Clint guided them off the elevator and down the hall to the second to last door. He used his security pass to open the door. The man stopped in the doorway as they went inside.
Ben turned and shook his hand. “Clint, how can I reach you if I have any questions?”
The man beamed a smile at him. “Just dial #9 and that will ring my desk.”
“Perfect! Thank so much!” Ben said and the man nodded as he headed back down the hall.
Ben shut the door, locked it, and turned to take his first look at Rainor’s condo. Modern and cold. Unlike Margaux’s condo the view out the floor to ceiling windows faced only water so all he saw now was blackness with the occasional light from a ship. He then realized Gretchen was standing in the bedroom door and she was completely naked.
“Gretchen! Put something on! A nightie or a dressing gown,” he scolded. She shrank from his words and hid behind the doorway. She looked back at him through her bangs.
“Rainor didn’t allow me to wear clothes at home,” she said faintly.
“His rules no longer apply to you. From this day forward you are a free woman to make your own decisions and to be treated like a human being!” Ben insisted. He was dismayed to see that instead of being happy about that she just looked frightened. He moved to her and took his jacket off to drape it over her shoulders. She wrapped it around herself and smiled timidly at him. Then he saw her wince.
“Are you in pain?”
She nodded faintly. He pulled the bag of drugs from his jacket pocket and read the instructions on the bottles. He poured out one anti-inflammatory pill and two painkillers onto his palm. He caught her eying the painkiller bottle strangely and he suddenly became nervous about leaving her with them. He walked her into the kitchen and poured her a glass of water. He gave her the pills and she swallowed them with the water.
“I have to make a phone call so you should go to bed-”
“You’re going to leave! You’re going to leave me all alone!” she wailed, fear in her eyes.
He took her face between his hands and leaned close to hold her eyes with his. “I will NOT leave until I’m sure you’ll be ok. I’m going to call my lawyer to make arrangements for someone to help you with the estate. You have to speak with the detective today. You need to get some sleep. I’m going to need to go at some point-”
Gretchen began to cry and Ben looked at her in dismay. What the fuck was he going to do? He pulled her to his chest and hugged her carefully because of her ribs, feeling her tremble in fear once more.
“Come on, let’s go into the living room so I can make my calls. You can lie down on the couch and I’ll sit with you,” he said and they made their way into the next room. “Get a blanket.”
She rushed off to the linen closet and returned with a soft grey blanket. Ben settled down on the end of the couch and she immediately stretched herself out on the couch next to him and rested her head on his leg. She looked up at him with anxious eyes. Ben sighed and ran a fingertip across her forehead smoothing out the worry lines there and she immediately began to relax at his touch. He smoothed her eyebrows with his thumb and she moaned softly. He moved his other hand to massage her scalp and her body turned to jelly as she completely relaxed. He kept up the massage until she began to snore gently.
He pulled out his phone and dialed Walter once more as he kept a gentle touch on her scalp, running his fingers through her silky hair.
“Ben!”
“Hi Walter. Any luck?”
“Yes, I have someone who can assist you or rather your friend. Margaret Dawson. She specializes with estate law. I’ll give her a call 9AM your time. It being Saturday I may have some difficulty getting her to agree to come see this client until Monday.”
“Walter, I’m supposed to be on a plane Sunday night.” He paused to ensure she was still asleep but she was out. “She was married to a cruel psychopath who isolated her, kept her a virtual prisoner in her own home and only allowed her to go outside and speak to others in his presence. She was married to him for 10 years. She’s lost the ability to make decisions on her own. Her isolation has left her with terrible social anxiety. I’d hand her over to her family or friends but she doesn’t have any. She’s 31 and helpless as a child in many ways. I- I don’t know what to do!”
Walter was quite for a bit. “Damn, Ben. OK… I’ll do what I can. Are there any social services for… no, never mind, she’s 31.” He paused a moment. “I’m sorry Ben, this is way outside my area of expertise. You’re going to have to ask someone with a psychology degree for help.”
Ben thought that was very good advice. “Actually, that really helps. I now know who to call next. Please let me know how it goes with Ms. Dawson. Thanks!”
He hung up and dialed another number. While it connected he looked down at Gretchen’s sleeping face. She looked so innocent, so at peace sleeping on his leg.
“Ben?”
“Hannah! I’m so glad I got through to you,” Ben sighed in relief. He’d been worried she would be in a meeting.
“I- I’m in a meeting but Tina let me know you’re in Australia and now you’re calling me at… 4AM? What’s wrong?” she asked, the worry evident in her voice.
“I’m so sorry to interrupt your day but I’m- it’s really… I don’t know what to do!” Ben sighed.
“Give me a second to let the people here know they can go.”
“Is Dr. Granger with you?” Ben asked.
“Uh, yes. Should I ask her to stay?” Hannah asked.
“I think it would really help,” he answered.
He heard some muffled sounds then the phone went on speaker. “Ok, Ben. It’s just me and Dr. Granger. How can we help you?”
He took a deep breath and explained the events of the night and ended with what he’d told Walter. When he finished he listened to the silence on the other end. “Are you still there?”
“Sorry Ben, we’re just trying to absorb what you’ve said,” Hannah replied.
“Ben, this is Dr. Granger. You’ve found yourself in a white knight situation again only this time you’re faced with a deadline, no local support, and no exit strategy.”
He thought about that and had to agree. “Yes, that… sounds right.”
“Wait! What about Margaux? This Rainor worked for her company. Couldn’t she lend some support?” Hannah asked.
Ben hesitated.
“Ben? What’s happened with Margaux?” Hannah asked.
“Nothing. I don’t know that anything has happened… yet. It’s just a little stiff behavior. I don’t know what it means yet. I don’t know how supportive she’s likely to be in this… situation. Not after how she behaved when she heard Lucy was living with us.”
“Oh Ben…” Hannah sighed.
Dr. Granger came back on the line to keep the conversation moving. “Ok, so local support isn’t available. You said she has no family or friends. That’s a dead end so we move on. The exit strategy for this kind of loss of self is long term. She needs treatment. Potentially years of it to combat the damage Rainor has done and in the interim she needs to be in a supportive environment. This is also not something you can address at this time.”
“This is a rather disheartening call, Dr. Granger,” Ben grumbled.
“There is still one aspect of this situation you can address. The deadline. You can do something about that,” she insisted.
“I- I could extend my stay but-” he began.
“Not what I’m suggesting,” the doctor interrupted. “Bring her with you. Get her treatment here.”
“You’ll have to deal with any circumstances that might delay her departure. She might even have to follow on her own after you leave if there is something she must remain in Australia for,” Hannah suggested. “You’ll also have to apply for special permission with immigration for her to be here for an extended period. We might be able to help with that. Start with a six-month tourist visa.”
“Hannah, you’re amazing! Anything your hospital needs you let me know. Maybe we could renovate that dismal psyche ward! When I get back we’ll talk, ok?” Ben said.
“Oh! Ah, alright,” she said in surprise.
“And you’re getting a big hug!” Ben insisted.
Dr. Granger snorted.
“You’d get one too but you’re my doctor and I hear that’s frowned upon.”
“Oh, I’ll accept a hug. Nothing wrong with one of those!” the doctor said happily.
“Done! Thank you both so much! I can’t tell you how much better I feel!” Ben gushed, but quietly so he didn’t wake Gretchen.
“Glad we could help Ben! Let us know how it goes!” Hannah said and Ben could hear her smile.
“I will! Have a good day!”
Once he hung up he looked at Gretchen. She still looked so peaceful and lovely. He yawned massively and rested his head back just for a second.
Ben jolted awake as his phone rang. Gretchen snorted in her sleep and rolled onto her side, still resting her head on his leg. He stared at his cell stupidly and finally registered Margaux was calling.
“Huh, yeah. Margaux!”
“Where are you?”
Her voice was a little strained.
“Sorry, I must have fallen asleep. After the hospital I took Gretchen back to her condo last night- this morning. Didn’t get here until after 3AM, closer to 4AM. Fell asleep on the couch. What- what time is it?”
“It’s almost 9AM.”
“I’m sorry. I’ll tell you all about it when I get there. I’m just waiting to hear if a lawyer will be dropping by to help Gretchen with the estate transfer. I’ll be able to head out then.
“Able to?”
“Yeah, like I said, I’ll tell you about it when I get there.”
“Right.” The line went dead.
Ben looked at his phone. He wasn’t going back to sleep now. He sighed and tried to slip off the couch but Gretchen came awake in a flash. She looked up at him anxiously.
“I have to pee. It’s time for us to get up anyway. You need to get dressed. I want you wearing clothes when the lawyer gets here.”
She released her grip on Ben’s leg and he climbed to his feet and stretched. Then he made his way into the bathroom and relieved himself. He washed his hands and splashed water on his face to freshen up then toweled dry. He walked into the bedroom and saw her standing in front of her closet. There were only a few outfits. Ben picked a nice red dress, the least formal item in her closet. He checked her cast and saw it had the waterproof liner. He told her to take a shower and put on the dress. She handed him his jacket and she walked into the bathroom naked. He chastised himself for watching.