Forever My Home (The Aster Lake Series Book 1)

by Unknown

  There was more? Wasn’t that enough? He murdered all those people, he shot my dad.

  He watched my face and said, “Yeah, darlin’, there’s more. You ruined my fucking life by being an eyewitness!”

  I closed my eyes and tried to remember more. It was different this time. It hit me faster and I just kept seeing flashes of things.

  I saw my dad in a hospital bed.

  I saw my mom crying.

  I saw so many police officers.

  I remember drawing the red picture. Lots of pictures. They were everywhere. The same picture I saw on the man’s hand. I also drew pictures of his boots.

  I saw many people in a room.

  I remember talking to a man with a beard about what happened that day.

  I told him I was scared, and that I stayed in my special hiding spot until my daddy said to come out.

  I remember having nightmares about that night. Sometimes they were so real that I could feel the red dragon breathing fire on me; burning me while I slept. The screams of the people he shot ringing through my ears. In my nightmares, I could smell the heavy, pungent sulfur aroma of gunfire once the screams subsided. I was too scared to sleep. However, it stopped. He said my parents hypnotized me and I wondered if that was why they changed my name. Because of him.

  I forget about my pain, and let anger take over my body. “You ruined my life asshole. Shooting innocent people-”

  His pulled his hand back and slapped me across the face. I could taste the blood on my tongue again, and rolled my head back over to face him.

  “You and your testimony, all the fucking pictures you drew, would have gotten me the death penalty.”

  “If you’re going to kill me,” I muttered, “just do it already.”

  He stood, tucked the gun into the back of his pants, and pulled me up against the wall. Pulling my arms above my head, he dropped his head and licked my neck. I jerked my neck, trying to fight him off, but I had nowhere to go.

  The fucker was still hard, as he ground his hips into me, making my body burn with disgust. I struggled against his weight but his strength was overbearing and I was at his mercy.

  “Keep fighting me bitch.”

  He used one hand to hold me up, ran his other one down my chest, and pulled out my necklace. He gripped it in his hand, and pulled fast, breaking if from my neck. It happened too fast, but it was like time had stopped and played in slow motion. My lifeline. My only connection to my parents. Gone.

  I slowly slid to the floor, letting the tears flow. I cried silently as he picked up his boot and slammed his foot on my necklace. He picked it up and pulled something from the locket. He held it up, inspected it, tossed it back on the floor, and stepped on it again, grinding it into the concrete.

  My whole world crashed down. I’d never see my parents again. Rudd. Bailey. Danny. But I did treasure every moment I had.

  “Tracking device,” he muttered. “I guess we don’t have as much time as I’d like.”

  With one last burst of energy, I rolled over onto my stomach and tried to crawl away. He kicked me with his black, steel-toed boots and the force of it rolled me over to my side. I gasped and struggled to breathe. Never had I felt this kind of excruciating pain. Every muscle, every inch of my skin, pierced with pain.

  His sinister laugh dripped with venom. “I’m going to enjoy every,” he kicked me again, “fucking,” he kicked again. “moment.”

  I couldn’t breathe. It was useless at this point. I reached my hand out in one last effort, trying to reach for freedom. He stomped his boot down on it. The tiny bones crunched and pinched, and I cried out in agony. I gingerly pulled my hand to my stomach, cradling it with my other hand.

  “You can’t draw anymore fucking pictures now, bitch.” He kicked me again and I ended up on my back, staring up at the gray ceiling. The pain was so intense in my hand, that I couldn’t even feel it anymore. He straddled me at my hips, pinning me to the floor.

  “I fucking hate you!” He punched my cheek, slamming the back of my head into the floor; I tasted blood on my tongue, while black spots filled my vision. He pulled me by my hair so he could look at me.

  He was talking, but I couldn’t hear, I just saw his lips moving. It was almost a blessing, knowing I wouldn’t hear his voice as I died.

  He slammed my head on the floor again and the black spots grew larger. I rolled my head towards the window and saw my parents’ rings lying on the floor. Love. I needed that love to guide me through the end.

  As I slipped into the darkness, the last thing I saw was Bailey’s beautiful smile.

  Chapter 24

  Archer couldn’t risk a break down. Adalyn needed him. He needed to focus. He needed to find her. Nevertheless, he was the most impatient man in the world, and it had been five hours since he last seen her. Ian introduced his assistant, Layton, before they frantically started typing away on their laptops. Ian had his headphones plugged in, with music blasting his ears. He said it was the best way he could work. They were checking satellite images and shit Archer knew nothing about, while he was wearing a hole in the floor. He hated that there was nothing for him to do, it made him feel completely helpless, a feeling he chased away ever since he saw his parents’ car roll down the ravine.

  “Who the fucks in charge?!” A man’s deep voice rumbled through the station and Archer stepped out of the conference room. A man in his fifties was stalking through the station, headed right for him. Margie was following, telling him something, but Archer couldn’t make out what she said. His face was cold and hard, and he was carrying a black briefcase in one hand. He commanded everyone’s attention without asking for it.

  “I’m looking for my daughter.”

  “Adalyn?”

  “Yes. The name’s Neal. I know how to find her.” He brushed past him and walked into the conference room, Archer followed.

  He set the mangled briefcase that looked like it had seen better days down on the table. All eyes in the room popped up to his, including Ian’s. He pulled out his earbuds and him and Adalyn’s father stared at each other.

  “Is it you?” Neal asked Ian.

  “Me?”

  He jerked his head to Ian’s large silver box that held his specially made laptop, the same kind that Layton had.

  “Who’s been looking for my daughter? Asking questions? Sticking their noses where it doesn’t belong.”

  Archer stepped towards the table. “I was.” and Ian said at the same time, “We were trying to help her.”

  “Well you didn’t. He found her! The whole fucking world found her because of your careless moves.”

  “What the fuck are you talking about?” Ian asked. “I’m very good at what I do.”

  Neal huffed at his words. “Boy, I could run laps around you. Marine. Black Ops. Lawyer. I know people you only dream of meeting. I kept her safe for sixteen fucking years. And three months on her own, she’s fucking gone! You fed her right into his hands!”

  “Okay, boys!” Margie interrupted. “That’s enough. You said you could find Adalyn, so let’s go find her and deal with this shit.” She swung her arm out to the room. “This pissing match of who’s better than who can wait until later”

  Neal wasted no time. “I got a tip a few months back that Rainor was coming back into the U.S. It was a solid tip and the only one I had heard over the sixteen years we spent hiding. I did what I thought was best for my family and split us up. The tip was good, but he didn’t show up until about a week ago. I’m assuming that’s when they found her.” He opened the briefcase and tossed up a mangled laptop. “I was attacked last night. This is dead. I already knew where Adalyn was, so I took the long way to get here, just in case someone was following me.” He pulled out a small chip from his pocket and tossed it to Ian, who swiftly caught it. “I put a tracking device in her necklace when she was five. Her mom has one, too.”

  Ian glanced over it and plugged it into the laptop. “I haven’t seen this model,” Ian said typing into the laptop.<
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  “You wouldn’t, and probably never will,” Neal replied moving around the table, standing behind Ian. Archer watched and listened to the two men talk, and he looked up at Scott. He had his hand resting on his gun and jerked his head to the door. Archer walked out and waited for Scott to join him.

  “You and me, Son,” Scott told him quietly. “Don’t need a circus showing up and freaking him out.”

  Archer had a minute to think, and felt a rush of relief flood his body because they at least knew where she was. He needed her in his arms, now.

  “Let’s go,” Neal said rushing out of the conference room, forcing Scott and Archer to follow.

  “We got this handled,” Scott said when they made it outside.

  “She’s my daughter. I’ve got a permit to carry and I’m fucking going.” He walked over, jumped in his truck, and turned it on. There was no time to argue. Archer went with Neal, while Scott followed in an unmarked SUV. Neal punched the address into the GPS and they were off.

  “I’m sorry if Ian caused any trouble,” Archer finally said, breaking the silence. “It was my request. She applied to live in the apartment above my house and her credit report came back blank. No marks. She was a walking red-flag for me.”

  “I didn’t have time to make shit up.”

  “You?”

  “I’ve been a lot of places in my life. Done a lot of things. Making fake identities is easy.”

  Neal glanced at the GPS and turned down the main highway, towards St. George.

  Archer wasn’t expecting that. It hit him how much Neal devoted his life to his daughter. To protect her, to keep her safe.

  “You care for my daughter?” he asked a few minutes later.

  “I love her.”

  “Does she know?”

  Archer smiled as he stared out the window. “She’s wearing my ring.”

  “That’s all we ever wanted for her. To live her life. On her own terms. Make her own decisions. It was harder for her mom, keeping her from the world, but we had no choice. Jack Rainor Sr. and his son are people you don’t want to fuck with. Because of those fuckers, we were placed in WITSEC when Adalyn was five, had to move from Miami to New York. We all got new names.”

  Archer thought about everything he was learning about Adalyn, then asked, “What was her birth name?”

  “Becca. Becca Mayfield.”

  She didn’t look like a Becca and without a doubt, he preferred Adalyn.

  “I know about her contact.”

  He chuckled. “Figured you did if she has your ring on her finger.”

  It was enough to clear some of the tension that was floating around the cab of the truck. Archer kept seeing Adalyn in a white dress, walking down the aisle. Her belly growing big and round with their babies. Her reading to the kids at bedtime. The way her face lit up every time she looked at him. Everything with Adalyn was easy; she was so openhearted and caring. Anyone would be a fool not to fall for her.

  After about twenty minutes, they were on a dirt road off the main highway. Neal parked the truck in the ditch and shut it off. They all decided to walk down the driveway that was surrounded by trees, and overgrown weeds. They each took one side of the road, guns drawn and went to find her. An abandoned concrete building stood in front of them at the end of the driveway. Scott went to a side building to check it out, while Archer and Neal took the large one. It wouldn’t take that long to sweep the premises, or inside. Neal jerked his chin to Archer and he quietly walked towards a window by the front door and peaked inside. Archer saw nothing. He went to the door and used his foot to push it open. His gun was up and ready, as he slowly moved in, with Neal right behind him.

  There was nothing but some old crates that were along the far back wall, and a few doors leading to other rooms. Archer noticed Neal stop and turn his head, listening to something. Archer also heard what sounded like something being scraped. Metal on metal.

  They both rushed to the far back corner door, where the noise was coming from, and Rainor came running out of the room at the same time.

  “Freeze!” Archer yelled.

  Rainor froze with his hands out. “I’m not armed.”

  Archer ignored him. “Where is she?”

  “I’m not armed. You can’t shoot an unarmed man.”

  “Where the fuck is she!” he roared.

  “I’m not armed.”

  “I’m sure you are asshole, and I don’t care. I’ll shoot you either way.” Archer took a step towards him, gun shoved in his face. “Last chance asshole, or I shoot. Where is she?”

  He stared right into Archer’s eyes and smirked. “Dead.” he said, his face and tone held a certain amount of pride.

  Archer wasn’t lying. He aimed his gun and shot.

  Rainor grabbed his arm, falling on his knees. “You motherfucker!”

  “I’ve got this,’ Neal said pushing his gun to Rainor’s head. “Go find her.”

  Archer walked passed him and he called out, “Don’t bother, she’s dead!”

  “Remember me, asshole.” He heard Neal say as Archer walked through the door that held a long and narrow hallway.

  “Fuck off!” Rainor’s words echoed down the hallway, and then he heard Neal’s. “I have no time for time. You ruined my daughter’s life.” There was a pause and then he heard Neal laugh. “Nice gun.” Then a gunshot rang down the hallway. Archer kept his gun up, saw the door at the end of the hallway, and ran.

  There she was.

  His angel.

  Unconscious.

  Eyes rolled back into her head as he tucked the gun back into his holster and check for a pulse.

  No pulse.

  “God damn it!”

  Archer started chest compressions. “Come on baby, breathe,” he urged her. “Wake up.”

  A few seconds later, Neal dropped to his knees of the other side of his daughter. “Come on, Becca. It’s not your time.”

  Scott rushed into the room, but left to make the 911 call.

  Archer tried again to breathe life into her. Neal was right. It wasn’t her time. They had just found each other. They had just started their family together.

  She was the one.

  His true love.

  “Do you have a pulse?” he asked Neal and he shook his head. “No.”

  Chapter 25

  Two Days Later…

  “I miss her, Madi,” Archer said softly, dropping his head into his hands.

  “We all do, Archer.”

  The last two days had been hell for Archer. It was challenging him. He was trying to deal with the situation the best he could, at the same time trying to keep it together for Bailey and Danny.

  He was lost without Adalyn. Every one missed her. The whole town had sent flowers and cards to the house, offering their prayers and support.

  He wasn’t eating. He wasn’t sleeping. Every minute that passed was another minute without her. He wasn’t able to protect her.

  He failed.

  He wanted her back.

  He stood, pushing the chair back away from the bed.

  “That’s my world,” Archer pointed to Adalyn lying in the hospital bed, “that’s my heaven. I barely had her, and now look at her. I don’t even recognize her.” He ran his fingers through his hair and looked at Adalyn again. “She died twice, Madi. Fuck. I can’t lose her. The kids and I need her.”

  Madi looked at her best friend. She didn’t recognize her either. White gauze swaddled her head and her eyes were swollen shut. There was a cast on her hand and she had a tube in her mouth helping her breathe. “She’ll come back to us,” Madi said full of hope.

  Traumatic Brain Injury.

  Adalyn’s emergency surgery happened immediately once she arrived to the city hospital via medivac. Archer’s CPR brought life back into her lungs, but during the life flight, the paramedic used the defibrillator to bring her back a second time.

  The surgery lasted ten hours, and she was now in the ICU, in a medically induced coma. The severe trauma t
o Adalyn’s head caused massive swelling of her brain. The doctors needed to keep her in the coma until the swelling decreased.

  The hospital room was small, just enough room her bed, two chairs, and the machines she was hooked up to. Archer pulled his chair back to the side of the bed, and grabbed her good hand. “She’s an angel,” Archer said so softly Madi almost didn't hear him. "She showed up out of nowhere. No one moves here in over ten years, and poof, here she was, in our small town out in the middle of nowhere. Within minutes of her being in the diner, you were in her booth. Instantly you were hooked. We all were. It’s fucking incredible the way she makes you feel. Everyone loves her. Respects her. It was like we needed her and didn’t even know it.” Archer rubbed his thumb over her ring finger, and played with it while he continued to talk.

  “When it came to Bailey and Danny, she was there. She didn’t question herself or the situation. She just did it. She knew they needed her and she gave them what they needed. It's her, Madi. That's who she is. She never bitched about anything, I know she had her concerns and I know you girls talked about it, but still, she just did it. She never asked for anything in return. She trusted us, all of us, unconditionally. She was so innocent. Loyal. Honest. She was always smiling. God, she was always so happy. She gave, gave, and gave some more. Always giving. That’s why she’s an angel, she’s our Heaven on Earth,” he paused and looked over at Madi, who was silently crying. “She trusted me and I wasn't there for her. I wasn't there for her, Madi. I should have been. I should have been able to protect her.” Archer stood, keeping his eyes on Adalyn. “Now look,” he threw his hand to her bed, “she just wanted to feel safe. I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t fucking protect her!”

  Archer felt like the rage inside of him was burning a hole and that he’d explode at any moment. The pressure of the unknown the last two days was building up and he had to let some of it out. He always liked cutting wood when he needed to escape and think. But there was no way he was going to leave this room.