“You lost me again,” Serena confessed. “How could they have refuted that kind of evidence?”
“I was in the cave,” Will explained. “I picked you up, carried you out of there, which means anything that was on you could easily have been transferred to me. Coming into personal contact with those boys was the worst thing I could have done. What you transferred to me could just as easily be transferred from me to them. All they needed was a plausible explanation for having your hair and blood on them and I handed to them.”
“It’s not your fault, Will,” she tried to console him. “You couldn’t have known. And I know this sounds horrible, but I…I’m glad you did it.”
The hug he gave her was fierce but the kiss that followed was incredibly tender. “I was worried you might have doubts about being with me once you heard the whole story,” he admitted.
“Then you worried for nothing. And you’ve steeped guilt on your own shoulders for no reason too.”
“I wish I could believe that, but I can’t help thinking they would have been prosecuted if I had left it up to the police to handle. And my parents didn’t come right out and say it, but I overheard enough of their phone conversations with your dad to figure out the reason I was never charged with assault.”
Serena didn’t need to have it spelled out for her. “He used the attack on me as a bargaining chip to keep you out of trouble.”
“He should never have done that,” Will asserted. “It was wrong.”
“No…it was the right thing to do, the only thing he could do. Let me finish,” she said when he started to contradict her. “I know my Dad. He doesn’t make snap decisions, or emotional ones. He would have thought it out logically, considered every angle and possible outcome. Be honest, Will. What would have happened if he had pursued taking those boys to court?”
There was a long pause before Will answered. “Best case scenario; a reduced sentence that would have cost their parents money they could well afford, and a slap on the wrist for Porter and his friends.”
“Exactly. It would have served no purpose. There was no real legal recourse, but in some small measure you extracted retribution from them. Daddy couldn’t let you be punished for that so he used the only leverage he had. He prevented them from ruining your life by using the threat of criminal prosecution against them.”
“Yes, and all the parents agreed to it, which means they knew their sons were guilty. Protecting them from the punishment they deserved basically condoned their actions. I don’t know how any of them can justify doing that.”
Serena took a moment to reflect on what he’d said. “You’re probably right about them knowing their sons were guilty, but I doubt they tried to justify their reasons for shielding their children. I imagine they did the same thing I did; try to get through each day without falling apart and hope that in time I could put it behind me and move on.”
“You sound as if you actually feel sorry for them.”
“I do,” she said, astonished by her own revelation. “I never thought about it before; what it must have been like for the parents, what they went through. How devastating to discover your child is capable of such…inhuman behavior and that nothing will ever be the same again because of it. Their lives were shattered. Granted, not to the same degree mine was, but they were still left to pick up the pieces.”
“I wish I could say I shared your compassion towards them but I can’t. The only decent thing any of them did was to move out of the area.”
Serena knew all three families had packed up and left town within a few months of the attack. She’d been roused from a nightmare by her mother who sat with her afterwards, calmly assuring Serena that the boys were long gone and she had nothing to be afraid of. It helped to know they weren’t lurking around, waiting for the chance to catch her alone again, but something else began to nag at her. Maybe she was safe from them, but they were still free. They’d gotten away with it once; what would deter them from doing it again? How many other girls would they prey on before someone stopped them?
She’d never had the courage to ask her parents, but she wasn’t afraid to ask Will. “Do you know what happened to them?”
“Yes,” he said simply
“You don’t want to tell me?”
“Not particularly.”
“Will…”
“I know,” he cut her off, “I promised tell you everything. Steven Bennett was killed in a car accident less than six months later. A one car accident,” Will said pointedly.
“You think he killed himself?”
“The newspapers said he must have lost control of the car and plowed into a tree, but I have my doubts. There was no alcohol involved and it was a clear night. The article stated Bennett probably panicked and hit the gas instead of the brakes because there was no evidence to indicate he tried to stop the car. Personally, I think the guilt was too much for him.”
“And…the others?” Serena asked, surprised that Steven Bennett’s tragic ending made her feel sad.
“Brian had several more run-ins with the law and ended up doing time for robbery. Last I heard, he was working at an auto repair shop on the west coast. Lee took a different route in life, stayed out of trouble, and eventually became an accountant. As for Porter, he got some girl pregnant his senior year in high school and married her a few years later when they were expecting their second child. He works for his brother, Rick, who owns a successful real estate company in southern California.”
“How do you know all that?”
“I made it my business to know,” Will told her. “Now, can we go to bed?”
“I suppose we should get some sleep,” Serena conceded when Will stood up.
“Sleep?” He scooped her off the sofa and headed towards the bedroom. “Who said anything about sleeping?”
It was quite some time later as Serena lay in Will’s arms, exhausted but deliciously satiated, that she realized the paralyzing fear she’d carried around with her for years was gone. She wasn’t foolish enough to believe she could brave an encounter with Randy Porter or any of the others without serious trepidation, but she felt confident it wouldn’t result in a complete melt down either. And yes, there were definite reservations about going to the cave, but no matter what happened, she would be strong. She had to be.
Dreams never come without a price, she thought. And her dream was to have a life with Will; a normal life that included marriage and children and going on family vacations. If that meant returning to the place it all began and reliving the horrors of that night then she would do it. Serena wanted it all. And she was willing to pay the cost to get it.
Chapter 17
“What the hell are you doing here?” Will shifted his body to block the doorway, unmoved by the hostile glare McKinley shot at him.
“I came to see my sister,” McKinley’s reply was glacial. “Surely, you didn’t think I came here to see you.”
Will’s expression remained impassive. “Call first the next time. We were just on our way out, but I’ll be sure to tell Serena you stopped by.”
Undeterred by his cold reception, McKinley brushed past him and managed to make it as far as the living room before he caught up with her.
“Where is she?” McKinley demanded.
“I told you, we were on our way out so I’m afraid your little visit will just have to wait.”
“Is she in the kitchen?”
McKinley attempted to go around him but Will was prepared for it this time. Gripping her by the arm, he propelled her back towards the front door. “You’re leaving. Now,” he growled.
“How dare you manhandle me! You can’t keep me from seeing Serena…”
“Watch me.” Will yanked the front door open. “You can call her tomorrow. If she wants to see you, I won’t stand in the way, but she has enough on her mind today and I am not going to let you upset her.”
McKinley stopped struggling, her eyes narrowing suspiciously. “What do you mean she has enough on her mind?
What’s going on? Where are you taking her, and why are you so determined to keep me from talking to her today?”
“It’s none of your business what’s going on or where I’m taking her. I just don’t want you to upset her, and since Serena’s last few encounters with you have been less than pleasant, I don’t trust you to be alone with her.”
McKinley’s cheeks turned a vivid shade of scarlet, but whatever scathing remarks she was about to unleash on him went unsaid. As if on cue, they turned their heads towards the hallway where Rufus had just emerged. Serena appeared a few seconds later, a warm smile lighting her face.
“I thought I heard voices,” she said. “I was so afraid you had changed your mind about coming with us.”
For a moment, Will was too stunned by what she’d said to realize Serena thought it was Rose at the door. “Honey, it’s…”
“I hope you remembered to bring the flashlights,” Serena said as she made her way across the foyer. “It only occurred to me while I was talking to you this morning that you and Will would need them.”
Will nearly groaned out loud. He let go of McKinley’s arm and reached for Serena, drawing her close to his side. “It’s not Rose,” he spoke softly. “It’s McKinley. But she was just leaving,” he added when he felt Serena stiffen.
“I was not leaving,” McKinley shrieked, “I was being shoved out the door by your body guard!” She shot Will a heated glare. “I demand to know what you’re up to. Where are you taking my sister and why would you need flashlights?”
“I told you, it’s none of your business,” Will ground out.
“It…it’s okay,” Serena interjected, “I don’t mind if she knows.”
“It is not okay,” he disagreed. “She’ll do her damnedest to persuade you not to do it and you’ll fall right back into that world of self-doubt she has been keeping you in. And spare me the wide-eyed innocence routine, McKinley,” Will’s voice was filled with disgust. “You know exactly what I’m talking about. You undermine Serena’s confidence every chance you get.”
“That’s a bold faced lie!” McKinley managed to sound indignant, though her venomous expression didn’t change.
“It’s the truth,” a feminine voice said from behind her.
McKinley whirled around, her demeanor instantly morphing into feigned delight at the sight of Rose standing in the doorway. Rose swept past her, giving Rufus a pat on the head before she flashed Will a brief smile then turned back to McKinley.
“Rose, it’s so nice to see you,” McKinley gushed.
Rose arched a dubious brow. “Is it?”
“Of course it is. You know I always enjoy…”
“Cut the crap,” Rose spoke sharply. “God only knows why I love you, McKinley, but I do. If I didn’t, I would be kicking your selfish little ass out the door right now. Your parents, your brothers, me…we’re all guilty of indulging you for far too long, making excuses for inexcusable behavior. Well, it’s time to hang up your tiara, honey, because your reign as Prom Queen is over.”
Will had never seen McKinley at a loss for words before, but for one blessedly quiet minute, she seemed incapable of doing anything but gaping at Rose in disbelief. He should have known it was too good to last. It was like watching a pot begin to boil, he mused. He could almost see the anger slowly bubbling to the surface and braced himself for the inevitable.
McKinley’s temper exploded. “Since when have you ever indulged me? You have always favored Serena. Poor, plain Serena, destined to play second fiddle to her sister just like you and Mom. How miserable it must have been to witness history repeating itself. Mom was the cheerleader, the girl everyone envied because she was beautiful and popular and because she married the kind of man you could only dream of landing.”
If Rose was hurt by what McKinley said, she didn’t show it. Will was furious, but it wasn’t his place to defend Rose when he had no idea whether McKinley’s cruel remarks were based on fact or fiction. Serena pressed herself closer to his side, but apparently, she had also decided it was best to let Rose respond to McKinley’s allegations. He wasn’t sure what he expected, but it certainly wasn’t the slow smile that spread across Rose’s face.
“Is that what you think, that I was miserable because Leslie was more popular than me?”
“Yes,” McKinley persisted, “I think you’ve been jealous of Mom your entire life, and the reason you bonded with Serena was because you saw yourself in her.”
“At least you got one thing straight; I do feel a strong bond with Serena that I have never felt with you. Now don’t get up on your high horse,” Rose said when McKinley scowled at her brutal honesty. “Yes, Leslie was the belle of the ball but you’re wrong about me being jealous. I wasn’t witty or charming, and I didn’t have boys flocking after me. I was shy and reserved like Serena, though you may find that difficult to believe considering I have no problems voicing my opinion now.
Leslie was all the things I wished I could be, but I wasn’t envious. I was proud of her, proud to be her sister. Even though we rarely saw eye to eye, even though I didn’t approve of some of the things she did…I still loved her. So, yes, I do see a lot of myself in Serena. Because no matter how rotten you’ve been to Serena, despite putting her down, throwing stumbling blocks in her way, chipping at her self-confidence…despite all of that, she still loves you, McKinley.”
Will waited for the sarcastic remarks he was sure would spew from McKinley’s mouth, but her reaction didn’t even come close to what he anticipated. He would have bet his life the woman didn’t have a single emotion that didn’t stop short of her heart if he hadn’t witnessed several of them play across her face. Maybe she was struggling with the concept that her sister could love her after all the horrible things she’d done, or maybe…and this was quite a leap for Will to believe…maybe McKinley actually felt remorse.
He glanced down at Serena and saw the shimmer of tears in her eyes, and had to force himself not to order McKinley out of the house. He didn’t care what turmoil McKinley was going through right now. The only thing that mattered to him was protecting Serena from being hurt any more than she already was. Will’s gaze moved to Rose.
Her lips were pressed together as if she was angry, but her eyes betrayed what she was really feeling. She was hoping McKinley would crack, that she would admit what a hateful sister she’d been in the past and ask for Serena’s forgiveness.
It was a pivotal moment in McKinley’s life. Will knew it and hoped for Serena’s sake that McKinley did too. I’m sorry. Forgive me. Such simple words, yet they wielded the power to mend the rift between the two sisters and alter their relationship forever. If only McKinley would say them. It was her decision, her choice. All any of them could do now was wait to see which way the pendulum was going to swing.
***
Serena blinked back the tears flooding her eyes. Rose was right. She did love McKinley, and she wanted nothing more than to hear her sister say she loved her too. And mean it. There was enough pain and sorrow in her past, enough regrets. She wanted to move on and stop the incessant gnawing in her stomach that occurred every time McKinley was around.
It shouldn’t be like that between sisters. But as much as Serena wanted to extend an olive branch, she refused to offer forgiveness when none had been asked for. It was up to McKinley to dig their relationship out of the sink hole it had fallen into over the years.
The silence seemed to stretch on forever and, of course, not being able to see their faces made it impossible for Serena to know what any of them was feeling. Well, maybe not impossible at least as far as Will was concerned. She could feel how taut his muscles had grown, and his arm was like a steel band around her waist. Each breath was measured; drawn in slowly and evenly, and released in the same controlled manner. Whatever other feelings Will was battling, anger was leading the charge.
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