Free WINDOW OF TIME by DJ Erfert

heels of her hands over her eyes, trying to snuff out the image of her mother’s body. “All I could see was—was a man’s arm holding a bloody knife as he, as he—”
    Johnny pulled her into his arms again. “I’m sorry,” he said, stroking the damp hair out of her eyes. “Don’t talk about it anymore. It was too long ago for you to remember. Besides, I’m sure it wasn’t your dad. How could you have lived with a man for all those years and not know his temperament?”
    Lucy pressed her face into Johnny’s warm neck and sighed. “I’m so tired. How much longer do I need to stay awake?”
    He looked up at the clock. “How does your head feel?”
    “I feel …”
    “Lucy, don’t say it!”
    “… like I got beat on the back of my head with a heavy metal object.” She tilted her face up. “Can I have some aspirin?”
    “No.” Johnny released her. “But I’ll give you some Tylenol for the pain.” He got up and repositioned her pillows before leaving for the bedroom.
    The down-filled pillows taunted her, beckoning for her to lie down. Their attempt to seduce her into a deep sleep was petrifying. But after Johnny’s reaction a couple of hours before, she dared not give in to the temptation without his blessing. Lucy pushed her hand into the middle and felt them give under the gentle pressure. They were squishy soft. She could use one for under her head and the other to ball up and hug to her chest. Those, along with the micro-fiber blanket wrapped around her, would secure her with an incredible night’s rest—if only Johnny would tell her it was all right.
    “I’m proud of you.” Johnny came back into the living room carrying a red, soft-sided bag with a white cross emblazoned on the side. “I thought you would’ve crashed while I was gone.” He set the bag on the floor next to the couch. After lifting the coffee table aside, he knelt down in front of Lucy and pulled open her blanket. “Put your feet down.” He patted her ankles.
    Lucy set her feet on the carpet and sat up straight. “What are you going to do?” She watched him unzip the medical bag.
    “I’m going to give you a quick physical before letting you go to sleep.”
    “It’s been long enough?”
    Johnny slipped a blood pressure cuff around her arm and secured it down before putting the stethoscope in his ears. “Yeah.”
    Feeling her fingers grow fat with the pressure of the nylon band was weird, bordering on painful. Lucy hated physicals, even though some yearly contact with doctors was a necessary part of life. But with Johnny being so close, holding her arm, she would put up with the discomfort as long as she could gaze into his face. His ministrations didn’t last nearly long enough before he ripped apart the cuff.
    “Your pressure is”—Johnny grinned up at her—“fine.” He used the stethoscope and pressed the chest piece firmly against her ribs.
    “Are you listening to my heart?”
    “Shush.” A minute later he said, “You have a strong heart.”
    “I know. I need one.”
    Johnny sat back on his heels and stared at her for a moment. “Yeah, I guess you do.” He dropped the scope into the bag and found a penlight. “Let me look in your eyes one more time.”
    As he leaned in, Lucy tried to keep the whimper of disappointment out of her question. “Only one more?” Johnny sat back down on his heels and stared at her again. When he spoke, his voice held a gentle tenderness that surprised her.
    “I hope not.” Johnny ran his hand around her neck and lifted her chin with his thumb. “Hold still,” he said, shining the light into one eye and then the other.
    The exam was brief. He sat back and turned off his penlight, turning his attention to retrieving a packet of Tylenol from a side pocket of the medical bag.
    Handing her the pills, he said, “Let me get you some water.”
    The small packet in her hand held two tablets closed off to the world for their own protection. Isolated, like Lucy. She’d been