The Devil's Dream: A Dark Romance (Dark Romance Novel Book 1) (18 page)

Chapter 13

Rhonda had a fitful night’s sleep. The thought of returning home with Joel made her sick to her stomach. She shoved away the breakfast tray that was left for her that final morning in the hospital. Soon Joel would arrive and take her home. She dreaded the ride home alone with him. She was in no mood to talk, especially not to him. He could apologize all he wanted, but she didn’t believe him for a minute. He just felt guilty for causing the accident, as well he should.

The nurse brought some paperwork for Rhonda to sign, and was going over the discharge instructions with her when Joel walked in. The nurse relayed to him what was expected at home. Rhonda could not attempt to walk for at least two months, she was to follow the instructions of physical rehab, and she needed to return to the doctor’s office in three weeks to get the cast off her arm. Joel thanked the nurse and assured her that he would see to it that the instructions were followed.

Joel was instructed to bring his car up to the front door of the hospital while the nurse retrieved a wheelchair for Rhonda. It was difficult for Rhonda to get into the chair, but with a nurse on each side of her she was finally settled in and ready to go. Getting into the rear seat of the car was another ordeal, and she wondered briefly how Joel would get her out of the car once they got home.

When Joel pulled up in front of the house, Rhonda was surprised to find a wheelchair ramp over the front steps. Anna was watching for their arrival and quickly ran to the car to help Rhonda get out. It took Joel and Anna a good ten minutes to get her into the wheelchair, but finally she was free of the car and ready to go inside. She had not expected to be glad upon her arrival at Joel’s house, but all of the jostling around had been painful, and right now all she wanted to do was lie down and take something for the pain.

Rhonda was surprised when Anna wheeled her into the front sitting room. The hospital bed dominated the center of the room, but Joel had not stopped there. There was a table next to the bed that contained books for her to read, and a daybed in the corner for Anna to rest if she needed to. There was a vase of fresh flowers on a table in front of the window, and Joel had even bought a television for her to watch.

Well, she could not be bought with flowers, books, and gifts. She would stay here as long as it took to heal, but then she would be gone. The flowers were pretty, but she well remembered the type of books Joel kept in his library, and she had no desire to read them. The television was nice, but she expected to be spending a lot of time in therapy, so she doubted she would have a lot of time to watch it.

By the time Joel and Anna helped get Rhonda into the bed, she was worn out. Her leg was hurting, she was weak, and the only thing she wanted to do was rest. Joel instructed Anna to get her a glass of water so that she could take something for the pain. Anna returned shortly and Rhonda swallowed her medication without protest. She lay back on the pillow, waiting for the medication to kick in, longing for the blissful sleep that would temporarily take her out of reality.

It was three hours later when Rhonda awoke, sore and tired, but not in as much pain as before. Her stomach growled loudly, protesting the fact that she had not eaten today. As soon as she moved, Anna was standing by the bed, asking her what she needed.

“Well, I guess I could use something to eat, but first things first. I fear I will need you to help me with the bedpan,” Rhonda said.

Rhonda felt the indignation rise inside, hating to have to ask such a thing of Anna, but she supposed she might as well get used to it. For the next few months she would be helpless without the help of others. Using the bedpan was difficult enough in the hospital, but it was even worse here in Joel’s home, where he could walk into the room at any minute.

After finally relieving herself, Rhonda lay back in the bed and waited for Anna to get her something to eat. She supposed that would be another ordeal, since she only had one hand she could use to feed herself with. Fortunately the cook was mindful of her injuries and sent her a bowl of tomato soup and a grilled cheese sandwich, which had been cut in two.

The food was delicious, much better than anything she had been fed in the hospital. It took her nearly an hour, but Rhonda finished the entire meal without help from Anna. She smiled when Anna picked up the tray to return it to the kitchen.

“Anna, I am so sorry that you are having to do all of this for me. I promise, I will try to be a good patient and not cause you any trouble,” Rhonda said.

“Oh, Miss Rhonda, I don’t mind at all. I love taking care of you. You have always been so sweet to me, and Mr. Joel, well, he pays me well.”

Rhonda had not thought about Anna when she tried to run away. Anna’s job was to help her with anything she needed, and if she was not here Anna would be without a job. But if Anna ever needed a reference, Rhonda would gladly provide her with one. Surely, there were other families in the area who could use Anna’s services. She made a mental note to help Anna find other employment when the day finally came that she could leave here.

The rest of the day was spent resting and watching the television Joel had provided for her. She had been told that tomorrow Home Health and Physical Rehab would be here, so she figured she might as well get some rest while she could. She was pleasantly surprised that Joel had not come for a visit.

The next morning was a flurry of activity. Breakfast proved to be a little harder to eat than usual, and Home Health was already there waiting on her. She ate as much as she could and sent the rest back to the kitchen.

The nurse asked a lot of questions, took her vitals, and checked to see how she was healing. A CNA was preparing a bath before physical rehab arrived, and Anna was taking in as much as she could. Rhonda hated getting a bath. The CNA stripped Rhonda of all her clothes, leaving her naked and exposed in the front room of the house. She took the washcloth and methodically started at her head and ended at her feet, not missing an inch in between. Rhonda just knew that at any minute Joel would step in the room and see her laid out like a chicken ready to be plucked.

Surprisingly, everything went smoothly. Her bath was completed and she was dressed in clean pajamas when physical rehab arrived. She was already worn out, but rehab put her through a rigorous hour long workout, with directions to keep up that pace every day until they returned. After they left, she told Anna to get her something for the pain. Every bone in her body was hurting from the morning’s activities. This recovery period was going to be hard, and this was only the first day. Rhonda fell asleep a little later, exhausted, but thankful that she was one day closer to leaving there.

Chapter 14

Rhonda awoke with a start and found Joel sitting in the chair where Anna usually sat. She eyed him wearily, wishing he would go away, but Joel showed no signs of leaving just yet.

“How are you feeling since coming home?” he asked.

“Like I have been hit by a Mack truck! How do you expect me to feel? I can’t walk, I can’t bathe myself, hell, I can’t even wipe myself when I go to the bathroom. Does that make you happy?” she asked.

“No, Rhonda it does not make me happy. I hate seeing you like this, but nothing can be done for now. You are going to need time to heal. If there is anything you want, please let Anna know and I will get it for you,” Joel said.

“What I want is to get out of this bed and walk out that front door, never to see you again. But we both know it will be a long time before that happens,” she sneered.

Joel dropped his head and left the room, refusing to engage Rhonda in an argument. She was still bitter towards him, and only time would tell if she would ever get beyond that.

Shortly after Joel left the room, Anna returned. Rhonda expected that it had been arranged that way. But nothing could be accomplished by getting into an argument with Anna. She was, after all, following her boss’ orders. She was there to help Rhonda, but Joel paid her, therefore Anna was loyal to him. She hated that Anna was placed in the middle, between her and Joel, but there was little she could do right now.

The afternoon was spent resting. Anna was very attentive, but Rhonda was tired and wanted to be left alone. She suggested that Anna take a nap and she would too.

“Oh no, Miss Rhonda. I could never do that. I am here to help you, and besides I get plenty of sleep at night. If you want to rest, you just go ahead. I will stay right over here on the daybed and keep quiet.”

Rhonda knew it would be useless to try and reason with Anna. She took her job seriously, and Rhonda appreciated her devotion, but there were times when Rhonda just longed to be alone. She was not used to having this much attention, and she longed for the day when she could once again take care of herself.

That evening Anna helped Rhonda with dinner before clearing away the dishes and bringing out a deck of cards. Rhonda’s eyebrows shot up and she gave a quizzing look at Anna.

“I thought maybe you would feel like playing a game of poker with me,” Anna said. “We can’t play for real money, but we can pretend these matches are money.”

Rhonda watched as Anna brought out a large box of wooden matches and sat them on the tray over her bed.

“I fear I have never learned how to play poker,” Rhonda said.

“Well then, I will just have to teach you. It is one of my favorite past times,” Anna said.

“Okay, but I warn you, you will be bored to tears.”

For the next two hours there was laughter coming from the front room. Joel sat in his office and wondered what was so amusing, but he dared not interrupt. If Rhonda had found something to amuse herself with then he was glad. Just hearing her laughter made his heart sing. He longed for her to grace him with her laughter, instead of the anger she always had when he was around.

Rhonda was exhausted, and Anna was out of matches. She never knew that playing poker could be so fun. She had always thought it was a game played in bars and behind closed doors. But learning the game with Anna had been fun. Before she knew it, she fell asleep without the aid of medication.

The sun shining through the window woke Rhonda the following morning. She noticed that Anna was already up and quietly working around the room. As soon as she noticed that Rhonda was awake, she grabbed the bedpan and started toward her.

“I will never get used to having to use this thing,” Rhonda said. “I feel so helpless, not able to do anything for myself. I can’t wait until I am able to get out of this bed and walk to the bathroom on my own.”

“Now don’t you worry yourself about that Miss Rhonda. I am glad to help you. It is my job, and I can’t think of anything I would rather be doing,” Anna said.

“But don’t you ever wonder what it would be like to get out and go shopping, or take in a movie?” Rhonda asked.

“No, ma’am. I am very happy here. Mr. Joel treats me well, and I like you a lot. You are a lot more fun than some old spinster I might have if I didn’t have you,” Anna said. “Now, you relax while I go to get your breakfast. I will be right back.”

Anna had said Joel treated her well. She was happy here. How was it that Joel was so good to Anna, but so evil to her? Sure, he had been on his best behavior since the accident, but Rhonda did not trust him. One day she would get well, and then how would Joel act? Would he still think he had non-stop access to her body?

Rhonda was shocked when she looked up and saw Joel carrying her breakfast tray. Oh no! Was she going to have to endure his presence while she ate her breakfast? She would rather skip the meal altogether. But Joel showed no signs of leaving any time soon.

“Rhonda, we need to talk,” Joel said.

“I don’t know anything I need to talk to you about, Joel. You have me here, under your thumb, right where you want me. What more is there to say?” she asked.

“I need to talk to you about that night, the night of the accident. I know I drove you out of this house, and I take full responsibility for that. I was angry, and you were not to blame, but I took it out on you anyway,” he said.

“Why Joel? What were you so angry about? What did I do that put you in such a mood?”

“I need you to listen to what I am about to tell you. I should have told you a long time ago, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it,” he said.

Rhonda waited, looking at him for some type of explanation.

“As I had told you earlier, before your mother met your father, she and I were involved. It will probably be hard for you to accept, but your mother enjoyed many of the same things I enjoy. She was so beautiful, and so energetic, and we both took advantage of each other. She was the first person I ever cared for before. I gave her that broach that you wore that evening, as a token of my feelings. After the miscarriage happened and we started drifting apart, she started spending more time out and away from me. She eventually told me she had met a met a man she thought she could spend the rest of her life with. That is just couldn’t be with me. That man was your father, and I never tried to stand in her way. I told her to keep the broach as a reminder of what we shared.”

Rhonda could not believe what she was hearing. He didn’t tell her about this. Someone he actually cared for ended up caring for someone else after apparently not being able to work out their issues.

“Please listen to me,” Joel said. “I never tried to interfere in your mother’s relationship with your father. I supported her, because I wanted her to be happy. I never told her that I still cared for her as much as I did, because I did not want her to feel guilty. Your mother was a good woman, and your father made a good husband for her. He knew that she loved only him, even if he did know there was something between us earlier.”

Rhonda hated the picture Joel was painting, but somehow it made sense. Her mother had seen an entirely different side of him, and he had hid his disappointment from her all of these years. When she came down the stairs wearing the broach, Joel became angry, and she was available for him to vent his anger on. It didn’t make what he did right, but it explained a lot to her. She had been trying her best to figure out what she had done to him, and nothing made sense.

“Did you love my mother?” she asked.

“I cared deeply for her. I allowed myself to believe that we had plenty of time for falling in love, or whatever was to become of us. But she told me she loved your father, and I did not want to cause her any pain. I was a different person back then. I was not bitter like I am now. The bitterness I have brought on myself, but I have never faced up to it until the night of the accident. I allowed your mother to walk out of my life, and then you tried to do the same. When I saw that car hit you, I felt like my entire world came crashing down on top of me. I thought that I had lost you, just like I lost your mother. And that was the last thing I wanted.”

“What exactly do you want Joel? I am not my mother. There were times when you made my body feel pleasure, but it was always forced. I never had a choice. You took my innocence from me and never offered me anything in return. You made me feel like I owed you because you took me into your home,” Rhonda said.

“I know that it seemed that way to you. The truth is, I wanted you, but I didn’t think I could ever win your affection. So I forced your body to feel pleasure, hoping that you would enjoy it enough to want more. It was wrong, and if I could do things over, I would never have done those things to you. I meant it when I told you I would never force you again. And when you are well enough, if you want to walk out of this house forever, I will not try to stop you.”

“Please, will you give me some time to let this sink in? And send Anna back in here. It is time for my bath, and as much as I hate depending on somebody to bathe me, I have no choice right now.”

“I will leave you to the privacy of your bath. But I ask that you think about what I have said. Your mother chose me to be your godfather for a reason. She saw the goodness in me, and so did your father. Your parents wanted a good life for you, and they trusted me to give you that. I have failed them miserably, but I would like the opportunity to make it right.”