Promises
          Chapter 14  
 

"What did you find out?" Danny questioned curiously.
"Ben is working on getting Carmen released," Frank explained.
"What?" Danny exclaimed. "How can that be possible? That woman should be in jail for the rest of her life given everything she has done."
"Mr. Warren is claiming Carmen never got the chance to be examined by a proper psychiatrist. He's still claiming she had mental problems that led to her actions. So he wants her to have another evaluation and go back before the judge. Of course, I'm sure you know what this evaluation is going to say."
"How can he do this?" he asked. "He tried to get the psychiatrist at the trial to say she had mental problems, but his testimony said her mind was as sharp as a tack."
"Strangely enough that psychiatrist's license has been revoked recently for undisclosed reasons," Frank explained. "There's no telling what kind of dirt Warren dug up on him. Now he's claming, given this 'new' development, Carmen should be re-examined by a more qualified psychiatrist."
"Wonder why she didn't mention this to me when I visited her yesterday?" Danny asked sarcastically.
"With Carmen there's no telling why," Frank sighed.
"I don't believe this," Danny snapped.
"I know," Frank sighed. "It's things like this that make me ashamed to be a member of the legal system."
"So if he goes back before the judge, what happens then?" Danny asked.
"The judge will look at the evaluation and either reject it and send her back to prison or he could accept it and send her to a mental hospital. And given the year of incarceration she's already served, she'll probably only be at the mental hospital for six months at the most before she's released."
"And there's nothing I can do to stop this?" Danny asked.
"I'm afraid not," Frank sighed. "Listen, I need to finish some things here before I go home. I'll keep you posted."
"Thanks Frank," he said before hanging up his phone.
Danny knew how Michelle was going to react to news of Carmen's potential release. Even though it wasn't set in stone, he knew it was only a matter of time before Ben got her out. He decided given everything going on now, it would be best if Michelle didn't know about this just yet. It would only upset her and she didn't need that right now. He would wait until he knew for sure that she was being released before he broke the news to Michelle. He cringed thinking about how she would react. She wasn't going to like this.

Danny got back to work making phone calls to various people, making sure the word was out that he was seeking revenge for whoever was after his wife. Word traveled fast when a member of the Santos family issued a threat. He didn't like having to go through these means again, but he didn't have a choice. He had to find out who was behind this before something else happened. Next, he called Carlos to let him know he was going to the office in the morning. He had a few loose ends to tie up before he took time off to stay with Michelle. He wanted Carlos there at 7:00 and to stay close to Michelle.
He finished up more paperwork before looking down at his watch to see it was already after 10:00. He was so tired, he could barely keep his eyes open. Closing his laptop, he turned the lights out and went back upstairs. Michelle was still sleeping in the same position, on her stomach with her arm outstretched on his side of the bed. He gently picked up her arm and slid into the bed beside her, resting her arm on his chest before quickly falling asleep.
The next morning Danny woke up with Michelle in his arms. Sometime during the night she had crawled into his arms without his even knowing it. He kissed her lightly on the cheek and gently eased himself out of the bed. He took a quick shower and dressed, thankful that Michelle was still sleeping. He left a note on the bed beside her and headed downstairs. Carlos arrived promptly at 7:00 and Danny explained the alarm system to him since Michelle didn't know the new codes yet. He set the alarm himself before heading out to the car…just to make sure.
Michelle woke a couple of hours later reaching for Danny, but finding only a note in his handwriting.

"Good morning beautiful! I'm sorry I'm not here when you woke up. I needed to go into the office for a little while to tie up some loose ends. I called Carlos to come over and he is downstairs. Don't be mad. Remember we had this discussion and I promise you this will not last forever. I'll call later this morning to check on you. Take it easy and rest today. You exerted a lot of energy yesterday and last night (smile)! Stay off your feet! Carlos can bring you whatever you need. I promise I won't be at the office long and when I get home maybe we can pick up where we left off last night.
I love you,
D

She crumbled up the note and threw it at the trash can. She didn't know how much more of this she was going to be able to take. A strange man in her house…being watched twenty-four hours a day. She felt like she was the one who had done something wrong. Get a grip, Michelle, she told herself. Danny promised this wouldn't be forever. One day they were going to be able to live a normal life. She didn't know how much longer she was going to be able to tell herself that and still believe it.
After a long soak in the tub, she laid back down in the bed. Despite all the sleep she got last night, she still felt tired. Dr. Sedwick said she needed to start eating so she could build her strength back up. Yesterday she hadn't eaten much. She never did finish the toast Danny had made her for breakfast. After their fight, they had gotten a little distracted. A smile crept on her face as she remembered the day they had spent in bed. She did eat the pasta salad Danny made for her and brought back to her in bed. She was lucky he was such a good cook, because they would have starved if they had to rely on her cooking.
The ringing phone startled her from her thoughts. She checked the caller ID before answering. Seeing it was a call from the hospital, she answered quickly. "Hello?"
"Michelle," Rick said breathlessly. "It's me. Abby's in labor."
She screamed happily, "Rick! That's great! I'll be right there."
She hung up the phone before Rick could say anything else and bounced off the bed to change clothes. After changing and pulling her wet hair up in a clip, she remembered Carlos downstairs. She eased down the steps and found him in the living room.
He jumped up when he heard someone behind him. "Hi," she smiled.
"You must be Mrs. Santos," he said.
"Yes," she said, extending her hand. "But please call me Michelle."
"It's nice to meet you," he shook her hand.
"You too," she said. "Listen, that call was from my brother and my sister-in-law is at the hospital having a baby. I really need to get to the hospital, so how does this work?"
"I'll take you there," he explained, heading for the door. "Do you need to let Mr. Santos know where you are going?"
"I'll call him when I get to the hospital," she replied. "You'll have to forgive me if I seem a little uneasy about all of this. I've never had a bodyguard before."
"Don't think of me as your bodyguard. Think of me as your personal chauffeur who just happens to follow you everywhere," he smiled. "I promise to try not to get in your way, all the while not letting you out of my sight."
"Thank you," Michelle walked through the door into the garage as Carlos set the alarm. "Are we going in your car?"
"Yes," he said, leading her out to his car. He opened the passenger door for her before walking around to his side.
Fifteen minutes later they were at the hospital. Carlos was one step behind her the whole time. She found Rick who was frantic and grabbed him in a hug.
"Rick," she laughed. "Calm down. You're a doctor for crying outloud."
"Who is he?" Rick questioned, looking at Carlos.
"He's here with me," she explained. "Don't worry about it. I'll tell you about it later. Now can we go in to see your wife." She turned to Carlos, "Is it okay if you wait outside the door? I don't want to upset my sister-in-law right now."
"I'll be right here," Carlos confirmed.
Michelle followed Rick inside as Carlos took his position by the door. Dr. Sedwick assured them Abby was progressing right on track. With Rick talking to Abby, Dr. Sedwick pulled Michelle aside and chided her for being there instead of in bed resting. But Michelle reassured her that she was feeling better and she would go to the waiting room and sit down soon. This was going to be her first niece or nephew and she wasn't going to miss this for the world.

Danny called the house a little while later to check on Michelle. His stomach tightened when no one answered. Next he tried her cell phone with the same result. Luckily, Carlos had given him his cell phone number, so he tried him next. Thankfully Carlos answered.
"Carlos, this is Danny," he said in one breath. "I tried the house and Michelle's cell phone, but I didn't get an answer. Where is she?"
"I brought her to the hospital to…" Carlos began to explain.
Danny panicked and hung up the phone before Carlos could finish. He bolted out the door and headed to his car.