Tuesday, December 31st Pt. 4
I wake up yelping, screaming and fighting from the fitful dream I fell into during the ride to Red General. I cling hard to the back of Alpha Julius’s shirt as he silently embraces me. I had no idea how hard dad had been on me until I went to Blister Ridge. I had to harden up while I was back at Red Fang which has not only delayed my ability to process what has happened but it has added to the trauma I’m already struggling with.
Josh has diagnosed me with complex PTSD, he did shortly after I moved into this pack after Cole disappeared. He simplified the description as being multiple traumatic events instead of just one causing the post trauma anxiety. Julius waits patiently for me to get myself together as going into the hospital with my own PTSD on full display won’t help me with my kids. I lift myself from his shoulder slowly, taking several deep breaths with my eyes still closed. It’s only as I open them and look into his blue-green eyes that he speaks.
“Are you ready?”
His voice is soft but encouraging. All I can bring myself to do is nod. Hayden and Harper are just over three years old now but I haven’t seen them in nearly a year. Not since Heather started living with Marcus in January. I’ve heard rumors around the pack about him being a rapist and easily angered into domestic violence but I was easily denied by the man I call father, the resources that I needed to save them from what they have been forced to endure.
I find the strength to leave alpha’s car and make my way to the main entrance of the hospital. Thankfully it’s only around eight at night as Julius’s party always starts at five so not everyone tries to come at once. It also allows any adults with younger children to stop by, enjoy the festivities and return home at a time the younger pups can go comfortably to bed.
We walk easily through the doors and straight to the front desk. It takes several minutes for a receptionist to greet us as the front of the hospital is currently a ghost town.
“How may I help you?” She greets cheerfully trying to mask how tired she is.
“Yes ma’am. Hayden and Harper Redmen. I received a call from Alexander Carter that they were admitted to the children’s wing while they waited for their father to come.”
He explains easily while I stand dumbfounded at the desk.
“Yes. They are on an abuse investigation hold. Visitors are not allowed.”
She states so matter of factly that my jaw drops.
“Please double check for more recent updates. The council called me at six to verify that Andre Redmen was with me and that we would be able to take the pups to my pack this evening. Dr. Carter called at seven, just as we were getting on the road to inform us they were ready to be released.”
“That is the most recent update. Give me a moment.”
She picks up the phone and starts dialing a number. Her conversation is too quiet for me to hear over my growing anxiety. I stop my pacing as I watch the receptionist stand and Julius lean in close to her. She speaks briefly in his ear before he nods and she sits back down.
“Come to me, Andre. Everything is okay.”
I walk over to him but I’m struggling to maintain control. I’m so close to getting them yet I’m still being pushed away. He reads my mood easily and embraces me calmly, rubbing my back as my body shakes.
“Please.”
Is all I manage to whisper as the rest of what I want to say gets lost on the path from my brain to my mouth.
“Five minutes Andre. Alex is here. He placed the kids on lockdown because Heather and Marcus were released on bond. Heather has been calling the hospital relentlessly inquiring about the kids and someone unaware of the situation let her know they were still here.”
We remain together as we wait. After the longest five minutes the ding of the elevator alerts me to something new happening.
“Alpha Julius, Alpha Andre. Thank you for coming so quickly. Thank you Silvia for alerting me.”
She nods silently as he ushers us to the elevator.
“I’m sorry. I had to take certain precautions to ensure that Heather didn’t come and attempt to take them.”
He explains as the elevator doors close.
“Has she been here?”
I fail to hide the nervousness in my voice.
“The pups were brought in late last night when a council member doing routine patrols heard the sound of glass breaking. They knocked on the door and when there was no response they tried to open it. It was unlocked so he entered the home. As he walked in he witnessed Heather throw Harper against the wall hard enough to put a hole in it. He made several commands which resulted in her being restrained and sat at the dining table. That’s when he heard more upstairs. When he got there Hayden was naked, tied to the bed in such a way that his legs hung over the side. Marcus was actively hitting him with a belt. He immediately called for help. Heather and Marcus went to jail and the kids arrived in the ER around 11. They were immediately admitted for testing and locating you, their father.”
I nod as I take in the information.
“Harper has a significant concussion and broken arm that will need to be put in a cast. We believe those two injuries came from being thrown. She has been placed in a fiberglass splint. You will need to get her in with an orthopedic doctor in three to five days. Hayden will also need to see the same doctor. We don’t know when his arm was broken but we did find a spiral fracture. The most common way it happens is when the arm is twisted harshly.”
“Does a spiral fracture only occur as a result of abuse?”
Julius asks as he seems to understand how overwhelming hearing they both have a broken arm is.
“Rarely they will happen if the pup is born with a genetic condition causing fragile bones but there’s no evidence that either of these pups have such a condition. In normally developing pups, spirals only happen due to abuse. They both have significant concussions but they have no signs of fractures, bleeding or swelling. If any of those were present we would transfer them to Redding children’s hospital and not release them into your care.”
I nod with a sigh. At least they escaped life changing brain damage.
“Now, I need you to be prepared.” Alex stops us as we leave the elevator. “While the broken arms and concussions are the most serious injuries. You need to prepare yourself for a large amount of cuts and bruises all over their bodies. You can easily tell they have been beating on them for several weeks.”
I look at Alex, longing to unhear what he just told me. He opens his mouth to speak but before a word comes out I hear him.
“No! I want daddy! Daddy won’t hurt me!”
I can hear his wail from down the hall and I’m off before anyone can stop me. I enter his room without knocking to see him struggling against the nurse in the room. She has a small cup of purple medication in her hand that she’s desperately trying to give him without spilling it on him.
“Ma’am please, let me near him.”
My voice sounds like I’m begging despite this being my first time in the room. He jumps from the bed and runs straight into my legs. He screams when I pick him up but something about my tender hold around my three year old son becomes his undoing. The bravery he was desperately trying to display towards the nurse has completely gone as his body shakes with his sobs.
“I am so sorry Hayden.” I whisper as my own tears drop.
I turn my body slightly to see tiny Harper, sleeping in her own bed. The whole of her back is striped like my brother’s often would be after our father got done with him.
“I’m sorry for the interruption ma’am. I couldn’t contain myself hearing him cry like that. What is it you’re trying to give him? Maybe I can help.”
My voice is unusually quiet as Hayden starts to calm.
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