by Unknown
I felt a cold breath by my ear and I could hear Whitney in my mind, “We saved her! We saved her!”
“Thank you for the clothes, Siobhan, and for saving me.”
“We need to dye your hair, and I got make-up. It should cover some of your bruises. We should get on the road."
"You said we were going home... where exactly is home?"
"It's a small part of Manatee County, Florida. It's called Parrish. My family lives on a small farm and we grow strawberries and other fruits and vegetables. My parents let the local elementary schools come out and show the kids about picking fruit. It's an annual field trip. We do hayrides and that kind of stuff and before you ask, yes, we have Wi-Fi and running water and bathrooms.”
“See, I wasn't gonna say that,I was gonna say how nice that sounds and how I hope your parents don't mind.”
“Speaking of, let me call them. Momma, I'm coming home and I'm bringing a friend. No momma, Easton isn't coming. If he calls you, please don't let him know you heard from me. I'm bringing a girl named Stella. She needs us mom in a bad way. Yes, momma. Ok, I will. No, I'm driving; it's not safe for her to fly. Yes mom, I have both of my guns and my stun gun. Yes, mom. Ok, I will call you when we stop.
“Stella, my name isn't Siobhan Gallagher. It's Kennedy Brennan.”
Stella nodded in understanding, no other words were needed. We got ourselves together and headed out.
Chapter 13
On the drive, I kept my Siobhan suit on. It had become like the Venom suit on Peter Parker; what at first gave me so much power ultimately also came with a lot of consequences. The drive to Kansas City was long and hard, but I felt like I had finally put enough space between myself and Denver. Who the fuck was I kidding? I put as many miles as I could between Easton Kerrigan and my broken heart and wounded pride. After some rest and a relaxing soak, it was on to Clarksville.
Being on the road four days has been exhausting. I just had to make it to Atlanta, and then we would rest for a few days. I had never been one for pampering, but I needed a massage and Stella needed some real clothes. Sweat in Florida during the summer was just ridiculous. After making reservations for a fancy spa and hotel in Atlanta, we went to bed. Driving to Atlanta was a breeze because we knew what was waiting for us at the end. Checking into the luxury hotel and dropping our bags, we headed toward the high-end boutiques.
“Ummm, actually, can we go somewhere normal? I would like a pair of jeans. I've never owned a pair! My dad wouldn't allow me to wear pants and flip-flops! I've never had flip flops!”
Turning to Stella I said, “You have twenty million dollars and you never owned flip flops?”
Stella shook her head, “My dad approved everything I wore. He picked my second nose after he broke my original one.”
I turned towards the mall, “Ok, let's hit H&M, Forever 21, and Aeropostale. Before you know it you will look like a normal, broke twenty something.”
Six hundred eight seven dollars and fifty-two cents later Stella was still in shock.
“I'll pay you back. I don't have access to my trust until I'm twenty –five, or married, but I swear I'll pay you back every dime.”
“Stella,it’s not important!”
“My name is Estelle, not Stella. My mom named me Estelle. That's what I want to be called!”
I didn't take offense to her tone because I too had a name that choked the life and happiness out of me.
“Okay, Estelle. Let’s go get pampered! I know it's been hard sitting, but I think you're healed enough. If anyone asks, you were in a car accident. We have a long ride the day after tomorrow, so let's enjoy the relaxation while we can.”
Two days pass quickly and I realize it's time to get back in the truck. We drive until we get to Tampa. I stop at Daniel's Chevrolet at nine am and ask for a two thousand sixteen black on black, with dark tinted windows, fully loaded Suburban. I will be trading in my Silverado and paying the difference in cash. I need someone to run to the tax collector's office and file for a permanent plate. I explain that I'm driving back to Denver and can't drive through 6 states with a paper tag so we have to wait.
After about an hour and forty minutes,I pull up to my parent’s two-story farm house with its wrap around porch and bright flowers and shutters. My parents run down the stairs to greet us. As soon as Stella gets out my parents walk over to her and gather her in a big hug. I didn't expect Stella to crumple to the ground in tears. My father picked her up and carried her in the house. My mom did what she always did when upset; she cried and baked and then baked and cried.
Estelle slept for two days. My parent’s friend and family doctor came to check on her. He said her injuries were consistent with long-term abuse and said nothing was broken, but she had four bruised ribs. He said her injuries were consistent with being trampled by a horse. He didn't ask for any information, but told us he would be back to see her the next day. Now it was time to sit back and explain what happened to my parents.
Easton's POV
I can see the look of shock on my family’s faces as I'm yelling at Kennedy for no other reason than she is trying to help and comfort my family. When I step towards her and grab her arm, I know I'm hurting her; jerking her as hard I can, I see her head snap back because she wasn't prepared to be grabbed. I see the pain, and then anger on her face. I can see the agents start moving in as well as my brothers getting ready to beat me down, but before anyone can move a muscle Kennedy punches me so hard in the throat I think she collapsed my windpipe. Then come two quick knees to my solar plexus and a kick to the chest that has me down. When she steps on my throat, I look up and see absolute hate on her face. I know it's taking everything for her not to stomp on my throat, breaking my neck. Her only restraint is that my niece and nephews are here. She can hear them sobbing and screaming.
I've never heard so much venom in someone's voice when she told me we were done. I knew it. She hated me, and I was glad because I needed her to leave Denver in order for her to be safe. I would rather she hate me and live, than love me and be dead. Edwin Mayò had laid out very clear instructions; his plan to snatch one of the kids was just a diversion. His main target was Kennedy. He saw her as the only thing standing between his daughter and the Kerrigan empire. Until the FBI moved in to capture Mayò, no one I loved was safe.
I was too busy looking down to see what was coming my way. My nephew, all six foot, one hundred and forty-five pounds of him, walked right up to me and started punching me. He’s only fourteen, but it’s still painful.
“I hate you! I hate you! I never want to see you again! I hate you! You put your hands on Siobhan! She is going to leave because of you, I hate you!”
Liam came and held his son who was shaking with fury. His brother, Max was looking at me with the hate I had never seen in any kids face.
“I'm gonna go,” Stacy said.
Everyone followed her out. My dad turned with a stoic face and said, “You know there is no recovering from this.” I nodded my head.
I didn't even care that the agents had set up their headquarters in my living room. The next morning, I walked to Kennedy's apartment; the door was open, and I could see men moving inside. I pushed the door open to see them packing up the apartment.
“What are you doing? Stop packing!” I shout.
What I am assuming was the boss stepped up and said, “Sir, Ms. Gallagher contacted our company to come pack up her apartment and put the stuff in storage. I have her email right here with her instructions. We got the key from the concierge, and we’re to return it when we finish.”
“Where is her stuff going?”
“I can't answer that. We load it in the moving pod; take it to a climate-controlled building until we get further instructions as to where the container is to be shipped. She didn't leave any forwarding info, just told us to charge her card monthly until she figures out where she wants the container.”
I turn and head back to my apartment. Reed Sterling was waiting for me. “So, my men told me
you got the beat down in like 10 seconds last night!”
“Fuck off, Reed!”
“But seriously, Agent Green over there caught it on his phone.” He said he thought you would get slapped, he didn't expect your girl to go all Israeli Special Forces on your ass. I have never, in all my years in the military seen a women move that fast with that much precision and such force. If you weren't in love with her, and I wasn't lusting after your sister, I would jump on that like a cheetah! She is smokin’ hot and badass; that's like dream combination in a woman!”
“Seriously Reed, fuck off! And stay away from Stacy! And it was way more than ten seconds!”
Reed scoffs, “Green, show him the video. You got owned in 8 seconds! Is this chick like Bruce Lee’s reincarnation? That shit looked brutal, and since your face was purple by the time you could breathe, I can only assume it hurt like a motherfucker!”
“I better not find out this video is on YouTube.”
“Nope,” Green said. “World Star Hip Hop baby all the way!”
“We found out how Mayò found about your girl. It was your mother. Apparently, she met some friends for lunch a few days ago, and was going on about how you two were perfect together and she thought there was a proposal coming any day. Mayò slipped her waitress a large tip and asked what the conversation was about. Easton, there is something else I kept from you. I couldn't tell you why, when I warned you to stop digging, but Siobhan Gallagher is really Kennedy Brennan. She was the only survivor of the Barton Butcher.”
“I know, she told me who she really was. She didn't want us to start on a lie. She told me everything.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Seven days, that’s all it took for Kennedy to completely erase herself from my life. Her apartment was empty. If anyone in my family was in contact, they weren't telling me. I haven't showered in four days. I wasn't eating, I wasn't sleeping, I just watched videos of her performances on her old YouTube channel. The comments and message features were off, so all I could do was watch. I found about four years’ worth of her performances, sometimes alone or with her friend.
The ones that bothered me were when she was singing with Tristan Cooper. They seemed to have a natural chemistry. I hated feeling jealous of a four-year old video. I watched their versions of Free Fallin’ at least twenty times a day. Every day, my maid would leave food, even if I did have an appetite, I couldn't swallow. My throat still hurt. By day ten, I was officially losing any shred of sanity that remained. Not being able to call her or talk to her.
“The FBI's inside man let us know that Stella Mayò was gone and more than likely had been killed by a beating her father had given her after he found she had delivered the folder to Kennedy. The agent was unable to assist Stella without breaking his cover. We were told he had beaten her badly before he realized she had come to warn you. They say the beating she suffered was so brutal they don't see how she survived. The agent went back to look for her in the alley they left her in and she wasn't there. We have checked every hospital within a hundred miles and no one matching Stella’s description has turned up. The only vehicle to leave the garage was Kennedy's truck. We watched the videos; she entered the vehicle, threw her bag in the back interior cab, plugged her iPhone into the radio jack, adjusted her mirrors and backed out. She was seen on CCTV heading in the direction towards the highway.”
“Thanks Reed, where the hell could Stella Mayò be? It's my fault she is probably dead. She died doing the right thing, trying to save Kennedy and the kids.” I waited for that to sink in.
Chapter 14
I found Estelle feeding ducks. It had been two weeks since I found her in the back of my truck. She barely spoke, the bruises on her face were almost healed, and she could walk without pain now. It was the last day in May and we needed a plan.
When I sat next to her she took a deep breath and started talking,
“My dad killed my mom when I was four. He told everyone she ran away with a lover, but I saw him throw her down the stairs. I remember thinking how wrong her head looked. Now, I realize her neck was broken. I watched from the landing how he wrapped her in a blue plastic tarp and had his men carry her somewhere like trash. He threw her out, and then did the same thing to me. He left me in an alley to die!”
“I have no one, Kennedy. I'm here and eating because of the kindness of your family, but I have no money. I have an eidetic memory, meaning that I can remember a large amount of information, with extraordinary detail, but it’s easier if I am able to gather things visually. I retain auditory information, but prefer things to be written. I can read about twenty thousand words per minute, and last time I was tested by my tutors my IQ was one hundred and eight-seven, but that was a few years ago so I’m not sure where I would score right now. I used programs like the Rosetta Stone series to learn Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, Mandarin, and Russian. I can also speak Arabic well, but I'm still learning that one.”
“Other than that, I have no job skills and nothing more than a high Conservatory diploma. I could have gone to college. I was smart enough, but he wouldn't let me. He kept me prisoner in that house making me attach myself to whomever he needed information on. It will be two years until I have access to my trust. I can't go back to Denver, and I know he won't stop until he kills me. I don't know what I'm going to do. Since I was fourteen, I've been his pawn. I don't know how to make any decisions on my own. I don't know anything!”
I sat in the grass next to her. “I don't have any answers for you, and I'm not gonna tell you what to do, but I'm gonna give you some advice as your sister because even though we aren't blood related and we started off on the wrong foot, my parents have grown to love you like their own.”
“My parents had enough love to give ten children but were only blessed with me. Over the years, they have taken in a lot foster kids. The kids no one wants. They bring them to this farm because it heals people and that’s what we both need, healing after everything that's happened. The social workers stopped placing kids here; I guess having a daughter kill someone in front of millions of viewers makes you an undesirable foster parent, but my parents still have love to give, so they are giving it to you. If you're willing to accept it.” I see the tears streaming down Estelle’s face.
“So, my suggestion is we spend June, July and the beginning of August here. You need time get healthy, and I need time to deal with fact that I'm seven weeks pregnant and haven't told a soul except for you right now. I have to figure out how to tell my parents and Easton. I just need time to think.” Estelle nodded,
"Thanks for trusting me and thanks for being my friend."
“We are each other’s friend, Estelle, no thanks necessary, just hugs. I'm going to give you a number. His name is Dr. Franklin, and he is expecting your call. At the beginning of August, we are going back to Denver. We are gonna find a place for us to live, and we are going to open my music conservatory. If you want to go to college, I will pay for it. If you want to help me with the conservatory, I will pay you a salary. You said you were smart so all you need is something to put your heart and soul into. This music conservatory is going to be our salvation. I know it as sure as I'm sitting here.”
“My dad is gonna show you to shoot, and I will teach you what I know about self-defense. I also know a few local guys that will come here to train you. You will get your concealed weapons permit, and you will file a restraining order against your father. I have the pictures I took of your injuries as well as your medical charts cataloging your injuries. We will move on with our lives. Your father will come for you. He has spent your whole life beating you down. When he comes this time, you will be ready. Do you understand what I'm saying, Estelle?”
She nodded, “The only way I will ever be safe is if he is dead, but it needs to be self-defense,” She says as I nod.
“You cannot use deadly force until he has attacked you. So always make sure your weapon is in reach at all times.”
We walked back to the house for lun
ch. My mom’s good cooking had added a few pounds to her rail thin frame. Her face now looked healthy instead of gaunt and hollow. I saw she was healing in more ways than one.
After lunch, Estelle heads off to call Dr. Franklin, and I sit with my parents.
“Mom, has Tristan called by chance?”
“No sweetie, you have to give him time, baby girl. He has had a lot happen. He’ll reach out, I know he will, but you can't rush it. Be patient, everything that is meant to happen with come about in its own time.”
Ihead to the kitchen and start washing vegetables for my mom’s beef stew. I'm just finishing up the potatoes when my dad gets home from work. I give my parents their alone time and then head back into the sitting room.
“I'm pregnant; almost two months along. I want you guys to move to Denver, I need you there. I need you close. I haven't told Easton yet. I don't know how to, but I know I need you in Denver with me momma because I'm scared. I've messed this whole thing up!” My dad came and gave me a hug,
“You did it out of order. I would have liked you to be married first, but there is no use crying over spilt milk. Now, let's calm down and put our heads together.”
“We were already moving to Denver,” my mom says. “We put the farm on the market a year ago. I told the school I was retiring after this last year. Your dad can take his early retirement. We have enough money to start anywhere and be comfortable. More importantly, I don't want a day to go by that I don't get to see my grandbaby.”
I sigh in relief.“I'm going look online. I need to find a place to live. We are leaving the first week in August. The Conservatory will be complete at the end of July. I spoke to the contractor's project manager and everything is going as planned. The recording studio will be installed the first week in August. Rose Kerrigan and her team are going in to complete the job. I approved everything so I don't have to return until they are ready to turn the keys over. I want to have the grand opening on September fourth that gives me about three full months to make this happen.”