Total pages in book: 37
Estimated words: 34690 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 173(@200wpm)___ 139(@250wpm)___ 116(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 34690 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 173(@200wpm)___ 139(@250wpm)___ 116(@300wpm)
“Holy shit, bro.”
“I’ll talk to you later.” I end the call, clicking over. The area code on the phone number is a local one.
“Oz here,” I answer.
“It’s Taylor. I know it’s late, but is Kennedy up?”
“She’s already in bed.”
“Damn. Okay. Have her call when she wakes up.”
“Is this about Faith?” I ask. The line goes quiet for a moment.
“Yes, she's back, and her mother is nowhere to be found.”
“I’ll wake her. She’d want to be woken up.” This little girl has worked her way into Kennedy’s heart. She’s important to her, which makes her important to me as I like to keep my wife happy.
“I’ll see you soon,” she says before ending the call. I head back into the bedroom, flipping on the lamp.
“Sweetheart.” I sit down on the side of the bed, brushing some of her hair out of her face. Even in sleep she’s breathtaking. A sweet innocence clings to her. It’s not surprising she fell in love with the shelter and was offered a permanent job there.
“Yeah?” She yawns, rolling to her side and cuddling deeper into the blankets.
“Faith is back, and her mom is nowhere to be found.”
Her eyes spring open. “She’s at the shelter?” she asks, sitting up.
“Yes.” She jumps out of the bed in a hurry. I get up too and pull clothes on. Kennedy has us out the door in five minutes. When we get to the shelter, Taylor lets us in.
“Kennedy, before you go in, I want you to know she has a bruise on her jaw.” Taylor gives us a heads up.
“How? How did she get here?” Kennedy’s voice wobbles with emotion.
“She said she walked.” My whole body goes tight. A young girl walking alone at night. So many things could have happened to her.
“Okay.” She nods before turning back to me. I can tell she’s fighting tears.
“You got this.” She gives me a half-smile that doesn’t meet her eyes. “I’ll come with you, but I’ll hang back at first. I’m a big guy.”
“That’s a good idea,” Taylor says as she opens another door to let us into the main part of the shelter. “She went straight to your old bed.”
I follow Kennedy back, stopping when I see what door she’s heading toward. “Go be with her. I’m going to make some calls and find out what the hell is going on.”
“Really?” I can see the hope in her eyes.
“I can’t make any promises, but I’ll see what I can do.” She lifts up on her tiptoes, offering me her mouth. I lean down and kiss her before letting go of her hand. I watch her disappear through the door.
I pull out my phone and get to work, not caring what time it is. I want information, and I want it now. Everything I can get my hands on. It doesn’t take long before Carter is sending me some information as he finds it.
“Honey.” I lift my head. Kennedy hasn't once used the term of endearment since I found her again. It was one she used often before. “Faith wants to meet you.”
A little blond girl peeks out from behind Kennedy. I try and keep my face neutral when I see the mark on her chin. The rage I feel at someone hitting this sweet angel wants to come out, but I push it back.
“He’s big,” she whispers loudly.
“He is,” Kennedy agrees. “He keeps me safe.” She runs her fingers through her hair. Faith nods in understanding, at the same time letting out a yawn.
“Come. We’re going to lie down.” My wife motions for me to come close. Faith watches my every move.
“You’re as big as Ace’s dad.” She tilts her head back, looking up at me. She’s an adorable little girl. Her hair is so blond it’s almost white. She reminds me of a fairy.
“Roman and I are friends,” I tell her. A smile forms on her lips at that.
“You married my Winnie?” she asks.
“I did. I lost her once, so I wasn’t wasting another second when I found her again.”
“I don’t blame you. She’s the best. I wish she was my mommy.”
Kennedy is still trying to fight tears. “Let’s go lie down, sweetheart. It’s late.” Kennedy shows her to one of the beds in the room. I head to the other side of the room, sitting down on the bed and watching them.
Faith keeps stealing peeks at me. I think she’s starting to relax. I can see how Kennedy fell for the little girl. I listen to them talk.
“Can we switch beds?” Faith asks, sitting up. She was almost asleep.
“We can.” Kennedy gives her a puzzled look. Faith wants to be closer to the door. It’s smart but also fucked up her mind works that way.
I stand up, giving her the bed and taking hers. “I’ve got guards outside, Faith. I promise you’re safe. No one will ever hurt you again.”