“I have something to show you,” she says proudly, pulling Kennedy over to the small coffee table situated between the two large sofas.
“She’s so proud of herself,” Becca whispers into my ear, her hand resting on my shoulder. I smile back her, walking closer to the table to inspect Hope’s handy work. I see Kennedy’s eyes fill with impending tears as she picks up the brightly decorated cake from the table.
“Wow, Hope, this is stunning.” Kennedy holds up her hand, high fiving Hope. “This is super awesome. You really have a talent.”
“She did it all herself,” chimes Becca. “I was there to help with the washing up.” She laughs.
“Seriously, Hope, you have some talent with this baking,” Kennedy professes.
“Just wait until you taste it!” she says, rushing out of the room, before coming back with plates in her hand. Simon comes in behind with napkins, forks, and a knife.
Simon and Becca both look to be in their mid-thirties and by the expressions on their faces, they absolutely adore Hope. He smiles, raising his eyebrows. “Hey, nice to meet you.” He cocks his head to the side. “Cole, right?”
“That’s me. Nice to meet you too. Lovely home you have here.”
He purses his lips, shrugging a little. “It’s a good neighborhood, but we are going to look for something a little larger now that we have an addition to our family. Please come take a seat,” he encourages, guiding me over to the couch. I sit beside Becca. She turns and smiles at me wholeheartedly.
Hope slices the cake, with supervision from Kennedy, before handing me a plate with the sponge cake on. I try a little, and damn, it really is good. I hum in appreciation. A few mouthfuls later and I’ve managed to demolish the whole slice.
Hope looks over at me, her eyes narrowed and her lips drawn together. “You should really slow down when you’re eating,” she scolds. “You will get digestion,” she jumbles out.
The entire room fills with laughter, not only at Hope’s mistake with her words, but at her body language as she scolds me for wolfing down the cake.
“What?” she asks.
“It’s indigestion, sweetie,” Kennedy explains. “But mostly you’re just the funniest little thing we’ve ever seen.”
“Oh,” she ponders, pausing for a moment with her finger on her lip. We all watch, waiting for her to say something. “I’d love to show you my bedroom. Becca, can I please show Kennedy my room? Please,” she pleads. “She didn’t see it the last time she came.”
“Of course.” Becca nods. “Why don’t you also show Kennedy those lovely new clothes we bought you just the other day?”
“Oh yeah,” she gasps excitedly. “Come on, quickly.” Hope takes Kennedy’s hand, dragging her out of the room and upstairs.
“It was so nice of you to bring Kennedy today,” exclaims Becca. “I know her and Hope have this undeniable connection, you know, because of what they have been through.”
I nod.
“How has Kennedy been?” she asks, in a hushed voice.
“Ups and downs,” I answer honestly. “But we’re getting settled in our new apartment. I know Kennedy would love for Hope to come and stay with us for a night, if that’s something you’d consider?” I watch her reaction. Her face is screwed up somewhat. It is obvious she isn’t overly happy about my request.
“I’m not sure that’s such a good idea,” interjects Simon.
I look between them, their faces both drawn and serious. I shake my head in frustration. “Is there something going on that I don’t know about?” I look between them, anxious to know what the problem was. Was it me? Do they not trust us with Hope?
“We just need to be careful, Cole…” Becca trails off, her voice becoming so quiet. Her discomfort is obvious.
“Of what?” I ask, a little more assertive than I’d intended. I look down to my lap. Becca’s hand rests on the tip of my knee.
“Please don’t be annoyed with us, Cole. We have Hope’s best interests at heart. She has been through so much, you know?”
I smile at her sympathetically, be it a little fucking frustrated.
“Maybe we should just tell him,” chimes Simon. He looks over to the doorway, obviously checking to see if the girls have made a reappearance. He walks over, slowly and quietly closing the door. “The thing is, Cole,” I watch him intently, “we found out a little more about Hope’s family and background. It turns out she’s related to someone we believe you know.”
Chuck.
He was right all along.
“You mean Chuck? The biker guy who helped me find Kennedy?”
They both look at each other before turning back to me and nodding slowly.
“We are aware he’s a bit of an unsavory character. We are worried about Hope’s safety.”
“He would never hurt her,” I blurt out in Chuck’s defensive.
“I’m not sure we know enough about him to guarantee he’s no danger to Hope’s safety,” Simon says.
“But he’s her grandfather. Surely he’s legally allowed contact with her?”
Becca shakes her head. “Not at this stage. The authorities are going to make contact with him, notifying him of their findings.”
“You mean he doesn’t know?”
“Not yet; and we need your word that you absolutely will not leak this information to him!” Simon demands.
I smile sadly, feeling like I’m in a pretty fucking impossible position here. I know how much this will mean to him. After how long he searched for his daughter, finally finding a piece of her, his own granddaughter. It will mean the fucking world to him.
“We are serious, Cole!” Becca’s face is hard and I can see the fear in her eyes. “We could get into so much trouble for telling you this.”
I sigh heavily. “I won’t say anything. You have my word,” I say reluctantly. “But someone needs to tell him sooner rather than later. It’s only fair. He’s her biological grandparent.”
They both nod in agreement.
“Any news on Sara?” They stare at me blankly with a look of confusion. “Hope’s biological Mom,” I clarify.
“Oh,” Becca croaks. “No,” she says, shaking her head. “There’s no news there I’m afraid, but I know the investigation is ongoing.”
“My mom said the same.”
“How is Kennedy feeling about the police interviews? I can’t imagine it’s an easy thing to go through.” Becca asks, softening back up.
I shrug. “She doesn’t say much about it. I can only imagine how difficult it is for her.”
I sit for the next thirty minutes talking to Becca and Simon about all the things Ken had wondered aloud about in the car. Seems as though Hope has settled into the local school and, as expected, is super popular. Dammit, that kid really is a bright star and a real character.
It’s getting late and Simon goes and breaks the news to Kennedy and Hope. The pair make their appearance back in the room, still babbling away to each other, the laughter never fading.
“Well, thank you for making this the best birthday weekend ever,” Kennedy gushes, hugging Hope so tightly I swear she’s going to snap her in two.
“You will come again soon, won’t you?”
“Of course! You try keeping me away!”
Hope claps with excitement as Kennedy jumps back to her feet. Hope stops, holding both of her hands against Ken’s stomach. Her head gets closer and closer until her lips are just inches away from Kennedy’s baby bump. “Take care of your mommy for me, little angel,” Hope whisper shouts before planting a little kiss on the most prominent part of her bump.
The ooh’s and ahh’s fill the room. I have to admit, even as I guy, that was super sweet.
“Laters, Hope.” I reach down, sweeping her off her feet and doing a little turn before setting her feet back down on the floor.
She looks up at me, bug eyed. “You really have some muscles, don’t you?” she points out. I can’t help but let out a little laugh. She cocks her hip to the side, restin
g her arm against it. With the other hand, her index finger taps her pursed lips. “Tell me, do you have to work out to get muscles like those?”
The four of us laugh so hard. I can barely catch a breath.
I nod, because I can’t seem to form the words to answer her.
Hope looks at Ken, her eyes wide and her brow wiggling as she points back over to me. Hope stands on her tip toes and Kennedy bends down, meeting her halfway.
“Quite the catch, isn’t he?” Hope laughs.
Becca takes a hold of her shoulders, letting her know that we have to leave. We quickly say our goodbyes and head out to the truck to start our journey home.
Kennedy is so chatty, telling me all about her catch up with Hope. Seeing her smiling from ear to ear is such a beautiful look for her. Seriously, this beauty should only ever wear a smile, because it’s definitely the look for her.
“I’m sorry I left you downstairs for so long.” She smiles apologetically.
“Don’t say sorry, baby. This visit was for you. I don’t mind, honestly. In fact, Becca and Simon were really nice.”
“Oh yeah?”
“Yeah,” I answer simply. “I found out a little secret,” I tease.
“Secret?” she exclaims.
“Yeah, but seriously, nobody can find out about this. I had to give them my word.”
“Oookaaay,” she says slowly, her eyes quizzing me, waiting for me to spill.
“Turns out Chuck was right,” I blurt out. “He really is Hope’s grandfather. But he doesn’t know yet. Neither does Hope.”
“Really?” she squawks. “I mean, seriously?”
“Yes,” I chuckle. “Seriously.”
“That is some unbelievable shit.”
“Right? I know he’s going be so fucking happy that he’s found his daughter’s daughter. Shit, that guy gave up his whole fucking life to search for Sara. Who would’ve guessed that by him helping me to find you, it actually took him on the path to finding his own flesh and blood?”
We both sit there in silence, lost in thought.
Kennedy eventually slides her hand onto my lap. I smile at her adoringly. Her head rests on my arm as she closes the small gap between us.
“Thank you for today,” she yawns, the day obviously taking its toll on her.
“Anytime,” I respond, planting a small kiss to the top of her head.
Kennedy
Today is the day I turn eighteen. A day I thought, at one point, I might never live to see. I lay there next to Cole in our huge bed. He’s still fast asleep, something I have had very little of. I’m able to control my mind when I’m awake, but at night, well that’s when the memories haunt me. I can’t control the pain of what happened to me while I’m asleep. My mind takes me back to my sixteenth birthday.
I’m scared and confused.
I walk through what feels like the wooded area just outside the commune, the crunch of dried leaves under my bare feet. My hands are bound in front of me, the blindfold tied so tightly I can’t see a thing. I’m in total darkness and there isn’t a thing I can do about it. I’m wearing nothing but a loose nightgown, as per Master’s request. I hear several voices but have no idea who they belong to.
Fear rips through me like a knife in my stomach, slowly tearing me apart. I’m trying to be brave. I tell myself this won’t be worse than any other day, but of course I have no idea of what’s to come. I’m stupid to even think that today, on my sixteenth birthday, it would be any less torturous. My adrenaline spikes as I’m pulled to an unexpected stop. My back is suddenly thrust against a tree and a strong hand is pressing flat, just above my chest. Pinning me in place. My head thrashes from side to side as I panic, searching for some sort of answer as to what is going on.
“Please,” I plead.
“Please what?” the familiar voice growls.
“Please don’t hurt me,” I whisper, my voice quivering as my whole body shakes uncontrollably.
“I’m not going to touch you.” He breathes heavily against my face. “But it turns me on when you’re so afraid, Kennedy. It’s like an aphrodisiac to me. I like your body covered in goose pumps. I like the way your breasts move as you take sharp, ragged breaths.”
“No,” I call out. “No, please,” I beg, hoping my pathetic pleas might make a difference.
But it doesn’t.
“I have a surprise for you,” he taunts.
I stand there terrified, beyond scared. My head whips to the side, as he suddenly rips the blindfold away from my eyes. I blink rapidly, trying to get my vision to adjust, hoping my sight will be restored so I can work out what’s going on.
I look up. Michael, one of Christopher’s minions stands in front of me, his hand still against my chest. I look around him and see a young boy, no older than about fourteen. I’ve only seen him a few times before. Christopher stands beside him.
“I believe you know Caleb.” Christopher gestures toward the young boy.
“N…n…not really,” I stutter.
“Oh, don’t worry your pretty little porcelain face.” He walks toward me, running the back of his hand down the side of my face.
I freeze until every part of me is as stiff as a corpse. Even my breathing slows. The only part of me moving is my heart as it beats ferociously. It feels like my heart is in my throat with how aggressively it pounds.
Christopher’s hand drops from my face, down to the neck of my nightgown. I daren’t look down, but instead hear the rip of the fabric as he tears it from my body, leaving me there shivering and totally naked. The look on his face is nothing but pure evil. The delight he gets at knowing what he’s doing to me is so very obvious. The sick bastard really gets a kick out of this.
Christopher walks back over to the boy. My head whips to the side to look for Michael, wondering where he is. As I glance to the side, I notice him standing there, his eyes transfixed on my naked body. His gaze drifts, as though he’s literally eye fucking me. I snap my head away, my attention drawn back to Christopher who is now on his knees in front of the boy. I feel the bile rise as I realize what he’s doing, his head bobbing up and down.
I want to scream.
I’m desperate to run away.
I can’t bear to watch this play out in front of me. I force down the nausea I feel rising from the pit of my stomach to the back of my throat.
I can’t be sick. That will only make things worse. I hear the stifled cries of the boy and my attention is drawn back to him and what is happening. He stands there, tears streaming down his face and I’m helpless. There’s not a damn thing I can do about it. I close my eyes tightly, pushing my fingers in my ears.
I have to try and block this out. That’s all I can do, block it out. After what feels like forever, Master is back on his feet. He walks slowly until he’s behind the boy. His hand grabs the back of Caleb’s neck, pushing him forward. Caleb takes tiny steps as he shuffles forward, his movement restricted by the pants around his ankles. Master stops him right in front of me, only a few inches away from my cold and naked body.
My chest heaves as I feel the intense panic rise inside. My breaths become erratic as fear seems to consume me. Master still has his hand around the boy’s neck as he thrusts his head toward mine until our lips meet.
“Fuck her,” he growls in the coldest, most callous voice I’ve ever heard. I stand there with this boy’s lips against my own. The bitter taste of his tears flows between us. I have to pull my eyes away from him as his cries are relentless. Master grabs hold of his wrists, placing his hands flat against the tree.
“Fuck her,” he growls louder.
That’s when I feel a kick to my inner ankles, pushing my legs apart. I nearly lose my balance but Caleb catches me, holding me upright. My eyes meet his. I smile weakly and know that this is inevitable. I feel a sudden grip around my jaw, my head swept to the side as Master is almost nose to nose, right in my face.
“Well isn’t this sweet?” He nods between the two of us. “He,” he points to Cal
eb, “he’s my birthday present to you. And while he’s fucking you, I’m gonna fuck him, got that?”
I close my eyes tightly hoping that by some miracle I can escape this hell, but the truth of it is, we both know that he will make this happen, whether I resist or not.
Why fight the inevitable?
So I don’t.
Instead I just nod.
I stand there, trying to block out what is happening while this young boy is being forced to have sex with me, as he’s being raped by him.
The cries of Caleb will haunt my dreams for the rest of my life. I will never get away from the memories of that day.
And that’s how I remember my sixteenth birthday.
I throw back the covers and race to the bathroom, remove my clothes as fast as my hands can, and jump in the shower, hoping to scrub the memory from mind. I step inside, the water so hot it’s close to scalding. Steam billows from the heat of the water. I stand there, my hands against the wall as I let the water burn, taking away the inner torture, the pain from my memories.
After all of my skin is pink, I hit the off faucet, crashing to the floor, unable to take the intensity of the heat any longer. I’m sobbing, pushing the palms of my hands against my eyes, trying to suffocate the tears, wanting to barricade the flow. I heave as the emotion pours from every inch of my body, the pain not easing.
I hear the thrash of the door opening and Cole calling out my name, but I can’t control my sob to answer him. The curtain is loudly pulled open before Cole’s hands are around me. One arm under my bended knee, the other around my back as he lifts me out of the bath.
He doesn’t say anything. He just carries me with ease back into the bedroom, my head never moving, my eyes remaining closed. I hear the droplets of water as they fall from my body and hit the floor. He slowly places me down on the bed. I instantly curl in on myself, wrapping myself into a ball. I’m scared to open my eyes, scared about how much I must have terrified Cole.
Within seconds, I’m covered with a towel for warmth. The bed moves as Cole lies beside me, his nose against mine, and his breath against my face. I still can’t open my eyes to face him yet. Tears still fall involuntarily from my eyes. I reach my hand up, touching the side of his face. The small amount of stubble feels familiar and I move my hand slowly against it, the familiarity comforting to me. His arms move and land on my back, pulling me gently to him with one swift movement. I feel the heat of his body against my cold torso. I hadn’t realized how badly I was shivering until I feel my body moving against his.
Keeping Hope (Broken Girl Series) Page 20
