10. Chapter 10
I sat in my nondescript car, which I used for jobs, across the street from Thomas’s house.
It needed to be cared for, but it had been falling into ruin, as most of the homes in the neighborhood were, and the yard was overgrown and half dead.
Perhaps his father could have fixed it up if he’d not been so greedy with his money.
But I wasn’t there for Thomas, who was attending classes. I was there for Mason Isaac Lauder, a forty-one-year-old widower and father of Thomas and Annie, employed as a field operating manager at Ace Storage and Logistics. And a gambling addict.
While Mr. Lauder was paid a decent amount, he blew through most of his earnings, leaving Thomas to carry the load.
The old home was nearly paid off, so it didn’t have much left on the mortgage, but there were other expenses.
I wasn’t there to harass Thomas’s father. Not yet, anyway. Mostly, I was there to assess. If I learned the extent of Thomas’s neglect, there would be hell to pay.
Seeing Mason Lauder, Thomas’s father, walk down the street some distance away instantly triggered my memories.
Dad lifts my chin and moves my face around, inspecting it. My eyes are black and blue, and my nose is swollen. “What happened to you?”
“School fight,” I lie smoothly. It’s easier than breathing these days.
“Hmm, no son of mine should get injured. How did this happen? I’ve trained you to be stronger than this.”
I shrug. “You should see him.”
Another lie, which I took too far, because he eyes me dubiously. “Why didn’t your school call me?”
“Mom took the call.”
“Did she now?”
I nod, and he lets go of my face.
“She didn’t tell me.”
I tense, realizing my error. Now he’ll talk to her about it, and she’ll come after me for the lie that got her into trouble.
Mom never tells him a thing because if she did, he would know it’s her who hurts me. It’s she who touches me. Deep down, he knows. They all do. But there’s no help for me. No one to turn to. One day, when I’m strong, they’ll all pay.
After years of abuse and neglect, I’m perpetually angry. I bathe in it after living in fear for so long. I hate the fear. It makes me feel weak. Anger makes me feel strong and powerful, like I’m in control. I know I’m not, but I will be soon enough. I bide my time.
For some reason, his neglect is worse than her abuse in some ways.
Probably because he knows something is wrong.
He knows I don’t get hurt at school. But he refuses to acknowledge the abuse or dig deep.
He refuses to turn his sights on Mother.
I don’t know why, but I’m beyond caring.
It doesn’t matter why anymore. I’ve given up trying to find answers.
Every time I see my father, I feel the knife of betrayal in my back.
Mr. Lauder was walking closer toward his house with a teen girl with cropped blond hair walking beside him. She must have been Annie. The last time I checked, their father had an older sedan. I assumed he sold it for his gambling debts.
Annie was waving her arms, yelling at her father, but I couldn’t hear them. He was tense with slouched shoulders, not yelling back.
Once they went inside the house, I got out of the car, shoved my hands into the pockets of my jacket, feeling the blade for comfort, and walked toward the house.
When I knocked on the door, Annie answered it.
“Who are you? If you’re here to sell Bibles, you can shove right off.”
She was much more sassy and blunt than Thomas. I preferred his personality, and the way he looked at me as if I rose the sun for him.
With a deep breath, I put on my loathsome mask and a broad smile .
“Hey, you must be Annie. No Bibles here, I’m afraid,” I chuckled.
She raised a blonde brow. “Do I know you?”
“Not yet. I’m Easton. Thomas told me to meet him here, but I’m a little early.”
She smiled in return, grabbed my arm, and dragged me inside. “You’re the boyfriend! It’s nice to meet you. My brother gushes about you all the time. And I must say, I appreciate how you take care of him. He deserves it.”
“Yeah, he really does. I gush about him, too. He’s an amazing guy.”
“So, come on in. You can meet our dad,” she said, but her tone lost inflection, indicating she was still angry.
She let me go and I followed her into the kitchen where Mr. Lauder was pulling food from the refrigerator—food that I had bought.
“Dad…”
“Jesus, Annie. Can you give it a rest? I said I’d get the car back. I just need to win that next race, and we’ll be golden.”
“ We have a guest, Dad ,” she said tightly.
Well, that explained what happened to the car.
He put the chicken breast on the counter and turned to me with a wary and mistrustful look on his face. “Oh, I didn’t see you there.”
“This is Easton, Tommy’s boyfriend.”
He suddenly smiled brightly and rushed to shake my hand.
I smiled, too, performing for their sake and mine. “How do you do, sir? It’s nice to meet you. Ah, sorry, I’m early. I was supposed to meet Thomas here. ”
“It’s a pleasure. What you did for Thomas while he was sick… what a nice young man you are.”
“Thank you. He deserves it. He’s very special to me.”
“I’m glad. Thomas is such a good boy.”
“Thomas is an amazing man ,” Annie corrected. “He works hard, goes to school, and takes care of us, unlike—”
Mr. Lauder frowned, and his brow dropped angrily. “That’s enough. Go upstairs and do your homework.”
“Ugh! You’re impossible.”
Annie stormed out of there and stomped upstairs before slamming her door.
“Jesus… teenagers, amirite?”
I shrugged. “I’m a teen myself.”
He scanned me up and down with chocolate-brown eyes, taking in my suit underneath my wool coat. “You seem too put together for a teen.”
I shrugged again. “I was raised with wealth,” I said intentionally.
As predicted, his eyes gleamed with the thought of his son being with a wealthy man, as if I’d ever give Thomas’s father a dime.
“Indeed? What does your father do?”
“Nothing. He’s dead.”
“Oh… Jesus. I’m truly sorry. I also lost my wife a few years ago.”
“I’m also sorry for your loss.”
My irritation with this man was growing, making it harder and harder to maintain my composure .
“Look, I’ve got to warm up the meat a bit before I start cooking, and I need to shower. Help yourself to anything. I’ll be down in a minute.”
“You’re too kind, sir.”
He beamed at me and rushed upstairs, leaving me alone. That went better than expected. Now I could snoop around.
I searched downstairs, looking for evidence of the gambling to get an idea of how in debt he was.
I wasn’t ready to step in and intervene yet, but I would if it was worse than it seemed.
Of course, being forced to sell your car to pay off a debt was bad enough.
Leaving Thomas without food while he was sick was even worse.
My biggest concern was the house. Did Mr. Lauder put it up for collateral yet?
I didn’t understand addiction. I grasped the concept and dangers of it, but I didn’t feel addiction. One should always have full control over oneself at all times. Certain things triggered me to anger, but I had enough control not to lash out on instinct, no matter how much my mind told me to.
I tapped each finger with my thumb as I continued my search. When I reached the dining room, I opened the French doors and found it had been converted into an office. On the old wooden desk sat a stack of mail, but everything was still sealed. I didn’t want to open it and arouse suspicion.
As I searched the drawers, I came across a folder with a stack of papers.
Inside were receipts from pawned objects and sold cars.
There was nothing on the house. Then I found several letters without a return address or name on them.
The letters were all threats—threats of violence and death if Mr. Lauder didn’t pay up.
The debts of each letter varied from three thousand to over twelve thousand.
It was no wonder this family was always broke. My Thomas had to foot the bills for what his father couldn’t pay.
I was on the verge of going upstairs and punishing his father. He needed to suffer for this. Maybe he loved his kids, but he didn’t care enough about them to quit. That man needed a hard lesson about self-control.
I toyed with the knife in my pocket as I toyed with the idea of hurting him.
Would Thomas be angry with me?
Maybe.
Before I could decide or act on anything, keys rattled in the door, and in walked Thomas. I quickly stepped out of the dining room and straight into the kitchen. Then I walked out to greet him.
As soon as he saw me, he dropped his backpack and lunged at me, wrapping his arms around my neck. I held him back, staring at his glittering blue eyes full of adoration, or so I assumed it to be.
“Hi! What are you doing here?”
“How are you feeling?” I deflected.
“So much better, thanks you to you. Gah! It’s nice to breathe and smell again.”
“I met your father and sister. She’s very mad at him.”
He frowned and deflated in my arms. I didn’t like that one bit. “I was wondering how you got in with the car missing from the driveway. Now I know. They’re home now.”
He stepped away from me and pulled off his glasses to rub his nose.
“I don’t know what to do about him. How is he going to get to work on time without a car?
He can take the subway or bus, but his job is all the way in McLean.
If he loses his job, we’re screwed. I don’t make enough to cover everything.
Whenever Dad has a winning streak, he gives me some of that money, I guess out of guilt.
Then I drop it in the bank to save for a rainy day. ”
“That’s very wise of you, Thomas. You clearly have more control over yourself than your father.”
He beamed at me again with those dimples popping, and I finally understood what it meant to be addicted to something. It was the way he smiled at me that I needed all the time, like I was everything to him. That only I mattered in this world.
“Yeah, he’s really struggling. He’s started drinking more, too, which is worrying.”
“You know how I feel about this. If you’re neglected any further, I’ll be complicit if I don’t stop it. I’ll be no better than my father.”
He wrapped his arms around me again and pressed his lips to mine for a brief kiss. “I love how you always want to protect me.”
“I always protect what is mine.”
“So hot,” he breathed. “So… I’m yours?”
“Yes.”
I tugged his hands off me, grabbed one of them in mine, and led him upstairs to his room. When I shut the door behind me, I held out my hand. “Access your bank app and then give me your phone.”
“Why?”
I wiggled my fingers, and he placed it in the palm of my hand with the app open. I growled, seeing that he only had a thousand dollars in there .
“You haven’t saved much, Thomas.”
“It’s all I’ve been able to afford. The last time Dad had a winning streak, he gave me five hundred bucks. He’s generous for a moment before he wants it back after his next loss. But I make sure he knows it’s already spent. He doesn’t know about my account.”
“Good.”
I opened my phone and bank app, transferred money into his account, and then handed him his phone back.
His eyes bugged out, and his jaw dropped when he took in the amount. Then he shook his head. “Easton, this is too much money. You’re so sweet and generous, but I’m not with you for your money.”
“And the very reason you deserve it.”
His blue eyes turned red and watery. “Thank you… That’s so kind, but… twenty thousand?”
“I have a lot more than that.”
“Yeah, but…”
“Just say thank you.”
His smile was small as he pulled me into a hug and rested his head on my shoulder. “It definitely helps me rest easier if there’s an emergency. Thank you, Superman.”
It was such a weird and ridiculous name, but I liked being his. I never had a person of my own before, not including Sid. Thomas was a different sort of ownership.
“You’re welcome. But there is one caveat.”
“Yeah, anything.”
“Your father does not see a dime of it.”
“He will never get his hands on my money. And this gives us so much breathing room. I’m so grateful to you.”
I gave him a devious smile for show, hoping he would like it. “You can show me how grateful you are on our next date at my place.”
He held my face and pressed his forehead to mine. “Oooh, are we talking naughty gratitude?”
“Yes.”
“You have all of me.”