Chapter 39
CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE
KAI
I turn left out of Dominick’s drive and head away from town. If he finds out Serena left, there will be no safe place for her in Birch Falls. Not when he can send his cop buddies an APB to look for her. No, we need to be far away from Birch Falls while we come up with a game plan. I glance over at Serena and see her staring vacantly out the passenger window, tears silently trailing down her cheeks. I reach over and take her hand in mine, giving it a reassuring squeeze. “I’ve got you, ReRe. He’s not going to hurt you ever again. I swear my life on it.” Serena doesn’t respond right away, just continues to stare out the window, so I leave her be while I try to figure out where to go.
I dismiss the possibility of staying with friends or relatives. It would be too easy for Dom to trace us that way, and I don’t want to land anyone else on the wrong side of the police. I don’t even feel comfortable driving my car right now, the memory of the last time he pulled me over fresh in my mind. We need to get off the main roads and somewhere secluded quick, before he realizes she’s gone.
“He’s not going to let me go, Kai.” Serena’s soft voice, barely audible over the hum of the tires on the road, pulls me from my thoughts. She sounds so broken and scared, it breaks my heart all over again.
“I’ve already got you away from him. There’s no way he’s getting you back now.” There is steel in my voice, and I mean every word of what I say.
“Do you really think he will just throw up his hands and let me run off? He’s the police, Kai! He’s already threatened to have you arrested if he catches you near me. What do you think he’s going to do when he sees his security footage and finds out I left with you? You should take me back before he has all of Birch Falls PD looking for you.” The resignation in Serena’s words is like a knife to my gut.
“ReRe, let’s get one thing straight. I don’t give a fuck what he threatened to do to me. I only care about what he did to you . I will not hand you back to that piece of shit abuser. We are going to find a place to lay low and make a plan, okay? Just trust me to take care of you. Please, ReRe.” Serena lets out a small sniffle as she wipes away more tears and nods her head. “Alright, good. Get my phone and see what you can find for hotels that are at least an hour away. Preferably away from the main roads.”
An hour outside of town—up in the mountains off the Parkway—we find a small motel with scenic views that seems to do most of its business during the summer and fall. Now that the trees are bare and Christmas is close, most of the parking lot is empty. I pull around to the far side of the building, parking as far away from the road as possible.
Turning towards Serena, I lift her chin up gently, directing her gaze from her lap to my face. “I’m gonna go get us a room. I’ll be right back. Wait right here, okay?” She presses her lips into a thin line but gives me a subtle nod of assurance that she isn’t going to wander off on some self-sacrificing mission. I debate moving the car nearer the motel office so I can see her when I go in, but I don’t want to risk anyone driving by seeing it.
The entire time I’m checking in, I’m paranoid that when I return Serena will be gone. I know her, and I know how selfless she is. She doesn’t want me to get in the middle between her and Dom, because she’s afraid of what he will do to me. What she doesn’t realize is nothing he does to me will ever hurt me as much as what he’s already done to her.
When I get back to the car, relief floods my system when I find Serena still sitting right where I left her. She’s staring out the window into the woods, lost in her own thoughts, so when I open the door, she startles. “Jesus, Kai, you scared me.” I give her an apologetic smile in return.
“Sorry, come on. I’ve got us a room. Let’s get inside before you freeze in those tiny pjs. Shit, we should’ve gotten you some clothes before we left.” I kick myself for not thinking of that before dragging her out of the house, but the sight of her covered in bruises had my fight or flight instincts in overdrive. While she gets out of the car and comes around to meet me, I reach in the back, grabbing one of my hoodies and a backpack with my gym clothes. They’re still clean, since I never made it to my workout today, so I can let Serena wear them to stay warm.
When Serena reaches my side, I tug the hoodie over her head before we head to our room. It’s too big by two sizes. Serena is dwarfed by the sweatshirt, but she smiles when she tucks her hands into the front pocket. “Ooh, thanks Kai for my new favorite sweatshirt.”
“Don’t you dare get any ideas, ReRe. That one is mine.” I level a stern look at the gorgeous girl in front of me, knowing full well I’m full of shit and more than willing to give her the shirt off my back if she asks for it. She just rolls her eyes at me.
“Sure, whatever you say, Kai.”
“Come on, brat. Let’s get inside before you freeze.” Wrapping my arm around Serena’s shoulders, I lead her to our safe haven for the night, feeling slightly better after seeing a glimpse of the girl I know still hiding under the shadows Dom cast over her.