by Dawn Martens
She says nothing, just nods.
Zippo meets us on his front step, looking like a mix between anger and upset. “What’s going on?”
“My mother was here,” he spits out. “Caused her usual drama. She took one look at Cori, and shit just hit the fan.”
I narrow my eyes at him. “And?”
“She said that Cori is Sam’s daughter.”
“What the fuck?” I know Sam, not well, but I know him through the guys. He’s always seemed like a good man—a flighty man, but good. I also know he recently divorced from Angel’s mother.
“Cori locked herself in the guest room. We can’t get in, and she won’t come out. Lilly’s on the phone with her dad right now. He’s saying he’ll be down this evening. Melissa took the kids out. She’s over with Moira and Eden. Angel and Reaper will be here soon.”
“I’ll go try to get in,” Chelsea says, stepping around us.
“If this is true, how did no one know?”
“That’s exactly what Cori said. I don’t even fuckin’ know how we missed this. All those years together, with her and Melissa, and just now, everything is coming out that we knew their fathers. Fathers that would have made sure those girls were taken care of.”
“I’ve been around Lilly many times, though, even Sam, and I never put it together myself.” I rub the back of my neck, feeling frustrated.
The sound of bikes coming down the street gives me some relief.
Angel and Reaper get off their bikes, and both look a bit angry. “I’ll fuckin’ kill her for doing this,” Reaper growls out to Zippo.
“Get in line, brother,” Angel says.
“Let’s move this inside, try to talk to Cori. Right now, she’s angry, thinks we knew. She was crying in the room, screaming at us from in there, saying how we let her rot in that house. Fuck,” Zippo says.
Fuck is right. After all the shit Cori has been through with her mother, this has to be shredding her.
Chapter 34
Cori
Everyone finally gets me out of the room, but I don’t look at any of them. I know they keep saying they didn’t know, but how could they not? I don’t get it.
Blake is here. I see him the second I hit the living room and go to him instantly, settling on his lap, my face in his neck. I feel so safe and secure in his arms, like nothing bad will ever touch me when I am with him. He is a good guy. I just wish I knew why he was being so weird the other day.
“Babe, it will be okay.”
Blake leans away from me to whisper something to Chelsea. She nods and goes to Vinny. He does that stupid chin lift that drives me nuts when men do it, and takes off with her.
“Where are they going?” I ask.
“Just getting something to eat.” He shifts me a bit and looks at me, holding my face in his hands. “You wanna tell me why you didn’t tell me you were coming here for the weekend?” he asks.
I chew my bottom lip. “I just wanted a little time away,” I explain quietly.
“Could have had that, too. I just didn’t like that I didn’t hear from you. Didn’t know where you were. Pissed me off.”
“Sorry, Blake.”
He kisses my forehead as a response.
“Where’s Melly?” I ask Lilly.
“The second she heard Vinny’s mom, she took the girls into their room, and once she left and you locked yourself away, she went over to hang with Eden and Moira,” she answers.
“I’m sorry for snapping at you, Lilly,” I apologize, feeling like a jerk for my reaction. It took me off guard. I wasn’t expecting to hear those words. Blake tenses, and he gives me a soft squeeze.
She shakes her head. “Nothing to be sorry for. I’m just so damn sorry I never saw it. God, Cori, if I had known, you never would have went through that shit. Ever. I would have taken you in, even took Melissa, too. I would have done everything I could have.”
“I know,” I tell her, my eyes welling up with tears. Lilly would have been the best sister ever. She has always been so good with Melly and me. But I don’t want to dwell on what might have been. The past can’t be changed.
We all talk a bit. Jasper and Mason both still look extremely tense when Chelsea and Vinny come back, arms loaded up with tons of takeout bags from Dairy Queen.
“Oh, what did you get?” I ask excitedly.
Vinny winks at me and pulls out a basket of poutine.
“Oh, God, have I told you I loved you lately?”
“Yeah, Cori, but I still like to hear it,” he teases, giving me a smile.
“Can you eat all that?” Blake asks me.
“Uh, no, not even close, but it doesn’t mean I don’t try.” A basket of poutine can easily feed two to three people, but I always get it. He grabs a fork and digs into the basket with me.
Doesn’t take long for everyone to finish eating, and then there is a knock on the door. “That’s probably Dad,” Lilly announces, getting up to open the door. Her face is pale. I think she is uneasy.
I get nervous. I always thought Lilly looked like her mom; maybe that’s why no one really put it together that we could be related. Sam walks in the room, looking around hesitantly, until finally, his eyes land on me. He flinches, staggering a bit.
He runs a hand over his face, and I look at him, really look at him. My eyes, my hair color, my chin... Good God.
“What’s your name?” he asks me, coming closer.
“Corinne Treyton,” I tell him.
“That whore,” he curses, looking away.
Blake gets up, leaving me sitting on the couch with Lilly, her arms wrapped around me. Blake walks over to the guys and Chelsea, giving us a slight bit of privacy, but not much.
Sam grabs the chair across the room and drags it over, sitting down directly in front of Lilly and I.
“Your mother, her name?”
“Luanne.”
“I was with her twenty-three years ago. I wasn’t the greatest man back then. I was only with her twice. Hell, the condom even broke the last time with her, and she promised nothing would come of it. I should have checked in, anyways. I didn’t.”
“So it’s true?” Lilly asks.
“Truth is, I was with her mother twice. We won’t know anything for sure without a DNA test, but looking at her, Lil, it’s right there. She looks just like Gramma Patty when she was younger,” he admits, resolved in the truth of our shared eyes.
Lilly’s arms convulse around me.
“I’m sorry, Corinne. If I had known… Fuck. When the boys got you out of that shithole, I was their lawyer on the case. I didn’t even think of anything except helping them get you and your sister out.”
“You didn’t know,” I assure him.
“It doesn’t matter,” he snaps. “I was a shitty ass father to both my girls. What kind of man does that make me? Thirty-three years later, and I’m still a shitty ass father.”
“Daddy,” Lilly whispers, clutching his hand.
“I throw money at you four times a year, bought you this house. Anything you wanted, I gave it. I just didn’t give you me. Done that shit for years. I wasn’t a father, Lilly, and you know it. Then I find out, after twenty-three years, that I have another one. The hell she grew up in, I let that shit happen. This shit is on me.”
BLAKE
Taking in the scene on the couch, I watch Cori and Lilly cry together, Sam losing it. I want to go over, but right now, they need this.
Angel, Reaper, Chelsea, and Zippo are all just standing around with me, watching them and taking it all in.
“You remember Phil?” Sam asks Lilly.
“Yeah, the Lawyer Hilary was working with here in town.” She scrunches her brows, appearing confused for a moment.
“He wants to retire. I’m taking over. I’m moving back to town,” he clarifies. “I know, Corinne, that you don’t live here, but you aren’t much further away. I want to prove I can be a better father, a good father, learn about you girls, really actually do this father thing right. I know it’s t
hirty-three and twenty-three years too late, but I need to do this.”
“But, Dad, what about your practise?” Lilly asks.
“When Jasper’s mom left me, saying I was too devoted to my work and that I was ruthless, I took a look at my life, and the other partners bought me out. I fucked shit up with Vincent’s mom.” Zippo gets tense at the mention of his mother. “I fucked everything up with Ann. Should have put a ring on her finger, but I didn’t want that life back then.”
I watch Lilly react to what he’s saying. “Wait a minute,” she says, gleaming, her eyes lighting up. “Are you saying you love Mom? And you want her?”
“It’s doubtful that will happen, Lilly. It’s been too long.”
“Yeah, but maybe she’d stop hooking up with losers,” Lilly mutters. Sam goes stiff at the mention of Ann with other men.
“The point is, I need to be here. This is where my family is, my kids and my grandkids, so this is where I need to be,” he states.
“Okay, Dad.”
“Everyone calls me Cori. Corinne is such an old fashioned name,” my girl declares. I smile, knowing he just got the green light to go ahead and get to know her.
Maybe this is something that Cori needs to help her to open up. Maybe she can finally break free from her past and her mother.
Chapter 35
Cori
A week passes, and everything is back to normal. Finding out about my father was hard. Learning Lilly is my sister, though, that was the best part of it all. Although, it was rough. Blake and Chelsea, along with Melissa, ended up going home, and I spent the rest of the night and all day Sunday with Lilly. And we just talked. She shared with me about growing up with a father like Sam. Told me I didn’t really miss much. But she was upset because she felt that she could have saved me from my hell.
I texted Blake last night, letting him know I would be late today, since I’m going with Melissa to her ultrasound appointment. Melissa keeps getting calls and texts from Monster but refuses to talk with him. She’s still pissed about him dismissing her after she finally screwed him, and then him being a dick when she told him she was pregnant.
But now, I think she’s taking it too far, so behind her back, I texted him and told him about the appointment today. He said he’ll be there, so we’ll see how Melissa handles it.
Sitting in the waiting room, Melissa starts complaining. “I have to pee so badly.”
“Just wait. You’ll be in soon.”
I spot Monster walking into the office, and I quickly look to Melissa, who is reading her magazine. “Um, Melissa,” I say hesitantly. I am not sure how she is going to react. She needs to see if he can be the man she needs. She owes it to her baby to give him a chance. People make mistakes all the time, but it doesn’t mean they will always be that way. I would have never dreamt Blake and I would have actually gotten together like we have.
“Yeah,” she answers, not looking up.
“Um, Dray is here.”
“What?” she says, looking up, and her eyes find him. “Shit. How did he know?”
“I’m sorry, Melissa, but I told him. He’s the father. He should be here,” I tell her gently.
“It’s fine. It will be fine. Whatever,” she concedes, still staring at Dray.
“Cori. Melissa,” Dray cautions, finally coming to us.
I give him a small smile, and he takes the seat next to Melissa. “I’m sorry for being a dick, Melissa,” he apologizes honestly. “I want to be here for you, the baby. For us,” he claims, sounding hopeful.
I can’t see Melissa’s face, but I think she’s crying because Dray’s big hand moves to her face, wiping at it.
“I want us to be together. I want to try. Please, let me make it up to you?”
“Okay,” Melissa whispers tearfully.
Dray is holding her hand tight, like he never wants to let go. So sweet. I hope I don’t have to kill him someday. I do like him, even if he is an ass. He comes off all tough and big, but deep down, the guy is a soft teddy bear. I saw him once downtown, holding an old lady’s hand as he helped her cross the street. No badass would ever do that.
Seems like drama is over. Minutes later, Melissa is called back into the room. Hopefully, we’ll be able to find out what she’s having.
BLAKE
Adam barges into my office with a huge grin. “What’s up?”
“Bad news first. Untamed Angels and Cop Mercer’s dealings have nothing to do with our case. Something different. We don’t need to know that shit. So the bad news is, we have no idea how these idiots keep getting away with shit. Good news is, we were able to shut them down!”
“Are you serious? Finally!” I say happily.
“More good news is, all of the old foster children are speaking out against them. Angels Warriors, along with a few officers, arrested the couple this morning. Judge set bail, and an hour later, the brother bonded them out. So the bad news is, they are back on the street until the New Year, which is when this shit goes to trial. But still good news, they can’t hurt any more kids.”
“Fuck, man, this is awesome.”
Sort of. The guys still need to finish up searching for stuff concerning Cori. That part of the case won’t be closed until something comes up.
I hear the ding of the elevator, and Cori steps out with a huge grin on her face. “Why are you so happy?” she asks.
“Closed a hard case today is all. What about you?” I ask, seeing her eyes shining bright.
“Melissa is having a girl! Oh, and Dray got his head out of his ass, and they are working at being together! Best day ever, it seems,” she declares.
She doesn’t even know how her words ring true. It’s better than she could probably dream of.
I smile at her. I want to tell her the news about today, but I’m reminded about how much her life was shit when she lived in that home, so I put it aside.
I pull her to me and kiss her, hard.
“That’s amazing. Congrats to Melissa.” I smile at her.
“Yeah, it’s great. I can’t wait to buy her all the most annoying toys in the world. Although, it’s gonna be weird having a baby around the house. I already told Melissa I’ll never change a diaper.” I smirk at her.
I go to tell her she’ll be an amazing mother one day when Adam comes into the office.
“Hey, need you in the conference room. Marcy just had a kid come in for his shots, and suspicious bruising was on his arms. She wants you to take a look and talk to the kid while I talk to the parents.”
Cori stills in my arms.
I sigh and kiss Cori on the forehead. “Can you grab the recorder? I’ll need you to record everything while I talk to the kid.”
She nods and follows me out.
Chapter 36
Cori
Listening to the little boy the other day, while he talked about what life was like at home, was hard. Blake’s face was angry, but he had to wash it away for the kid. He whispered to me and told me to call the police. Work was not boring that day. Adam was even punched in the face by the kid’s father. Both parents were arrested, and Johnny, the boy, was placed with a good family, a family that Blake and Adam approved of. I hope those two never get out of prison.
I’m in the kitchen, getting some baking done for the bake sale coming up next week, when someone starts pounding on my door. I’m not the greatest baker, but I can do the few things Melissa asked me to make. I put the mixing bowl down and wipe my hands.
Peeking through the peephole, I’m stunned. I don’t want to answer it. On the other side of this door is my mother. I grab my phone quickly, texting Jasper.
She’s here. - C
Do not open that door, Cori. - J
I have to. She’s still banging. - C
Let her do it. I just called Blake. He’ll be there soon. – J
I’m opening the door now. – C
Do.Not.Open.That.Door. – J
I toss my phone to the couch and open it, facing her.
“Mom
,” I say.
She sneers at me, looking me over. “’Bout time you answered.”
“I was busy. Sorry.”
She walks in and looks around my place. “Fancy. Looks like you have money now.”
“Not really, I work as an assistant.”
“Yeah, word is you help out on cases concerning little brats like you were.”
My phone pings nonstop with incoming texts. Mom just stares at me. She looks and smells as if she hasn’t showered in days. She’s fat. How is she fat? All she does is drugs and drink. I don’t get it. Maybe the drugs make her get the munchies? Her light blonde hair is still natural, but I notice she has bald spots on her scalp.
“What are you doing here?”
“I came to see my kids. Why else would I be here?”
“You don’t even like us,” I state the obvious.
“Got that right, but you’re my kids,” she says with a shrug.
“Why didn’t you ever tell us about who our dads were?” I ask her, really needing to know this.
“They aren’t worth shit. That’s why.”
“Did you know Melissa’s dad is the president of the Untamed Angels?”
Her face pales, shock written all over her. “No, that’s not true. His name was Carson.”
“So you knew. And, yeah, Carson, that’s him. Goes by Hangman now.”
“Does he know?” she asks urgently.
“No, but everyone else does, so I bet he’ll find out soon. I also found out who my father is, and that I have another sister.”
“Let’s go back to Melissa’s father,” she says, panicking. “If he finds out, he’ll kill me.”
I brush her off, because from what I’ve heard, there is a big chance that will happen. “No, let’s get to mine. I’m sure Hangman, or Carson, will deal with you eventually.” Her face pales, and she quickly washes it away with a scowl.
“Your father was scum. He was nothing.”
“He’s actually the best damn lawyer in the country, so I beg to differ,” I tell her. She looks at me in shock again. I’m not sure if it’s because I’m somewhat standing up to her, or because she realizes that Melissa and I both know who our fathers are.