DIRTY ROCKER: A Rock Star Romance

by SC Daiko

  I go into the house and look for my auntie, hoping she’s there. She’ll give me a brownie and a glass of milk. “Auntie, where are you?”

  “She’s had to go run some errands.” Uncle Earl calls out from his armchair in the living room. “Come here, cookie. Let me give you a kiss. I got a packet of Gummi Bears for ya if you’re a good girl for me.”

  My heart does somersaults in my chest. Being a good girl for Uncle Earl means letting him kiss me and rub himself against me. He says it’s our secret and, if I tell anyone, I’ll get into big trouble. It’s been going on a couple months, and happens whenever Auntie has to run errands, leaving him to look after us kids. I feel dirty afterward, and I’m glad most of the time Auntie takes care of us and Uncle Earl is out at work.

  I shake my head and turn to escape, but he grabs me and pulls me onto his lap. I whimper and tremble, scared he’ll hurt me if I don’t do as he says. I’ve heard him beating Logan and Tyler when they’re naughty. The loud crack of the strap on the back of their knees. My chest aches so much I can’t breathe.

  Uncle kisses me, pushing his slobbery tongue into my mouth and then he rubs himself against me, and there’s a hard thing between his legs that he pokes into my tummy. He makes funny noises…grunting noises that make me feel sick. I squirm and try to escape. “Be good for me,” he groans, rocking himself backward and forward in the chair.

  My throat burns and I open my mouth to scream. This is much worse than anything he’s done to me before. He puts his hand over my lips and I start to struggle, tears streaming down my face.

  “You little cock tease,” he mutters, picking me up like I’m a sack of potatoes. He keeps one hand clamped over my mouth and the other around my backside as he carries me up to his bedroom. I’m kicking and struggling, but he’s too strong.

  He slams the door shut and locks it before dropping me on the bed. I prepare to run but he lies on top of me. I can’t swallow the saliva gathering in my mouth, and I’m frozen with a fear I can’t explain. What’s happening?

  “Cookie,” he croaks, leaning on one elbow. I HATE being called cookie. I HATE HIM!!! “Forgive me for what I’m about to do,” he says calmly. “It’s not me. It’s the Devil inside me…” He releases his hand from my mouth and strokes my hair. “You’re so pretty I can’t help it.”

  I struggle again, but he kicks my legs apart, kneels between them and unzips his pants. “Look at how big I am for you….”

  My heart races as I stare at his thing. I’ve seen Logan’s and Tyler’s when Auntie has put us in the bath the three of us together, but Uncle’s is huge and angry looking. I squeeze my eyes shut it’s so horrible.

  Uncle pulls down my panties. Why is he doing that? Something is pushing between my legs, at the place where my pee comes out. It hurts. It hurts so bad I let out the loudest scream.

  There’s a pounding at the door, and I can hear Auntie shouting. “Earl, what the hell is going on in there?”

  I open my eyes and look down. See Uncle’s thing. He’s holding it in his hand and liquid is leaking from the tip. His face is contorted.

  My stomach heaves and I throw up. I make a retching noise. My puke spurts up and splatters all over him.

  Everything goes blank. I don’t know why. All I know is I never want to think about what just happened ever again.

  Phoenix held my braid back from my face as I puked up my guts in the ladies’ restroom. “Where’s Pierce?” I managed to say between retching.

  “He’s waiting outside, honey. Much as he wanted to, I wouldn’t let him come in here.”

  She led me from the stall to the washbasins, wet a tissue, and wiped my mouth. “How do you feel?”

  I was shaking so much I could barely speak. “Terrible…”

  She hugged me. “I was so scared for you. For both of ya. That dude was crazy.”

  So was my uncle…

  Just the thought of what that man had tried to do to me, a little girl for God’s sake, made me want to throw up again.

  Phoenix squeezed my hand. “C’mon, sweetie, I’m taking you back to Pierce. I had to bar the door to stop him from following us. Jake has arranged a VIP room for us to wait in while he clears shit with the cops.”

  We went through the door and Pierce’s strong arms wrapped around me. “Are you okay, baby?”

  I buried my face in his chest. This man, this amazing man, made me feel safe. He’d helped me recover what I’d never had. The part of me stolen by someone who should have protected me, not violated me. Pierce raised my chin and gazed down at me. I caught the questions in his smoldering eyes. I wanted to tell him about my uncle, but this wasn’t the time or the place. “I’m a lot better now I’m with you, honey.”

  “Likewise.” He bent and pressed a kiss to my forehead.

  “Oh, my God, I didn’t ask you how you are,” I murmured.

  “Physically, I’m fine. Just a little shaken up,” he exhaled a breath. “Can’t wait for us to get out of here.”

  “Me too.” I leaned into him and he half carried me over to where Axel was waiting with Phoenix.

  The four of us headed off with Joe, through a crowd of people who were recording everything we did on their cellphones. The thought struck me that I’d signed up to living in a goldfish bowl with Pierce for the rest of my life, and I furrowed my brow. With him by my side, I’d cope with it, though. But only because I loved him so much.

  We arrived at a room at the back of the terminal where everyone else was sitting expecting us. They leaped up from their chairs and surrounded us, their faces still reflecting shock from what had gone down with Ramos.

  “We thought you were paranoid, man.” Rhys’ deep melodic voice echoed.

  “Yeah,” Zach added. “How the fuck did that motherfucker get here so fast?”

  “There’s only one explanation.” Pierce faced them. “He must have already been on this island. God knows how he found out we’d gone on vacation in the area.”

  I started shaking again, and Pierce lifted me in his arms. He sat with me on the sofa and settled me in his lap. For a second or two I recoiled. Uncle Earl had sat me on his lap. Then I told myself, no, don’t let that bastard affect you anymore. You’re with Pierce, remember. He loves you and would never do anything to harm you.

  Our 747 took off from Manila International shortly before midnight with us all on board. It had been doubtful whether Mike would have been able to fly out so soon after Ramos had been shot dead, given that foreigners weren’t supposed to carry weapons in the Philippines. But Jake had called in some favors with the concert promoters in Manila, who’d known the right people to bribe. Videos of the incident had started to appear on Social Media, clearly showing Ramos attempting to murder Foxy. None had identified Mike as the shooter, thankfully, as everyone had been too focused on Pierce. The police had taken statements, from us as well as from bystanders and, eventually, we’d been allowed to continue our journey. An hour after leaving the island, we arrived in Manila and immediately transferred to our jumbo jet. It was like we were escaping from hell, which was such a shame after the peace and beauty of our retreat.

  I closed my eyes as the plane lifted into the sky. So freaking tired, but my mind was in a whirl and I knew I wouldn’t be able to get any rest. Pierce had gone to talk to our flight attendants. I watched him nod, then head back up the aisle toward the seat next to mine. “There’s a stateroom we can go to, sweetheart. I’ve arranged for us to sleep there. We don’t tend to use it when we charter the aircraft, but, in the circumstances…”

  It was like I’d been holding my breath the entire time since the shock of the attempted murder had jogged my memory. I so wanted to unburden myself to Pierce, and that’s what I did as soon as we’d shrugged off our clothes and clung to each other under the comforter on the double bed.

  I told him everything. Told him about my cousins not letting me play on the tire swing. Told him how I’d gone inside to find my auntie. Told him what had gone down with Uncle Earl.

&n
bsp; Pierce’s nostrils flared. “That fucking fucktard. How could he do that to you? I wanna kill him.”

  “So do I,” I couldn’t help agreeing. “Or at least put him behind bars.”

  He tucked a strand of my hair behind my right ear. “The press might find out…”

  “Oh, God. I hadn’t thought of that.” Nausea squeezed in my stomach.

  “Are you sure you still wanna marry me, love?” His voice wobbled and I discerned the desperation in his eyes.

  “Nothing could make me change my mind. I love you far too much.” I kissed his cupid lips. “When we get home, I’m gonna contact my aunt. I’d like to talk to her before I decide what to do next.”

  Without warning, I started to sob. I sobbed for the little girl who’d lost her innocence, and I sobbed for the man I loved whose teen years had been ruined. He held me, whispering. “Cry, sweetheart. Cry out your pain. Let the tears flow and you’ll feel a lot better afterward.”

  He rocked me, soothed me, and kissed away my misery. With hiccoughing breaths, I managed to stop crying. He fetched a washcloth from the adjacent shower room and pressed it to my cheeks. Then he rocked me again as I fell into an uneasy sleep, my last thoughts before dropping off were of the baby I hoped we’d conceived. I would protect our kid, I swore to myself, never let anyone bad get near her. After what had happened to Pierce and me, I would do everything in my power to keep my baby safe.

  Chapter 28

  Pierce

  We left for Portland, Oregon, two days after we’d gotten home from the tour. Joe and I shared the driving from LA, on account of the fact that what had gone down in the Philippines had hit the headlines, and we didn’t want to risk taking a commercial plane ride with all that it might entail. It took us over fifteen hours, after leaving at five a.m., but Joe and I managed to get some shuteye when we weren’t driving, and Hayley kept us going with drinks and snacks. She’d phoned her Aunt Lisa as soon as we’d arrived back in LA, saying she wanted to talk, and Lisa had accepted her request with apparent equanimity.

  I followed the Sat Nav directions to a house in a tree-lined street in the suburbs, with a white picket fence enclosing a front porch. “You okay, sweetheart?” I asked Hayley, taking her hand as we stepped out of the SUV.

  Her fingers trembled, but her face wore a determined expression. “I’m fine.”

  We left Joe in the car to take a nap, then made our way up a path to the door. “Remember your uncle will never hurt you again. I won’t fucking let him.”

  I rang the doorbell and, within seconds, it was answered by a plump woman with graying blond hair. She hugged Hayley and shook my hand. “Please, come in. Hope you had a good journey.”

  “It wasn’t too bad.” I pressed my lips together. I didn’t need to introduce myself…we’d met at Rick’s funeral.

  Lisa led us into her living room, comfortably decorated with floral wallpaper, and indicated we should sit on the sofa. “Can I offer you anything? A soda maybe?”

  “Thanks, Auntie. Maybe later. How about you, Pierce?”

  “Later would be fine for me too,” I responded. “Thank you.”

  Lisa perched on the armchair opposite. “Congratulations on your engagement.” Her mouth moved into a tentative smile. “Your dad would have been thrilled, Hayley.”

  “Yeah,” she breathed. “I think so…”

  “I was shocked to read about what went down in the Philippines.” Lisa leaned forward and gave Hayley a searching look. “You must have been terrified.”

  “I was.” Hayley inhaled and then exhaled slowly. “I’m not sure how to bring this up, so I’ll come right out with it.” She twisted her fingers together and said softly. “The trauma made me remember what happened to me with Uncle Earl when I was a kid.”

  Lisa got up from the armchair and stood in front of Hayley, reaching for her hands. “Oh, sweetie. I always knew you’d remember one day. You were catatonic at first, and then acted like nothing had happened.” She pulled Hayley to her feet and kissed her. “I’m so terribly sorry for what Earl did to you.”

  “I’d like to find him.” There was resolve in Hayley’s tone. “He should have gone to jail.” A lone tear trickled down her cheek.

  I stood and put my arm around her. “Do you know where he is?” I questioned Lisa.

  “Earl is dead.” Her hands fell to her sides. “He took his life the day after he admitted to me that he’d tried to rape you, Hayley.”

  Hayley’s face had turned pale and she choked on a sob. “I wanted him to pay for what he’d done to me.”

  “I felt the same when I found him hanging from the garage door.” Lisa sucked in a gulp of air. “He was violent toward me, and I wish I’d taken the boys and left him before he did what he did to you.”

  “What a bastard,” I growled.

  Lisa’s eyes filled with tears. “Earl came from an abusive background. He once told me his father would beat his mom and him. That his dad used to creep into Earl’s sisters’ beds at night and mess with them. I never thought Earl would perpetuate that evil with you, Hayley.”

  Hayley had started shaking and tears streamed down her face, so I sat her down on the sofa and kept my arm around her. “Hayley should have received help,” I said to Lisa. “She should have gotten counseling. By blocking what happened from her mind, she was burying the incident and it festered in her subconscious.”

  “I tried to persuade your parents to find you a therapist, sweetie. But they didn’t want to put you through it. They said you’d apparently forgotten, and it was better not to rake up the past. It was like they wanted to forget it too.” She perched herself back on the armchair. “I couldn’t stay in LA. Couldn’t carry on living where so many bad things had happened. I’d gone to college in Portland and a group of friends lived here. So I made a new life for myself and my boys. They have both done well, as you know.”

  “I used to wonder why you suddenly moved away.” Hayley shook her head. “Why Mom gave up work and stayed home to take care of me.” It was like she was struggling to get out the words. “I’d grown up with Tyler and Logan, they were like brothers to me, and I remember missing them and you, too, of course. Now I know why I didn’t miss Uncle Earl. I just never thought about him. At all…”

  “Your dad was my only brother, and I felt his absence badly.” Lisa’s voice had grown tearful. “But he kind of blamed me for what had happened, although he never said so in as many words. Just kept his distance. That’s why we didn’t see much of you over the years. We came to your mom’s funeral and to your dad’s…”

  “How did you manage to keep Uncle Earl’s suicide a secret from me?”

  “The question never arose. It was as if you’d erased him from your mind, just like you’d erased what he did to you.”

  “If there’s one thing I’ve learned from all of this, it’s that family closeness is important. I’m an orphan now. You, Tyler, and Logan are the only family I have left. I’d like for us to reconnect, but not yet.” Hayley’s mouth twisted. “You left me alone with an abusive man, Auntie. It will take me a while to get my head around that. It will take me a while to forgive you…”

  “I’m so sorry,” Lisa wailed, crying ugly tears. “I was selfish, I know I was.” She wiped her face. “I just needed to get away from Earl occasionally. I had no clue what was going on…”

  Hayley winced. “He robbed me of my innocence.” She turned to me. “I think we should go, Pierce. It’s a long drive back to LA…”

  “Can’t I get you those sodas?” Lisa offered, drying her eyes with a scrunched-up tissue.

  “We have drinks and snacks in the car,” I said curtly.

  “Please, don’t be strangers,” Lisa said at the door.

  I stared at Hayley, and she stared back at me. And, looking at her, I knew she was going to be alright. Obviously, there would be times when she’d think back to what had occurred, but my wife-to-be was a strong woman. She was fighting to rebuild her life.

  “I’ll call you in
a couple weeks, Auntie,” Hayley said, and we left it at that.

  After a comfort break about three-quarters of the way down the Pacific Coast Highway, Joe was driving and my cellphone buzzed in my pocket. I checked the caller ID.

  My big sis Bethany. What the fuck?!

  I picked up. “You okay? The boys?”

  “We’re fine…I wanted to give you a heads-up.” Ominous silence came down the line. “Dad has sold your story to the Daily Post. Bullshit about how you went off the rails as a teen and how he, your poor longsuffering father, couldn’t do a thing with you.”

  Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.

  “Thanks for letting me know,” I gritted out. “Say hi to George and Archie from me.”

  “What’s wrong?” Hayley asked from the seat behind once I’d disconnected.

  “Just more bullshit from my dad.” I kept my tone measured, although I was seething inside. “I’ll fill you in when we get home.”

  Which is what I did, as soon as we’d waved Joe off, taken a quick shower and had sat out on the decking, cool drinks in our hands.

  Hayley climbed into my lap and wrapped her arms around my waist. “I’m so sorry,” she said soothingly. “Has he done anything like this before?”

  And so, I told her. Told her about the years of paying him off so he’d do nothing of the sort. “They must have offered him a shitload of money,” I muttered. “Or maybe he thought that, now Ramos is dead, he wouldn’t be able to milk his cash cow, i.e. me, anymore.”

  “That sucks so much.” She kissed the corner of my mouth, and I tasted her tears of sympathy. She tangled her fingers in my hair, loosening my pony, and I did the same to her braid. “I’d like us to make love, honey.” She gazed into my eyes. “We haven’t since our last night on the island.”

  My heart sang on hearing her words. “I didn’t wanna rush you. After the shock of Ramos and you remembering about your uncle.”