Total pages in book: 88
Estimated words: 86126 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 431(@200wpm)___ 345(@250wpm)___ 287(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 86126 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 431(@200wpm)___ 345(@250wpm)___ 287(@300wpm)
“Alright.” I let my body relax.
“The man was out of his head,” my dad said. “A true believer. Went on and on about Noel and the girls burnin’ in the fires of hell for her whorin’ ways.”
“The motherfucker wouldn’t shut up,” Cian muttered darkly.
“Thought he was savin’ them, comin’ to take her home and settle her with a new husband. Someone in the flock. Someone that would take her in hand.”
I let out a sound of disgust.
“While he and his wife raised up those girls to be virtuous and pure,” Dad added.
Bile rose in my throat.
“He was gonna take the girls from her.”
“He was,” Mick replied tightly.
I focused on my breathing, the rise and fall of my chest, the sound of my heart pounding in my ears. Anything except the need to hit something. Hurt someone. Vent the rage somehow.
“It’s over,” Mick reminded me. “He also complained about his eldest son, how he wasn’t fit to lead his family because, basically, the son figured that Noel had made her choice and it was no great loss to them. So, when I say it’s over, it’s really over.”
“He also mentioned that his younger son kept Noel in line,” Cian said through his teeth. He was staring at the coffee table in front of him. “That he had a righteous hand.”
The breath whooshed out of me.
“Keep an eye on that,” Dad murmured with a nod.
“She’s never said anythin’,” I muttered.
“Could be, she doesn’t,” Dad said. “Time will tell.”
“Thanks for takin’ care of it,” I said as he moved forward to pull me in for a hug.
“Absolutely,” he said, giving the side of my head a loud smacking kiss.
“Rum said you were pissed,” Mick mused as he gave me a quick hug of his own.
“I was.”
“You know why we left ya behind?” he asked, pulling down to meet my eyes.
“Yup.”
“Good.”
They left the house, and I lifted my hand in a wave to Bas and Cian before heading back upstairs. I’d talk to them in the morning.
When I climbed back into bed, Noel was awake and watching me.
“Everythin’ is fine,” I assured her, lacing my fingers through hers. “We’ll talk in the mornin’, yeah?”
“Okay,” she replied, her fingers tightening. “I love you.”
“Love you, too, sugar.”
I watched her as she drifted off to sleep. Jesus, she was beautiful. Ariel had drifted up the bed until her head was right next to Noel’s, her hair tangling with the strands that had fallen out of Noel’s braids. One of her arms was flung above her head and the other draped across Noel’s throat. Diana was sprawled out between us, her legs straight down and her arms straight up, like she was about to dive into a pool. Her pacifier dangling so precariously from her lips that I knew any moment it was going to fall onto the bed.
Reaching across the Diana, I let my hand rest on Noel’s belly. The little one in there was completely oblivious to the turmoil they’d been a part of that day. My eyes widened as something bumped against my hand. I waited, and it happened again. And then again. My eyes shot to Noel’s face, but she didn’t stir.
“I love you,” I whispered into the dark, relief that they were there with me, safe and warm and sleeping, made my whole body relax into the bed. “I love all of you.”
Chapter 15
Noel
The door to my bedroom had been replaced by the time I woke up the next morning and by the time my brother called to let me know that Carl was dead, I was ready to give my condolences without letting any disgust bleed into my voice.
I knew he hadn’t died in a car accident, at least not one of his own making. I just chose not to think about it because I’d seen his eyes as he’d hit me and ordered me to pack my things and as long as Carl was in the world, we would’ve had to live in fear. I didn’t want that for my girls. So, however Carl’s death had come about wasn’t any of my concern. I was just glad he was gone.
My feet hurt and my eye was black, but it was nothing in comparison to the contentment that filled me as I’d followed Titus and the girls outside later that day.
It took a week for me to heal. It took Ariel a little longer. She barely spoke for the first few days and she’d been unwilling to leave my side, but as time went on, she grew more and more like her old self. Sometimes, she’d mention what happened in passing, like she was reminding me or maybe herself, that it had in fact happened. I never knew what triggered the reminders, but decided when it came up to acknowledge them and move on. Yes, I remembered when Grandpa hit me. Yes, I remembered when she and Flora hid in the cupboard. Yes, I remembered when I’d shoved them in the car without even putting them in car seats. Yes, I remembered it all. Now, do you want to play magnet tiles while we watch a movie?