“I found a very nice car for you. I’ll show it to you when we get together again. My phone is beeping. I’m sure it’s Mellenda calling, wondering where I am.”
“Okay. I can’t wait to see you again.”
“I know. I can’t wait to see you again either. Molli I. . .”
“Yes Ricky?” Her heart was beating fast. She was sure that he was going to tell her that he loved her.
“I’m sorry. It shouldn’t be said over the phone. Call me when you decide to go back to Brentwood and I’ll pick you up if I can okay?”
“Okay. Goodbye Ricky. Have a Merry Christmas.”
“You too, my darling Molli. Goodbye.”
Molli hung up her phone and searched her room from top to bottom for her charger but she couldn’t find it anywhere.
The charger she’d been using gave up on charging her phone completely and her phone was almost dead by the time Ricky called her on Christmas Day.
She picked up the phone and pushed the button to answer. “Hello.”
“Hello Molli. It’s so good to hear your voice.”
“I feel the same way about yours. Are you having a nice Christmas?”
He sighed. “It would be much better if I was with you. I’m trying to break up with Mellenda, but she’s making it really hard.”
“I’m sorry Ricky.”
“It’s not your fault she’s so stubborn. They’re releasing Sandy and Brenton from the hospital tomorrow. They’re coming straight here since my mother is so worried about the baby, so I probably won’t be able to call you for a few days. I should still be able to take you back to Brentwood when you’re ready to go though, so just give me a call then okay?”
A sudden feeling of foreboding swept over Molli. “Of course.”
“I’m going to let you go now. Oh, have you found your charger?”
“No.” She suddenly spied a cord under the couch. “Wait, I take that back, I think I may have found it.”
“Good. I’ll talk to you soon. I miss you Molli.”
“I miss you too, Ricky.”
“Goodbye Molli.”
“Bye Ricky.”
She hung up the phone and got down on her hands and knees to pull the cord out from under the couch. It wasn’t the charger for her new phone she found, but the charger for her old phone which she hadn’t seen for six months. She sighed and wondered if she was ever going to find her charger.
Chapter 13
Molli was getting sick in the bathroom the morning of the 27th when her mother suddenly burst into the room.
“Molli, are you okay?”
“I’m fine Mom. I think I have the flu or something. When did you get here?”
“We got in a few minutes ago. I’m sorry you’re sick Molli but we need to talk. Come downstairs after you’ve cleaned up and gotten dressed so you, your father and I can have a talk.”
“Um, okay.”
Molli had a sudden terrible feeling that her mother had found out she was pregnant or had found the discs that contained her copies of the videos Eduardo had made. She flushed the toilet, washed her hands and brushed her teeth, and then left the bathroom.
She took her time getting dressed, not looking forward to having a talk with her parents. Her parents had relied on her school to tell her about all the important things about growing up she thought as she walked down the stairs. She’d learned about periods and sex from health class and hadn’t known what the maxi pads and tampons that had been stored under the sink in her bathroom since she was ten had really been for until she learned about periods at school.
Her parents were sitting on the couch, drinking coffee. She curled up in the chair across from them, wishing that Ricky could be here with her. She thought she could get through anything with him by her side.
“Molli,” her father said. “When did you stop taking your medication?”
“A couple months ago and I’ve been fine. Why?”
“Do we need to remind you of the scene we came home to in the garage your freshman year in high school? We don’t want to lose you Molli.”
“You’re not going to lose me. I wasn’t even really trying to kill myself. I wanted you to pay attention to me. I knew that you guys would be home a few minutes after I put that rope around my neck. But you didn’t understand it then and you still don’t understand it now, do you? Are you blind to all the teenagers that really do kill themselves when they’re taking antidepressants? Or is that what you want? Look, I know I was a mistake, but am I really such a terrible daughter that you would rather have me dead than happy?”
Her mother sighed. “You know that we want you to be happy Molli. But with the way you’ve been acting lately, we’re afraid that you’ve found the wrong kind of happiness. Who is the man you were with on those videos? We want his name so that we can go to the police and have him arrested.”
“What the hell were you doing digging around in my room Mom? You have no right. How’d you know I wasn’t taking the medication anyway? It’s not like I’m dumb enough to leave full pill bottles sitting around. I flush the shit down the toilet once a day instead of swallowing it.”
“Your doctor advised us that there was no trace of your medication in your blood stream anymore. And I am your mother. I have every right to go through your things when I am worried for your safety.”
Molli snorted. “Are you kidding me? You never seemed to worry about my safety before. I was a latchkey kid and you guys were always too cheap to put in an alarm system. Maybe I wouldn’t have started sleeping with Eduardo if you two had bothered to pretend that you cared about me.”
Her father cleared his throat. “So that’s your excuse Molli? You did disgusting, vile things with a man old enough to be your father because we were such terrible parents?”
Molli rolled her eyes. “Disgusting, vile things. All the videos showed was us having sex, me going down on him a couple times and him going down on me once. Read the headlines Dad, oral sex is normal. And Eduardo is not old enough to be my father, unless he had me when he was like 13, and that would be gross.”
“You speak so casually about such things Molli. That isn’t the way that we raised you. Where has our little girl gone? I hardly think that the disgusting act of putting your mouth on someone else’s private parts would make the headlines.”
“I was never your little girl. I remember my sister much more from when I was little than I do you two. But you had to chase her away too, didn’t you? You’ve always had a knack for taking away everything that I cared about.”
“Like the boy you gave your virginity to at thirteen?”
Molli sighed. “Powell was only two years older than me. And I only did it with him once. I don’t know how you found out about that.”
“Children talk Molli. And sometimes their parents overhear.”
“Well, you chased them away didn’t you? How did you make them leave? Did you threaten to call child protective services on them because they didn’t have a lot of money and he had seven little brothers and sisters?”
“We didn’t chase anyone away. Neither your lover nor your sister. It was Bethany’s choice to leave home.”
“Then how come she never comes back? Is it because you made her put her child up for adoption?”
Molli’s mother sighed and wouldn’t look at her. “We adopted your sister’s child.”
“What in the hell are you talking about? I’m the only kid you have. Wait, holy shit are you telling me that Bethany is my mother? No wonder I look nothing like you guys. I’m glad I’m not yours. I would rather go live with her.”
“Bethany has troubles of her own. The last thing she needs is a rebellious teenager to worry about.”
“You’re gonna wish that you had let me go live with her when I tell you my news.”
“What news Molli?” the woman that wasn’t really her mother or even technically her grandmother said.
Molli smiled at Mrs. Archer. “I’m pregnant.”
Mr. Archer
sighed. “And let me guess, you don’t know who the father is?”
“Screw you guy who’s not my dad. I know who the father of my baby is. He’s already bought me clothes to wear for when I’m further along and he’s got stuff on layaway for the baby too.”
“Is he old enough to be your father?”
Molli made a face. “No. He’s only nineteen. In fact, I think I’m going to call him right now and ask him to come and get me out of this hellhole. Don’t worry; you’ll never have to see me again. I turn eighteen in two weeks and then you can’t say shit to me about anything.”
“You’re not going to call anyone Molli,” Mr. Archer said. “You are going to start taking your medication and we are taking you out of Crestview Academy. All the money we paid for that school and they can’t stop you from acting like a whore.”
“The world is a better place because you two couldn’t have kids. You can’t stop me from calling Ricky. And there is no way in hell I’m going to take those stupid antidepressants again. They could hurt my baby.”
“We could have had children of our own,” Mrs. Archer said. “Your mother was such a handful and so emotionally damaged that we thought it was better if we concentrated all our attention on her. No wonder you turned out the way you did with her blood running through your veins. And your father; she didn’t know who your father was either. But they do say that the apple doesn’t fall too far from the tree don’t they?”
“You shut the hell up about my mom. Maybe she was damaged because she got stolen away from parents that actually cared about her and stuck with you two. And I told you I know exactly who the father of my baby is. I’ll bet that my mom did too. You probably chased him away too. You can’t stand to see anyone happy because you two are miserable old farts.”
“Your mother was being raised by people who could barely afford to put food on the table. They had been in and out of shelters and had been evicted I don’t know how many times. The man was a drug addict and the woman was so afraid to be on her own that she couldn’t leave him when she could have had her children back if she had. We wanted to take all five children but the boys eventually ended up being split up between two or three different families.”
“Don’t talk about my real grandparents like that. What the fuck do you know anyway? Have you ever had CPS come knocking on your door? No, you haven’t, because you don’t have kids of your own. Who gives a shit if they were poor? That’s no excuse to take their kids away. I notice you didn’t say that they beat the shit out of my mom and her brothers or that they molested them or something. So what if my grandpa did drugs? That’s what treatment is for. And maybe my grandma loved him too much to leave him or they didn’t give her a real choice. Don’t judge people before you’ve walked in their shoes. I want to meet them, all of them, and I’ll hear the truth. So take that and shove it up your rich ass Mr. Archer. I am getting the hell out of here and I am so changing my name the first chance I get. I want my real name back. I’ll sure as fuck be a lot prouder to wear it than yours.”
“You’re not going anywhere Molli.”
“How in the hell do you think you’re going to stop me? If you touch me, I swear I’ll scream at the top of my lungs.”
“If you wish to act like an imbecile, we will have you committed against your will until you are far past eighteen. You will never see your child. Your bastard will be raised by strangers and never know you exist. Is that the kind of life you want Molli? Is your petty teenage rebellion worth that much to you?”
“It’s not petty. Try to lock me up. You can’t give my baby away.” She placed her hand protectively over her stomach. “He or she has a father and he won’t let you take our baby.”
Mr. Archer laughed. “Do you really think that a nineteen year old kid could do anything to stop us? He probably can’t afford the money to pay for a DNA test to prove the child is his, let alone the kind of high priced lawyer it would take for him to get custody.”
“I’ll sign all of my rights over to him. His parents have money. They wouldn’t let you give their grandchild to strangers.”
Mr. Archer shrugged. “Maybe. With all of your big talk, are you sure that the child belongs to this particular boyfriend of yours? I thought you were seeing that boy that goes to Brentwood high. And I assume you’re still sleeping with that tattooed child molester.”
“Eduardo is not a child molester.”
“He will have to register as a sex offender when we hand the videos over to the police.”
“Statutory rape is so stupid. If you want to have sex with someone that’s older than you, that’s your deal. As long as you’re not twelve years old and doing it with a forty year old. Teenagers have sex. Sometimes they do it with someone who is an adult. So fucking what? Do you really think that having all the statutory rapists off the streets makes the world a better place?”
“Watch your mouth young lady. Yes, having rapists off the streets does make the world a better place. I don’t think teenagers these days listen to the words that come out of their own mouths. Now, go upstairs and get your money and your cell phone and bring them back down to me. You won’t be going anywhere without me or your mother for the next few days.”
“And if I say no?”
“Then I will make arrangements to admit you to the mental health facility outside of Brentwood.”
Molli sighed. “Fine. But you’re not going to keep Ricky away from me. He knows where you live and when I don’t come back to Brentwood, he’ll be here. He cares about me and the baby.”
“You are so naïve Molli. This young man will forget all about you, and he’ll probably be thrilled not to be saddled with a child that probably isn’t his.”
“Ricky’s not like that. He’ll fight for me and the baby.”
Mr. Archer laughed. “Go right on believing that until you are raising your child by yourself with no help from us or Bethany.”
“Are you gonna threaten to cut her out of your will again if she helps me? Maybe she loves me enough to tell you to fuck off too.”
“I doubt that. Your mother has struggled since she left us. She’s probably counting down the days until we pass away so that she won’t have to live paycheck to paycheck anymore.”
“Struggling to get by is a lot more honorable than selling your soul to the devil to get rich like you probably did.”
Mr. Archer sighed. “Go upstairs and bring me what I asked for. Take your medication while you’re at it. No, bring it down here and take it in front of us so that we can make sure you actually take it.”
“I will not take one pill when I don’t know that it won’t harm my baby.”
“You will. If you don’t take it willingly, I will shove it down your throat.”
“Try it. I’ll tell the cops that you threatened me and didn’t care if you hurt my baby. You’ll be arrested right along with Eduardo because I’ll tell them that I walked in on you watching those videos. You wanna get arrested for looking at child pornography Mr. Archer?”
“You wouldn’t get the chance. If you don’t take your pill, we will lock you in your bedroom until they come to pick you up and transport you to the mental hospital. We’ll be sure to let them know that you’re delusional. They may not be able to keep you drugged until after you give birth, but once you do, they’ll have you so drugged that you won’t know your own name anymore. Because we’ll tell them that we will pay any amount of money for you to ‘get better’.”
Molli suddenly thought of Tony’s mom. Well, she thought, at least she’d have company in the loony bin. She couldn’t believe that any of this was happening but knew she had to figure out some way out of it. She decided she would take one pill and then scheme on how she was going to get away from the Archers.
“Fine, I’ll take your stupid pills but you had better call the doctor and make sure that they aren’t going to give my baby birth defects or something.”
Mr. Archer’s face softened. “Of course Molli. We only want what’s best for y
ou. It would just be so much easier if you were a better judge of it yourself.”
“Yeah. I’ll be right back.”
She went up the stairs and found her cell phone. If only it weren’t completely dead she thought she could text Ricky. She was sure he would be on his way to come get her in no time at all. She looked at her phone and sighed, then dug her wallet out of her purse. She took out the little cash that was left but removed the credit card and stashed it under her mattress next to the wall. She was getting out of here if she had to climb out her second story window she thought.
She stopped in the bathroom for the bottle of antidepressants and went back downstairs. While she was walking down the stairs, she realized she might have a way to get rid of the pill, or at least stop it from completely entering her bloodstream. She’d tell them she was feeling sick and go in the bathroom and puke it up.
She handed her cell phone and the money to Tremont Archer without a word. He made a face at the amount of money she gave him. “Where’s the charger for your phone? And why do you have so little money left? I noticed that all of the grocery money was gone.”
“I can’t find my charger and it’s not like it will do me any good without the phone to go with it. I bought a couple Christmas presents and ate out a lot.”
Tremont sighed. “You’re going to start eating better. No one will want to adopt your child if it’s born sickly.”
“I thought you said you were going to let me keep my baby.”
“If you behave yourself we will. If not, then you know what the consequences are.”
“Yeah.”
“Take your pill. Gladys, get her a glass of water.”
Gladys walked into the kitchen and returned with a glass of water. She handed it to Molli. Molli opened the bottle of pills and took one out and then sat the pill bottle on the table. Tremont picked it up and put it in his pocket.
Molli put the pill in her mouth and took a big drink of water, thinking I’m sorry baby; I’ll get it out as soon as I can. She swallowed the pill and handed the glass back to Gladys.
Misty Reigenborn Romance Boxed Set Page 165
