by Hattie Jude
It all went haywire when the first video of me showed up online. My mom blamed my father. My father blamed Luke. And I didn’t know who to blame.
Before Luke, we’d maintained a peaceful front here and there. Seasons of peace that never lasted, but we all played our part. I knew my parents’ marriage was a facade, but After Luke, there was no pretense.
I was the slut in my father’s eyes, and my mom was the slut who’d raised me. It didn’t matter that my father had held the strings to my mother’s career all along. Suddenly, we were dirt in his eyes. And Luke, well, my father would’ve probably killed him if he hadn’t figured out a way to send him to prison instead.
The violence I’d been accustomed to at home combusted…until a stalker felt easier to manage than getting knocked around by my father and nursing my mother’s wounds.
I hear voices outside my door and burrow further under the covers. Please, please, leave me alone. I’m so tired. The fight from earlier has drained out of me and I don’t feel like I have it in me to keep him from doing whatever he wants. I hear a voice that sounds familiar and I sit up in bed, the blanket falling off of me.
“You have to leave her. She’s not worth it, Luke.”
I’d know that grating tone anywhere. The door opens and the girl in the Donald mask is back, but now I know exactly who it is.
Heidi.
Chapter Sixteen
She rushes in, gripping the bottom edge of the Donald mask near her neck as she comes straight for me.
“What are you doing here?” I ask. I stop myself right before saying her name, but it’s as if I’ve said it by the way she stops and stares, or at least I think she’s looking at me. It’s hard to tell with the mask.
Luke comes in behind her, holding a hypodermic needle. I get off of the bed and run to the bathroom and think Heidi is coming after me to stop me, but she manages to block Luke.
“Think about it,” she whispers. “Do you really want to go back to prison?”
“Get out of my way,” he roars.
“It’s one thing to do an anonymous video, Luke, and another to inject her and show your face on camera. Think about this,” she yells. And if I had any doubts before that it was Heidi, they’re all gone now.
I’m shocked she’s trying to reason with him. Even if it’s for his sake, I’m grateful she’s prolonging the inevitable.
“Get out of my fucking way.” I hear a strike and a yelp of pain, and the sound of someone falling into the door.
The bathroom door doesn’t lock, so when he opens the door wide, stepping over Heidi’s body, I know there’s no way out of this one. He holds the needle up and advances toward me in what feels like slow motion. I close my eyes and prepare for the worst.
Instead, there’s a loud thud and Luke’s body falls against mine. I open my eyes and Toby is standing there holding a gun. He puts an unconscious and bloody Luke in handcuffs and then holds out his hand, helping me to my feet.
The room fills with men and guns. I can’t tell if they’re cops or what, and Toby isn’t saying a word. He puts his arm around me and helps me out the door, leading me to an SUV with tinted windows.
“Are you going to tell me how a high school student just saved me from being drugged and raped on camera?” I ask before climbing into the vehicle.
“We have mutual friends,” he says with a smile. “And I’m a bit older than you think.”
“I sort of knew but didn’t have proof.” I smile back.
He opens the door for me and I get in. He walks around and gets behind the wheel just as cop cars pull up to the house and run inside.
“We’re not sticking around to talk to them?” I turn and look back as we drive away.
“No. You’ll have your chance to talk to them later. I think you’ve been traumatized enough, don’t you?”
I lean my head against the back of the seat and sigh. “Thank you. The last thing I want to do is spend hours at the police station.” I turn to look at him. “Is Luci okay? Tell me she isn’t part of all this.”
“No, she wasn’t. Her phone was stolen and she had no idea you were ever at her place.”
My shoulders sag, relieved Luci wasn’t involved or hurt. “So Laura?”
He cringes. “Yeah. I didn’t realize right away that you knew my sister. She nearly destroyed my cover.”
“She fell off the face of the earth.”
“Sorry about that. She panicked when I let her know you were involved in one of my cases. You can have your sponsor back.”
“I think I’m doing okay.” And that I’ll probably get a new sponsor if I’m ever not okay…it would be awkward to continue with her after everything that’s happened. “Why were you at the school for so long?”
“The drugs Heidi and Luke have brought into the school systems around here—not just Longlake, but multiple schools in this area—they had to be stopped. And they will be, thanks to you. I was there to bring Heidi down, but you were able to lead us to Luke, her cousin and boss.”
I stare at Toby with wide eyes and he chuckles when he looks at me.
“I’ve gotta hand it to you,” he says. “You put up with that bitch far better than I ever would have.”
I turn to stare out the front window, thinking about Heidi and the way she saved me with Luke. “She kept Luke from drugging me.”
He clears his throat and lifts his eyebrows when I face him again. “Maybe her conscience was finally catching up with her.”
We pull into Raf’s driveway. It’s filled with cars. “What’s going on here?”
“You’ve been missing for two days. This has been the hub. Half of them are at the house we just left—a few people are anxious to see you. Thought I’d let you see them before you have to start answering the questions.”
“Thank you. Again. For everything.”
He smiles and we get out. My mom comes flying out of the door and wraps her arms around me. I see Raf and Ashton behind her and then behind them all stands my father.
“What is he doing here?” I ask.
My mom pulls back and shakes her head, tears running down her cheeks. “I couldn’t keep him out of this. He’s talking crazy, but he deserves to know you’re okay.”
“What kind of crazy?” I frown.
Ashton steps forward then and hugs me hard and my mom moves away. I feel Raf’s presence close by and my face heats from the fire I see in his eyes when I glance at him. Ashton kisses my forehead.
“We were so scared,” he says. “Raf and I have been losing our minds.”
Raf swallows hard and gives the slightest nod. I hold my hand out to him and he takes it, squeezing almost painfully, and then moves forward until I am in his arms.
I’m quiet, soaking in how good it feels to touch him, to be away from that awful room, free of Luke…
I pull back and look over my shoulder at my dad standing there. His look unsettles me, but I turn back to Raf, ignoring the stress of having my dad in the same room.
“So you knew about Toby?” I ask.
Raf nods. It’s not like him to be so quiet, but I feel him assessing the damage to my face and the way I wince when I move too quickly. His hands form into fists as he takes a deep breath.
“I didn’t until today,” Ashton says. “Didn’t know a lot of things until today. Like the fact that Heidi has been selling drugs at Longlake for over a year now.”
“Is it really over?” I ask.
My mom puts her arm around me and drags me away from Raf, her eyes cutting up to his with warning signs. I look back at him nervously and he watches us walk away, his face unreadable.
“Stefen is going to make sure both Luke and Heidi pay for what they’ve done,” she says.
We walk toward the house and my father reaches out to stop me when I get close enough.
“Are you okay, Josephine?” he asks.
“I’m fine,” I tell him, swallowing the lump in my throat.
He nods. “We’ll talk tomorrow, okay?”
<
br /> All of a sudden, I want to be in my room, away from everyone, but my mom leads me into Raf’s house and up the stairs to the guest room.
“How about I run you a hot bath?” she asks.
I nod and sit on the edge of the bed while she goes into the bathroom. I hear the water and close my eyes, imagining the scene in that bedroom…what could’ve happened if I hadn’t been saved.
My mom clears her thoat and I look up. She stands in the doorway staring at me.
“It’s over, Gabi. You’re safe now. Luke won’t get out of prison this time.” Her eyes narrow. “What did he do to you?”
I shake my head. “I was mostly alone, but it was about to get a lot worse.”
“He hurt you.” She skims my face with her fingers and tilts my face to the side.
“I’m okay,” I whisper. “What’s really going on with Dad? I don’t want him here.”
“I don’t like it any more than you do, trust me. But he showed up with one of his cop friends, demanding his right to be here. Hopefully now that he’s seen you, he will leave.” Her jaw clenches and she squares her shoulders. “Are you hungry? Can I get you anything? A hot tea while you’re in the bath?”
“That sounds nice. I don’t want to be in the tub long, but it does sound good.”
She nods, looking happy to have something to do.
I move to the bathroom when she leaves the room, and sink into the water a few minutes later, thankful that this ordeal with Luke is finally over.
Chapter Seventeen
I’m in my warmest pajamas and flipping the channels in bed, unable to sleep but not wanting to go downstairs either. After my bath, I had to talk to the police for a few hours and my mind is numb. Raf seems angry or maybe that’s just the way he shows concern. He stayed by my side downstairs and glared at anyone who asked me anything.
A soft knock on the door makes me jump and my mom peeks through the door. “Luci is here. Are you up to seeing her?”
I don’t really feel like seeing anyone, but I nod. I would like to see Luci. She’s left messages saying how awful she feels about everything.
She comes in a few minutes later and stands in the doorway, hesitant.
“Come in.” I wave her over and she sits on the bed facing me. She frowns as she looks at my bruised face and I try to smile to reassure her I’m fine.
“I just feel so bad,” she starts.
“It wasn’t your fault. You can’t help it that Luke stole your phone.”
“I still have no idea how it happened or how he was able to figure out my password—well, it was a dumb password, but lesson learned. I’ll be smarter next time.” She leans forward. “Are you really okay?”
“I am. It was scary and it felt like I was there much longer than I was, but everything could’ve been so much worse. I’m lucky that it wasn’t and that he’s finally going away, hopefully for good. Kidnapping charges can’t just go away, can they?”
She shakes her head and I pat the space next to me.
“Wanna watch a movie? I’m so tired but don’t think I can sleep.”
“Sure.” She moves into place and we watch Legally Blonde.
She leaves when that’s over and I sink deeper under the covers. My mom comes to tell me goodnight and I can tell she doesn’t know if she should stay with me or leave me alone. She ends up leaving when I tell her I’m tired, her shoulders relaxing with relief.
“If you need anything—” she says.
“Thanks, Mom. When are we going home?”
She stops in the doorway and looks back at me, worry flashing across her face again. “Let’s talk about it tomorrow.”
I bite my lip to keep from saying something snarky to her and she walks out, shutting the door gently behind her.
I lie in the dark for a long time, trying to forget the look in Luke’s eyes, the way he lashed out and came back in ready to drug me to get what he wanted. I never knew he could be that evil. I hear something and turn, jumping when I see the shadow in my room. I sit up and he steps closer.
“It’s me,” Raf whispers. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you. Trying to be quiet so the parents don’t haul my ass out of here.”
I exhale a long, shaky breath and he pulls back the covers, getting in beside me. His arms wrap around me, his chest warm against my back, and it’s the safest I’ve felt since escaping Luke.
When Raf speaks, his words have an edge, but I nestle deeper into his arms and let his heat surround me.
“I’ve been so mad at you. The deepest rage I’ve ever known, that he could entice you to leave my house and go off to be kidnapped…” His voice is low and sends a chill, but his arms wrap around me tighter.
“You know it isn’t that simple.”
“When will you learn to ask for help?” he growls into my ear.
“Who would I ask?” I tilt my head back and look at him out of the corner of my eye. “Do you mean you?” My tone is mocking, but really, what does he expect? “After the way you’ve treated me, why would I ever turn to you for help?”
He’s quiet and part of me starts to feel bad. The last time I was with Raf, I was the one to leave, he was the one asking me to stay…what does he want from me?
“You’re right,” he finally says. “I’ve screwed all of this up so royally, I don’t know which way is up half of the time where you’re concerned. You have wrecked my life, Gabi. From the day you got here, I’ve been unable to focus on anyone but you and—” His fingers turn my chin so he can see me better and I shift to face him. His hand moves to my waist and my heart rate picks up.
I couldn’t imagine that I’d want anyone so soon after the nightmare of Luke on that bed with those cameras recording our every move, but this is Raf and all rationality goes out the window when it comes to him.
“What are you saying, Raf?”
He leans his forehead on mine and sighs. His peppermint breath heats my cheeks and my eyes close, savoring the moment.
“Rest. We can talk tomorrow. I just want to hold you tonight. Please.” He leans back and I stare up at him, touched that he’s being so gentle with me.
“We can fight again tomorrow,” I whisper.
“I don’t want to fight with you ever again, Gabi. That’s what I’m trying to say.”
He pulls me closer, my head finding the perfect spot on his chest and I wrap my arms around him, my leg going between his. He tickles my back, tracing soft patterns under my shirt, and the last thing I remember before I fall asleep is that everything has been worth it to have this one moment of tenderness with Raf Barron.
When I wake up the next morning, he’s gone. But I linger in the covers longer, remembering how spectacular it felt to sleep with him the whole night.
I can’t get used to that. It was most definitely a one-off.
In fact, thinking back over everything he said, I’m bracing myself for him to be his normal broody self today. But he said he didn’t want to fight with me. Why was he being so sweet?
I get up and take a quick shower. I’m grateful it’s a Saturday and I don’t have to think about missing one more day of school. I’m going to have so much to catch up on. It’s hard not to let the images of that room and Luke’s face shake me up. It’s playing over and over in my head; each time new sinister things about his face or the way his hands felt against my neck stand out.
I replay Raf’s words instead, the feel of his hands on my skin, the way he seemed happy to just hold me. He didn’t even kiss me once.
I wish I knew how he felt about me.
Everything about him confuses me.
Chapter Eighteen
The doorbell rings before I go down the stairs and I pause and rush back to my room, not wanting to get caught with people first thing. The police should be happy with what I gave them yesterday and whatever else I need to answer can be done through Stefen. He was helpful last night in things running smoothly with the police. I could hear his team talking with them for hours after I came upstairs.
I shiver when I hear my dad’s voice. I’d almost put it out of my mind that he was in town and expected to see me today.
My mom’s voice rises and I hear Stefen trying to calm her down.
“Josephine,” my dad calls up the stairs and I freeze. “Come down here.”
He’s the last person I want to see, but I know I have to. I push my shoulders back and jump when Raf pushes my door open wider.
“Your dad is here to see you,” he says.
“I heard.” I nod and take a deep breath.
He starts to say something, but my mom steps in the room and barely glances at Raf. She’s anxious and shaky, reaching out for my arm as if to steady herself.
“I tried to hold him off until you got more rest, but if you could come talk to your dad for a little bit. Let him know you’re okay.”
“Yeah, I will.”
I pass Raf and wish I could thank him for staying with me last night, thank him for the best sleep I’ve had in—I can’t remember when. But I go down the stairs instead, and my dad is standing there with one of the police officers that was with him yesterday.
He’s holding papers in his hand and Stefen’s face is red. My stomach lurches, things suddenly feeling wrong in every way.
“Dad,” I say quietly.
He smiles and steps forward, his eyes deceptively kind. I used to relax when I saw him like this, but now it only puts me on guard. I’ve been fooled by these eyes before.
He hands the papers to me and I look at him instead, waiting to see what he has to say.
“It’s all there, sweetheart. The court has awarded me custody. We will leave today. Now, in fact.” He smiles and the papers fall out of my hand and onto the floor.
My mom shrieks behind me. “That is not possible. Stefen, do something.” She bends down, barely holding up the papers as they shake so hard in her hand. She tries to read it and her eyes spill over with tears.
I feel numb. My body is cold. I close my eyes and feel those dark spots in my vision. Raf’s arms surround me and he holds me up.