Shattered By Broken Dreams

Brian walked into the house with his daughter in his arms. Immediately he went to the living room and sat with her cradled in his lap on the couch. Stormy and Tera ran over to him, but his over protective senses kicked in.

“GET AWAY” he yelled and the two of them stepped back.

“Brian, I want to see her, she’s my daughter too” Stormy cried.

“NO, JUST LEAVE US ALONE. NO ONE IS TOUCHING HER,” he shouted as he rocked her back and forth.

Stormy looked back at Matt and Sydney for help. Matt went into the kitchen to call their old family friend Dr. Mark and asked him to make a house call.

“Brian, please. She needs medical attention” Sydney pleaded.

“GET AWAY!” he shouted. The pain was written all over his face as he looked down at his daughter who had yet to open her eyes.

Matt returned to the living room an informed them that the doctor was on his way. Brian seemed to be in his own little world with Melody in his lap. He held her close and tightly as Matt walked over and knelt down in front of him.

“Brian you have to let the doctor look at her”

“They hurt her, they hurt my baby” he cried.

“I know they did and now they can’t hurt anyone anymore. Please let me take her so the doctor can see her.”

He shook his head no and wouldn’t let go of her. The tears were streaming down his face and he didn’t care who saw them.

“Brian, I wont hurt her. Give her to me” Matt said

“NO!” he yelled.

When the doorbell rang Stormy ran to answer it. It was the doctor and she led him straight to the living room. She walked over to her husband and put her hand on his shoulder. “Brian, the doctor is here. Let him help her, please” she begged.

Brian looked at Matt with pleading eyes. “I wont let him hurt her, I promise,” he said as he slipped his arms under Melody’s body and lifted her out of Brian’s. Matt took Melody downstairs to Brian’s apartment. Brian and Stormy followed along with Sydney and the doctor. After setting her down on her bed, he let the doctor into her bedroom and closed the door. When he walked into Brian’s living room he saw his friend sitting on the couch staring down at his daughter’s blood on his hands.

“Syd, can you make some coffee?” Matt asked.

“Yeah” she nodded and went upstairs leaving Matt there with Brian and Stormy.

Stormy knelt down in front of her husband with a wash rang and started to wipe the blood off his hands. “Angel” he whispered.

“What is it, Brian?” she asked looking into his eyes as the tears were brimming in her own.

“my baby” he cried.

She nodded. “I know. She’ll be ok and we will get through this, I promise” she said.

“How can you be so strong right now?” he asked as she swiped the rag over his hands.

“You need me and so does our daughter. I wont let you down, I’m your Angel, remember?” she smiled and he pulled his hand out of hers and yanked her up into his arms.

“She has to be ok” he cried.

“She will be, I promise”

Sydney came back down with the coffee and set the pot down on the counter. After pouring a cup she walked over and handed it to Brian.

“Drink this, it will settle your nerves” He took the cup from her hand and nodded a thank you.

“Everyone is home, Jimmy said Legend is going to be ok.”

“That’s good” Matt nodded.

About an hour had passed when the doctor finally emerged from Melody’s bedroom. Brian stood and Matt walked over to stand beside his friend. Sydney grabbed Stormy’s hand and squeezed it in a gesture to let her know that she would be there for her sister should she need her.

“How is she?” Matt asked.

The doctor let out a sigh before speaking. “No broken bones, but her body has been through hell. Having gone so long with out insulin didn’t help either. I gave her a shot for the pain and she should sleep straight through the night. Recovery will be a long hard road. I’m sorry.”

“Did they…was she…” Brian couldn’t get the words out of his mouth, but the doctor knew what he was asking.

He nodded and Brian clenched his fists wishing he could kill Laura all over again.

“I’ve called in a few prescriptions and they will be delivered in the morning. I don’t think she’s pregnant, but it may be wise to have her take a home test for sure.”

Stormy nodded and thanked the doctor. “I can recommend a therapist, just call my office if you decide you want to go that route with her. I think it would be best if she saw someone.”

“I will. Thank you” She said. Sydney and Matt showed the doctor out and left Stormy and Brian alone.

Brian looked like he was about to collapse right where he stood. Stormy took his hand in hers and led him into the bathroom. After she turned on the shower she walked over to Brian who was now in a daze and lifted his shirt off of him. When she was finished undressing him she helped him into the shower while she was still fully clothed and stood him under the water. He stood there and let her run the soapy washcloth over his body. Once a man who was so strong and protective of his family was now weak and helpless.
He closed his eyes as she massaged his head with shampoo. After all the soap was gone and the water ran clean, she turned the knob and shut it off. Stormy stepped out of the shower and reached for his hand. When he stepped out she picked up a towel and dried him off and then led him to their bedroom. She pulled the covers back and helped him into the bed. After he lied down, she pulled the covers up over him and kissed his lips softly. “Get some sleep, I’ll be right inside” she whispered. And walked over to the closet where she stripped off her wet clothes and changed into sweat pants and a t-shirt. She looked back at Brian before she left the room. His eyes were closed and she prayed that he would be able to have a peaceful night. Once she was alone in the living room, she sat down on the couch and grabbed one of the pillows holding it to her stomach. Now that her husband was in bed and everyone was gone, she didn’t have to pretend to be strong anymore. She cried as she hugged the pillow tight. Her family was broken.

--

Upstairs….

Sydney sat on the bed waiting for her husband to come out of the shower. Unbeknownst to her he was also just pretending to be strong for his family. As the water ran down over his head, he braced himself by placing both hands on the wall and openly let the tears fall from his eyes.

“Matt? Are you ok?” Sydney yelled from the other side of the door after hearing her husband weeping.

He shut the water off and wrapped a towel around his waist. Before answering the door he wiped his eyes, but it was useless, the tears just kept coming. He opened the door after hearing his wife call out his name again.

He stood there in a towel and looked down at her.

“Oh Matt” she whispered and touched his face. His eyes closed just before he spoke.

“I killed her Syd. I shot her and I couldn’t stop”

She helped him over to the bed and stood in front of him as he sat down. “She’s dead, Syd. I killed her.” He cried.

“It’s ok,” she whispered holding his face in her hands. “You’re ok” she smiled and kissed his forehead. “You did what you had to do to save our family.”

“I would do anything for you and our kids, you know that right?” he said

“Of course I do, but right now, if you don’t get some sleep, you wont be any good to any of us.” She pulled back the covers and he got into the bed letting his towel fall to the floor. She climbed in beside him and turned out the light.

The house was very quiet now, but whether or not anyone would be able to sleep tonight was another story.