Damaged and the Knight (Damaged #2)

“It’s fate. The universe wanted them dealt with and now they will be. Judd said those guys hurt other girls and it was a normal thing for them. For Judd and Coop, it’s about revenge, but I just don’t want anyone else to get hurt like we did.”


Farah stared out at the rustling trees as a cold breeze shook everything around us. Finally, she admitted her fear.

“I worry about them going there and getting hurt.”

“I know, but this thing needs to end. Once they’re dead, the world will be a few shades more beautiful. I really need more beauty too.”

As Farah studied me, I saw a few emotions in her eyes. “It’s been harder for you.”

“It’s my fault. I never dreamed, so tomorrow always looked like it would be as crappy as today. Now, because I’m here, I’m learning to dream.”

“I’m glad you found Judd.”

“He said he loved me,” I said, smiling like crazy as I replayed his words in my head. “He also said he wants me to live with him. Judd was my first real dream and I can’t believe a life with him is coming true. I want to enjoy my life and it’ll easier to do that when those men are gone. When I never have to worry about seeing one at the store or know they’re hurting someone while I’m enjoying my life. I can’t be free until they’re destroyed.”

“I don’t know if I’ll ever believe they’re really gone.”

“Judd is going to show me on his phone,” I whispered. “He’s going to take pictures and show me. I shouldn’t want to see that, but I do. I need to know they begged like they made us beg. I want to watch them suffer and know they died remembering what they did to us. If Judd would let me, I’d go with them.”

Farah eyed me like I was someone she didn’t know. Then, she smiled. “When Cooper said he wanted you to work for him, I thought he was fucking nuts. I hated the idea and I whined until he backed off, but I was seeing you as a kid and you’re a woman now. A ballsy woman, so if you want to help Cooper with his business then I’m going to support that. Coop needs loyal people and there’s no one more loyal than you.”

Hugging her against me, I sighed. “For so many years, I wanted to tell you sorry because of what I did. I was afraid you wouldn’t forgive me though. Our parents were stupid to keep quiet about stuff that needs to be said and I’m glad we talked this morning.”

“When you moved out, I thought you might resent me for having nice things, even though I didn’t protect you.”

Wiping my wet cheeks, I reached out and dried hers too. “I love you and everything is going to be better now. We’re going to make life better.”

“As long as we have each other, we can face things. No more hiding.”

“No more lies. Our parents fucking suck and we shouldn’t be like them.”

When Farah nodded, I decided to blurt out my last big secret.

“Dad planned to pimp me out to pay his debts,” I whispered as the sounds of nearby kids startled us. “When he freaked out and hit me, he said I had a skill, but was too fucking uppity to use it.”

Farah’s expression hardened. “If we find him, I want him dead too. I never want him ruining our lives again.”

“I’ve hated him for a long time, but I thought you wouldn’t understand.”

“Until I got away, I don’t think I could admit what he really was and I hid from the truth. No more hiding.”

“We’ll never hide again.”

On that cold morning, just weeks before our first happy Christmas, we made a promise to be more than the lies and pain of our past. In that moment, we were freer than we’d ever been before. Looking into her tired eyes, I felt the change in Farah. The way she smiled made me think she saw the change in me too. We were officially starting over as new women.





Chapter Twenty Seven


The days with Judd out of town were eventful. After Aaron finished my tattoo, I spent twenty minutes staring in awe at how a beautiful work of art was on my body. Farah looked so impressed that I suspected she might get a tat one day too. While Lark had wanted to come along and see if Aaron could fix her partially complete wingless butterfly tattoo, step brother issues prevented her from joining us. As happy as I was to have my tattoo, I mostly wished Judd was there to tell me his opinion.

Staying over at Farah’s house allowed us lots of time to make wedding plans. With Skye out of the wedding, Farah was pressed to find a new bridesmaid since she wanted the same number as Cooper’s groomsmen. Once Lark came over for lunch and charmed everyone with her happy personality, Farah found her missing bridesmaid and my little group of friends felt complete.