“No, I’m fine.”
“You said the voice sounded familiar,” the officer continued.
Neal interrupted. “That’s enough. Can’t you see my wife is in pain? She’s got a concussion and she needs her rest.”
“Okay. We will need to talk to Ms. Whitmore again. We’ll stop by tomorrow.”
Once out of earshot, one of the officers spoke.
“Did you notice that her husband never reacted when I mentioned she was found naked and that she may have been attacked. Most husbands would be outraged at the thought of their wife being raped.”
“Maybe he was too upset or maybe it didn’t register what you meant by attacked,” the other officer offered.
“Sure, maybe. They both definitely need to be questioned again.”
“There’s always tomorrow,” his partner added.
All Damita wanted was to sleep and to forget. She was out again and Neal sat down in a chair next to her bed. His face was etched with concern and the nurse that was on duty when Damita arrived did her best to reassure him.
“She’ll be fine, Mr. Westman. She has a concussion and she’ll probably need to rest for a few days, but she may even be released tomorrow. They want to keep her overnight for observation. That’s customary when there’s a head injury. It’s so late. You can go home. I’m here all night. I’ll keep a close eye on her.”
“Can I stay a little longer?” he asked.
“Sure, you can. I hate to bother you, but you look so familiar. Have I seen you somewhere before?” the nurse asked.
“My company and I were featured in Black Enterprise magazine last year.”
“I knew you looked familiar!” she responded excitedly.
Five minutes later, the nurse was back with a pillow, blanket and another chair.
The nurse grinned at Neal. “It’s not the most comfortable, but if you put the two chairs together, you can at least try to get some sleep.”
“Thank you.”
“It’s my pleasure, Mr. Westman.”
• • •
The next morning Damita was released from the hospital. Along with the concussion, Damita also had a sprained ankle. One of the attendants in the hospital wheeled her to the exit in a wheelchair. Instead of the car service and driver Neal often used, he pulled up driving his own car.
“Did you call my mother?” Damita asked.
“Yes. She’s meeting you at the apartment.”
“She didn’t come to the hospital?”
“I didn’t think it made sense to call her last night. It was so late. I called her this morning and told her they were releasing you.”
As they drove, Damita realized they weren’t headed in the direction of Carmella’s apartment.
Damita looked through the window uncomfortably. “Where are we going?” she asked.
“I thought it best that you stay at our apartment, under the circumstances. We have much more room. I can have the nurse, Florence, come back and if you like, your mother can stay as well, if that makes you more comfortable.”
“Okay,” Damita responded.
Once in the apartment, Damita looked around and couldn’t help but realize it no longer felt like home. She had felt nothing but pain ever since she had come to this place. The truth was it had never been home. Yet, here she was, back again.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Her mother was at the door minutes after they arrived. She grabbed Damita and hugged her immediately.
Karen’s face looked worried. “Oh, baby. I’m so sorry this happened to you.”
“Neal told you everything?”
“Yes, baby, he told me everything.”
Damita looked at her mother and tears began to well up in her eyes.
Karen looked around the apartment with disdain. “It’s okay, baby. Mama is here. Are you sure you’re going to be okay in this place? You should come home with me.”
“I’m already here and there’s a nurse coming. Also, this place has a lot more room if the nurse or anyone else wants to stay overnight.”
“Can’t the nurse come to my place just as easily? I’ve got some room.”
“I’ll stay with you once my ankle is better,” Damita whispered in her mother’s ear.
“Make sure you do that,” her mother whispered back.
“Is anyone hungry?” Neal asked.
“I’m not hungry,” Damita answered.
“Me neither,” her mother said, rolling her eyes.
“Mom, please.”
“Okay.”
“Mom, will you do me a favor?”
“Sure, anything you need.”
“Would you call Mr. Underhill? He likes you and hopefully that will help keep me in his good graces, at least for a while.”