Just One More Yesterday

I awoke with a start the next morning upon hearing someone walking very close by me. Before I even gave myself a chance to assess the situation and see if there was even any danger or not, I was up off the couch and had already grabbed the rifle that had been on the floor. I was thankful that I realized it was just Patrick before I had actually raised the gun and aimed at him. They had been traumatized enough.

“Shit.” I said laying the gun back down and sitting back down on the couch. “I’m sorry.”

“No, it’s my fault. Are you always that jumpy?” Patrick asked.

“No. I don’t even think about these guns most of the time, but after talking with Pete last night I wanted to make sure I was more than ready should trouble come around.”

“So Pete told you what happened then?”

“He did.”

Patrick eyed me as if he expected me to think they were lying which was fine. He had been asleep when Pete and I had talked last night.

“I told him that I was in this with you guys until Joe and Andy are found and you are back with your families.”

“I’m really sorry we dragged you into this mess.”

“You didn’t.” I said looking at him with the most serious look I could have possibly given him because it was true. “I pick and choose my fights and whatever fight this may or may not turn out to be, I’m in it until the end.”

He smiled a smile that silently spoke ‘thank you’ and went to take a look at Pete who was still asleep in the recliner. I surveyed the conditions outside and was happy to find the sun shining and some of the snow melting, but it was still going to be a day or so before I could get out of here to get to the police.

I turned away from the window and found that Pete was awake now and Patrick had just helped him stand up. I stood up myself to go see what kind of food I had that we could eat because my stomach was growling something fierce.

“Good morning, Charlie.” Pete said.

“Good morning.” I smiled.

“I remember what I told you last night.” He cracked a small smile.

I returned the smile. “You were drugged.”

“Fair enough.”

I monitored the weather and conditions outside during the day and decided that I would chance making a trip to the police station in the morning to try and get things going so that we could find Andy and Joe and get these guys back to, hopefully, their normal lives. I also wanted to know what the hell was going on out in the woods because this kind of crap just wasn’t necessary.

“I think I can make it to the police station in the morning.” I told the guys that night as we were getting settled down for the night.

“Are you sure? It still looks pretty messy out there.” Pete said.

“Yeah, it’ll be okay. I’ll chain the tires and my truck is four wheel drive. I think one of you should stay here though in case Joe and Andy come around.”

“Pete, you should hang out here then. Your injuries are worse than mine.” Patrick suggested.

“Only if you promise to be careful.”

“Of course, I will. I’m pretty used to this kind of weather out here.”

“Okay. I trust you. I just can’t make it out here by myself if something happens.”

I don’t know why, but his words tugged a little too hard on my heart and I felt tears threatening to flood down my face, so I got up quickly and went to sit in Raegan’s room. I had no explanation for why I suddenly became so emotional but I had a couple of theories. Seeing two guys who were heroes to so many kids and people around the world, now suddenly so helpless and barely hanging on hurt me. I was the first one to admit that I could sometimes get to emotionally involved in my cases at work and the people I took care of. I sometimes thought about things too much like the person’s life I was unable to save was somebody’s child and family member, possibly a parent as well. I couldn’t imagine losing my Raegan or something happening to me and her being left alone. That lead me to my next theory of what if Raegan ever got into a situation like this?

“Charlie?” Pete called from the dark hallway.

“Yeah, I’m in here.” I said, hurriedly wiping my face.

“Are you okay? You left really quickly. I didn’t say anything did I?”

He used his flashlight to find me on the bed and he slowly walked over and lowered himself down beside me. There was no use in trying to hide my tears now.

“No, you didn’t. I just think too much sometimes.”

“Talk to me then.”

“It’s really nothing. I just really want the best outcome for all of you and I promise I will not quit until we find your friends. I don’t care what I have to do. I’ve also been thinking all day too, what if something like this happened to Raegan? Would she be able to fight? What would she do? What would I do? Today’s world is fucking crazy and anything could happen at anytime. I guess I’ve just never really thought about all of this until you guys showed up yesterday. It’s scary.”

He stretched his non-injured arm out a little bit and wrapped it around my waste, putting us a little closer to each other. His hand gently rubbed the lower part of my back, surprisingly calming me a little bit.

“Well, first of all, don’t think like that. I’m sure Raegan is having a great time in California right now. We could all drop dead at any second any day but we can’t let that hinder us from living life. As for us, someone somewhere has this whole situation already written out and whatever is going to happen is going to happen. We can only hope for the best and try to carry on when it’s all said and done with. One thing is for sure though, we would already be dead if it wasn’t for you. I think we are set up for a good ending because if not, we wouldn’t have come across you. How much luckier could we have gotten running across a surgeon’s house way out in the middle of the woods and that you were actually home to take us in?”

“I hope you’re right.”

“Is this Raegan’s room?” He asked.

I took the flashlight from him and shined it on her walls which were almost completely covered with posters and pictures of Fall Out Boy and her other favorite band Panic at the Disco. I felt him chuckle lightly and from the glow of the light I could see a smile on his face.

“I’ll take that as a yes.”

He took the flashlight from me and shined it on her messy dresser again and he got up slowly to get one of her many sharpies that she used to color and draw with. He walked over to a poster of just him that she had had me order online and he wrote her a message on it and signed it. She was going to hate me when she found out about all of this.

“Everything okay?” Patrick asked as he popped up in the doorway, probably wondering where we had gotten off to.”

“Yeah. Charlie just had a moment and was missing Raegan. Why don’t you sign one of her posters?” Pete said.

“Holy shit.” Patrick laughed as he shined his light around her room.

I chuckled as I laid down in her bed thinking that I would probably sleep in here for tonight. Pete came back and actually laid down beside me which he said he thought was a little more comfortable for him right now. Patrick signed a few of her pictures and then laid down across the foot of her bed as well. He was asleep within five minutes leaving Pete and me still making small talk.

“Are you sure you’re going to be okay while we go talk to the police in the morning?” I asked him.

He looked down for a second and then back to me. “Only if you promise to come back.”

“I promise.”

“So, I’ve only had Tylenol today and I am completely in my right mind. You are an angel, Charlie. Get some sleep so we can go search for the guys tomorrow.”

His free arm found its way around me again and to my absolute surprise, he lightly kissed my forehead and I was pretty sure every wall that I had ever built around me over the last thirteen years when it came to men had just come crashing down. I quickly threw another up though to protect myself and these feelings because he was just being nice because I had opened my home to them. Once this nightmare was over, he would return to his jet set life and I would return back to the hospital and being a mom. Two years from now Patrick and Pete probably wouldn’t even remember me, but in all honesty that was probably for the best.