42. Abbey

42

ABBEY

As it turned out, Lizabeth Paige reached them at the same time as the police. She listened to what had happened and went with them to the police station, where a very unhappy Captain Hogan was there to greet them.

Though Abbey had the feeling that Hogan would have liked to charge someone with a crime, he couldn't deny the facts. Henry—whose real name turned out to be Larry Dernhurst—was The Wheelchair Killer and he had been in the act of trying to murder Abbey when Solon had caught him and killed him instead.

With such a clear-cut case and Brone as a witness, they were out of the police station fairly quickly. Well, in a couple of hours, anyway, because there's no such think as a really fast trip to the PD. It would be like a really fast trip to the ER, Abbey thought. But almost before she knew it, Solon was taking her home.

"Are you by yourself?" he asked, as he walked her to her front door.

"Yes, I am." She nodded. "Aunt Rose is at a convention."

She hesitated, not sure what to say after that. Solon had been kind and caring and comforting, but he hadn't kissed her or hugged her, other than to comfort her when she'd first come out from under the bed. In fact, all night he'd been treating her more like a little sister than a girlfriend.

Abbey didn't like that, but she didn't know how to change it either. She kept remembering that he'd said he had "Renounced his Claim" on her. She still didn't know what that meant, but she was kind of afraid to ask. What if it meant he had to leave and never see her again? Now that the big Monstrum was back in her life, she couldn't bear the thought of losing him again.

"Please don't leave me here alone," she said, taking his hand as they stood on the front porch together. "Can't you come in and stay—at least for tonight?"

"I can stay with you, but I cannot sleep in your bed," Solon told her.

"Oh…is that because you, uh, ‘Renounced your Claim' on me?" Abbey asked in a small voice.

"I'm afraid so," he rumbled. "But if it would comfort you, I can sleep on the floor by the side of your bed to make you feel safe."

"All right." Abbey nodded unhappily. She didn't like the idea that he couldn't be in bed with her, but she'd rather have the big Monstrum with her than let him leave.

They went into the house, which was eerily quiet. Abbey found herself jumping at every little noise.

"Solon," she said, wrapping her arms around herself with a shiver. "Would you mind checking to be sure all the doors and windows are locked? I know he's dead but I still feel so…so vulnerable."

"Of course I'll check," he rumbled.

Abbey wished that he would offer her a hug too—to comfort her. But he simply went through the house checking the doors and windows as she had requested.

"Everything is secure," he said when he finished. "It's late—do you want to rest now?"

"I think I want a shower first," Abbey said. "I'm probably still dirty from hiding under the bed."

"Of course. Take your time," he rumbled.

Abbey wished he would put his arms around her or call her "lelka" again as he had when she had first crawled out from under the bed. But the big Monstrum was still keeping his distance and there seemed to be a wall between them she couldn't breach. So she just nodded and went to take a hot shower.

She put Spex to bed in his nest and the little Eye-pet gave a deep sigh and started making tiny, squeaky snoring sounds almost at once. Abbey didn't blame him—it had been a stressful night—no wonder the little guy was all worn out.

After being sure he was safely tucked in, she went to the bathroom and took a long, hot shower and washed her hair. She scrubbed herself all over too—she wanted to get every bit of the awful night off of her skin.

But while she could scrub her body, she couldn't so easily wash everything out of her mind. The memory of being trapped under the bed, feeling sure she was about to die was still with her as she dried her hair and then put on a long cotton t-shirt which was one of her favorite sleep outfits.

When she came out of the bathroom, Solon was waiting for her.

"Would you rather I sleep by the side of your bed or in the living area to guard the door?" he asked.

I'd rather have you sleeping beside me in bed! Abbey thought…but didn't dare say out loud. It seemed clear that while Solon still cared about her safety, the big Monstrum didn't have the same feelings he'd had for her before. Otherwise why would he be so distant?

"By my bed is fine," she said stiffly. "Er…thank you for staying with me tonight."

"Of course," he rumbled. "I want you to feel safe."

"Thank you," Abbey said again, and then there was nothing to do but turn and go into her bedroom with the big Monstrum and try to get some sleep.