Chapter 46
CHAPTER FORTY-SIX
SERENA
“ I bought it.”
Kai’s words are ringing in my ears as my vision goes gray around the edges. Between acknowledging Dominick had been raping me—a brutal truth I had been denying fiercely in my own mind—and Kai confessing that he bought my house, I feel like my entire universe is collapsing and expanding all at once. I can’t process. I can’t breathe. I can’t…
My vision goes black, and suddenly Kai’s strong hands are cupping my face, his forehead pressed to mine. He’s saying something, but his words are muffled by the panic that is trying to pull me under.
I’m vaguely aware of the sensation of something cold and wet on the back of my neck, dripping down my back. It’s just shocking enough to force a gasp of air into my lungs. Slowly, the world comes back into focus. I see Kai’s body kneeling between my legs. His warm breath tickles my lips, and I part them, breathing him in, trying to inhale his strength. His deep, honeyed voice filters through the fog, anchoring me back in reality.
“Breathe, baby. Deep breath. I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m sorry. Come back to me, ReRe.”
I quiet Kai by pressing my lips to his, swallowing his apologies. Apologies he shouldn’t be making. None of this is his fault.
When we part, a new resolve pours into the cracks of my fractured self-worth. The cracks Dom put there. Hardening, strengthening, reinforcing it into something more resilient. Better. Unbreakable. I take a long moment, sitting with this new version of myself, letting it settle into my bones, before saying, “I want to take my life back.”
Arianna, Kai and I are sitting around her kitchen table, coming up with a plan for taking back control of my life—while making sure we can get Dominick locked up without fear of retaliation—when Kai’s phone starts buzzing from its spot on the table.
Kai peeks at the caller ID and a frown tugs down at his full, pouty lips. “It’s Mrs. G.” He flicks a concerned glance at me before hitting the speaker button to answer the call.
“Hey, Mrs. G, what’s up?”
“Oh, Kai! Good, you answered! Honey, have you seen Serena? Her man, Dominick, came by looking for her, and he was all in a tizzy! He was saying crazy nonsense like you kidnapped her, and he kept asking to come into my house to make sure she wasn’t here. I told him I haven’t seen either one of you, but he kept threatening to come back with a warrant, so I just let him in to take a look so he'd go away. There’s a police cruiser parked down the street in front of your parents’ house like they’re waiting to bust up a meth lab. What in the hell is going on?”
My mouth falls open at Mrs. G’s words. Fuck. This is bad. I can’t let Dominick drag Kai’s parents or Mrs. G into this mess. He’s going to harass everyone I love until I go back to him.
Kai looks at me wide-eyed, unsure of what to tell Mrs. G. We don’t want her to know too much; the less she knows, the better. But we can’t let Dom poison her against Kai. Quickly, I write down a response for Kai, careful not to give away that I’m with him.
“She’s fine, Mrs. G. She and Dom had a fight, and she wanted to go visit her mom’s friend so I gave her a ride. There’s nothing to worry about. Serena is safe. I swear it.” There is a long moment of silence before Mrs. G responds.
“You keep her safe, Kai. I don’t like the way that man was acting. It was…irrational.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Kai responds, his eyes trained on me with a look of reverence, like he is swearing an oath.
When the call disconnects, I know we need to come up with a new plan. Dominick is planting seeds painting Kai as the bad guy. He’s going to say Kai hurt me. I refuse to let Kai take the fall for Dominick’s abuse.
“We need to get my mom somewhere safe. I can’t report anything until I know she is somewhere he can’t get to in case he retaliates. Then we need to get irrefutable evidence that Dom is an abuser.”
I watch Kai’s brows furrow in confusion at my last statement. He doesn’t like where my train of thought is leading but I’m not letting that deter me.
“ReRe—”
“Don’t ReRe me, Kai. I mean it. I am done letting this man ruin my life, and I will do what it takes to punish him for the hell he has put me through. I will not let this happen to another woman.”
Kai doesn’t say anything for a long moment before nodding his understanding.
“Alright ReRe, we will do this your way.”
When we leave Arianna’s to go pick up my mom, she is making some phone calls to friends she has on the local police force, trying to figure out who will be most receptive to hearing my story. She is fully aware of our need for discretion until we have Mom in a safe location, out of Dominick’s reach, but she wants to have the right person lined up for when I’m ready to make a report. Once we pick up Mom, we will meet up with Arianna and let Mom stay with her while we deal with Dominick.
On the drive to Whispering Grove, my body turns into a knot of tension and fraught emotions. I’m excited to see my mom and tell her about Kai buying the house but ashamed and terrified to tell her everything that went down with Dominick. In my heart, I know she won’t judge me, but the gremlin in the back of my mind won’t stop whispering how I should’ve known better. I shake my head, trying to shake loose that line of thinking. Mentally I begin chanting, “It’s not my fault. It’s not my fault. It’s not my fault, ” trying not to spiral into a pit of shame and self-recrimination.
A text comes through on Kai’s phone from his mom, pulling me from my doubt spiral. “Do you want me to check that for you?” Kai nods and swipes his thumb over the unlock screen before handing me the phone, not taking his eyes off the road. He’s being overly cautious, driving just under the speed limit, refusing to give any cops a reason to pull him over. We can’t afford to let Dom find us before we get Mom somewhere safe. My stomach drops when I read the message from Kai’s mom.
Mom: Don’t come home. Officers here with warrant searching the house. Stay wherever you are.
“Shit…Kai. They’re searching your house.” Nausea rolls through me as I consider the consequences of this.
“It’s okay, ReRe. They won’t find anything.” Kai tries to reassure me, but we both know it’s an empty promise. It doesn’t matter if there is anything to find at his house. If Dominick wants to get Kai in trouble, he’s not above planting evidence.
“You know that means nothing, Kai. Dominick isn’t going to leave you alone while I’m with you. He’s going to set you up.” My voice comes out in a high-pitched whine, panic seeping into my bones again.
“He can try, ReRe. But he’s not going to win.”
When we reach Whispering Grove, my body is vibrating with tension. I feel eyes on me as soon as I exit the car, and I can’t get to my mom fast enough. When I rush through the lobby, it sounds like someone calls my name, but I ignore them in my rush to get to my mom. Bursting through her door, I am greeted by an empty space. No sign of my mother anywhere.
“Mom? Hey, you here? I came to see you.” I walk through her small apartment, hoping maybe she’s in her room laying down or in the bathroom. She is nowhere to be found and her phone is sitting on her nightstand.
“Shit, where is she?”
“Maybe she’s walking on the grounds or visiting with one of her friends? Come on, let’s go ask.” Kai’s voice is calm, a balm to the rapid beating of my heart.
Yeah, she’s visiting with friends. She has friends here now. That has to be it. I let him tug me back through the door, and we run into the woman who works the front desk.
“There you are! I tried to get your attention when you came through. Your fiancé came by a little while ago and picked up your mom. He said he was going to surprise you by taking you both out to dinner. He wasn’t sure what time you were coming by to visit Laura, so he told me to tell you to meet him at the house.”
The blood drains from my face as I realize we are too late. Dominick has my mom.
Missing the despair that must be written all over my face, the woman smiles before saying, “He’s such a sweet man. You sure did get lucky with that one.” With that, she turns and walks away, taking my last bit of hope with her.