10. The Debt
Chapter ten
The Debt
DELANE
Iwoke up in discomfort. Sun was shifting through the massive curtains, a thin little needle falling straight into my line of sight.
I rotated my body in the bed, feeling more pain than the night before.
I felt like I had been hit by a semi truck.
Rubbing my eyes, I focused on the area around me.
On the nightstand there was a small box with a note, a new bottle of water and some Tylenol.
I sat up, a bit too quickly, and snatched the painkillers.
I wasn’t going to pretend the pain wasn’t there, not when my body ached and throbbed.
I finished the bottle of water, not even realizing just how dry my throat was either.
From the screaming, my brain kindly reminded me.
The next thing I grabbed was the box. The note attached read, “Just in case” on the top. I flipped the piece of paper back and my heart sank deeper into my chest.
Plan B Pill.
I guess I shouldn’t have been shocked. I hadn’t given anyone a thorough explanation of what had happened. All that I told Mrs. Hansen was that her son helped me out of a bad situation. But to assume so confidently that I would need this medication? And to have some on hand?
I shuddered. What the fuck was going on with this family?
Although I hadn’t brought it up to Noah, I had seen his mother’s injuries as well. Seeing her last night was like looking at a duplicate of my own bruises. The longer I stayed here, the more uneasy I became.
I looked at the clock. Four something in the evening? I slept longer than I thought I would. I guess my body needed it.
“Shit,” I muttered, checking around for my cell before remembering that I didn’t have it. Force of habit.
My gaze landed on the bed’s edge, where a plain sundress was waiting for me. I hurriedly changed into it, leaving the house clothes that Mrs. Hansen had given me the night before on the bed as neatly as I could manage. I left the Plan B box there too.
I turned to look at myself more closely in the mirror on the right opposite side of the room. Somehow, the dress was a great match to my body. The length covered some of my bruises and made me feel a little more like myself. I didn’t look half bad.
Picking up a brush that sat on the side table, I combed the knots from my hair, trying to make myself look half presentable. I was ready to get out of here and see if Chelsea would make true on her promise to help me get my items from the bar. I wanted to go home and put this all behind me.
Making sure that the dress was properly smoothed down, I took a deep breath and walked out of the room.
NOAH
I groaned.
4:50PM. Already?
Fantastic.
Rising slowly to ease my pounding head, I shuffled to the bathroom to clean up. Frankly, I hated the way I smelt after being outside all night. Had the situation yesterday been a bit different, I might’ve taken a shower then.
Maybe alongside the red headed beauty. The same one who had visited my dreams.
Delane.
I preferred cold showers. Especially this morning, after recalling how Delane had dropped her clothes in front of me, exposing her subtle breasts and bare skin for my view—I needed the cold water to calm me down. I relished the way my muscles tensed under the icy water.
After I was finished, I changed into casual blue jeans and a black button up t-shirt from my walk-in wardrobe. Straightening the collar of my shirt, I walked up to my drawer by instinct and opened it.
A craving. Something to ease my migraine.
Tell him.
Last night, I had almost told Damian. I didn’t know what had come over me then, but part of me had wanted to reveal to my big brother what I was struggling through. Then I remembered how much he pissed me off on a daily basis, and knew he’d never understand me or my choices.
I pulled out my weed and favorite red lighter, flicking the side and watching the flame spark before I lit the blunt.
“I’ll stop.”
“I want to believe you, Noah.”
I placed it to my lips and breathed in deeply, trying to savor the light headed feeling and taste, but it seemed as though I was breaking a promise, destroying a vow with each puff.
He doesn’t even have to know.
I growled in frustration and crushed the flame down, straight into my dresser. I pitched the un-burning bud back into my top drawer and walked out of the room before I went searching for something stronger.
Before I made it to the bottom of the stairs, I heard her. That sweet, sing-song voice rolling through the air around me. I found myself taking the stairs down in twos, nearly tripping over myself to get to the bottom.
Once I turned around the railing I looked to the right, into the kitchen, and there she was.
She was wearing a yellow sundress that I was sure I had seen before, her red hair brushed neatly to cover most of her bruises, though the ones near her eye remained visible.
They looked worse today, I thought bitterly.
In my mind I knew that her injuries would soon heal, and I considered suddenly: Could she be any more beautiful than she is now?
She saw me and looked up, her face blossoming with that smile I had rapidly become so fond of, causing me to lose my breath.
“Hey, Noah.” She did a little wave. “Your mom convinced me to help make pancakes and eggs. Would you like some?”
I nodded instinctively, but I didn’t even really hear the question.
Mom poked her head around the corner and grinned as I approached. “Delane is a pretty good cook, darling.” She winked at me, and I rolled my eyes, hoping Delane hadn’t seen.
I followed the scent of food into the kitchen until I was next to her. I watched as she poured the pancake batter into the already hot pan.
She leaned over to me. “I didn’t realize how hungry I was until your mom asked,” she whispered, and in that second, I noticed that I was hungry as well. My stomach growled audibly and Delane laughed. “Don’t worry. It will be done in a few minutes.”
I was thinking of something witty to say to her when the phone rang in our office room. My mother relinquished the eggs and trotted to the beckoning ring.
“Take over for me, will you dear?” she asked me before leaving the kitchen.
“Sure.” I took the spatula in my hands and tried to remember how to flip eggs so I didn’t fully embarrass myself in front of Delane. She didn’t need to know that our maids and cooks usually did this for us.
Don’t burn the fucking eggs, I kept repeating to myself.
A funny feeling began to form in my stomach.
Delane and I were standing there together, cooking, like we were on a damn family sitcom.
Occasionally, I caught her glancing in my direction, and I finally flashed her a smile.
She blushed and resumed her cooking, and I smirked to myself, proud that I could get that reaction out of her.
I wondered what else I could do.
“This is fucking ridiculous,” I finally blurted, laughing out loud, and I was happy that Delane joined me to break the awful silence.
“I am glad you said something, because I wasn’t sure how I’d keep standing here cooking nonchalantly.” She laughed, grasping her sides with her free hands.
“Look, this doesn’t happen, okay?” I assured her, scraping at the pan while I did. “This never happens, and it’s weird, I’m not a superhero that brings home saved women on a regular basis.”
Delane continued to laugh, struggling to flip pancakes.
I threw my hands up in defeat. “I don’t know what my mom is thinking, to be honest. She only had sons, so she’s probably losing it with excitement to have another girl around.”
“I can see that.” Delane added with a smile.
“I think it’s my turn to ask some questions.” I told her, shutting off the fire on the stove. Success. Perfect eggs.
She bit her lip. “Like what?”
“Favorite color?”
“Red.”
I snorted and she popped me with an oven mitt. “Shut up! I didn’t ask for this hair color.”
I gravitated behind her, casually peeking over her shoulder at the pancakes. “Favorite food?”
She fidgeted from my closeness. “Italian.”
I dipped my head down, my hair brushing the back of her neck ever so slightly. “I have one more question.”
She spun around, her eyes wide and her face flushed. The movement of her chest was out of sync with my own, rapid. Making her squirm like this set me on fire.
“W-Well, go ahead and ask. I have nothing to hide.” She stumbled on her words.
I put my arms on the counter on either side of her and smirked. “Do you–”
“Noah, sweety?” My mom called.
I let out an internal sigh and stood up straight. Delane remained frozen in place. “Yes?”
“It’s for you, dear.”
I crossed my arms, perplexed at who would be calling our main line for me. “Did they give a name?”
My mom’s face appeared from the other room. She had the phone pressed tightly to her chest. “Honey, it’s Mr. Thorne.”
The blood ran cold in my veins.
I turned to look at Delane. She was shaking, her eyes darting from mine to the phone my mother was now holding. “Don’t,” she mouthed.
“Do you want me to tell him that you’re busy? He says he and you had some sort of meeting tonight. Is that right? I had no idea–”
“I got it mom,” I extended my hand. “Let me talk to him.”
My mother shrugged and handed the phone over to me before she gasped. “Delane dear, the pancakes are burning!”
I walked briskly out of the room, but not before hearing Delane apologizing with vigor. I took a deep breath before placing the phone to my ear.
“Hello?”
A chuckle. “Delane, huh? That’s a pretty name.”
“Why did you call, Mr. Thorne?” I couldn’t help but taunt him with the formalities.
There was a shifting sound coming from the other end. “You know why I’ve called.”
“Of course I do. How could I forget?” I started a steady pace from one side of the room to the other, knowing that Delane was listening to my every word from inside the kitchen. And how could I blame her? She was scared.
“Good. You can expect me to arrive around six.”
I glanced at the clock. “Too soon.”
“Hmm? Why is that Hansen?”
I placed a hand to my forehead, really wishing that I could sound, I don’t know, like I wasn’t a fucking idiot trying to cover up something. “I have...guests...”
“Ah, I see. Is this…Delane girl, the pretty little number you rescued last night?”
Fuck.
I leaned into the phone. “That is none of your concern, nor was it part of the deal to give you unnecessary information.”
It wasn’t often that I heard Silas laugh genuinely, but this laugh rang through the phone straight to my ears. “Touchy. But no matter,” his tone dropped, “I’ll get what I want tonight.”
“You will, but–”
“Six.”
“Silas–”
Click.
DELANE
Noah kept glancing nervously at the clock and it was freaking me out.
I wanted to ask him so badly what he and Silas had spoken about over the phone.
Noah hadn’t touched his food, so I presumed it was something bad, although bad seemed like a complete understatement from what he was trying to convey to me through his eyes.
He looked afraid, and agitated. I was tempted to speak, but his mother was sitting next to us, oblivious of what was really going on, or what her son had agreed to at my expense.
The front door opened, and Noah jumped at the sound.
“Noah, it’s just your brother, calm down,” his mother chided, standing and leaving the room to greet Damian.
Now was my chance.
“Noah, what’s going on?”
“You have to get out of here!”
We blurted out at the same time, and I froze.
“What?” I questioned.
Noah shook his head. “I have to get you home, before he gets here. He’s on his way.”
I grabbed hold of the table, absolutely horrified at what he was saying. Silas was heading here? Now?
“This is ridiculous! You shouldn’t have to–”
Mrs. Hansen walked back into the room with Damian, and I abruptly stopped talking.
“Are we interrupting something, Noah?” Damian asked, with a hint of curiosity behind his tone.
His suspicion didn’t go unnoticed by me.
He had to know that something wasn’t quite right with his brother.
I eyed him carefully. He was dressed in a button up and slacks, his hair slicked back with gel.
He looked very professional. I considered, for a brief moment, if he’d be willing to help us—to help his brother.
Noah had asked me not to say anything about Silas, but I couldn’t find myself willing to let him take the fall for saving me.
Noah must have been reading my expressions because he nudged me under the table with his foot, and gave a sharp shake of his head.
I boiled. Who would protect him? I had to do something.
Noah glanced sideways at the clock. “No, but I was just saying how it was about time that I took Delane home.”