The Mute Fighter | 3

029

029 - Help

Saturday night was family night, Ward, my mother and I were playing board games and lightly drinking. We had made dinner for all of us and just had a good time.

We never did this before, but each one of us loved it and we made sure this would be a thing. No matter where it was or where we went.

It was almost midnight when my phone started buzzing on the kitchen counter. I excused myself and went over to answer, it was Mitch.

He was calling?

Panic settled in, Mitch never spoke, so if he called-it was serious. I answered immediately and pressed my phone to my ear. "Mitch?" I called out after hesitation.

All I heard was heavy breathing and wind. "Mitch? Are you okay?" I repeated. Of course, he didn't answer. He was unable to.

"Mitch, do you need help?" I asked again, I felt my mother and brother look at me, they had heard no doubt. "Mitch-" The phone call ended.

I glanced at the screen and immediately opened our messages. I texted him what was going on, if he was okay.

But there was no answer.

"Is everything okay?" Ward asked. "I-I don't know" I said and waited for an answer. Finally the message was delivered, he saw it, but there was no response.

I began to spam him a little, something was wrong. Why else would he call me?

Ten minutes passed as I paced back and forth and rubbed my forehead. "Fuck it, I'm gonna go for a drive-" I started saying, but there was a thud on the porch.

Ward and I shared a look and I ran to the door, I pulled it open and Mitch fell forward, I caught him before he could hit the floor. "Mitch? What-are you okay?" I asked him.

Ward came over and helped pulling him inside, Erin closed the door and Ward sat Mitch down. "Mitch? Can you hear me?" I asked and cupped his face, he didn't look good.

His lip was split. He had been in a fight. "What did you do?" I asked him, I feared the answer. 'My father and uncle-it's a mess' he signed to me.

"Aid kit" I told Ward, he nodded and ran off. "Is he okay? How did he get here?" My mother asked and looked out of the windows. "He walked, there's no car" She added.

"Do you need a place to stay?" I ask him. 'One they can't find you at?' I signed. He nodded and gave me a sorrowful look. "Can he stay the night?" I ask my mom.

"Yeah, of course. He took care of you, so we'll take care of him" Erin said with a smile. I nodded and exhaled in relief, Mitch looked up at my mom and gave her a small smile. A thankful one.

"Here" Ward said as he ran back down the stairs. 'Any other injuries than your lip?' I sign to him. He nods and looks at my mom and Ward nervously.

I got the hint and stood back up. "Can you help him up to my room? He needs to rest" I say, Ward nods and helps Mitch up on his feet again.

Both Ward and I help him up the stairs and we help him sit down on the edge of my bed. "Thank you, I got it from here" I told my brother who nodded and exited the room.

I put the aid kit down on the bed and Mitch started to pull his long sleeved shirt off, I helped him pull it over his head and I stopped a gasp from releasing my mouth when I saw his bruised ribs, there was a bleeding cut as well.

"Okay" I said and sighed. I pulled him back up and helped him into my bathroom, I made him lean against the sink as I washed it.

'I need your help' He signed, he had a broken look in his eyes. It made me wonder what the hell had happened. "Okay, what do you need?" I ask him as I clean his cut.

"I-I..." He half whispered out, my eyes widened as he tried to form words. He grunted in pain as his breathing sped up and his ribs hurt.

"You don't have to speak, write it down or sign it" I blurted out. "I n-need you- t-to listen" He stuttered, his voice was hoarse and not only was he in pain physically but it seemed it hurt him to speak as well.

"Okay, I'm listening. I'm here" I told him, he took my hands in his and squeezed them, I gave him a small smile. But worry ate me up.

"Nicolina..." He whispered, he clenched his eyes shut and my eyes widened as he lost his balance. I cupped his face and he opened his eyes. "I'm here, Mitch. Talk to me, I'm here" I half whisper.

He said my name. And fuck-it was the hottest thing I've ever heard. The way he said it, his voice-wow.

He took a deep breath and exhaled deeply. "I swore to never speak again-that day, the car crash" He started out, he took it slow and spoke in between inhales and exhales.

"He confessed. I know what he did" Mitch said, tears brimmed in his eyes as he voiced the words. "He has killed people, conned people and stolen their money even though we were successful and wealthy without that. He did it for the adrenaline-the thrill" Mitch said, his face scrunched in pain, from the memory.

"He wants to shut me out of the company, my uncle wants in-my mother she-she's not safe" Mitch said, tears were rolling down his face, but he wasn't voicing his cries.

He was strong as hell, he was determined. Now that he had broken the promise of never speaking again, he was going through with it.

"My uncle made me swear to never speak again. He said-if I did, my mom would lose everything. The crash shocked me to my core, I didn't want to speak of it, think of it. So I kept my mouth shut. All those years-and now he's back" Mitch finished.

His breathing was livid and uneven. I put my hand on his chest, I took everything in and took a deep breath. "What do you need me to do?" I ask him.

"Help me, I want out. Please, help. Help" He whispered and pulled me closer. "It's okay, it's okay" I whispered to him as he buried his face in my neck and let it out.

I was shocked. He came clean about everything, I never expected something like this to be the reason he became mute for over four years. Never.

"I can't believe you talked to me" I whispered, tears rolled down my own cheeks as I became overwhelmed with the fact that he was speaking to me.

"We'll figure it out, okay? Get some rest, we'll work out a plan tomorrow" I assured him. He nodded and he let me pull away for a few minutes.

I put a bandage over his cut on the ribs and cleaned his lip as well. He grabbed my hand tightly when I walked out of the bathroom. I stripped off my clothes and got in, Mitch followed suit, he was quiet.

I had no expectations for this night at all, hell, the man had just spoken for the first time in four years. "Who hurt you?" I asked him as I turned on my side to face him.

"Thomas" Mitch half whispered, I nodded and turned back around to turn off the lights. I was sleeping in a sports bra and panties. Mitch slept shirtless and only in his boxers.

It didn't take long for my room to be filled with his soft breathing. But I was wide awake, I kept trying to form a plan in my head.

I needed to help, I needed to find a solution. He came to me, he spoke to me. He needed me. I had to help him somehow, he wanted out. So, I had to find a way to get him out.

I was willing to do everything for him as he laid peacefully next to me. I couldn't understand how his uncle could hurt him, hell I didn't understand why his father wasn't acting differently when he had clearly gotten a second chance, he was losing his son all over again.