31 Days of Autumn (38 page)

‘Discussion over,’ Andy stated firmly. ‘Are you
up to flying us home? She needs urgent medical care, so if you’re not, I will.’

‘I can do it,’ Dean nodded, looking back down
at the body, taking a deep breath, and exhaling slowly. ‘I got what I came for.
I want to go home now so that I can grieve.’

‘Understood. Ok then, let’s move out. Mrs.
Davenport has some children to get home to, and I need to inform the police
what’s happened,’ Andy ordered.

I helped to lift the stretcher into the
helicopter and sat on the floor at her side as we took off. I held her hand and
rubbed my thumb over her engagement ring, a world full of possibilities
re-opening to me. I smiled as I heard Brooke’s scream of joy through my
headphones when Andy called in to let her know Ellie was alive and we were
coming home. I couldn’t wait for Ellie to come around, so that I could look
into her beautiful eyes when I told her that I loved her and that her sacrifice
hadn’t been in vain. That her stupidly brave decision had saved Oliver and
James’s lives.

Not to mention my own.

Saturday 19
^th
September

Ellie

I could hear beeping. Why could I hear beeping? And
why couldn’t I find Mum, Dad, and Jenny? They should be here, they all arrived
before me. I could hear voices and turned my head, trying to home in on them.

‘Mama.’ The high-pitched baby’s voice sounded
just like my little girl. I smiled sadly. My
beautiful
Eva. I was going
to miss her so much. I was going to miss all of them. Everyone that I’d left
behind. I wondered if time worked differently when you’d died. Would it be
years before I saw them all again, or would it be like the
Lost
finale,
and we’d all arrive at the Pearly Gates together instead of dying at different
times. No, that was fiction. Dying wasn’t a fantasy, it was real. I squinted.
Why was that bright light back?

‘Ellie? Ellie? Baby, can you hear me? Open your
eyes for me.’

‘Dan?’ What was he doing here, too? He couldn’t
be here yet, our children needed him.

‘It’s me, I’m right here, Ellie. You’re safe
now, you can open your eyes.’ I felt warm fingers take mine and the heat of
breath on my lips as they were grazed. I felt them tingling, a pleasurable
burning sensation that filled me with happiness. Dan’s kisses had always
affected me so badly. Everything about him had, from the moment we shook hands
in the airport.

‘Mama,’ came the little girl’s voice even
louder.

‘Eva, I miss you,’ I choked.

‘She’s here. She’s missed you so much too,
Ellie. We all have. Open your eyes, baby, please,’ Dan’s voice pleaded.
Everything sounded and felt so real. I felt warm. The mattress I was lying on
was comfortable and not damp. Instead of the smell of decaying bodies and a backed-up
toilet, I could smell bleach and lemons.

‘I’m scared,’ I whispered. I was happy now.
What if I opened my eyes to find I was hallucinating and I was still locked in
that bunker, slowly dying? I didn’t want to go back there. I never wanted to go
back there.

‘There’s no need to be scared. We found you,
you’re in the hospital as you were so dehydrated and have a nasty leg
infection, but you’re going to be ok, Ellie. We’re not ok though. We need you.
Eva, Jonas, and Oliver need their mother and I need my wife. Come back to me,
baby.’

‘Oliver? Oliver’s alive?’ I asked, feeling suddenly
elated.

‘Sitting in the waiting room, desperate to give
you one of his big hugs and sloppy kisses. James is pretty banged up, but he
saved him. I’ve never lied to you, Ellie, and I’m promising you that you can
open your eyes. You’re safe now.’ I felt fingers squeeze mine again and the
spark of electricity that always happened when he touched me. I blinked a few
times, slowly adjusting to the brilliance of the white that replaced the darkness
it felt like I’d only just left. Instead of a green-stained, curved concrete
ceiling, I could see white tiles, interspersed with panels of light. The cold
damp air I’d got used to was now warm and fresh. I turned my head to the right
and saw a stand next to me with bags hanging from it, two tubes going into my
arm. My shoulder was covered by a white gown with blue and green crosses on it.
I felt my lower lip start to tremble with emotion. I really was in the hospital.
I hadn’t died. I was alive? ‘Ellie,’ came Dan’s deep sensual voice to my left.
I slowly looked around, holding my breath in anticipation. I had no idea how
long it had been since I’d seen him. It felt like months.

‘Dan,’ I moaned, tears of joy suddenly filling
my eyes to see his handsome face looking back at me. He had a mixture of
concern and happiness written all over it at the same time.

‘Welcome back,’ he smiled, tears of emotion
swimming in his sea-green eyes. He dipped his head to kiss me and it was as if
someone had just breathed life back into my dead body, sending warmth and
security surging through my system. I flung my arms around his neck, not caring
about the sting as I ripped the IVs out of my arm. I buried my face in his neck
and started to cry, totally overwhelmed to be safe and so close to him again.
‘O, baby. I’m so sorry it took us so long to find you.’

‘Jenny, they killed … Jenny,’ I sobbed, as he
put his arms around me and hauled me up against his chest.

‘I know,’ he whispered as he kissed my hair. ‘I
saw it on camera. I’m so sorry you had to go through that, but every single man
who took you is dead. None of them can hurt anyone ever again. Sssshhhh, I’ve
got you now. How are you feeling? Are you in pain?’

‘No physical pain,’ I sniffed, trying to block
out the image of Jenny’s disfigured face as she fell to the ground. Emotionally
I was a wreck. Happy as I was to be back in Dan’s arms, part of me wished I was
still asleep. I’d been living in blissful denial and anything would be better
than the memory of that bunker and the things I’d been forced to witness. How
was I supposed to get over that, to get over what had happened to my friend? I
sobbed again and Dan tried to soothe me by kissing my forehead and rubbing his
hands up and down my back. ‘I don’t want you to ever let me go,’ I whispered.

‘I don’t plan on ever letting you go, Ellie.
Not ever. A minute without you is like a slow painful death, a week was … I
have no words for what that did to me, or to everyone that loves you. Thinking
I’d never see you again made me want to give up, but I didn’t, I kept going for
you, for my children, just like you fought for us. You’re a brave and stubborn
woman, Ellie Davenport,’ he murmured, kissing my forehead again.

‘I learned from the best.’

‘Mama.’

‘Eva?’ I called, letting go of Dan and looking
around for her.

‘She’s right here, in the cot in the corner,’
Dan told me, squeezing my hand again. ‘There’s two single beds for the boys and
I have a bed over there, by the en-suite next to you. We’re not leaving your
side until you’re discharged, ok?’

‘Thank you.’ I managed a weak smile as I looked
up at him. ‘Can I see her, see the boys?’

‘Are you sure you’re up to it?’ he frowned.

‘Dan, don’t even think about keeping them from
me, I need to hold them. I’m not going to feel complete until I’ve seen
everyone I love again.’ I reached for the remote dangling from the side of my
bed and pressed the button to raise the head of the bed until I was sitting
upright. Dan went to the corner of the room and bent over. He turned around and
set Eva on the floor, holding both of her hands. She broke into the most
beautiful smile I’d ever seen when she looked up at me.

‘Mama,’ she cried. Dan let go of her hands and
mine flew to my mouth as she held out her arms and took a few steps towards me
with a grin all over her face. When she wobbled, Dan quickly grabbed her hands
to steady her, before lifting her up and walking towards me.

‘She’s walking?’ I laughed through my tears.

‘Only a few steps, but she’s a lot younger than
the boys were,’ he nodded, a proud smile curling up the corners of his lips.
Someone had dressed her in a gorgeous pink dress with white daisies on and a
pair of white tights. I held out my arms, never more impatient to hold her, and
Dan passed her to me. I kissed her again and again as tears of happiness poured
down my cheeks.

‘O, darling, I love you,’ I moaned as she clung
to me. ‘Where are the boys? I need to see my boys.’

‘I’ll go and get them and let everyone know
that you’re awake.’

‘Everyone?’ I asked, wiping my eyes.

‘Just a couple of people in a private reception
room. Jonas, Oliver, Brooke, Molly, Lucas, Summer, and Logan, John, Edward,
Magda, and my parents,’ he shrugged with a wink.

‘Where are James and Dean?’ I asked. ‘I need to
see them both too.’

‘James is here, as a patient. He had to have
surgery on his nose and leg. He’s still a bit groggy and sleepy, so you won’t
be seeing him today. Dean needed some time to himself.’

‘What day is it?’ I asked, my heart aching as I
tried to imagine how poor Dean was feeling.

‘Saturday, a week after you were taken,’ Dan
replied, a frown furrowing his brow. It was only a week that I was down there?
It had felt like longer.

‘He was going to propose to her last weekend,
Dan. He shouldn’t be alone, no matter what he says.’

‘I’ll see what I can do, don’t get yourself
stressed. You’ve been through a horrible ordeal, you don’t need any additional
stress for the rest of your life, ok? Now can I leave you alone holding Eva, or
are you too tired? I can put her back in the cot.’

‘Don’t take her from me, please,’ I pleaded.
The thought of being able to touch, kiss, and hold all of them had kept me
going through those dark hours. ‘I’ll be fine.’

‘I’ll be a couple of minutes, that’s all. I’ll
send in a nurse to put in your IVs again, ok?’

I nodded, but it didn’t stop my heart beating
wildly as he disappeared and left me. I hugged and kissed my daughter again,
saying a silent thank you that I was back with my family. The door opened and a
nurse with a kind-looking face came in with a smile.

‘How are you feeling, Ellie?’

‘Tearful, tired, and a little weak.’

‘After what you’ve been through, it’s only to
be expected,’ she nodded as I held out my arm for her to reattach the drips.
‘No getting out of bed without someone to help you. Have you had any nightmares?’

‘Not yet,’ I confirmed, but I knew that they
were stalking me and would catch up with me very soon. I’d had them for a long
time after falling into the loch and tumbling down the stairs. Those traumas
were nothing compared to the hell of living through last week.

‘The psychiatrist will be around to see you
this afternoon if you’re feeling up to it. He’ll prescribe some medications
that should help, and discuss what support he can give to you. Now we managed
to give you a sponge bath while you were out of it, but we haven’t done your
hair. If your husband’s up to it, I can remove your drips while he helps you
shower, then come and put them back in.’

‘That would be lovely, thank you,’ I nodded
vigorously as I looked down at my chipped nails and cringed at the thought of
what my hair probably looked like after over a week without being cleaned.

‘If you need any assistance, just press this
button and one of us will come to you.’

‘Thank you.’ It helped to know that I’d have
someone to turn to other than Dan. He’d put on a brave face, but I could see in
his eyes that he’d suffered so much too. He looked exhausted. The last time I’d
seen him, he’d been running out of the door with a computer-related crisis. I
had no idea if he’d resolved that. I had so much to catch up on.

‘I’ll come back to check the dressings on your
leg. If you feel any pain, press this red button here for some morphine. You
can’t overdose on it, so don’t worry. Try and press it the moment your leg
starts to bother you, don’t wait until you’re in real pain. You’ll be here for
a while, until we’re happy that you’re back to full strength and that leg’s on
the mend.’ She squeezed my shoulder and smiled at me again. I could see the pity
in her eyes. I didn’t want everyone’s sympathy. I had no right to have any. It
was Jenny’s parents and Dean who needed it. Not long after she left, the door
was pushed open by Dan, and a tiny blur of dark hair raced in.

‘Mummy, mummy,’ yelled Oliver as he climbed up
onto the bed and started to cry, setting me off again. I held Eva with one arm
as I lifted my other for him to scramble up. He threw himself at me, sobbing
uncontrollably.

‘O, darling, it’s ok. I’m here, we’re together
again. You were such a brave boy, I’m so proud of you.’

‘I was so scared and hungry,’ he moaned, his
tears soaking my gown. ‘And I missed you so much.’

‘Me too, but there’s no need to be scared or
hungry anymore. Mummy’s got to stay here for a while, but we’ll all be going
home together soon.’

‘I want cuddles, Mummy,’ cried Jonas as Dan
lifted him up onto the bed. He clambered onto my lap and I sobbed as I circled
my arms around all three of them, plastering their little angelic faces in
kisses. I looked up at Dan through my tears, feeling so happy in the moment,
wishing it could last forever. He wiped his damp cheeks with a nod and a smile
in return.

‘I love you,’ I whispered as I held his gaze,
then looked down at my precious babies. ‘I love all of you.’ I felt the bed dip
and Dan embraced them from behind, leaning forward to rest his forehead against
mine. ‘What happened? Who took us and how did you find us?’

‘Not now, Ellie. Let’s just enjoy being
together again for a while. When you’ve seen everyone, if you’re not too tired,
we can talk then. Otherwise it can wait until tomorrow.’ He kissed the tip of
my nose and we just stayed like that, holding each other, finally reunited.

I couldn’t believe how weak I felt. Just having
a shower, with Dan holding me, helping me to wash my hair, felt like I’d done a
marathon. I’d hardly eaten since we’d been taken. I’d wanted to make sure
Oliver had enough, then James obviously needed to eat more than I did, too. If
I’d had half a sandwich a day and a few mouthfuls of water, that was it.
Showering, getting all of that grease and grime out of my hair, was incredible.
Dan had taken the children out to the waiting room for everyone to entertain
while I had a shower. I’d refused to see anyone until I’d cleaned up and really
brushed my teeth, almost to the point of making my gums raw. Dan had showered
at the same time, but I was so tired and weak that not even the sight of his
naked body stirred me, but what was more unusual was that neither had mine
affected him. He got me dressed into a clean pair of silk pyjamas, then sat me
down as he dried my hair for me.