Chapter 9
Amelia tried to escape every chance she got, but the men holding her expected her to run, so they started chaining her to the bed in the room where they kept her. Her body ached, and she wanted nothing more than to kill the people holding her.
A key sounded in the lock, and the door swung open. She'd stopped trying to curl up in the corner because it did no good. They dragged her out no matter what and subjected her to whatever stupid games they dreamed up.
“Get up. It’s time to go.”
“Go?”
The man stepped in and undid the chains holding her to the bed. She flinched as he reached for her arm and pulled her to him. Pulling away would only earn her more pain, so she didn't fight his hold as he sniffed her hair.
“You’re a pretty one. But you’re leaving us.”
She wanted to ask where she was going, but they didn't explain anything to her.
They didn't care if she knew where she was going or what she would be doing.
Her life had dwindled down to fulfilling their wishes.
Some nights, all she did was serve them alcohol.
On other nights, she had to do more. She learned to divorce herself from the process.
It was easier said than done. Though she tried to escape in her mind, she couldn't push away all the images.
Some things would stick with her forever.
After putting Lainey to bed, his phone rang. He was happy to see Thario was calling. “Hey, Thario, find out anything else?”
“The police raided their compound, but they didn’t find her. There was a room they think she was in, but she’s gone.”
“Fuck.”
“Yeah.”
“I think I need to come home.”
“What will you do with the kid?”
“I talked to Wild yesterday, and he said Ava would be willing to watch her. She’s between jobs and doesn’t start her new one for another three weeks.”
“Oh, yeah. I heard that she got a new job. I wasn’t sure that she’d stopped working.”
“I think it’s best to come home. It will give Lainey time to adjust.”
“Will you start your drive tomorrow?”
“No, I’ll pack tomorrow, maybe rent a storage facility for their stuff. With Dena in the hospital for the foreseeable future, I’m not sure what to do with her stuff.”
“Oh yeah, I got in touch with her doctor and had a chat. Dena isn’t doing great. She had a stroke when she was in surgery.”
“That’s not good.”
“Yeah. You should box everything that you can up and put it in storage. That way, they won't be paying for the apartment. I’ll see if I can get some guys to come by and help you.”
“Thanks, man. You've helped me so much. You're the best.”
Thario chuckled. “Maybe not the best, but thank you. I know we didn't know each other before the explosion, but I've come to think of all of you as my brothers. Stay safe, and I want to meet your kid when you get back here.”
“You bet. And I’ll send a text when we head that way.”
After ending the call, he started packing. Amelia may not appreciate him packing up her life, but she was missing, and he had no idea when she would return. Dena wasn't doing great. This apartment wasn't accessible. She would have to move, anyway.
He broke the news to Lainey the next morning that they were leaving.
She seemed excited to be heading to the ocean and California.
She asked about her mother every morning, and he told her she would be home soon.
She didn’t ask for more details, and he didn’t give them.
He had no clue when Amelia would be home or if they would ever find her.
He couldn’t tell Lainey Amelia might never make it home, not with Dena being in such bad condition.
It took him and a group of six retired Navy men and women two days to clean out the apartment. He had two suitcases full of Amelia's stuff, which he tossed in the trunk before they left.
Amelia was excited to start their travels. He was going to turn on music when he realized most of the songs he listened to had words or themes he didn’t want Lainey hearing. He would have to find kid-friendly music to listen to if he wanted something playing in the car.
There were so many things he had to think about, music being one of the minor ones. He’d flipped on the TV one night and realized rather quickly he didn’t want Lainey hearing the show. Before he knew he had a kid, he thought the show was funny, but now he thought it inappropriate.
The drive was much longer than he'd thought it would be because he had to stop multiple times for Lainey to use the bathroom, and he couldn't tell her to piss in a cup.
Lainey was dead asleep when he pulled up out front of his house.
He unloaded her first, putting her in his guest room in the middle of the bed.
He grabbed her bags and set them inside, then went back for his bags and equipment.
It was close to two in the morning when he finally got to sleep.
He woke to find Lainey staring down at him.
“Where are we?”
“My house.”
“I need to pee.”
He sat up and moved fast, taking her to the bathroom.
He glanced up at the vanity and saw a box of condoms along with a box of lube packets.
It had been a few months since he'd had sex and forgotten those were there.
Now, with Lainey sitting on his toilet, her gaze roaming all over his bathroom, he felt the heat of embarrassment hit hard.
He didn’t have sex often, and he picked wisely, making sure any woman he slept with knew he wasn’t going to be in a relationship with them. Still, a child wouldn’t understand. Heck, some adults didn’t understand casual, non-committed sex.
He grabbed the boxes and moved them to the dresser in his bedroom. Later, once she was napping, he would go through his things and clean up his stuff. He wanted his house to be safe for her because he had a suspicion Lainey would be here for a while.