To Redemption (Whitsborough Chronicles Book 4)

by C. A. Rene

  I'm on my way to my house to finally speak to my ma about what brought her and Nana Germaine here to Whitsborough. Since learning about the fucked up people here, I need to know if they knew what was going on and what made them stay here.

  I know Adri is closing the restaurant for my mother tonight and I can't express how thankful I am to her for easing the load. I was beginning to fear that my mother would work herself into the ground over this restaurant because she has nothing else in her life besides me. Another thing we have to talk about.

  Soon, I will be moving in with Em permanently. We're engaged and I want to start building a life with her. My mother needs to understand that even though we may be young, we are two halves of an old soul.

  I pull into the driveway and see her red Mini Cooper sitting there. This house was purchased after Ma came back from Toronto with me. We lived in a small two bedroom townhome before that which we lived in with Nana Germaine until she passed before I was a year old.

  I sit in the Hummer and watch the house for a bit thinking about how I will broach this subject with Ma. She’s always been a little closed mouth about Nana and never gives me much detail. I have no memories of the woman, but I do know that she was married briefly to Ma’s dad until he died in a hunting accident when Ma was five.

  I get out of the Hummer and notice the lawn’s been cut and cringe when I remember it was supposed to be my turn to do it. I remind myself to thank Travis when I get back to Em’s.

  I open the front door with my key and smell mac and cheese, my favourite dish.

  “Ma!”

  “Kitchen.” She yells back.

  I get to the kitchen and see her sitting at the table with a glass of wine.

  “Mac and cheese?” I ask her. “Did you know I was coming?”

  “No.” She chuckles. “I was going to bring it by when it was done though.”

  “Can we talk?”

  “Sure Son.” She nods and puts her phone down.

  “I want to know more about Nana Germaine and why she decided to come to Whitsborough.”

  “Oh?” Her brow raises. “Why?”

  “Just curious. Seeing her ring on Em’s finger reminds me that I know next to nothing about how our family came to be.”

  “Mother and Father moved here to Whitsborough when I was three years old. Originally, we are from North Carolina but according to Mother, it wasn’t safe where we were living.” She gets this far off look in her eye. “Mother was a maid to a wealthy family there and it was all she knew, so she applied for that here in Whitsborough, too. Father was a good groundskeeper and a notable marksman when it came to hunting rifles.”

  “Why didn’t you ever tell me about this stuff before?”

  “Because there is a bit of a scandal related to your grandparents and I didn’t want you to feel ashamed.”

  “I want to know everything, Ma.” I tell her sternly.

  She nods her head and continues, “they found a family here in Whitsborough, Canada. A quiet little town and far enough away from the troubles they had in North Carolina. Which family? The Cravens.”

  My heart stops and I look at her wide eyed. “Ember’s family?”

  “Yes, her grandparents, Jack and Laurann Craven. Jack was an avid hunter and he bonded with my father right away. Laurann was more quiet and stayed to herself so Mother was mostly there to cook and clean. One day, Father and Jack were out hunting and Jack came back to tell us there was a terrible accident, Father was shot by a hunter and died instantly.”

  “What?” I look at her in shock. “Who did it? Were they put in jail?”

  “No one fessed up to it and it was a different time back then. Nobody was charged but there were rumours. Some believed it was Jack himself, trying to get rid of my father because he knew too much.”

  “About what?” My phone vibrates in my pocket but I ignore it, it’s probably Em.

  “I don’t know.” She shakes her head. “Mother never talked about it and whenever I asked she would shut me up. She was different after that. I wasn’t allowed up at the main house too often and if I wanted to play with Rebecca and Debra, they would have to come down to the cottage. Mother and I moved off the property when I was twelve and we lived in that townhome until you and I moved to Toronto.”

  “How did Nana die?”

  “That’s another scandal,” she shakes her head. “As you know Nana died in a car crash when you were a baby.”

  “Yeah.” My phone vibrates again.

  “Jack and Laurann were also in that car and there was a lot of speculation about the cause of the accident.”

  I am completely speechless and couldn’t form words even if I tried.

  “Some believe it wasn’t an accident at all, that the car was set on fire and meant to kill everyone inside.”

  “Why was Nana in that car with them?” I ask quietly, my heart racing.

  “She still worked for them and they were going to town for lunch. This was a weekly thing and they did it every Friday without fail. Same time, same place.”

  “So, whoever killed them knew their schedule.” I mutter.

  “There’s no evidence they were killed, Son. The fire chief and police chief at the time ruled it an accident. Yes, I was skeptical at first but I had to let it go or it would consume me. I was already in a difficult situation at the time and Debra needed me. We needed each other.”

  My phone goes off again and I ignore it, I need to find out every single thing before I speak to Em.

  “It’s easy for things to be covered up in this town.” I tell her.

  “I know.” She runs her hand over her short red hair. “I’m just one person and I was afraid to rock the boat.”

  “You have no idea the amount of things one person can do when they put their minds to it.” I think of Em.

  "I'm not that person." She huffs and rests her cheek in her hand.

  "Ma," I lean over the table. "You are. You dealt with my scum father, raised me alone and under scrutiny, and now you have a very successful restaurant. You are that person."

  "Thank you." She smiles at me.

  The timer rings for the oven and she gets up to pull out the mac and cheese. If she won't dig any further into this car accident, then I will.

  I walk into the house with the tray of mac and cheese and find everyone seated around the kitchen table.

  "Do you not check your phone?" Em snarls and I cringe. I fucking forgot to check it before I left.

  "Sorry Babe," I shrug. "I was having a little talk with Ma."

  "She's okay?" The anger is forgotten and true concern shines from her eyes.

  "Yeah." I hold up the tray. "She sent mac and cheese. I also have a story to tell you all."

  "We found some shit we need to talk to you about, too." Travis nods.

  I sit at the table and Emmett opens the tray, eating it straight from the dish, so we all join in the same.

  "What did you talk about?" Em asks.

  "About my Nana and Grandpa." I look up into Em's wide eyes. "Your grandparents too."

  I watch as they look at each other and then Travis says, "we want to talk to you about that. We opened the file containing the car accident involving E's grandparents."

  "I know," I nod. "Nana was in there too. She worked for them and they were going for their weekly lunch."

  "That's the connection." Em's shoulders deflate with relief. "I read the official report and saw she was the third victim in the car. I was worried she was there against her will."

  "There are some weird circumstances concerning our grandparents, I wish Debra and Scott were here to fill in the blanks." I tell her.

  "Like what?" Adri asks.

  "How my grandfather died is one. There was a hunting trip and Jack returned to say my Grandfather was accidentally killed."

  "What?" Em gasps.

  "Yeah and everyone was just like 'oh okay cool' carry on."

  Em gets up from
the table and brings the box we got from McKay over.

  “There’s a few redacted reports in here and some pictures of recovered teeth that match dental records. So, we can confirm they are all actually dead and this wasn’t a cover up orchestrated by my grandfather.” Em says as she hands me some photos. “The car was burnt completely to the frame, which really makes no sense without an accelerant.”

  “It really does look like someone tried to cover up the fact that they were killed, but if Raphael really did it then why would they cover it up?” Travis asks.

  “Because this little town doesn’t handle scandal so well.” Adri chimes in. “They would all rather bury their heads than to deal with anything like that. Look at my parents, they rarely come home.”

  She has a point.

  “Plus, if our grandfather was as fucked up as everyone is saying then I can’t really see them trying to investigate too much. More of a good riddance attitude.” Emmett adds.

  “That’s also true.” I nod. “The question is, do we want to blow this shit wide open?”

  “Do you want to? It was your nana in there.” Em asks.

  “I would like to know why she had to die.” I admit.

  “We’ll find out then.” She lifts the paper. “The prior fire chief is someone by the name of John O’Conner.”

  “He passed away a few years ago,” Travis says. “Remember they had that parade?” He asks Adri.

  “Oh yeah.” She nods.

  Em continues to read the paper, “the prior police chief was Carl Halbert… wait.”

  “Shit! How did I forget that?” Travis slaps his hand to his head. “Coach Halbert’s father was chief of police.”

  “Explains why things were covered up and swept under the rug when it came to the rapes.” I growl.

  “I don’t know how much he’ll remember,” Travis says. “But he’s alive in a nursing home.”

  “We’ll pay him a visit.” Em grins.

  “You’re not going to scare the shit out of an old man, are you?” Emmett questions Em.

  “I’m not above making him shit his geriatric diapers if that’s what needs to happen.” She cackles and Adri joins in.

  “Coach used to make the team do charity games to donate to the nursing home.” Travis tells us.

  “Em, you stay here and relax. It’s been a long day and you need to rest.” I smile at her. “I think Travis and I can deal with this one tomorrow.”

  “Yeah.” Travis nods.

  “Okay.” Em says around a mouthful of mac and cheese.

  “Adri and I will check in on Marlana tomorrow.” Emmett adds in. “Make sure she showers and eats something.”

  “I’ll even smack her around a bit if I have to.” Adri grins.

  It’s scary how much Em is rubbing off on her.

  "Anything interesting in the storage unit?" I ask Travis and Emmett.

  "Nah," Emmett shakes his head. "I did bring back some books though, these are classics and worth a lot. It would look good in our library."

  "Cool." Em nods.

  "Okay little one," I stand up from the table and bend down to scoop Em into my arms. "Bedtime."

  "You still smell like burning McKay." She chuckles as she breathes in my neck.

  "That's just gross." Emmett screws up his face.

  We both chuckle as I carry her up the stairs and into her room-soon to be our room-and lay her on the bed.

  "I'm sorry for what my family has done to yours." She whispers, her voice pained.

  "Don't apologize for things out of your control and we really don't know what happened." I try to soothe her pain.

  I can see her mind is tortured and when something bothers my girl, she doesn't let it go until she's rectified it to her liking. I wish I could convince her more, make sure she knows this isn't her burden to bear, and that no matter what, I can see her soul's worth.

  I crawl up her body and settle between her legs, pulling her face to mine.

  "I love you Emberlise Craven." I kiss her nose.

  "You called me Emberlise." She breathes.

  "Because I’m being serious, Baby. I need you to be able to tell the difference." I echo my words I told her so long ago.

  Her wide smile lets me know she remembers when I first said those words. I knew I was in love with her, even then, and it’s only grown stronger each day. If anything happens to her and God forbid I lose her, I will be right behind her. There’s nothing in this life without her.

  I kiss her softly, her soft lips molding into mine perfectly. I swipe my tongue along her mouth and her lips open on a sigh. I deepen the kiss and run my tongue ring along her tongue, swallowing up her moan.

  I run my hand up her thigh and under her shirt, slowly lifting it as I go. I pull away from her mouth just long enough to get rid of her shirt and then I’m fused right back to her.

  She isn’t wearing a bra and I groan at the fabric of my shirt separating her skin from mine. I pull back and rip my shirt off in record time, then I’m pressing my skin into hers. She feels like silk running along my bare skin, she smells like citrus, crisp like a summer day, and she tastes like the sweetest ambrosia, designed just for me.

  I break our kiss and run my nose down her throat, breathing in her essence and letting it settle deep inside me. My mouth grazes over her collarbone and settles over her beating heart. The rhythm is like a language only I understand.

  I suck one of her nipples into my mouth, flicking the hardened nub with my piercing and pinching her other nipple between my finger and thumb. Her breathy moans and gasps have my cock rock hard and ready.

  I push it into her center and grin when her moans increase. She presses up and into my cock, rubbing herself along it’s hardness. It jerks in response and I groan as my sweats rub along my sensitive skin.

  I want to feel her wetness, I want her glistening pussy in my mouth so I can taste her. I trail my mouth down over her stomach, dipping my tongue into her belly button and nibbling on the flesh.

  "Why aren't you pounding that big cock inside of me yet?" She demands and I laugh at her frustration.

  "It's not going to be one of those nights, Em." I lick over her hip bone. "This is going to be slow and sweet."

  "Why?" She groans as she lifts her hips closer to my mouth.

  "Because sometimes you need to take your time and truly enjoy what you own. I want you to know I worship you and even when I'm not here, I want you to remember how much you mean to me."

  "Where are you going?" Her voice holds a touch of panic.

  "Nowhere." I chuckle as I drag her shorts and panties down her legs. "I'm just saying sometimes you need to stop and smell the roses."

  I don't hear her reply because I've literally nose dived into her pink glistening folds. The first swipe of my tongue and her taste explodes in my mouth. I moan at the sweet tang of it and slip my tongue deep inside her.

  "Yes, Vin." She moans.

  I suck her clit into my mouth and slip two fingers inside her. She begins to writhe on the bed and I can feel her clench around me, my baby is ready to detonate and I don't want to miss one drop of moisture.

  I pump into her faster and suck harder on her clit, feeling her juices run down my chin.

  "Vin, I'm going to..." her body tenses and she lets out a low whine as her pussy clamps down on my fingers.

  Her body trembles with the force of her orgasm and I chuck off my pants before I make my way back up her body.

  She is breathing heavily and her body is lax when I grab her thighs, spreading her wider. I line my head up with her entrance and watch her face as I slowly push myself inside. Watching her stretch around my cock is the sexiest thing and it takes everything in me not to slam myself into her.

  Her back arches when I'm fully seated inside her and her walls clench around me tightly. I stay there and lean down to kiss her softly. She’s looking at me with questions in her eyes as I continue to kiss my way up her cheek and pres
s my face into her neck.

  I begin to move slowly, just feeling her warmth and savouring her like this. She’s completely vulnerable and soft.

  “Vin,” she growls. “Harder.”

  “Soon.” I whisper in her ear.

  I continue my lazy strokes and reach up to thread my fingers into her long thick hair. She sucks her bottom lip into her mouth and bites down as she watches me closely. This is intimate, personal, and solidifying the bond I’ve always felt with my girl.

  This isn’t our usual, actually, I can’t think of a time where we’ve just made love. Nothing more and nothing less. Just us and the love we share. Her hands glide up between us and she grabs both of her tits, squeezing as she moans.

  This woman is testing my control right now and I’m close to failing. Her hips lift and we both groan as I begin to hit her at a different angle. Her juices are running down her thighs and gathering against my balls.

  “I love you.” She whispers and those three words send me into a frenzy.

  I pull out of her and chuckle when she growls with frustration. I flip her over onto her belly and lift her hips. Then I’m slamming into her full force, this is our usual, hard, wet, and intense.

  “That’s… all… I… had… to… say?” She says each word as I thrust.

  “Maybe.” I grin as I slip two fingers into her ass. “Now rain on your daddy.”

  It doesn’t take much after that, Em has always been reactive to my words. She screams as she throws her head back and she does indeed rain on me.

  I watch as her fluid runs down my legs and I really pound into her. The sounds of wet flesh slapping and her pussy sucking me in, has me falling over the edge with one final hard thrust.

  My fingers are still lodged in her ass and my dick deep in her pussy as I drape myself over her back.

  “I love you too. Always remember that.” I tell her.

  17

  “Did you call her? Is she packed?” I mumble as I wait in the Hummer for the rest of them to come out of the house.

  “Yes, Mr. Grumpy-pants.” Emmett mocks me as he throws a bag in the back. “I don’t want to be doing this either. Like why the fuck do we have to ride with her and the girls get to ride in Shelby?”