by Skyla Madi
“Call Patrick. I’m going to get there as soon as I can. I promise.”
When I turned, Stephen was there behind me. He caught my shoulders to steady me.
“Dad was in an accident with Sam. I need to get home, Stephen.”
“Okay.” He nodded. “Get your stuff and meet me at my truck. I’ll make the arrangements.”
“Stephen.” I gripped his arm. “Will you come with me?”
“I can’t,” he said softly. “I have a job to do, Alia.”
“Can we still be friends? I don’t want what happened between us to ruin a chance of friendship.”
He leaned down and brushed his lips against mine. “We can never be just friends, Alia.”
Chapter Forty-Seven
The flight was two hours long. By the time I reached home and then the hospital, I was a mess. Marlin was the first person I saw. He led me straight to the waiting room. Patrick was pacing while Tyler held a sleeping Emma.
“How are they?”
“Michael is in surgery, and Sam is fine. Her car seat protected her from the worst.”
“Where is she?”
“They want to keep her overnight to make sure she’s okay. The nurse will come get us when she’s comfortable.”
My eyes dropped to his hands fisted at his side. He wanted to say something, but he kept silent. After a few minutes, he gave me a stiff smile before turning away. I sighed. Patrick was never one to stop himself from speaking his mind. Time passed slowly as we waited for news on Michael. The nurse had come to let us know that Sam was comfortable and fast asleep. I stayed with her for a few minutes before heading back to the waiting room. Through the years, Michael and I had mended things.
Although some things between us were still a little awkward, Michael was my father in every sense of the word, even though he never treated me like his other daughters. Marlin was and would always stay my uncle. We agreed to never cross that line. It was the best for all of us.
At half past eleven, the doctor came out to see us. It felt like my world was going to crumble around me as I waited. I already had lost too many things in my life. Losing Michael…I didn’t even want to think about it.
“The surgery went well,” the doctor said. “We were able to stop the internal bleeding, which wasn’t as bad as we first thought. His arm is broken in two places, which will take a few months to heal completely. All in all, he is okay.”
“Can I see him?”
“He’s still heavily sedated. I suggest you all go home and get some rest. You can see him in the morning.” He turned to Patrick. “Sam will also be discharged tomorrow morning.”
He left all of us in silence. I turned toward Patrick. He ran a hand through his hair and then took my arm. I stayed silent as he led me from the room. We walked until we reached a side exit.
“Are you going to tell me what’s bothering you?”
“I wanted to talk to you before you left, but I couldn’t. Michael refused to give me a contact number for you,” he said. “There’s some things I need to tell you I know Michael won’t.”
“Hit me with it,” I muttered as I leaned against the wall.
“I know that you and he mended things, and I don’t want to ruin it, but what he did was wrong.”
“Spit it out, Patrick.”
He sucked in a breath and slowly blew it out. “Michael forced Stephen to stay away from you after you got rescued. He stopped by the hospital every day, but they wouldn’t allow him in. Later, I learned that Michael had forbidden him from seeing you. He blamed Stephen for what happened to you. Stephen was a fucking mess, Alia, and the fact that your parents were blaming him just made it worse.” Patrick shook his head and then started pacing. “He was forced off the case. He wasn’t allowed to help or follow up on leads. Even after someone kept asking for him. Michael refused.”
“I don’t—”
“If Michael wasn’t so fucking pissed and hard-headed, we would’ve found you earlier. A man said he knew where you were, but he only wanted to speak to Stephen. He refused to talk to anyone else. We had no leads until that man showed up.” He sucked in a breath. “I went to see Stephen, and he was a fucking mess. Drunk out of his mind.” Patrick stepped towards me.
He reached up and hesitantly cupped my cheeks. “I saw how you suffered, and I’m not going to stand back while it happens again. Stephen fucking loves you, Alia. He would go to the end of the world for you. I know you love him too. I saw it in your eyes whenever you looked at him. All these years, he’s been asking about you, keeping track of you. He killed for you, and he’d do it again. Don’t walk away from him. He’s an asshole and sometimes he fucks up. If you love him, don’t let him go.”
“Why?” I whispered.
“You deserve some happiness. You hide it, but I still see the sadness in your eyes. He’s the one for you. Don’t give him up to please Michael.”
Patrick stepped back and pulled his phone from his pants. He pressed something and then held it out to me.
I hesitated. “I’ll call him once they’ve rescued the girls. I don’t want him to worry about other things.”
“Promise me that in two days you will call him.”
“I promise.”
***
Sam was discharged the next day and Michael a week after that. I had promised Patrick to call Stephen, which I did. He never answered his phone. It hurt knowing that he was probably ignoring me. He kissed me, but that didn’t mean he wanted to start things over again.
“Earth to Alia.”
I raised my head to smile at Tyler, who stood across from me. We were holding a barbecue for Marlin’s birthday. It was the perfect opportunity since everyone was here. This was the first time in two years that I’d stayed home for longer than two days.
“What are you thinking about?” she asked.
“Stephen,” I said honestly. “He didn’t answer my calls.”
“Maybe he’s busy. You said yourself that he’s leading the rescue.”
“Last time I was there, they were talking about explosives. What if there was an explosion and he got hurt?” I questioned as a hundred possibilities ran through my mind. My hands became clammy as an image of him bleeding and dying flashed through my mind. I pushed myself up and raced down the hall toward my room.
My phone lay on the bedside table. Without hesitation, I dialed his number again. It went straight to voicemail. My hands shook.
“Alia!” I raced out of the room when Emma screamed at me.
“What?”
I froze in the living room. Emma stood there with Patrick. Michael sat on the couch. I cautiously stepped into the living room. The look on her face made me frown. All of them looked deadly pale. Emma had tears dripping down her cheeks.
“A rescue mission has gone wrong when the mine collapsed after a few explosions. The number of police officers missing are still unknown. It has been announced that ten men were found dead and five critically injured.”
My legs gave way beneath me. I was numb. Stephen was dead or he could be one of those critically injured. Or he was missing. There was a possibility for each. I should’ve called him that night when Patrick told me to.
“I need to go there,” I said. “They need help. I need to make sure he’s okay.”
“No!” I turned my head to look at Michael. “You’ll only be in the way. They know what they’re doing. I’m sure they got the girls out before the mine collapsed. Someone will be there with them.”
“I’m not going because of them,” I said softly. “I’m going because Stephen is there.”
Shock crossed his face. I saw him fist his hand on his thigh. So he wasn’t aware that Stephen was leading the rescue.
“You’ve kept us apart for years for whatever reasons you think was best. I’m not going to allow you to ruin my happiness anymore. You knew how much I love him, yet you forced him to leave.”
“I did what was best for you!” he yelled. “If he had stayed, then you would never have
gotten better. You would’ve been dependent on him.”
“And if you weren’t so fucking stubborn, I would’ve been found earlier!” I allowed a humorous laugh to fall from my lips. “You allowed your pride to rule. If you had given that up and allowed Stephen to help find me, I would’ve been found earlier. That monster fucking raped me over and over again! I had months where he kept me locked in a room. I could’ve been found before that, but your stubbornness wouldn’t allow it.” I took a step closer until I stood right in front of him. He raised me, and I thought we’d become father and daughter, but I was wrong. “I hate you for making me live through hell. You had a chance to get me out of there earlier.” I shook my head and allowed the tears to drop.
“You’re a coward, Michael. I don’t what my mother saw in you when she married you. You’re not the same man you were when she married you.”
“Alia—” I ignored Patrick and walked back toward my bedroom.
Grabbing a backpack, I stuffed clothes inside. I grabbed my phone and charger and then headed toward the front door. Patrick stood there.
“I’ll drive you.” I nodded and then pushed past him.
The front door was ripped open. I tried to keep the tears from falling and managed. A car door slamming shut made my head snap up. I stumbled.
My heartbeat increased as I stared at the man. He looked up and then paused.
“S-Stephen?”
Chapter Forty-Eight
I dropped the bag and ran. He stumbled backwards slightly, but his arms wrapped around me. I wrapped my legs around his hips and my arms around his neck. He was alive. The possibility of him being hurt made me let go and push out of his arms. I pressed my hands against his chest and felt for bandages beneath the shirt.
“I’m fine,” he said softly, placing his hands over mine.
I looked up at him through blurry eyes. “I thought you…the explosions—”
“Drive with me?”
I nodded. Stephen gripped my hand and led me to the truck. He opened the door and helped me inside. I glanced at the house to see Patrick leaning in the doorway. He smirked and then gave me a wave before closing the door. Stephen drove us to the hill that overlooked the city. He grabbed a blanket and then led me to the spot where we had our last picnic. I stood aside as he threw open the blanket. Stephen took a seat before looking up at me. He patted the spot next to him.
“The accident happened a few days ago. We kept it silent until we could make sure all the girls were fine. If it had come out when the girls were rescued, then it would’ve made things worse.”
“I saw it on the news and I thought you—” I swallowed. “I thought I lost you.” Stephen gave me a small smile and then reached for me. He pulled me onto his lap. Strong arms wrapped around my waist to keep me pressed against his chest. His lips brushed my forehead.
“I’m sorry, baby. I thought I’d make it back before they showed anything on the news.” He moved the hair from my face. “I was carrying someone outside when it happened. I wasn’t hurt, but I stayed to help. It was a fucking mess. We managed to get all the girls out before it collapsed.”
“Is everyone okay?”
“Traumatized but fine. They kept them on drugs.”
I dropped my head onto his shoulder. My fingers traced over his chest and arms. He was really here, and he was fine. Not a scratch on him.
“Patrick told me,” I whispered. “He told me what Michael did.”
I sat up to look directly at him. His hand on my hips gently stroked my skin. It was comforting, and it gave me the courage I needed.
“I’ve always cared what he thought of me. I thought that if I did what he wanted that he’d love me. I’m done with that, Stephen. I want to be happy. You make me happy. I know that you’ve been through shit because of me and—”
His lips covered mine. My hands slid into his hair as my lips parted. Stephen pulled back and cupped my cheek. His green eyes trailed over my face.
“I fucking love you so much, Alia. Walking away from you was the worst thing I did. I shouldn’t have listened to him, but what he said made sense. You needed time to heal.”
“You kept in touch with Patrick.”
“Yes.” Stephen smiled. “He wasn’t supposed to tell you that.”
“Why?”
“It makes me seem like some kind of stalker.” His smile faded. “Will you marry me, Alia Dune?”
“That’s not a very romantic proposal.”
“I don’t have a romantic bone in my body, baby,” he muttered.
“You made my first time romantic.” I smiled at him, but it faded after a few seconds. “There are still some things I need to work out. I have scars, Stephen. I’m afraid that you won’t want me when you see them.”
“I’ll still want you when we’re old and grey and can barely walk. It’s not about what’s outside but in here.” He pressed his hand against my chest right over my beating heart. “Your beauty is just a bonus.”
I blinked back tears and gave him a small smile. “It will take some time before I’ll be okay enough to have sex again.”
“If you marry me, then we’ll have all the time we need to work through whatever is thrown our way.”
“Is that your way of trying to convince me?”
“That depends. Is it working?”
“Yes.” I hugged him. “I will marry you.”
***
Stephen and I got married three weeks later in court with Patrick and Nathan as our witnesses. Afterward, we went out for dinner to celebrate. We spent our wedding night playing some board games. We decided to spend our honeymoon at the beach house. It held some pretty good memories. It was there that we got to know each other all over again. Stephen told me what he did after leaving.
I filled him in on all the shit that had happened after I was discharged. It was hell for both of us. Stephen signed the house over to Nathan after we decided to buy a new one. The town held too many memories. After months of searching, we found a house about an hour’s walk from the beach.
The house was something fit for a family. It had had four bedrooms and two bathrooms. The backyard was huge with a pool that had safety netting. All we needed to do was childproof it and buy our own furniture. Stephen made sure to constantly touch me, just small brushes whenever he walked past me. I didn’t flinch away from his touch like I would others.
As time passed, I realized that the thought of having sex didn’t scare me as much as it used to. There were still those memories of being forced, but it was replaced by those of Stephen and me together. I planned everything. Stephen had made my first time special, so it was my turn to make our wedding night special. Even if it was a little late. Stephen had to work, so it was the perfect time to set everything up. I decorated the room in battery-operated candles and used rose petals and sticky notes to lead in toward the bedroom. The look on his face was worth it.
Stephen had seen me naked numerous times before, but it still made me nervous. It was our first time together after so many years. It was kind of funny because he seemed just as nervous as I was. It was only weeks later that I heard about Kate. I’d always wondered what had happened to her, but I didn’t ask.
Not until I got a letter from Kate’s mother. She found a few things of mine that I needed to collect. Stephen clued me in that Kate was arrested for her part in my kidnapping. She was also found guilty of child abuse.
Who would’ve thought that my own best friend would be found mentally unstable?
I’d lost touch with everyone after the kidnapping. Neither Delilah nor Dane tried to contact me. I made a few new friends after we moved, including an old one. Emily worked at the local supermarket. She had married and had a daughter. We became good friends. Life couldn’t have been better. I survived hell. And now I had the man of my dreams.
We had everything we needed, so it was time to start building our family.
Epilogue
“Just breathe.”
“If you tell me to do t
hat one more time, I’ll kill you,” I breathed.
I groaned as I gripped the steel bar in front of the window tightly. Another contraction started. Emily stood next to me rubbing my back. Once the contraction passed, I sucked in a deep breath.
“I’m never getting pregnant again.”
She laughed. “You say that now. It’s like someone saying they’ll never drink alcohol again. Until temptation strikes.”
“I hate you.”
“I love you too, babe.” Emily wrapped an arm around my waist and slowly walked with me.
Walking was supposed to help. I should probably tell you exactly what had happened that landed me in this situation. Stephen and I talked, and he stated that he wasn’t ready to start a family yet. He wanted us to spend some more time together, so I agreed. A year and a half into our marriage, an accident happened. We were so focused on each other that we forgot the condom.
I freaked out when I realized I was pregnant. I cried when I told him. I was a fucking mess, and all he did was smile. He smiled and then laughed at me, but he assured me that he was happy. It wasn’t until we found out weeks later that I was pregnant with twins that he started to freak.
“How are things going in here?” I turned to face the woman who entered. She was short with greying hair and pale skin.
“The contractions are getting closer. About ten minutes apart,” Emily said softly.
“You’ll have your babies in your arms in no time, Mrs. Daniels.”
“Is my husband here yet?”
“No, but I’m sure he’ll get here soon.”
Time passed quickly. The contractions were closer together, and then came the time when I felt like pushing. Emily was by my side.
“You can push when I tell you to,” the doctor said softly from between my legs.
I squeezed my eyes shut as I tried to keep my breathing even. A second later, the door burst open and Stephen appeared by my side.
