Parker Sibling Series Box Set

by Leigh Ann Lunsford

  I am entering treatment, far from here. Far from you. I know I couldn’t tell you and have the strength to walk away, so I did it the only way I knew how to.

  Promise me you will be happy. Don’t save any more troubled girls. We aren’t worth it.

  Love always,

  Teryn Hall

  What in the actual fuck is going on here? Immediately, I am livid. She wrote in fucking pink ink, like hearts and flowers as you are giving my brother a nice fuck-off. I don’t think so. Good fucking riddance. Max must sense me about to lose my shit, and he shakes his head at me.

  “We will be back,” I tell him and wrangle everyone down to the basement. I don’t want Dustin to hear us discussing him. On one hand, I am heartbroken for my brother, and under normal circumstances I would write the girl off. But, this is Teryn; a girl my brother gave his heart to willingly because of the good in her. What she endured has shaped her into one of the purest, but confused souls I have encountered. So while, I would like to tear her apart, I just can’t. And knowing that there is so much more of what she endured than we know about, makes me almost as heartbroken as my brother.

  I thought we had it bad with my parents and what happened to Brielle. The lies and betrayal that followed are nothing compared to being locked away her whole life, the emotional and physical abuse that have left so many scars within her that we were all treading water trying to figure out how to keep her from drowning.

  I hand Brielle the note and once it is passed around nobody is speaking, so I start it out. “What was she thinking? After everyone opened their homes, hearts and arms to her, this is how she repays us, by breaking his heart.” I am still angry with her, and I know that it isn’t justified. She can’t behave like a normal person because she wasn’t raised as a person. She was held captive and treated like a caged beast.

  Kayleigh interrupts my rant, “Calm down, Camy. We don’t know everything.”

  Brielle and Addy are quiet so I zero in on them. “What?”

  “She was supposed to tell him this weekend. She agreed to enter a center and said it was local. She was going to get better.” Addison is visibly shaken by the turn of events.

  “Supposed to tell him what?” Mitch asked.

  “After the episode the night of the wedding, Melanie and I talked to Teryn and then Melanie went with her to discuss options with her counselor. It was obvious after that night that she needed more help than she was getting. Surprisingly, she agreed. Let me go call Mel and see if she knows what is going on.” Brielle is about to grab her phone when I stop her.

  “Hold up. What episode the night of my wedding?” When they all exchange glances, I can tell something major went down, and I am clueless. Before Brielle can explain, Mitch steps forward and pulls me to sit down. He explains it all; the sex, the breakdown, the marks on Dustin, the way Teryn has turned reclusive, and he doesn’t need to say anymore. I have seen the aftermath.

  I want to be mad at Teryn, I really do, but what Mitch just explained to me, I can’t be mad at her. I can be pissed about the circumstances that led to this, I can hate her father even more than I do, if that is even possible, but I can’t keep my anger at her. Son of a bitch!

  Colby brings Brielle her phone, and she calls Melanie and puts it on speakerphone.

  Mel: Hey B. What’s up?

  Brielle: Teryn is gone, no telling anyone, just gone. She was supposed to tell Dustin this weekend. What the hell happened Mel?

  Mel: Fuck! I can’t believe she did this. I begged her not to.

  Brielle: You knew she was leaving today and didn’t mention it.

  Mel: I can’t tell you that stuff, B. You know better than to ask. She is going into treatment, and that is all I can say.

  Brielle: What facility? We would like to see her.

  Brielle is getting pissed off the more Mel is giving her the run-around. When she explodes it is not going to be pretty. Hopefully she remembers that Coop and Mel are her best friends.

  Mel: I can’t tell you that. Don’t ask. Please don’t put me in the predicament.

  Brielle: What the fuck, Mel! I have a brother upstairs, totally fucking destroyed. You, my best friend, who knows what is going on, decides now to keep shit from me. Screw you, Mel. I will figure it out.

  Mel: Don’t, Brielle. Let it go. Let her do what she needs. This was her choice, and it is in her control, let her have that. Please.

  Brielle: At what expense Mel? My brother’s? I don’t think so.

  Mel: You aren’t going to find out, Brielle. There are some things out of your control. Don’t do something you will regret.

  Brielle: Like wasting years of friendship on someone that could so callously hurt my brother?

  Mel: That isn’t fair.

  Now that Mel is in tears, and the tension is thick as hell in the room, Tyler steps up and takes the phone from Brielle, telling Melanie we all need to calm down, and regroup. He wisely puts her phone in his pocket, because that would be one more Brielle shattered.

  We were all quiet during the phone call, but now pandemonium erupts. Every one of us talks at once, and nothing is getting answered. I don’t know where this leaves us, we don’t really have options at this point, and the last thing I want to do is go back upstairs and tell Dustin this.

  “Stop!” he shouts from the doorway. I guess I don’t have to tell him anything because from the sound of his temper he heard everything. Before I can go to him, Max catches me in his grip and pulls me back to him.

  “Camy, let him get this out of his system. He is about to blow. Brace yourself. I love you.”

  Chapter 12

  Dustin

  Walking down the steps to hear my whole family talking about me and trying to fix things once again infuriates me. I know it isn’t them I am mad at, but the situation of today. I woke up with a feeling of doom. I had an ache in my stomach, and my chest felt heavy, like it does with an asthma attack. I tried to block it out, but as the day progressed I couldn’t ignore it. I went in search of Teryn, and right before I reached the farmhouse I saw a town car pull away from the ranch. That threw my heart into my throat because those town cars are a favorite of Brent, my father, and their cronies. With the trial still proceeding, I don’t know what he will do to try to keep Teryn from talking.

  I throw open the door and search the house, screaming out her name and getting no answer. Her bedroom door is shut, and I hesitate before opening, not knowing what I will find. Nothing is amiss in here, but I do notice her closet is empty. I immediately start calling her phone, and when I hear it ringing behind me I turn around and see it sitting on the desk right on top of that fucking letter she left for me. I had to read the words five times before it dawned on me. She wasn’t taken against her will, she willingly walked away from me, from everything I was offering her, everything I had given her. She walked away and took my heart with her.

  I don’t remember going back to Brielle’s house, but I made my way up the stairs, and the house was quiet for once. Taking out my cell phone, I scroll through pictures of her on the beach when we were in the Keys, her smile and timidity are right on the screen for me to see, but the memories are also seared in my brain. When I taught her to take selfies, she was relentless. I must have thirty in my phone from her sending them to me, and I saved them like the sap I am. I hurt so badly; it hurts to take a breath. All I can think about is if she is alone? Terrified? Safe? Why did she choose this way? Yes, it would have been hard to say good-bye to her, but I would have liked to have the option.

  Usually, I would go to Brielle, but I couldn’t. She is a fixer, and she can’t fix this. On top of my pain, I would have her sadness to deal with, and I can’t right now. I don’t want that for her, so I call Cambree. I know she will come, and I know I am a bastard for asking her. She just got married and is a newlywed, but I think I may die if this pain doesn’t stop, and I am not sure that would be a bad thing.

  Once I make the call, I should have known all three of them would be by my side. It ma
kes me feel weak, emasculated, but right now I don’t care. I need comfort; I need understanding, and someone to be on my side. My family always will be. I don’t focus on anything but the comfort and love they give to me, and I cocoon myself in it. I don’t know how long has passed, but nobody is in the room with me. I reach for the note and realize it is gone. I freak out and hurry out of the room. I have to find the note. It is the last thing she gave me. She broke my heart long before she left, and I stupidly was waiting on her love to mend it.

  I hear everyone in the basement and make my way downstairs. Seeing them reading the note angers me. That was personal, but I know I must have given it to them, and don’t remember. The conversation with Mel was enough to bring on a fresh round of crippling chest pain, but hearing the anger and hurt in their voices as they all shout about me, about Teryn, about the situation, makes me snap.

  “Stop!” I scream at all of them. Before Cambree gets to me, Max stops her. Good thing, because I am livid and right now I don’t want a comforting touch. I just want to release this pain, get drunk, and forget it ever happened. I want to forget Teryn Hall and her douchebag of a father, but I know she has permanently imprinted herself in my heart, and that angers me more.

  “Quit fucking discussing me like I am a project for you all. She left, you found out nothing from your tantrum to Mel, and now we need to move the fuck on and forget she ever existed.”

  “How do you suggest we all do that Dustin? Do you think you will be able to?” Brielle challenges me.

  “I don’t care how you all do it, but let me worry about me,” I tell her as calmly as I can.

  “Last time we let you do that, you went out on a manhunt that put yourself in danger, and luckily you got out unscathed.”

  “Unscathed? Except for this gaping hole in my chest, where my heart used to be. That is about as unscathed as I can get, huh? I don’t have the answers for you, B. I just know there is nothing left to discuss, and we need to drop it. She left, she made her decision; we weren’t good enough for her. She wasn’t strong enough to stay and fight. I get it, there are a million reasons, but the one fact I can’t forget is that she left . . . and never said goodbye. She left like we didn’t mean shit to her, like my feelings didn’t matter to her, and for that I will never forgive her.” I turn and race back up the stairs as far away from everyone as I can.

  I take a detour to the farmhouse, and as much as I don’t want to be here, I have a purpose. I make my way to my Grandfather’s study, and as soon as I open the door, I swear I feel him. “How? How do I do this?” I ask. Of course I don’t get any answers, so I head over to the liquor cabinet and grab the bottle of whiskey he loved. I unscrew the cap and take a swig. Damn, that burns, but at least I feel something other than pain. This is a good kind of pain. My chest smolders with a burning that lets me know I am alive.

  I take the bottle, foregoing a glass, and head down to Brielle’s spot and the memorials. I won’t stay long because I don’t want my family to come after me, and I may have about another fifteen minutes until the guys lose the battle and the girls start their mission. I don’t plan on being here. Sitting on the edge of the little dock, I look over to the memorial site and realize this is the perfect place to say good-bye. Everyone I have loved and lost is right here, so this is where I will leave her. Taking a big swallow of liquid courage, I sputter and tilt the bottle back again. I look over the water, and it is almost a black color, like the raven-colored hair on her head. The water seems to be mimicking me, and I drink some more.

  Whispering more to myself than anyone, “Goodbye. I may have wanted to love you forever, but you took that choice away from me. I wasn’t even worth a goodbye to you, but I will give you that courtesy. This is my goodbye, Teryn Hall. From this point forward, you will be a memory, and hopefully sometime soon, a very distant memory. Here is to our forever.” I take a couple more swigs off the bottle and make my escape.

  I know I shouldn’t be driving when the bottle in the seat next to me is about empty, but I know I can’t be near my family. I need to see this pain through on my own. I brought her to our lives, and she walked out on all of us. I don’t make it that far. I barely get to the nearest motel but thankfully in one piece. I check in for the night and go to my room. My phone is still vibrating in my pocket and hasn’t stopped for the last ten minutes. I take it out and see a call and text from literally everyone.

  I shoot off a quick text to Mitch, letting him know I am safe and to leave me alone. All of them. Finally, my phone is silent, and it takes everything I have to not look at the pictures again. I refrain and lay it down by my side. I don’t even feel the burn anymore, but it has done its job because I don’t feel much after the bottle is about empty.

  Staring at the dingy beige wall, I replay the memories of seeing her for the first time. It is like a movie replaying over and over, and I wish there was an off switch. There isn’t, and even closing my eyes, they don’t stop. Draining the rest of the whiskey, praying for blackness to fade these memories, my phone goes off, and I stupidly reach for it, hoping against hope it is Teryn. It isn’t, just Brielle.

  B: We love you! Be careful. XOXO

  Of course there is an attachment and a predictable one at that, ‘Let Her Go’ by Passenger. I won’t listen to it, I refuse to cry, and it would be a lie. I didn’t let her go, she severed any ties she had to me. She didn’t let me go; she discarded me.

  I text her back.

  D: You are losing your touch, saw that from a mile away—try listening to ‘Witness’ by Daughtry.

  I toss my phone on the bed and pass out. I hope I wake up from this and realize it is a nightmare, but I know it isn’t, and I wouldn’t want to relive a second of today because I don’t think I would survive a second round with this thing they call love.

  Waking up the next morning, I have the hangover from hell. Cotton mouth, headache, and sick to my stomach, but yet so hungry I swear I could eat the ass out of an elephant. My entire body aches. I need a shower, but in my determination to disappear last night I didn’t pack a change of clothes. I splash some water on my face, finger brush my teeth, and head out. Driving home I pass a trailer sales lot. I swerve in before I realize what I am doing and know this will be the answer to my prayers. I eventually want to build, but for now I can have a double-wide put on the lot and have my own space because I know my sisters will be hovering. I am sure Mitch will give me space, but he will send Kayleigh in with the girls. If there is anything my family is good at, it is being in each other’s business.

  I look around, talk to the salesman, and pick out what I want. My new bachelor pad where I can go back to the days before Teryn. One night stands only. Get the beaver and leave her. That will be the first rule I implement, no sleepovers, and no falling in love. That won’t be an issue for me, but once the ladies get a hold of me, anything is possible. Yes, I sound like a total douche, and I am fine with that. If you don’t let anything mean something to you, then you can’t get hurt. I pay the guy, set up what needs to be done, and by this time tomorrow it will all be done.

  I pull into the ranch and gauge where everyone is at so I can avoid them, but knowing them they did the whole divide and conquer, staking someone out at each house and will be on the phone before I shut my car door, and then the masses will bombard me. I need a shower first. I head to Brielle’s. I figure I should go straight to the source and get this shit over.

  Walking in, CJ is sitting at the table coloring, and he greets me with all his four- year-old exuberance. He is babbling about his momma signing him up for soccer and now that I am home I can help him, but his daddy is going to let him take karate because he has to learn to protect all these “hens” in the family. I promise I will take him later to kick the soccer ball, and I make my way to the bathroom.

  Once out of the shower, all the Parker women, including Kayleigh, are waiting in my room. “I know you all want to check on me, but unless you want to check out all of me, I need some privacy to get dressed.”
I act like I am going to drop the towel, and they about trip over each other getting out of my room. I actually chuckle and hope that this day keeps going in this direction. I get dressed and head out to face the music.

  Making my way downstairs I see they have all taken up residence in the living room, no little ones around. “Go, each of you get one question, and I will answer, if I feel up to it.”

  Addison pouts, Cambree glares at me, Kayleigh tries to hide her smile, and Brielle starts to argue, go figure. “That isn’t fair, if you give us the chance to ask the question then we get an answer.”

  “This isn’t People’s Court, B. I am not on trial. My life, I am an adult, so take what I am offering, or leave it be.” I am the only one that can go head-to-head with her, and she backs down. Maybe I use it to my advantage, and it isn’t fair, but she is like a dog with a bone, and if you give her an inch she will take the whole damn yardstick.

  Sighing, she sets her sights on the other girls. “I am going last, so I can ask him the question you will all avoid.” I laugh at her honesty, and the way she lays it all out there.

  Addison goes first. “Where did you stay last night?” Simple. Leave it to Addy. I missed the whole Tyler mess, but I am sure she felt like I do right now, getting the Spanish Inquisition about personal shit.

  “Motel up the road. Next.” I look at Kayleigh, taking the control of picking who is next.

  “I don’t have a question, more like a statement. I can’t imagine what you are going through, but know we are all here for you. If you need to get away, our house is close to being done, and there is plenty of room. We are here for you, day or night. Just don’t do something stupid. You have too much going for you.” I know she means well, but I feel like they try and do this shit for me, I know some stems from my medical history, it was crippling for many years, and I let it happen. Hell, I liked them taking care of everything, but now I need to handle it on my own.