An Unexpected Love (Women's Fiction/BWWM Romance) (17 page)

“Shanti?” Layla tiptoed inside the freezing exam room.

Shanti lay on the bed in a hospital gown with her back
to the door.

“Sweetheart.” Patrick walked up to the bed. “It’s
Daddy. I’m here.”

Aliyah, Gunner, and Dr. Chin stayed by the door. Layla
walked to the other side of the bed and almost died when she saw the state of
her baby girl. Shanti remained in a ball, shivering. She looked at everything
but Layla.

“Shanti.” Layla bent down and stroked her hair. “Are
you all right?”

Shanti flinched.

“I’m so sorry,” Layla whispered. “If I could make the
pain go away, I would.”

A tear fell from Shanti’s eye and onto the pillow.

“We love you so much,” Layla continued. “Just know
we’ll always love you, and we don’t blame you for anything.”

“That’s right, honey.” Patrick’s voice appeared muffled
with sadness. “We love you more than anything in this world.” He inched toward
her. “You hear me, baby girl? It’s gonna be all right.” He patted her side.
“Everything’s gonna be all right.”

“Shanti?” Gunner approached the bed. “I’m Detective Gunner.
Would you mind answering some questions?”

“Detective?” She rolled over. “Why are you here? Who
said you could be here?”

“I called him,” Aliyah said as she moved from the
door.

“Why?” Shanti sat up with her thick hair flowing over
one shoulder. “I didn’t say I wanted the police.”

“Khalil raped you.” Aliyah stood at the foot of the
bed. “You can’t let him get away with it.”

“Why?” Shanti squinted. “Because
you
don’t want me to? It’s always about what you want isn’t it?”

“No, it’s for
you
.
That asshole needs to be in jail for what he did.”

“Get her out of here.” Shanti lay back down. “Now!”

Aliyah’s lips trembled. “What?”

“I don’t wanna see or talk to her,” Shanti said. “Get
her out.”

“Go outside,
Liyah
,” Patrick
said.

She left, sobbing.

“Shanti, I know this is hard for you.” Gunner walked to
the other side of the bed. “I just wanna help you. If at any time you’re
uncomfortable…we can stop.”

“We’ll be here for you, honey.” Layla rubbed Shanti’s
hair. “We won’t leave your side.”

“No way,” Patrick whispered.

“What do you say, Shanti?” Gunner took out his
notepad. “Would you mind answering a few questions for me?”

Shanti lifted her head but didn’t look at any of them.
“Does my Daddy have to be here too?”

Layla looked at Patrick. He seemed jolted by the
question.

“You don’t want me here, sweetie?” he asked.

“It’s just hard.” She brushed her hair away from her
face. “I don’t want you to know what happened.”

“Oh honey, it’s not your fault. I want to know so I
can help you.”

“It’s embarrassing.” She stuffed her face into the
pillow, sobbing. “Please, Daddy. I’d rather you wait outside.”

“Okay.” He backed away from the bed. “Whatever makes
you comfortable. I love you.”

She lifted her head, telling him, “I love you too,” as
he reluctantly left out of the room.

“I have patients to see, but I’ll be back in about ten
minutes,” Dr. Chin said. “Just let the nurse know if you need me.”

As Dr. Chin closed the door behind herself, Gunner got
the chair from the corner and set it beside Shanti’s bed.

“I’m so sorry, Shanti.” He sat down. “But I promise
I’m gonna do all I can to get this guy.” He got out his pencil. “I’m ready
whenever you are, and if you get uncomfortable you can stop.”

Layla stood at the foot of the bed. Shanti sat up and
hung her legs over the side of the bed. “Where do I start?”

Gunner got his pencil ready to write. “Why don’t you
tell me how you came in contact with Khalil?”

Shanti swallowed and pressed her hands between her
thighs. “I met him a few weeks ago when I went with Aliyah to her boyfriend’s.
Khalil is a friend of his.”

“Okay.” Gunner jotted. “So you knew him.”

“I don’t ‘know’ him like you mean. Other than tonight,
I only saw him that one time. I didn’t like him from the jump. I didn’t like
the way he looked at me.” She clenched her gown. “He was always staring at me.
It gave me the creeps.”

“How old is this guy?” Layla asked.

“Twenty,” Shanti said.

“Twenty?” Layla grimaced. “What the hell was he doing
hanging around teenagers any damn way?”

Gunner tapped his notepad. “Tell me about the party,
Shanti.”

 
“We weren’t
supposed to go.”

“I
forbad
Aliyah to go,” Layla said to Gunner.

Shanti cleared her throat. “She was gonna go anyway so
I went with her.”

“Why?” Gunner asked.

“Because I had this funny feeling something would
happen, and I didn’t want her to go to that party by herself. She didn’t even
know anyone there but A.C.”

Gunner sighed. “You went there to protect her?”

“Yes.” Shanti rubbed her forehead. “We’d been at the
party for a while, and Aliyah and A.C. left.”

“Left?” Layla asked.

“Yeah. Momma, I begged her not to go because I was so
uncomfortable. The place was crowded and there were all these guys drinking and
smoking weed.”

“Smoking weed?” Layla sighed. “I can’t believe
Liyah
left you alone in that environment. Where was her
head?”

“On A.C. apparently,” Shanti said.

“How did you end up alone with Khalil?” Gunner asked.

Shanti stared in space.

“It’s okay, honey,” Layla whispered. “He needs to know
to help.”

“After Aliyah left, I went upstairs to the back
bedroom.” Shanti dropped her head. “I called Dad a few times. I wanted him to
pick me up. But he didn’t answer, so I left voice messages. Khalil came in with
a beer. He’d been drinking all night.” She wiggled her fingers. “He wanted me
to relax, so he tried to get me to drink. I said ‘no.’ I told him I wanted to
leave, and he blocked me.”

“He blocked you?”

Rage rose within Layla.

“Yes. He said I had to give him a kiss first.”

Layla balled a fist. “That son of a bitch.”

“I was scared.” Shanti hugged herself. “I just wanted
to leave, because he made me feel so uncomfortable.”

“What happened after he told you that you had to kiss
him?”

She focused on Gunner. “I kissed him.” She avoided
looking at Layla. “I didn’t want to, but I was scared. I just wanted him to
leave me alone. I know it looks bad that I kissed him…but…”

“No.” Gunner leaned forward. “Listen to me. What
happened tonight is not your fault.”

She wiped tears. “I feel like it is.”

“It’s not,” Gunner said. “I don’t care what you did in
that room, Shanti. It did not give Khalil the right to force himself on you. A
kiss does not excuse that kind of violence.”

“That’s right,” Layla said.

“What happened after you kissed him?” Gunner asked.

Shanti took a deep breath.

“It’s okay.” Layla kissed her forehead and took her
hand. “Momma’s right here.”

“He told me to let him see my breasts, or I couldn’t leave.”
She clenched Layla’s hand. “I told him I wasn’t doing that. When I tried to
pass him, he grabbed me…and…he threw me on the bed.”

Layla closed her eyes. “He…he got on top of me.”

Gunner jotted. “What did he do next?”

“He started kissing me very hard, and he pulled at my
clothes.” She let go of Layla’s hand. “He…he—”

“He penetrated you?” Gunner whispered.

Shanti nodded, with her head down.

“I’m so sorry, baby.” Layla hugged her. “I’m so sorry Momma
wasn’t there to protect you.”

“I screamed, but he put his hand over my mouth. No one
could hear me. It was so loud with all the people and the music.” Tears
streamed down Shanti’s face. “I just lay there, looking at the ceiling. I kept
praying to God to make it end. I kept praying.”

“Oh, baby.” Layla pulled her close. “He’s gonna pay
for this. Trust me.”

Cross approached Layla when walked out of the exam
room. “How is she?”

 
“She hates me,
doesn’t she?” Aliyah asked. “She blames me. I know it.”

“What did she say?” Patrick moved in front of the
others. “What did she say he did?”

Layla closed her blazer, fidgeting nervously. “I’m not
gonna discuss that, Patrick.”

 
“What do you
mean you’re not gonna discuss it?” A bead of sweat rolled off the top of his
bald head. “This is my little girl. I wanna know what that asshole did to her.”

“You wanna know in every disgusting detail?” Layla huffed.
“Believe me, you don’t. I couldn’t stand to hear it, and I damn sure couldn’t
repeat it.”

“I
wanna
know.” Patrick pounded his fist into his palm.

 
“Why?” Layla
wiped a tear. “What difference would it make? It happened, and the only thing
we can do now is be there for her and make sure he pays.”

“That’s not good enough for me,” Patrick said. “My
little girl was violated. This will affect her for the rest of her life,
Layla.”

“You don’t think I know that?” she shouted. “Maybe if
you’d answered your damn phone, then she wouldn’t be here in the first place.”

Cross put his arm around her. “Layla.”

“What are you talking about?” Patrick asked.

“She said she called you, and you never answered. She
wanted you to pick her up from the party.”

“Jesus.” Patrick touched his forehead. “I must’ve
turned my phone off by mistake, and I didn’t even think to check messages.”

“I’m sure.” Layla crossed her arms. “Too busy
entertaining your beautiful new co-worker while our daughter needed you the
most.”

“And what about
you
?”
he shouted. “Your entire night was occupied by this,” he said, pointing to
Cross.

“
This
?”
Cross frowned. “I have a name.”

“Not one I care to remember,” Patrick muttered.

“You know I’ve been waiting to say a lot to you,”
Cross said. “But out of respect for Layla, Aliyah, and what Shanti has been
through…I’ll bite my tongue.”

Patrick stood in front of him. “Why don’t you just get
the hell out of here?”

 
“Excuse you, Patrick.”
Layla stood between them. “Cross is with me, and he can stay here as long as he
likes.”

“He’s not family, and he has no business being here.”
Patrick turned to A.C. “And neither do you.”

“Cross supports me, Patrick,” Layla said. “Which is a
hell of a lot more than I can say for you.”

“I never supported you?” He gawked at her. “Seriously?
I was the one who did everything when you were never there!”

“And you never let me forget that, did you? You were
always waiting to remind me how much of a fucked up mother and wife I was.”

“Stop it!” Aliyah shouted. “We’re in a hospital.”

People watched the scene as they passed.

“Shanti is hurt.” Aliyah wailed. “I’ll never forgive
myself.” She bent over in tears. “Never.”

A.C. hugged her. “It’s okay.”

“It’s not okay,” Layla said. “You were so busy being
selfish and trying to hurt me that you never thought about your sister.”

Aliyah looked at her with teary eyes.

“She said you left her at that party alone.”

Patrick glared at Aliyah. “Is that true?”

“Yes, it’s true,” Layla said. “She left her there to
be with
him
.” She pointed to A.C.
“Because he was more important than anyone wasn’t he,
Liyah
?
More important than protecting your sister who got hurt for wanting to protect
you!”

“I’m sorry.” Aliyah cried. “I wish I could take it
back. I swear.”

“Well, you can’t.” Layla tried to hold herself
together but grew angrier the more she looked at Aliyah. “Because of your
selfishness, Shanti will have to live with something horrible for the rest of
her life. You should be ashamed of yourself, Aliyah.”

“I am.” She cried into her hands. “Daddy?” She reached
out to him, but he turned away from her.

“Daddy, I’m sorry.” She hugged him from the back.
“Please.”

He pulled away from her. “Sorry isn’t always enough.”

Just then, Gunner walked out of the room. “You have a
brave daughter in there. I suspect she’ll get out of this okay.”

“That remains to be seen,” Patrick said. “Hopefully
she doesn’t end up a complete wreck.”

“Can I see her?” Aliyah asked.

“She doesn’t wanna see you,” Layla snapped. “Right now,
I don’t either.”

“Momma, please.” Aliyah walked to her with her arms
out.

Layla backed away from her and focused on Gunner. “You
gonna go get him now?”

“Soon as I know where he is,” Gunner said as he turned
to A.C.

A.C. gave him Khalil’s cell phone number and the address
to his mother’s place. “He lives with his mother?”

“Sometimes.” A.C. scratched his head. “Khalil
kinda
just goes where the wind blows, you know?”

“What if he’s not there?” Layla asked.

“We’ll keep looking.” Gunner tore off the paper with
Khalil’s information and put the notepad in his pocket. “I won’t stop until I
find him. Don’t worry.” He patted Patrick’s arm. “I’ll pray that your daughter
does okay. If you need me, she already has my card.”

As he walked past the group, Patrick followed him. “Detective,
I’m going with you.”

Gunner stopped. “What?”

“I’m going with you to Khalil’s mother’s.”

“No, you’re not, Mr. Sham.”

“Yes, I am. You expect me to just stay here? I wanna see
this son of a bitch.” He rocked. “I want him to know that he can’t get away
with hurting my daughter.”

“That’s what
I’m
gonna do. You can’t come, Mr. Sham. This is police business.”

“Do you have kids?”

Gunner sighed. “No.”

 
“Then you don’t
understand how it feels to see your child in so much pain.” Patrick closed his
eyes. “You don’t understand how angry I am right now. I wish I could switch
places with her. That’s how much I love her. How can you expect me to just sit
here and wait?”

“I don’t. I expect you to be by your daughter’s side.
Isn’t that more important than you proving a point?”

“I gotta see this boy.” Patrick stroked his head. “I
gotta see him for myself.”

“When the time is appropriate, I’ll make sure you do.
But right now, I gotta take care of business.” Gunner glanced around Patrick.
“Goodnight, everyone. Call me when and if you need me.”

As he went down the hall, Layla checked her watch, “Wonder
how much longer she has to stay here.”

“You go on home,” Patrick said.

“What?” She straightened her purse strap on her
shoulder.

“I think it’s best if Shanti stays with me.”

“Why?”

Patrick gritted his teeth. “Because I said so.”

 
“No.” Layla
grimaced. “The girls stay with me. Besides, she needs her mother now.”

“She needs a parent she can depend on.”

“Now hold on a minute, Patrick,” Cross said. “Layla
didn’t do anything wrong.”

“She neglected the girls and…you…stay the hell
outta
this.”

“I didn’t neglect anyone, Patrick. I went on a date.”

“Yeah and while you were running around the city with
Cross, your daughter was being raped. You can look at yourself in the mirror
and face that?”

Layla lunged for him. “You son of a bitch!”

“Layla!” Cross grabbed her. “Don’t let him get to
you.”

“How dare you, Patrick?!” She screamed. “How dare you
say that shit to me?! And you wonder why I don’t want your ass back? I gotta be
crazy to even consider it!”

“Why don’t you go home and take Aliyah with you?”
Patrick flung his arm. “I’m pretty sure Shanti doesn’t wanna see either of you
right now.”

Layla glared at him. “You bastard.”

“Just forget him.” Cross caressed her hair. “He’s
trying to manipulate the situation like he always does.”

Patrick lifted his head. “What the hell are
you
talking about, Evers?”

 
“You’re doing
just what Layla says you always do. Blaming her. You know damn well that her
being with me had nothing to do with what happened. But you’re so pitiful, you
gotta feel like a man by tearing Layla down.”

Patrick squinted.

“Yeah, that’s what it’s about isn’t it, Patrick?”
Cross chuckled. “You know she’s too good for you and you didn’t deserve her, so
you had to tear her down to feel powerful. You’re the one who should be ashamed
of yourself. You lost the best thing you ever had.”

“Let’s just go. I’m sick of fighting with you,
Patrick.” Layla took Cross’ hand. “Come on,
Liyah
.”