Chapter 21
Chapter Twenty-One
Eloise
I flinch when I hear the front door slam shut, followed by the voices of Marcus and his equally gross friend, Drake. They’re laughing as they head toward the hallway.
No one is home. I thought I would be alone for a few hours this afternoon. Karen, my foster mom, is out running errands before she picks up the younger kids. Jeff, her husband, is at work.
Why is Marcus home so early?
When I hear him speak again, my blood runs out of my face. “You think her face is pretty, wait until you see her tits.”
I leap off my bed and run toward the door, intending to shut and lock it before they get to me. But I’m not fast enough.
Marcus sticks his foot between the door and the frame before I can succeed. Even though I shove against it with all my weight, I’m too small to win this battle of strength.
Marcus pushes the door all the way open so fast that I’m knocked on my butt.
“Tsk tsk. You know you’re not allowed to lock doors in this house.
Do you want me to tell Karen I heard you in here masturbating?
” He cackles. “Moaning so loudly as you stroked your little cunt that I couldn’t focus on my homework? ”
My face heats as I try to scramble backward, but he’s on me before I can get away.
He grabs me by the T-shirt, nearly yanking it off as he tugs me to my feet.
The only reason I know what he’s talking about is because I’ve heard him and his friends discussing jerking off on more than one occasion, so I looked it up.
Marcus releases my shirt just long enough to step behind me and grab my arms.
“Let me go!” I shout. I wish someone else were home.
He laughs in my ear. “Drake wants to see your titties, Ellie Bellie. Lift your shirt and show him those nubs, and then I’ll let you go.”
Drake is standing in the doorway. He’s gripping the frame. His eyes are wide, and I think he’s a bit green. “Dude…” he says to Marcus.
Marcus laughs again. “This girl is going to be the biggest slut in school next year. With this face and hair, as soon as her boobs come in, every guy is going to want to fuck her. You and I will be able to say we saw her titties when they were just sprouting. Oh, fuck, pull out your phone. We can use the pictures to blackmail her later.”
I jerk against his hold, but I can’t free myself.
I’m no longer just embarrassed and humiliated, I’m homicidal.
I’m considering stabbing Marcus in his sleep, and I will if either of these fucking pricks manages to lift my shirt.
If Drake takes pictures, I’ll take that bloody knife to his house and kill him the same night.
I’ve never felt so intensely furious. Fuck Marcus and Drake. Fuck boys. Fuck every man who looks at me like I’m a piece of meat that exists for him to drool over.
Marcus slides his hands down to my wrists and shifts his grip so he’s got both wrists in one hand. He uses his other to lift the hem of my shirt.
I scream so loud, surely the neighbor can hear me, not that it will help. No one is coming to my rescue. No one is ever coming to my rescue. I’m on my own in this world.
“Dude, let her go. She’s just a kid,” Drake argues, finally stepping farther into the room.
Marcus ignores him and yanks my shirt all the way up, baring my chest to them both.
I buck my head back and slam it into his nose so hard I hear the crack. It works. He releases me, crying out in pain.
Fuck him. I yank my top down, shove past Drake, and run through the house and out the front door, screaming, more from anger than anything else.
“Eloise…”
Large hands are resting on my shoulders. How did he catch up with me? Surely he wouldn’t be able to follow me so quickly. Isn’t his nose broken and bleeding?
I twist as hard as I can, bucking and screaming.
“Eloise! It’s me. Cannon. You’re safe.”
Cannon?
Finally, I’m able to open my eyes. I find myself staring into the deep brown kind eyes of my rescuer.
Cannon.
Not Marcus. Not Drake.
Cannon.
All the air leaves my lungs as he releases my shoulders.
He’s sitting on the mattress next to my hip and cups my face. “It was a dream, Little one. You’re okay.”
I’m panting as I stare at him, slowly returning to my new reality. “I’m sorry.”
“No need to be sorry, Eloise.” He pats his thighs. “How about a hug?”
I push the covers back and scramble onto his lap, wrapping my arms around his neck.
Safe. Cannon is my safe place. I press my face against his neck and inhale his scent. I love the gentle roughness of his beard against my cheek.
Safe.
Cannon rubs my back over my nightgown. This one is yellow with a princess on the front.
When I changed into it before bed, I felt light and sunny.
For some reason, it made me think of daytime while I sat under the windows reading.
This time, I had both a lamp and a booklight.
Cannon doesn’t want me to strain my eyes.
Safe.
When my heart stops racing, I speak. “Why did everyone think they could take from me just because I’m pretty?”
“I don’t know, Little one. They weren’t good people.”
“There are a lot of people who aren’t good,” I point out.
“Unfortunately, yes. But you won’t ever have to deal with anyone like that again.”
I lean back, sniffling. “I want to believe you.”
He smiles. “I promise. Even if you decide you don’t want to stay with me, I’ll make sure you are safe.”
I lower my head, but now I’m faced with his chest. He’s not wearing a shirt. He’s so masculine. So muscular. So sexy. I’m drawn to the scar on his throat, and I lift a finger to touch it. “Did it hurt?” I ask softly.
“No. Not at the time. I was choking to death, so panicked that three men had to hold me down while the medic cut an incision and put a tube into my neck. My adrenaline was pumping too hard to feel the cut. The moment I was finally able to breathe, I was so fucking relieved that I still didn’t experience the pain. ”
“You must have been so scared,” I say, lifting my gaze.
He smiles. “I was a soldier. I wasn’t supposed to show fear. But, Eloise, I was terrified.”
I like that he’s honest and real with me. He could have shrugged and given me some bullshit about being too tough for pain, but instead, he told me the truth.
I lick my lips. “His name was Marcus.”
Cannon holds my gaze, saying nothing, letting me reveal what I want on my timeframe.
His kindness and caring nature bring tears to my eyes.
He probably thinks the tears have something to do with my nightmare, but they don’t.
I’m not shedding tears for that asshole ever again. He doesn’t deserve them.
My tears are from finally being in a safe place with a person I can trust with my emotions. Tears of relief.
“He was sixteen. A foster kid with the same family as me. I was twelve when I was placed with them. Even though I knew to keep my head down and hide from the world, my looks didn’t escape Marcus. He tormented me every day.” I pause, taking deep breaths.
Cannon rubs my back.
“He was so crude. I learned most of my foul language from him. I started using cuss words, especially in my head. But I learned things twelve-year-old girls should not know yet. Cunt, cock, masturbate, jerk off, titties.” I shudder and lean my forehead against Cannon’s chest for a while.
When I feel ready to continue, I lift my head and take a deep breath. “I was just starting to develop, and he liked to corner me in the hallway and pinch my nipples.”
Cannon stiffens.
I sigh. “Larkin wasn’t the first man to blackmail me. Marcus was. He threatened to steal money from our foster parents and plant it on me and then tell them he saw me taking it. I was powerless.”
Cannon is still stroking the small of my back, but his fingers are not as gentle.
“Eventually, he went too far, pushed my last button. He held me down and lifted my shirt to show his buddy my chest.”
Cannon gasps. I’m impressed he was able to hold his shit together this long.
I grin at him. “Don’t worry. I slammed my head into his face and broke his nose. When he came home from the hospital hours later, he had two black eyes. That was the last time I saw him. I was in the living room waiting for the social worker to pick me up and move me to another home.”
“Why did they move you and not him?”
“He told them all some pile of shit about me having a temper and lashing out at him every time no one else was home. I was done. If they hadn’t moved me before the sun set, I would have run away.”
“So, this Marcus scumbag… He have a last name?”
I smile again. “No need to add him to your list. He was shot and killed in a drug bust a year later. I saw it on the news.”
Cannon grins. “Good.” He pulls me in and holds me close, kissing the top of my head. “It’s three in the morning. Think you can go back to sleep? Want me to read to you?”
“No, but will you stay with me until I’m asleep?”
“Absolutely, Little one.” Cannon scoots back on the mattress and lowers us onto our sides so he’s spooning me. He pulls the covers over us and kisses my neck. “Rest, Little one. You’re safe.”
It takes me a long time to settle, but eventually I manage to relax, safe and protected in the arms of my savior.