by Claire Raye
“This isn’t your fault, but we’re going to help you. Reid and I are going to fix this. I promise you that you won’t ever have to be afraid again.” I’m making promises I know I can’t keep, promises I know I won’t ever be able to accomplish, but he needs to hear something. He needs to know we are here to help him, even if I don’t know how.
All I do know, is we have to get him out of here. We have to leave Providence.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Reid
The sun is just starting to set by the time we finally leave the police station. It’s hard to know where the day has gone, the past twenty-four hours have been a crazy mix of tension and adrenaline and fear that has left all of us exhausted, both physically and mentally.
Detective O’Connor takes us out to my truck, driving us back out to the safe house, because I’m pretty sure he knows none of us are in any shape to be behind the wheel. We’re staying out here for a couple more days, the police still watching the place, because they want to make sure none of my dad’s crew retaliates.
My guess is they’ll all run for the hills now that they’ve got Ray, but what the fuck would I know. A couple of weeks ago I didn’t think my dad could murder someone with his own hands either, so who knows what the guys who work for him are capable of.
“We need to pack up our house,” Sienna suddenly says from the back seat. She’s sitting beside Caleb who looks shell shocked, his hand in hers as he stares silently out of the window, a blank look on his face.
His reaction when they brought my dad into the station wasn’t what I was expecting, but I don’t blame him for it. Given everything he’s been through these past two years, I’m amazed he’s still in one piece. Getting the chance to get back at the man who almost destroyed him, is probably a small step toward somehow healing from all of this. I hope it is anyway.
“You’re free to go back to your home, provided you take one of the officers with you,” Detective O’Connor says, glancing in the rearview mirror. “Reid, you won’t be able to go to yours for a while, I’m sorry.”
I shrug. “Nothing there I need anyway,” I say, knowing I cleared out everything I wanted to take when I left to turn my dad in.
He nods but doesn’t say anything more and we spend the rest of the drive in silence.
When we finally get back to the safe house, Detective O’Connor pulls into the garage, switching the car off and handing me the keys. “We’re going to need to speak to you again, but we’ll touch base tomorrow and figure out a time,” he says, offering me a small smile. “You did good today, Reid,” he adds, meeting my gaze. “We couldn’t have done this without you, without all of you.”
“Yeah,” I reply, not sure what else he expects me to say at this point.
“Go get some rest,” he says, tilting his head in the direction of the house. “We can talk more later.”
I nod and then turn and head toward the house as Detective O’Connor walks over to the cruiser that followed us out here. Sienna and Caleb walk in front of me and I follow them inside, closing the door behind us as we make our way into the living room, the three of us just standing here looking at each other, not saying anything.
“Come here,” Sie eventually says, reaching for both mine and Caleb’s hands.
She pulls us to her, wrapping her arms around both of us. We do the same, the three of us standing in the middle of the room wrapped in a giant hug.
“What a cluster fuck that all was,” I finally say, my cheek resting on the top of Sienna’s head.
Caleb actually chuckles. “I can’t believe that cop threw a glass of water in my face,” he says. “Such a cliché.”
Now it’s me chuckling. “Dude, I can’t believe they let you punch my dad!”
“Yeah, sorry about that,” he says, still laughing.
“Fuck that, don’t apologize. I just wish I’d had the balls to walk up and do it.”
“Well,” Sie murmurs, her face buried between us. “You did punch him back at your place, remember?”
I grin. “Yeah right before you started kicking and punching him. Fuck me, you Parker twins don’t hold back, do you?”
Now it’s Sienna laughing, her arms tightening around us as she continues to hold us in a group hug. Before long, all of us are laughing, the weight of today and everything that’s come before it, somehow lifting as we dissolve into hysterics that make absolutely no sense.
“Shit,” Sie eventually says, pulling back a little as she looks up at me and then her brother. “I don’t even know why the hell that was so funny.”
Caleb shrugs, grinning at his sister. “It’s not, but fuck it.”
For some reason, this sets us all off again, the three of us now pissing ourselves laughing as we stand in the living room of a safe house, the place surrounded by cops, my dad in jail and none of us sure what happens next. But it feels good to do it, good to release the tension that’s plagued all of us for the past few weeks.
“Oh man,” Caleb says, running a hand through his hair, the smile still on his face.
“I need a shower,” Sie says, rubbing her hands over her face. “And then maybe to sleep for a week.”
“Yeah, I know what you mean,” I reply. “You go,” I tell Sie, wanting a second to speak to her brother, make sure he’s really okay in all of this.
She nods, turning to give her brother a kiss on the cheek and another hug before walking over to our bedroom. After the door closes behind her, I turn to Caleb, who’s standing watching me.
“You okay?” I ask him, knowing there’s no way he could be, not this quickly.
He nods though as he asks, “Are you?”
I scrub a hand down my face, exhaling. “Yeah, I think so. I’m just glad it’s over. I can’t wait for the three of us to get the hell out of here,” I say, knowing there’s not a chance in hell Caleb isn’t coming with us when we go back to Hawthorn.
“Reid.”
I look over at him. “Yeah?”
He stares at me for a few moments, his eyes locked with mine. “Thank you,” Caleb eventually says, his words filled with sincerity and gratitude.
“For what?”
He steps toward me, putting a hand on my shoulder. “For saving my life,” he says quietly.
“I didn’t—”
“Yeah,” he says, nodding. “You did. I’m not sure I could’ve survived much more of this,” he continues, his gaze never leaving mine. “I was barely hanging on as it was. But what you did, you ended it and I know it cost you everything and I know I’ll never be able to repay you, but I—”
“Caleb,” I say, cutting him off. “You don’t owe me anything, seriously.”
“But you lost your family because of me,” he whispers, his voice shaking.
I shake my head. “And you lost yours because of mine.” I pause, the two of us standing in silence. “Anyway, I didn’t lose my family. My family is and always has been the two people in this house with me.” Caleb stares at me, his eyes wide and filled with so much guilt and remorse and worry. “I mean it, Caleb,” I tell him. “You and Sie mean everything to me.”
His hand grips my shoulder, pulling me toward him as he gives me a hug. “Me too,” he whispers.
“Are you gonna be okay?”
He nods, his hand slapping my back once before he pulls back. “I will be.” I think we both hear the unspoken eventually that he doesn’t say. “Go be with, Sie,” he says now, tilting his head toward our room. “I’m good, seriously.”
“Are you sure?” I ask him, knowing he’s so far from good right now. “We can all just hang out here, sleep on the couch together.”
Caleb shakes his head, a small smile on his face. “No, she needs you too. I’m good, Reid, really.”
I don’t fully believe him, but I let it go, knowing he probably wants some time alone more than anything else right now. I have no idea how he’s even going to begin to process all of this or heal from it, but I do know he won’t be doing it alone. Sie and I are here f
or him now, for as long as he needs us.
“Try and get some sleep.”
“Yeah,” he nods. “I will. I didn’t sleep at all last night.”
I take a deep breath, my eyes scanning the darkness outside the windows, knowing we’re safe here, that no one can touch us. “You’re safe now, Caleb, you know that, right?”
“Yeah,” he says.
I exhale. “I know it’s going to take time to truly believe that, but you are,” I tell him. “And we…well, we’re here for you too, okay. Always.”
He smiles now and it looks genuine as he claps a hand on my shoulder again. “Yeah I know, Reid, thank you. I’m good though, seriously. Go be with her.”
I nod once more before turning and walking into our room.
Inside, I can hear the shower running, so I strip off my clothes, leaving them in a pile on the floor as I make my way to the bathroom. Pulling open the door to the shower, I step into the steamy cubicle, my arms sliding around Sie’s waist from behind.
“Hey,” she murmurs, her head falling back onto my chest.
“Hi,” I whisper, leaning down to press a kiss to her lips. “Are you okay?”
She turns in my arms, slipping hers around my neck. “I am now,” she says, her lips brushing against mine. She kisses me, her arms tightening around me as she pulls me closer so our bodies are pressed together. I moan into her mouth, her tongue tracing my bottom lip as she deepens the kiss.
“Sie,” I murmur, my body already wanting more, needing to be close to her.
“Are you okay?” she asks, pulling back as she looks up at me, her hand brushing against my cheek.
I nod. “Yeah.”
“Do you want to talk about it, about what happened?”
I shake my head. “No, I just want you.”
She smiles, pressing up on her toes to kiss me once more. “Come to bed then,” she whispers, before slipping from my arms.
She steps out of the shower and I turn into the water, grabbing the soap and making quick work of washing the events of last night and today off me. I can feel the adrenaline of everything we went through finally starting to wear off, replaced now by both exhaustion and an urgent need to be with Sie, to feel her, have her, taste her.
Getting in the car and driving back to Rhode Island nearly three weeks ago, I never could have predicted any of the things that have happened to us. But despite all the shit we’ve been through, everything we’ve endured to get to this place, I also know I wouldn’t trade it for anything.
I wasn’t lying when I told Caleb that he and Sienna were my family. They always have been, ever since we were five years old. And today, watching my dad get arrested for all the things he did to them, I don’t have a single ounce of regret over my part in all of that.
I’m glad he’s going to jail. I hope he rots in there for the rest of his life, because that’s exactly what he deserves.
After rinsing off, I switch off the water and step out, grabbing a towel to dry off before quickly brushing my teeth.
Then I walk out and into the bedroom. Sienna is lying in bed and as soon as I walk into the room, she smiles at me, watches as I walk toward the bed, her eyes raking over my body and the very obvious arousal I have.
Without a word, I pull the covers back and slide in beside her, rolling my body onto hers as I press my mouth against hers. Sienna’s arms wrap around me, pulling me closer as I kiss her, try to show her everything I feel and want and need from her in this moment.
And it’s like she hears the words I can’t say, her tongue slipping between my lips as my body falls between her legs.
“Reid,” she moans as I slide inside her.
“I need you, Sie,” I murmur, my mouth against hers. “I need you so bad.”
“I’m here,” she whispers, her fingers digging into my back, pulling me closer. “I’m here.”
We move together slowly, our hands and mouths exploring each other, tasting as though we can’t get enough. I feel like I can’t. Can’t get close enough to her, can’t get enough of her.
She arches beneath me, her hips rising to meet mine with every slow, deep thrust that I make. Our mouths are fused together, our kisses hungry and deep as we move together, over and over again, pushing each other closer and closer to the edge.
And then neither of us can hold back any longer, and I push into her one last time, her name falling from my lips as I feel her tighten around me.
I collapse onto her, my arms framing her face, my mouth still on hers, kissing her with slow, lazy kisses as our hearts beat against each other, our chests pressed together.
“Are you sure you’re okay?” she whispers, her hand cupping my jaw.
I pull back just a little, opening my eyes as I look down at her. “I’m okay, Sie, really.”
She smiles up at me, kissing me once more as I roll off her, pulling her with me so we are now lying on our sides, face to face, still wrapped in each other’s arms. “Are you sure you’re okay?” I ask her now.
Her fingers brush against my cheek, her thumb tracing my bottom lip. “I don’t know,” she whispers. “It’s weird, but I think I’m hungry?”
I chuckle. “I’ll go get you something to eat,” I tell her. “Do you—”
“In a minute,” she says, her arm tightening around my waist. “Stay here for a bit.”
I reach out and tuck her hair behind her ear, leaning in to kiss her lips again.
“Do you want to talk about your mom?” she asks, her eyes meeting mine. “You didn’t know she’d left, right?”
I shake my head. “No, I had no idea.”
“Are you going to call her?”
I take a deep breath, letting it out in a long slow exhale. “I don’t think so,” I admit. “I kinda don’t see the point considering she couldn’t even be bothered to tell me she was leaving.”
Sie nods her head, her fingers still brushing across my cheek. “Maybe with your dad in jail you and she can…” she trails off, as though she isn’t sure how to finish her sentence.
“I don’t know, babe,” I say, my hand smoothing over her skin, fingers trailing up her spine. “It’s not like we’ve ever had a good relationship to begin with, so…”
Sie smiles, leaning in to press a soft kiss to my lips. “She doesn’t deserve you anyway,” she murmurs, lips brushing against mine. “We have each other. You, Caleb, and me. That’s all we’ve ever had and it’s all we’ll ever need.”
“I know and that’s all that matters to me.”
She smiles against my mouth. “Me too,” she says, kissing me again. “Do you think we might be able to go home soon?”
“Fuck I hope so,” I say, knowing I just want to get the hell out of this place now, as soon as possible. Say goodbye to this city, these memories, my fucked up family, and never, ever come back.
“Let’s ask the detective tomorrow,” she says. “We can clean out our house, lock Caleb in the truck with us and get the hell out of here.”
I chuckle. “Definitely.”
“Thank you, Reid,” she says, now, pushing me onto my back as she hovers above me. “I don’t think I’ll ever be able to thank you enough for everything you’ve done for us.”
I smile up at her, tucking strands of her blonde hair behind her ear. “You never have to thank me, baby,” I whisper, my eyes finding hers. “I love you.”
“I love you too,” she whispers, leaning down to kiss me again.
“You want me to get you something to eat?” I ask, even as she continues to kiss me.
I feel her smile against my mouth. “Maybe in a bit,” she murmurs, rolling her body onto mine.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Sienna
It’s been two days since Reid’s dad was arrested, but it somehow feels like more and less all at the same time. There are moments when what happened feels like a lifetime ago, but then there are moments when it feels like it’s all still happening, like we’ll never fully be able to get away from it.
The
police have been good to us, letting us stay in the safe house because they know there’s not a chance any of us can go back to our homes. It’s not even a safety issue at this point with Reid’s dad giving up a ton of names in the end once he knew he was fucked. And if they weren’t already caught, they’ve long since left the country.
They know we can’t go back there, because despite growing up in those houses, they are not and never have been our homes. It’s an opportunity for us to start over and make a home for ourselves away from Providence.
“Caleb and I will need to go back to the house to pack up some things,” I say, sort of not talking to anyone in particular. My words feel lost among the quiet somehow as neither Caleb or Reid responds, and it feels like we’re all still floating in and out of consciousness. Two days can feel like a long time, but in this case two days is nothing. Two days doesn’t correct everything that has gone wrong. The sun has set, the sky as dark as our bodies feel and tomorrow, we’ll wake up to day three. But again, three days won’t change anything. This isn’t going to happen overnight.
“How long do you think they’ll let us stay here?” I now ask, knowing I won’t get a response, but feeling the need to air my overwhelming thoughts.
I don’t know how a bank foreclosure works, but we can’t have that much more time left before they come and take our childhood home. It feels weird to know I’m homeless even if I never intended to come home, but I guess I feel more empathy for Caleb. He is homeless.
“I don’t want anything from the house,” Caleb announces robotically, awkward and sudden, and for a second I have to scan back in my memories to recall what I even said that warranted his comment.
His demeanor and behavior is completely foreign to me as I still try to wrap my head around the changes in him. It feels like he’s gotten even worse in the days since his encounter with Reid’s dad and now that he’s had the time to decompress, he’s nearly catatonic.
“You’ll need your clothes, maybe a few things that are important to you,” I tell him as I walk over and rest my hand on his shoulder. His eyes are focused on the TV screen but it feels like he’s taking nothing in. “Caleb? Are you okay?” I ask, and the question sounds stupid coming out of my mouth. Of course he isn’t okay, but what else am I supposed to ask?
