The Summer of '78 Ch. 03

They were at Spohn in less than 10 minutes, and they marched en masse right past the nurse's station and into Barbara Ann's empty room. An irate Amelia confronted the nurses at the station: "Where is my daughter!" Sean, Gary, and Peggy stood by her, fury on their faces.

Meanwhile, Caelan was searching for Gus, the security guard on duty. He found him in an open room near his station; he was alive, but unconscious. He stormed out and arrived at the nurse's station just as Sean demanded their names in the course of threatening malpractice lawsuits against them and the hospital, AFTER they served time for being accomplishes in her kidnapping!

Caelan interrupted loudly, demanding they call security and a doctor to the floor immediately because Gus had been knocked out, drug into an empty room, and was possibly badly injured. The nurses were in a tizzy; they appeared too frightened to act, so Caelan picked up the phone, handed it to the head nurse, and told her to make the calls NOW! She did, while the others cowered within the station.

When she hung up, Peggy grabbed the phone, called the Chairman of the Board of Directors at home, and warned him he best be here in ten minutes or she would turn her lawyers loose on the hospital and each board member for everything they could dream up!

The doctor on duty determined that Gus had been drugged with chloroform; he administered an antidote, and Gus awoke rather suddenly. He told them Spencer approached him from the side and told him Barbara Ann needed his assistance. When he turned to go help, the doctor slapped something over his nose, and that is the last thing he remembered.

Hospital security arrived at the same time as the doctor; there were two of them, and they began searching for the one assigned to this floor. They found him unconscious in a broom closet. The doctor administered the antidote, and he told a very similar story. They sent out a call to lock the hospital down, and an alert to find Dr. Spencer, whom they believe had abducted a patient, Barbara Ann Kelly.

Sean had already called the police, and they could hear sirens in the distance. Chairman Matthews and Head Administrator Kaufmann were being fileted by Amelia and Peggy, so Caelan, Sean, and Gary hurried down to meet the police. Caelan had a wallet photo of his wife, and the officer developed a description that went out over the radio with the APB.

The doctor was described as a white male, 6'3", 180 pounds, wearing jeans and a polo shirt. She was described as a white female, 5'3", 125 pounds, with brown hair and eyes, and considered very attractive. Her clothing was unknown, but possibly a hospital gown.

Caelan detached and walked over to the suburban on the parking lot that held Doctor Winston. He opened the back door, ordered the guards to step out, and turned to Winston, who looked at him defiantly. Without a word her grabbed her in the same throat hold he had used on Theo earlier. "You get one chance to tell me where he took her. If you say you don't know, I crush your windpipe and you asphyxiate. If you lie, we take you with us, and the same thing happens when they aren't there.

So, where are they?"

He released the pressure enough for her to croak, "Ranch! He took her to the ranch!"

"Where is the ranch?"

"Between Refugio and Sinton!" she choked out.

"Let's go!" he ordered. The other member of the security detail climbed back in and they exited the parking lot. Using back streets, they quickly got to Crosstown Freeway and thence to Hwy 37 north. Caelan only had to hold his hand near Winston's throat to evoke directions, so the thirty-five mile drive went by quickly.

When they made the turnoff, they encountered a padlocked gate. Bruce cut the small chain with a bolt cutter from the tool box behind the back seat, and they drove through. The house was over the small hill on the edge of a cotton field, and since it was a moonlit night, Sam drove to within a few hundred feet of the crown of the brushy hill with the lights off. They bound and gagged Winston, separated into two groups of two and proceeded down the hill, clinging to the brush on the east and west sides of the road.

The orientation of the rectangular house was east to west. Caelan and Gus crept to the east side of the house and peered into dark windows; Bruce and Sam did the same on the west. The only light was coming through the big picture windows facing south, so they moved to the corners, keeping in the shadows.

Barbara Ann was sitting on the couch wearing a long white negligée. Her nipples were clearly visible through the thin silk material, and her captor sat beside her wearing only white silk briefs. She was facing Caelan: they could see Spencer talking to her, and her looking at him, but her normal vibrancy and animation were missing; she sat slack jawed with unblinking, staring eyes.

The doctor leaned forward and kissed her, but neither her demeanor nor body position changed. Winston had said Barbara Ann and Spencer had a romantic relationship, but Caelan knew his little sexpot, and remaining unresponsive to a lover's kiss while sitting on a couch wearing a see-through negligee was not her norm.

Spencer ran his hand between her legs, and she did respond; by grabbing his hand and saying "No, don't!"

Uh, huh -- that's another discordant note in their supposed romantic relationship!

So he wouldn't be seen through the windows, Caelan belly crawled to the wooden door. He stood and tested the door, finding it unlocked. He could hear more clearly from here so he stood still and listened.

Spencer authoritatively said, "Relax now, Barbi! This is a critical part of your treatment. I will teach you to love sex again, now that you are free of your controlling ex-husband! As you remember, he abandoned you while you were in the hospital -- he wouldn't even come see you! Neither would your parents! Only Beverley and I care about you! We want to help you!

Your husband was responsible for both of the terrible things that happened to you, and he has treated you like chattel ever since you were married. Now is your chance to break away from him, and be with someone who loves and respects you: that would be me!"

Spencer again attempted to force his hand up her legs to her pussy, but again she fought him. Her voice was strained and halting, but she pleaded, "Please stop! He's not my ex-husband -- we're still married and I still love him. I always have and I always will. Even if you force me, that won't change, just like it didn't when they raped me before. So please stop and take me back to town!"

Spencer cursed and proclaimed, "I'll increase your dosage later so you will be more compliant, but I'm going to have you now!" He then pushed her shoulders down on the couch and began fighting to get her legs opened wide enough to crawl between them.

She gave a pitiful cry, and Caelan had seen and heard enough. He stood, pulled the door quietly open, and moved behind Spencer; Bruce moved in with him, and covered Spencer from the side.

Caelan raised his rifle and brought the butt down hard on Spencer's right kidney; from the way he arched in pain, he likely caught a bit of his spine too. Spencer rolled off, shoulders thrown back in agony, and landed on the floor. His hands were extended, and he was trying to arch his back off the floor to alieve the pain. Caelan stomped his near hand with the heel of his boots, breaking bones in the hand and fingers. Spencer screamed.

Caelan knelt beside his wife, who had returned to an upright position. She stared at him for a few seconds before he saw recognition in her eyes. "Where have you been?" she asked plaintively. "They said you left me."

Sam made the call, and the ambulances arrived just minutes after the San Patricio County Sheriff's deputies arrived, in force. Caelan and the squad had their weapons laid out on the coffee table and they were standing by the windows with their hands away from their bodies when the deputies burst in the back door with guns drawn.

Caelan led the conversation, and the LEOs were soon knowledgeable about the state of affairs. Caelan hated that Barbara Ann was sitting there barely dressed, but the officers needed to see the situation firsthand. She was allowed to go dress as soon as the investigation was sufficiently proceeding, but she and her husband soon discovered there was a problem: Spencer had bought plenty of clothes in her 4p size, but his fetishes meant none were appropriate to wear in public.

The choice, however, was the negligee, a dirty hospital gown, or the least revealing of the 'uniforms', which they chose. Barbara Ann was still too drugged to have much modesty, but she did try to pull the tiny skirt down to cover more than her panties.

Caelan couldn't help snickering at how much his gorgeous 32 year-old wife and mother of three looked like an 18 year-old Catholic school girl in her garb, and he decided he might come back and get the rest of the costumes Spencer had bought. 'Nothing like role playing to spice things up' he thought gleefully! And then it hit him...that could only happen if she recovered...

Barbara Ann was readmitted to the hospital, but this time under the care of her long-time physician. Weaned off the ketamine/mescaline IV drip and the misdirection and lies of her 'doctors,' her recovery was accelerated. Three days later, Dr. Job pronounced her ready to continue her recovery at home, and prescribed a relaxed but stimulating and loving environment.

Her three days in the hospital were punctuated with visits from her kids, her parents, her friends, and her loving husband. At first, she didn't remember much after she was kidnapped, but her new psychologist/hypnotherapist, a close friend and golfing partner of Sean's, was helping her recover her memories.

She was still afraid, but everyone kept telling her she was heroically brave, which helped her face her fears.

On the ambulance, and for the first day and a half in the hospital, she accepted Caelan's affection but didn't return it; in fact, she barely responded to affection from anyone. During the afternoon of the second day in the hospital, she awoke from a late morning nap to find Caelan asleep in the chair beside her bed. She watched him sleeping for a while, and then reached out and took his hand.

When he awoke, she said, "Hi, Sleepyhead. Did you stay up too late last night?"

Buoyed but cautious, he responded, "I did! Your boys were full of piss and vinegar last night after they got to see you! I could barely get them to take their baths and get ready for bed. They miss you a lot!"

"It seems like I've been in a fog, but I'm starting to come out now, I think. I dreamed about you and our boys, and when I awoke you were beside me. I watched you sleep for a few minutes, and I wanted to wake you with a kiss. Will you kiss me now?"

He stood and leaned over her; she took his head in her hands and pulled his lips to hers. Their kiss was gentle but he felt her emotion. He pulled away, looked her in the eyes, and swore, "I love you, Barbara Ann McLaughlin Kelly. Always have, always will."

She continued to look into his eyes, and then affirmed, "And I love you too, Caelan Kelly, my treasured husband and father of my precious children. I'm ready to go home now so we can be together."

Caelan made a call, and she had a steady stream of visitors that day: Mom and Dad, followed a few hours later by Dos, Sean Michael, Allison Amelia, and their dad. Lauren and Kara came last, and stayed for several hours, just catching her up on things that had happened. After their shared misadventure, their bond grew stronger, and Barbara Ann shared her broken memories, her fears, and her hopes; things she was afraid to share with her husband for fear of driving him away.

They corrected her misremembrances, as best they could, and assured her that Caelan would not be driven away by telling him what she thought happened. They pledged to help her with the kids when she went home, until she felt good enough to handle it on her own. When they left they exchanged vows of love and friendship, and she felt better than she had since the kidnapping.

Her doctors visited in the early evening, and told her she could be released the next day just after lunch, if she felt she was ready.

***

The evening of the day after Barbara Ann was returned to the hospital, Caelan received a call from Carlos. He proceeded to an abandoned warehouse near the refineries on Nueces Bay.

When he was brought inside, Adrian had a black hood over his head, his jeans were dirty, torn, and bloody, as if he had been drug across pavement, and his shirt was equally torn, dirty, and bloody. Theo put a chair behind Adrian and ordered him to sit. As soon as he was sitting the hood was removed.

Caelan got right to business. "Thanks for going to get him, but I don't need him anymore. I got everything I need from Winston and Spencer. Take him to the ranch, kill him, and toss his carcass in the ravine; the buzzards, hogs, and coyotes will have all the flesh eaten and the bones scattered in a day or two. Besides, no one will miss him anyway; just another disappeared drug dealer."

"Before we do that, shouldn't we have a little fun with him, Boss?" Carlos asked. "After all, he did drug your wife so he could rape her. Besides, my knife is thirsty."

Caelan paused, looking speculative, then answered, "Sure, amigo, who am I to deny su cuchillo? Let it drink!" An evil grin crossed Carlos' face as a double-edged fighting knife with an ornate silver handle featuring the eagle, snake, and cactus symbolic of Mexico suddenly appeared in his hand.

He flicked his wrist a few times in front of Adrian's face. Adrian immediately began begging for his life, and offered information about his suppliers, about Bridgette, Winston, or anyone else they was interested in, if they would only spare him! Caelan told him, "Then talk until you tell me something I don't already know; something worth letting you live. If I already know everything you offer, you have no bargaining power."

Adrian was so terrified he didn't seem to care about the tape recorder placed on the table in front of him. He began talking and didn't stop for over an hour, giving events, dates, places, and names. Surprisingly, much of what he said they had not heard before. One revolution was that the chief hospital administrator responsible for hiring Spencer/Thornton was in cahoots with Bridgette in the slave trade, and had even helped acquire several young women from among those brought into the hospital as run aways.

When he ran out of steam, Adrian folded over in his chair and began sobbing and begging again.

Caelan pulled Adrian's hair straight up, and Carlos laid the knife across his neck. "We're going to take you to Ranger de la Cruz now, since your confession involves far more than Nueces County. You are going to tell them everything you told us, and more if you know more. Maybe they will make you a deal; maybe, if you know enough, they will bring in the FBI and talk about putting you in some special protective program.

I don't know if they will do either, but I do know if you stop talking they will likely let you go, and when they do we will be there and the hogs will get fed, after you feel this knife skin and then carve you up. Are we clear, Big Bad Adrian?"

"I guess he understands, Boss; he just peed himself!"

***

Caelan was alone when he picked Barbra Ann up from the hospital. She asked where the kids were, but was satisfied when told they were waiting for her. Then she asked why he was in the Woody, and he said he brought it to Corpus to get some work done on it.

Spohn was only a few minutes from their house, but they were engaged in an excited conversation so she didn't notice that he had snaked around by the Naval Air Station and was on the causeway. When she did, she smiled but played dumb, keeping the light conversation going. When they turned down the beach, though, she could only smile and say, "This isn't the way to our house, Caelan. Where are you taking me?"

"Given the nature of your medical condition, I... well, we...thought perhaps you would recover faster at the Shack." She giggled with glee and squeezed his arm against her boob.

As she expected, there were five cars already there, and a Welcome Home sign hanging off the deck. Her kids, her parents, her aunt and uncle, his parents and siblings, and Lauren and Kara were on the deck, waving signs and/or jumping up and down as the Woody approached. Tears formed in her eyes, but her smile extended from ear to ear.

The greeting was absolute chaos, and every adult shed some tears. The kids, though, were just giddy with excitement at having Mom home again, and at getting to stay in the pretty NEW Shack that Mommy built! After the hugs and tears, even though they had already stashed their gear, they insisted Barbara Ann guide them through the addition. With great pride she showed the parents, kids, and Caelan's twenty-something siblings, Brianna and Braden, through the new construction, and then the changes at ground level. The praise was unrestrained.

While the tour was being conducted, Caelan, Kara, and Lauren changed into bathing suits and erected a pair of large canvas shades on the beach, then brought and set up the beach chairs, loungers, and toys. An ice chest full of juices and soft drinks, and they were ready to enjoy a June afternoon in the Gulf waters and on the beach.

Kara, Lauren, and Caelan used the time alone to share what they had learned from Barbara Ann and her doctors, and then discussed the new office in Corpus Christi. They were briefly interrupted when Brendan and Brianna came down carrying surfboards, about fifteen minutes after they got things set up, but the siblings proceeded straight to the water, so the conversation resumed.

The herd, already glistening with suntan lotion, arrived maybe 20 minutes later, and at that point, all talk of business ceased.

First order of business was to get wet, body surf, and play in the waves. Dos was big enough to go out to the second break with Dad, but that made Sean Michael mad, so Dad helped him out and caught some bigger waves with him. The boys were both advanced swimmers and he watched them like a pelican watches baitfish, but that wasn't enough for Mom, who came out to supervise and advise.

She wasn't quite a helicopter, but close enough that the boys started fussing at her, so she backed off and prayed each time they dove under the wave and rode it to the next break, often tumbling on the bottom after being swept away.

After a while, her confidence grew, so she caught one herself and rode it back to Ali Mia and the grandparents in the shore break.

An hour of body surfing is hard, thirsty work, so Caelan and his sons made their way to the shade and got cold drinks. The others joined them, and conversations broke out under the canvas.

Dos wanted to build castles, so Caelan brought their shovels and buckets to the selected location about fifty yards down the beach. That attracted their grandparents, great-Aunt, and Uncle, who had to hover and help.

Barbara Ann, Lauren, and Kara had moved into the sun and were lying on loungers. When he rejoined them, Caelan laughed: "Those are pretty modest suits, compared to the last time I put lotion on you three!" he teased. They giggled, and, by way of explanation, Kara said, "A combination of parents and kids will do that to you. Why -- are you afraid we'd ask you to apply the lotion again?"

He picked up the Coppertone and asked, "Who's first?"

Kara and Lauren looked at Barbara Ann, who sighed and said, "Okay, I'll go first, but no hanky panky!" She flipped onto her belly and laid her head on a folded towel.

Within two minutes, before his hands even left her calves, she was moaning. By the time he left her hammy and skipped to her low back, she was all but panting, and when he straddled and sat on her hips to finish her back and neck, she ground her mons into the fabric, bit her towel, trembled, and made funny noises. Caelan beamed and looked for his next victim.