One Tiny Secret

Chapter Thirty Five

I try to open my eyes and survey my surroundings, but all I see are fuzzy slivers. A feeling of dizziness washes over me and my head begins to throb. A sharp pain resonates from my left temple and I moan, still trying to open my eyes. My eyelids feel so heavy. All I can hear is my breathing mixed with a high-pitched ringing in my ears. I attempt to open my eyes again. When I succeed, I find it hard to focus on any one thing. It’s all blurring together.

My body feels restricted, and my range of motion is limited. My arms are pulled behind me, tied together at the wrists. The rope scratches and burns my skin as I try to move.

“Oh, you’re awake?”

The voice fades in and out.

My head slumps back as the dizziness intensifies. The room seems like it’s spinning while I’m sitting still. I try to speak, but my lips are forced together by something covering my mouth. It feels sticky to my lips.

“Daaaaani…Daaaaaani.” I hear the voice again and feel a sharp pain in my neck and scalp as my hair is grabbed and pulled forward. “Dani!”

My eyes shoot open. Although everything is still hazy, I can make out a face right in front of mine.

“There you are.” The voice sounds calming, yet menacing at the same time.

I focus and the person’s face comes perfectly into view. Anger surges through me when I’m met with Phoebe’s evil grin. I struggle against my confinements, wanting to rip her to shreds for what she’s done. I say a few choice words, but they’re muffled behind the tape.

She laughs. “What’s that you say? You can’t talk? Well, that’s kind of the point. To be honest, hearing your voice feels like someone’s jabbing syringes into my ears,” she says, tapping my cheek with the scythe in her hand.

She traces my chin with the tip of the blade, and I feel her dig it into the tape over my mouth. “Besides, I already know what you’re going to ask me.” She clears her throat. “Why, Phoebe, why?” she whines mockingly before bringing the scythe up to the tip of my nose. “First of all, motives are so two thousand and late. And second,” she begins and moves her mouth close to my ear, “I’m f*cking psychotic.”

I just glare at her.

“Well, shit. This isn’t as fun without you yelling at me for what I’ve done to you,” she comments, caressing her cheek with the curved edge of the blade.

I scream as she rips the tape from my mouth. I hang my head, weighed down by the pain, and try to suppress the sting on my lips by tucking them into my mouth and wetting them. When the soreness subsides, I whip my head up and glare at her again.

“Why did you—”

“Uh, uh, uh. I’ve already told you why,” she says interrupting me, pressing the blade to my lips.

I struggle to talk around the curved blade. “I don’t believe you. There has to be a reason!”

“Fine! You want a reason? Here it is. You’re a brother-stealing, friend-abandoning,” she says pointing at Kevin’s body, “cock-teasing, heart-breaking whore of whores!”

“That’s your reason? That’s the reason you killed all those people? Just because of how you felt about me?”

She takes a moment, her expression getting angrier the longer she stalls. “You f*cking took the only man I ever loved away from me and sent him packing to California!”

“Parker? But he’s your brother,” I reply, disgusted.

Phoebe leans in close to my ear and yells, “Stepbrother! He’s my stepbrother.” I flinch at the high-pitched squeal of her voice. She backs away and glances at Kevin’s body on the floor and pans back to me. “Oh, and just for the record, Kevin did most of the dirty work. I just provided the inspiration,” she replies smugly, gesturing to me. “You’d be surprised how f*cked up love can make you. And he had quite the major league hard-on for you, Dani. But then again, you already know that.”

“You’re such a bitch!”

“Really? Namecalling? That’s a little low, even for you, isn’t it, Dani?” she asks, grabbing me tightly about the chin and mouth with her hand. “Not to mention very stupid, since I’m the one with the knife.” She releases her grip after shoving my head back.

“Why’d you kill Janice? She did nothing.”

Phoebe giggles, making me waver between fear and fury. “Want to know a secret? Janice was a part of this whole thing. She was our little techie. You can thank her for all the deleted texts, and for tapping into the school’s network, allowing us to showcase your little soft core flick with Parker in the computer lab. I guess all that alone time in her room and the library, gave her a lot of opportunities to do research on this new little techno hobby of hers. Unfortunately, that’s when her usefulness ended, and she couldn’t quite cut it anymore. So, we had to do what we had to do.”

“You’re a liar! Janice wouldn’t have ever helped you do this.”

“Of course she would. Think about it, Dani. Just like the rest of us, you f*cked her over royally. Not only were you a reason her mom homeschooled her, but you also drew all the attention of the one and only guy she ever liked—Kevin. It seems like you have a habit of being the little whore. She had a grudge against you, my friend, and once her mom drove her to the breaking point, she was all too eager and willing to f*ck you over.”

“You won’t get away with this,” I spit out through clenched teeth.

“Oh, Dani. Dani, Dani, Dani. You’re such a naïve, stupid bitch, aren’t you? I will get away with this. You see, Kevin will take the fall for everything. Just like he was supposed to. Of course, he didn’t know that,” she answers with a sneer.

I see my dad stir. He’s lying on the bed and appears to be coming to.

“Oh, goodie. Pops is waking up,” Phoebe says, leaping onto his back. He cries out in pain behind taped lips as she grinds her knees into his spine. Jumping back off the bed, she kneels in front of me and smirks. Holding up the scythe and the gun she drew from my father’s holster, she says, “So, which one do you want for dear old Dad? The slow painful death of the blade, or the quick, possibly painless end by the gun?”

I don’t answer her. Instead, I rear back and spit in her face.

“Scythe it is,” she declares while wiping away the saliva dripping down her face.

Raising the blade into the air, she swipes it across my right leg. Excruciating pain surges through my thigh. Tears come to my eyes as Phoebe brings the scythe up to my face, smearing the blood across my lips and cheek.

Through my waterlogged eyes, I see movement just past Phoebe’s head. I have to fight against showing my awareness of Parker creeping up behind her. He must’ve come straight from the hospital. He’s in his gown with a pair of pants underneath it. Putting his finger to his mouth, he continues to move further into the room. When I turn my eyes back to Phoebe, a questioning look appears on her face.

Shit! Did she notice me look behind her?

She stands up and spins around. Parker cracks her in the face with his fist. She crumples to the floor with a sickening thud.

“For f*ck’s sake! It’s my stepsister?” he shouts, panning from her to me.

“Yeah. Hurry—grab the gun from her and untie me,” I reply.

After collecting the gun, Parker cradles my face with his hand while sending me a strained smile. He looks relieved when he sees I have no visible injuries there. His attention shifts to the rope binding my wrists together, and he starts to loosen the knot. When my hands are free, he moves on to the rope around my waist.

“Parker, look out!” I shout.

Phoebe takes a swipe at him with the scythe. He groans in pain as the blade enters his arm. I see the gun drop from his hand. It lands behind the chair with a clunk.

“You always did punch like a bitch,” Phoebe scoffs as Parker backs up to lean against the wall, clutching his wound. She points the blade at me. “Don’t think I’ve forgotten about you, blondie.”

With my hands free, I attempt to grab her, but she deftly maneuvers out of my reach. I scramble to untie myself and hear the struggle behind me. I work even faster to get free.

When I hear Parker’s aching moans, I turn to look at him. Phoebe’s digging the tip of the blade into the injury on his right side, torturing him.

I grab the gun when I’m fully able to move from the chair.

“Get away from him, you bitch!” I shout, limping to my feet while aiming the gun in her direction. I can’t fire because she’s standing right in front of Parker. If I miss, I could hit him. The ache in my leg is almost too much for me to bear. I’m finding it hard to focus on my aim.

Phoebe laughs, taking a hold of Parker and posting up behind him, using his body as a shield. She jabs the scythe deeper into his side to make him cooperate with her. His pained sounds make me flinch. He dwarfs Phoebe as she stays behind him, making a clear shot almost impossible.

“You can’t win, Dani. I wrote the f*cking rules myself,” she taunts.

I pull back the top of the barrel, loading a bullet from the clip into the gun, and stabilize it with my left hand. An insane idea enters my mind. I’m scared to do it, but it might be my only choice to save Parker.

“I’m sorry, Parker.”

“Do what you have you do,” he replies through clenched teeth.

Phoebe’s eyes grow wide, peeking over Parker’s shoulder. I point the gun at his left arm and pull the trigger. He yells out in pain before dropping to one knee. I pull the top of the barrel once more and point the gun at Phoebe. I try to ignore the pain surging through my leg as I steady my aim. With her directly in my sights, I release the breath I’m holding and pull the trigger.

BANG!

The bullet blows straight into her forehead, sending her flailing toward the window. All I hear is the sound of glass crashing on the floor as she smashes through it, falling outside.

I shuffle over to Parker. He leans up against the wall and holds pressure on where I shot him. Thankfully, it looks like the bullet only grazed his arm.

“I can’t believe you shot me,” he says between gasps of pain.

I place my hand over the one resting on his wound. “I’m so sorry. I had no other choice,” I reply, placing a soft kiss on his cheek.

“I know.” He turns to capture my lips with his before I can move away. His mouth quivers during the embrace, and I can practically feel the amount of pain he’s experiencing. “I’m pretty sure we’re overdue for a trip to the hospital, don’t you think?” he jokes with a weak laugh followed by an achy moan. “And you should probably untie your dad.”

I release a small giggle at his comment while tracing his face with my fingertips. I smile when he musters enough strength to show me his famous grin. Pulling out my phone, I dial 911 and request an ambulance.

The instant I hear my father’s moan, I leave Parker’s side and hobble over to him. I begin to rip through the duct tape that binds his hands, legs, and feet. With him free, I rub my hand along his hair until he opens his eyes.

“Dani?” he asks wearily.

“Yeah, Dad.”

Instead of replying, he smiles at the sound of my voice.



I take in a deep breath, lying in the recovery room while musing over the fact my nightmare is officially over. Parker enters my mind, and I wonder how he’s doing…wherever he is right now. I feel really guilty for shooting him, but I panicked and saw that as my only option at the time.

To distract myself from my thoughts, I stare around at the heavy-duty medical curtain surrounding the bed. I begin to feel paranoid and claustrophobic by being walled in like this.

I hear the door open, followed by the squeak of hospital bed wheels rolling in. It sounds like the bed gets parked right next to mine on the other side of the curtain. I wait for the orderlies to leave. When the door closes, I take my index finger and push the heavy fabric to the side to catch a glimpse of the patient next to me.

The first thing I see is Parker’s face. His eyes are closed and he’s resting peacefully. I smile when he grumbles just before turning his head to face the other direction.

Tossing the blanket back, I move my legs over to dangle off the edge of the bed. Thankfully, I’m wearing thick socks when I touch down on the ground since I know this tile floor is freezing. When I feel balanced after standing up, I grab a fistful of the curtain and pull it out of my way.

I stumble over to Parker’s bed and stand there, staring down at him. Taking his hand, I cup my other one over it. He stirs a little, but still remains asleep.

“Thank you…for everything,” I say, and bend down to kiss his forehead. As I pull away, I see that his eyes are wide open and he’s grinning at me.

“You’re welcome,” he replies, reaching up to pull me in close for a kiss. When we separate, he adds, “I’d say thank you for everything too, but then I’d be thanking you for shooting me.”

I giggle and tap him on the arm. He flinches before yelping in pain. “Oh, I’m so sorry. I forgot you were stabbed there.”

“Damn…now you’re beating me up,” he comments with a chuckle.

“Just shut your handsome face and kiss me again already.”

He leans forward, bringing his lips mere inches from mine. “With pleasure.”

Confusion hits me when I notice he’s stopped kissing me and I’m left doing all the work. My eyes shoot open to see him looking right back at me.

“Something wrong?” I ask, hoping there isn’t.

A half-smile curls his lips as he drapes a stray lock of hair behind my ear and keeps his hand there. His lengthy gaze without a single uttered word begins to make me feel anxious.

“What?” I prompt with a soft smile.

“Something just occurred to me.” The pause he takes only succeeds in making me want to hear what he has to say even more. He sweeps his tongue across his lips with his eyes still fixed on mine. He reaches to grab my hand and interlocks our fingers before resting them over his heart. “I was your first…and if everything goes the way I hope it does, I’ll be your only. I can’t promise our future, Dani, but if you allow me, I’ll do everything in my power to love you like no one else will ever be able to.”

I draw up our laced hands and place a kiss on each one of his fingers before finding my way to his lips. The love I have for him stretches beyond any emotion I’ve ever felt for one single person. After we finally separate, breathing heavily from our enthusiastic display of affection, I’m met again by his trademark grin. His eyes almost seem like they’re asking, “Well, what do you say?”

With all of the hard questions I’ve been faced with recently, this one seems like the easiest one I’ve ever had to answer. “You most certainly have my permission, Mr. Reed,” I whisper, hovering close to his mouth.

“Consider it done,” he replies, cradling my face in his hands for one more kiss.





Five Months Later...

I look into the full-length mirror that hangs on the back of my bedroom door, studying my choice of swimsuit for our spring break trip to Florida. My attention switches to the glaring scar on my right thigh. It rests there as a constant reminder of the night my life changed forever.

“Dani, mail’s here,” I hear my dad call up to me.

Throwing a towel around myself, I rush from the room and down the stairs to meet him in the kitchen. He’s standing there with the biggest smile on his face. In his outstretched hand is a bright white envelope. Snatching it from him, I notice the Blackburn University insignia in the top left corner.

“I can’t read it,” I say, returning it to him.

He pushes it back into my hand. “You have to.”

I smile at him and release a huge sigh before tearing into the envelope. Sliding out the folded piece of paper, I let the envelope fall to the ground. I unfold it and begin to read aloud.

“Dear Danielle Marks, it is my pleasure to welcome you—” Before I can even finish, my father’s arms wrap around me, crunching up the letter between us.

“I knew you’d get in,” he whispers in my ear while squeezing me even harder than before.

“I can’t believe I got in!” I exclaim with the largest grin on my face.

He pulls back and smiles. “I had no doubts at all. Now, go finish packing. You’ve got a trip to make,” he says after letting me go and motioning to the second floor.

Bounding up the stairs two at a time, I hurry back to my room to get changed out of the swimsuit. The moment I hear the doorbell ring, I grab my bags and keys before moving to the stairs.

Parker stands at the front door wearing a black tank top and a pair of red board shorts. I guess I should’ve stayed in my bathing suit. My father shakes his hand, and Parker glances up at me as I wait at the top of the stairs. He grins and I feel a smile light up my face.

“I’ll leave you two alone,” my dad says as I make my way down the steps, bags in hand. When I pass by him, he gives me a peck on the cheek and moves back into the kitchen.

Parker steps in front of me as I set my bags on the floor. He reaches for my hand, then pulls me into his arms. I can literally feel the love he has for me when he holds me this close.

“I got in,” I say, pulling out the folded acceptance letter from my pocket.

“Was there any doubt?” he asks, bringing his face in closer when he speaks.

“No, not really,” I reply with a smile before he presses his lips to mine in the sweetest of embraces.

“You know, I never get tired of the rush I get from kissing you,” he whispers after we separate.

“Well, I didn’t tell you to stop.”

He laughs and proceeds to put his mouth on mine again, picking up right where we left off.

I hear my dad clear his throat in the vicinity. “Don’t you think you two should be getting on the road?” I turn and nod at him. He reaches his hand out to Parker. “Take care of my girl, okay?”

“Most definitely, sir,” he replies.

My dad gives me one last hug and kiss on the forehead before opening the front door. Parker grabs my bags as we leave the house.

“Oh, I hope you don’t mind, but I invited a few people along. They were really insistent,” I hear Parker chuckle, coming up by my side on the front porch.

I see Rory and Alex sitting there in my new Jeep.

“Come on, you love birds,” Rory calls out. “Hurry your asses up. We’ve got a spring to get breakin’.”

“Yeah, let’s get this bitch on a roll,” Alex yells from the back seat. She and Rory laugh. I smile, realizing this is exactly what I need.

I grab my bags from Parker and toss them at the two goofballs in the back seat.

“Damn, girl! We’re only going for, like, a week. How much stuff do you need?” Rory teases, throwing the bag that landed in his lap behind him.

I laugh off his comment and jump into the driver’s seat. When I turn on the engine, Parker climbs in over the passenger side door. He always has to take the road less traveled, but that’s just another thing on a long list of things I love about him.

Buzz…Buzz…

Everyone in the car tenses as they turn to look at me. The sound of my phone’s vibration is intensified by the cup holder it’s sitting in. I grab it and turn on the screen before reading the message:

Have fun and be safe, okay? Love you!

I smile at Dad’s text, which puts everyone else at ease before they settle back into their seats. Pulling out of the driveway, I see my dad on the front porch waving to us, and we all wave back. I throw the car in drive and take off down the road. Parker takes my hand, lacing his fingers with mine, and brings them to rest on his thigh. I look over for a brief moment to catch that beautiful grin on his face.

The wind sweeps through my hair and a sense of calm washes over me. I bask in the sun’s rays as they shine down on us, feeling warm as they caress my skin. Then a happy thought crosses my mind. This definitely seems like the start of something new, and I have a feeling my darkest days are now behind me.

The End


About the Author

Adam Kunz is the A part of the mother and son author duo C.A. Kunz. Growing up, he always had a fondness for R.L. Stine’s Fear Street series. So, it was a no brainer when he decided to write his own novel that it’d be a thrilling mystery with a dash of horror. When he’s not busy writing, Adam enjoys his job at a theme park in Orlando, Florida as a décor consultant. This job brings him face to face with all sorts of nightmarish creatures, especially when he decorates the haunted houses for the park's annual Halloween event. It’s been said by many that his addiction to Starbucks coffee will most likely be his downfall later in life. If you would like to find out more about this author or One Tiny Secret, please visit the links below:

Author Website- http://www.cakunz.blogspot.com

Facebook Author Page- http://www.facebook.com/authoradamkunz