Harry found
out about Henderson's cowardly gesture towards me--and Larry--I was more than
certain that he would do something. If he did something, Henderson would find
out about us a little earlier than we planned, and this would affect everyone.
Cal, however, did not seem to know that I was leaving with Harry. My mother
hadn't told anyone.
"All right. I will look for
him." Cal nodded. I knew how to persuade him…I only had to show that there
was some benefit for him. "But Catherine, you have to put an end to
this."
"I will," I said
thoughtfully. You have no idea, Cal, I thought.