Broken Rock

by K. A. Finn

  ‘Get the fuck off me!’

  Tate pushes down harder. ‘I told you I’d fucking kill you.’ At this stage he really couldn’t care if he kills Dara. His cousin’s face turns a strange colour and Dara’s protests die away as he loses consciousness. Common sense breaks through and he eases up on the pressure.

  Tate roughly turns Dara over and searches his pockets. Keys to the padlocks would be perfect but he’d settle for a phone.

  No keys. He must have left them in the kitchen. ‘C’mon fucker. Where’s your phone?’ He shoves Dara against the wall and tries the other pocket. ‘Bingo.’ As well as Dara’s phone he also finds his. He powers up his phone, silently praying there’s some battery left. The screen lights up and he’s in luck. Fifty-percent charge left.

  His first instinct is to call Chloe but he talks himself out of it. The least she knows about any of this the better, so he calls Gregg.

  ‘Tate! What the fuck? You’ve got an hour before you’re due in court. What the fuck are you playing at?’

  ‘Long story, but I was taken by my cousin, Dara. He’s got me chained up. He’s been the one fucking with me, Gregg. I knocked him out but I can’t find his keys and if I’m here with him much longer I’m going to kill the bastard.’

  ‘Back up. He’s got you what?’

  ‘I’m chained to a fucking bed in my nan’s old place.’

  ‘Fuck. Okay, Sit tight. I’m already on the way. Your truck was last spotted on a camera a few miles from there yesterday, so I was heading that way to check it out. Just don’t kill him until I get there. Are you okay?’

  ‘No. Gregg, he gave me...’ Tate looks over at the syringe lying within reach. ‘I’ve had a fix, Gregg. He gave it to me. And there’s more of it. It’s on the floor. I can reach it so I need you to distract me cause I really fucking want it.’

  Gregg stays quiet for a minute then Chloe comes on the phone. ‘Hey.’

  He turns on his side to face the window and Dara. Even though he was hoping to keep her away from this, hearing her voice is just what he needs right now. ‘Hey. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have—’

  ‘So I was thinking about what we could do the next nice weekend. I thought we could have another picnic at Grace’s summer house.’

  He nods to the empty room. He knows what she’s doing. ‘Yeah. That would be nice.’

  ‘We could go for an evening picnic instead. Maybe build a campfire and lie back watching the stars. Do you like toasted marshmallows?’

  Tate rocks himself on the bed and tries to imagine himself there with Chloe. ‘Yeah. I do.’

  ‘Okay, so we’ll go all out with the marshmallows. Then we can curl up together under a blanket.’

  ‘For the love of God do not expand on that,’ Greggs shouts from somewhere in the background. ‘I’m trying not to crash.’

  ‘I’m not talking to you so shush,’ Chloe says. ‘Anyway, like I was saying, we could finish what we started last time we were there.’

  ‘Without the fight.’

  She laughs and he smiles to himself. ‘Yes, without the fight. I might even let you give me a lesson on your bike.’

  He buries his head under his arm and nods, forgetting that she can’t she see him.

  ‘Tate? Tate. Are you still there?’

  ‘Yeah. Where are you?’

  ‘Where are we, Gregg?’

  ‘Five minutes, buddy,’ Gregg shouts into the phone.

  Tate groans to himself. The way he feels right now that’s a fucking lifetime. He’s vaguely aware of Chloe and Gregg arguing then hears one of Broken’s songs being played.

  ‘Tate? You remember this song.’

  He smiles. ‘Yeah.’

  ‘I want you to close your eyes and put yourself in your kitchen. You walked in from work and caught me dancing badly and singing even more terribly to this song. This is the first song you ever sang to me. You remember what you were doing while you were singing?’

  ‘Can’t forget that.’

  ‘Just keep thinking about that, Tate. We’ll be with you before the song is over, okay.’

  He squeezes his eyes shut and tries to do what she’s asking, but he’s struggling to keep the images straight in his head. He drops the phone onto the bed beside him, the tiny sound of his song still playing though the phone’s speakers. One more verse then the chorus again.

  He just needs to hang on a little longer.

  31

  ‘What the fuck is going on here?’

  Chloe walks around Tate and joins the others in his living room. If first impressions are anything to go by, Tate is less than happy about the ambush, but he doesn’t have a choice. They had found him barely conscious chained to a bed a mere six hours ago. No amount of arguing or pleading had convinced him to stay in hospital for observation.

  Apart from a few cuts and bruises, he wasn’t too badly injured so there was no reason to keep him there as much as Chloe would have liked. He looks absolutely terrible. He’s far too pale and can barely hold himself upright.

  Then again, it was probably a good idea to get him as far from Dara as possible. His cousin was currently secured to a hospital bed waiting to have his nose reset. Tate had done an impressive job demolishing it. It’s less than he deserved.

  Chloe takes a deep breath and faces him. ‘Okay, so we’ve all been talking.’

  ‘Is that right? I’m guessing about me.’

  Dillon crosses his arms and stares over at him from the couch. ‘Hey, shut up and listen to her.’

  ‘We’re all moving in with you. Just until you’ve over this.’

  ‘What? You mean like fucking babysitters?’

  Gregg snorts loudly. ‘No, you dick. Not like babysitters. We’re going to get you through this as a family. Cause despite your monumental efforts to keep us out of your problems, we are your family and there isn’t a hope in hell you can push us away. So, like Chloe said, we’re all moving into your place. We’ll eat and watch embarrassing 80’s action films. You’re going to rest when you can, then we’ll work out together, go for a walk, go for a drive, take the bikes out, whatever we have to do to keep you distracted. Then, when you’re up for it, we’re going to finish the damn album and get it out there.’

  Chloe holds her breath as she watches Tate’s face. There’s no doubt he’s tempted to tell them all where to go, but the fact he hasn’t said it in as many words is a definite plus. For the last few hours he’s been in a foul mood. If he wasn’t biting someone’s head off he was glowering, and both were equally effective. She knows it’s all part of the aftereffects of what Dara gave him and the fact he was craving more, but that didn’t make him any easier to deal with.

  Tate eventually sighs and nods. ‘I’m not going to be fun to live with.’

  ‘When are you ever?’ Luke asks, smiling to soften his words. ‘We want to do this. So, you going to let us?’

  ‘Do I have a choice?’

  Gregg shakes his head. ‘Nope.’

  ‘Guess there’s no point arguing then.’

  ∞

  Tate wakes suddenly and takes a few seconds to realise he’s in his room in his house. He slowly looks to his left and relaxes when he sees Chloe asleep beside him. It’s hard to believe he started this day chained to a bed in a derelict house and now he’s back in his own house with Chloe. Strangest fucking few days of his life.

  He slowly rolls out of bed and creeps into the bathroom, closing the door quietly so he doesn’t wake her. Physically he’s going to be fine which is a relief considering how crap he feels. The two impressive bruises colouring his stomach and his side hurt, the lesions surrounding each wrist are itchy, and the bruise on his cheek complains when he moves his jaw. The worst of the lot is the angry red trail of irritation the length of his arm thanks to the tape Dara used to secure the IV. Removing that had been worse than all the punches combined.

  He sits on the edge of the bath and clasps his hands together. He’s restless and it’s doing his head in. Just part of the other issu
e Dara left him with.

  Chloe crouches down in front of him, scaring the hell out of him.

  ‘Sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you.’

  ‘I was miles away. Didn’t hear you come in. Did I wake you?’

  ‘No. You can’t sit on the bath all night. Come back to bed.’ She stands up and holds out her hand. Tate takes it and allows her to lead him back to the bedroom.

  He turns on the bedside light and looks over at her as she lies down beside him. ‘Are you okay?’

  She smiles at him and squeezes his hand. ‘Me? I’m fine.’

  ‘You don’t look fine.’ He tries to wrap his arms around her but she sits up and swings her legs out of the bed.

  ‘Do you want something to eat?’

  ‘Why haven’t you asked me about it?’

  Tate can see her shoulders tensing at his question. He knew she was avoiding the whole Dara and drugs situation.

  ‘Asked you about what?’

  ‘Oh come on. You seriously expect me to buy that? Everyone wants me to be honest and talk and open up and bare my soul to the world. Is it too much to ask for a little honesty in return?’

  She turns to face him and leans back against the headboard. ‘I’m scared, okay. I have no idea how bad this is going to get.’

  ‘You mean me?’

  She nods and looks down at the end of the bed. ‘Gregg and the guys... they saw a part of what you went through the first time. I’m going into this blind.’

  ‘This isn’t anything like the last time. If it was, I wouldn’t be able to deal with it at home.’

  She finally meets his eyes. ‘Do you want more? I mean do you want to use again?’

  ‘Yes, but that’ll ease. That’s why the guys have all this stuff planned. It’s not a constant feeling but when it hits it’s the only thing I can think about. The last time doing things like working out helped keep my mind off it.’

  ‘On a scale of one to ten, how bad is the craving when it hits?’

  ‘It’s a strong nine.’

  Her face drops and, not for the first time, he feels shite for bringing her into this nightmare.

  ‘Oh. Do you really think you can get through this without rehab?’

  ‘Yes. With the support I have, I’ll be over the worst of it in a week or so, fingers crossed. I will absolutely understand if you want to keep away for the moment.’ He laughs to himself as another thought hits. ‘Or keep away for good. Fuck knows I wouldn’t blame you.’

  ‘I want to be here for you.’

  ‘You really sure? I’ve been told I’m a moody, awkward, difficult patient.’

  Chloe laughs and some of the weight lifts from his shoulders. It seems like a lifetime since he’s heard her laugh. He hadn’t given her much to laugh about lately.

  ‘Yes, your mum did mention something along those lines. Actually, I’m fairly sure she used those exact words.’

  ‘Cheers, Mum. I think I’d prefer if you two didn’t talk.’

  ‘Too late for that I’m afraid. I’m having lunch with your mum and Bria next week.’

  As much as the thought of them meeting to have a chat fills him with dread, having the three women in his life getting on can’t be a bad thing. The fact his mum wants to socialise with Chloe is a big deal.

  ‘That sounds like something I should be worried about.’

  She smirks at him which does nothing to put him at ease.

  He runs his hand up her arm as he tries to get the next bit out without fumbling. ‘I’m going to sit down with everyone tomorrow. I need to be honest about... everything I guess.’

  Chloe pushes back to look up at him. ‘You are? Are you sure you’re ready?’

  ‘Probably not but putting it off isn’t going to help. The press are going to be all over this. Without meaning to sound like a prize dick – you can’t kidnap someone like me without someone hearing about it. Even if it’s somehow downplayed to... I don’t know, a family squabble or something like that, it’s still going to come back on all of us. Then there’s the whole possession charge to deal with. It’s only fair everyone close to me knows what really happened.

  ‘Mum, Dad, and Bria are coming over first thing. I need to get things straight in my head. About Dara and the paperwork he sent me. Can you be there too?’

  Chloe squeezes his hand. ‘Of course. Whatever you need.’

  ‘Thanks.’ He kisses her on the forehead and pulls her against him again. ‘Go back to sleep.’

  Tate stares at the ceiling as Chloe snuggles in beside him and falls back asleep. More fun and games tomorrow, but it’s the right thing to do. The problem is he’d prefer to go another few rounds with Dara than talk to any of them about his past.

  ∞

  Tate waits until everyone is sitting down before he joins them in the living room. He’d prefer to do pretty much anything than what he’s got planned but it has to happen. After everything he’s put them through the least he can do is tell them the truth face to face.

  He sits on the armchair next to the fireplace and leans forward, resting his arms on his legs. He turns the ring on his thumb as he gets his thoughts in order.

  The last hour had been spent with his family and Chloe talking about what he was going to say but his thoughts are still all over the place. After a few minutes he finally convinces himself to look up.

  Chloe, Gregg, Dillon, and Luke are on the couch and the other armchair facing him. It’s unusual for them to be so quiet. It’s probably the longest Gregg has gone without making a smart comment.

  Fuck it. Better get this over with before he changes his mind. ‘My biological father used to hit me and my mother. Scrap that. He used to beat the shit out of us. I don’t remember a lot of it thank fuck. What I do remember is pushing him too far one day. I don’t know what I did, but I know I did something I shouldn’t have. I tried to apologise, but he wasn’t having any of it. My mother got in between the two of us, but he just turned on her instead.

  ‘When I came to, she was beside me on the floor.’ He frowns and twists the ring on his thumb again. ‘I tried to get her to wake up, but she wouldn’t. He’d killed her.

  He keeps his eyes on his hands and ploughs on, ignoring the quiet curse from one of the guys. If he stops talking, he doubts he’ll be able to convince himself to keep going.

  ‘That’s all I remember about either of them. Mum and Dad were able to find out other bits for me from my assessments and Gregg’s mates were able to help out with some other information. Apparently, my father is serving life for murdering her. He was caught a few days after he killed her. Some neighbours called the Garda when he ran out of the house covered in blood and I was taken to hospital. I had a few broken bones and a concussion.’

  He glances over at Gregg and his friend flashes him a small smile. ‘From what the doctors could tell I had a fair few old injuries. They also reported that he...’ he falters again. He just can’t get himself to say it. ‘He hadn’t just stuck to hitting me. They think he might have... I don’t remember if he did do that...’

  ‘It’s okay, buddy,’ Luke says. Tate looks up at him, a little surprised at the anger on his friend’s face. Better than pity. Luke shakes his head. ‘You don’t have to say it.’

  Tate nods and goes back to concentrating on his ring. ‘I went into foster care when I was better. According to the assessments we could find, I didn’t say a lot for a few weeks. When I did start talking again, I didn’t say anything about what happened. Never did. A year later I was adopted and that was the end of it. I didn’t remember anything, so it wasn’t brought up again.

  ‘Then last year Dara’s dad bought my grandparent’s old place. Mum had stored some stuff there when they were renovating the farm a few years back. She must have forgotten to get all the boxes back. Dara found one of them and unfortunately for me, it had all my adoption paperwork in it, including some of the assessments.

  He’s a damn good lawyer. It didn’t take him long to do a bit of digging and join the dots. When
I got that first photo from him it triggered my memories, I guess. I got bad nightmares and couldn’t deal with them. I drank and then I called Eddie and... well, you know the rest.

  ‘I don’t know if more memories are going to come back to me or if this is it. I’m hoping this is the end of it, but after everything that’s happened who the fuck knows. I’m going to talk to Ellen in a bit and fill her in too. There’s no way to keep this under wraps as much as I’d like to. Dara is being charged with kidnapping among other things.

  ‘Kidnapping me will keep him in the headlines for a bit. Me too unfortunately. Unless Ellen can work some impressive magic, it’s only a matter of time before what my father did comes out. Bar my family, the four of you are the most important people in my life. I wanted you to know before the shit hits the fan.’

  He smiles awkwardly to himself, still unable to look away from his ring which he’s still twisting around his thumb.

  Dillon crouches down in front of him, pulling him out of his thoughts. ‘I think we should take the bikes out for a spin.’

  Tate wishes he could put into words how fucking grateful he is. He needed to tell them what happened, but that didn’t mean he wanted to have a discussion about it afterwards. If they had looked at him differently it would have killed him. ‘Sounds great.’

  Dillon gets up and goes into the spare room. He wheels Tate’s bike out as Luke grabs their helmets off the counter. ‘Get your gear and meet us outside when you’re ready.’

  Gregg drapes his arm around Tate’s shoulder as they watch Dillon push his bike out the patio doors. ‘You good?’

  ‘Yeah. Glad to get it all out.’

  ‘Things can only get better from here buddy. You’ll see.’ He playfully punches Tate in the stomach before he walks into the kitchen. ‘Chloe, I’ll bring you to the deli when this lot have fucked off. We can get lunch ready. I’m bloody starving.’

  Tate drops down onto the couch beside Chloe and blows out a long breath. It feels like an immense weight had been lifted from his shoulders. The last few days have taken it out of him, but he feels a hell of a lot better than he has for a long time.