“What’s that?” I question, almost afraid to ask.
“That I managed to survive our father and grandfather for a lot of fucking years and that we didn’t do too bad for two women and a baby on the run for two years.”
“If you don’t count having a one-night-stand with a man tasked with bringing you back home at any cost to use as leverage, then sure, you were great. Oh, and we won’t even get into the runaway eighteen-wheeler…”
“Sarcasm doesn’t become you, sister dear. In any event, you know that little box of toys we took from our father’s room at Hell?” I smirk. Hell is what we called my grandfather’s mansion. Sadly, it more than lived up to the name.
“Toys? Toenails and doughnuts, why are you carting around sex toys used by your father? That’s just wrong on so many levels.”
We all look up as Annie walks in and the laughter erupts almost simultaneously. It might be because of the comment about our father’s toys, but more than likely it has to do with her aversion to cursing.
“Not those kind of toys, fruitcake,” her friend Louise says.
“I swear, being with two men has fried your brain,” Candy adds.
“I’m with one,” Annie grumbles, though she blushes.
“Girl, please, you have both of them men jumping to your every command. They are pussy-whipped with a capital P,” Candy says.
Annie’s blush deepens, but she doesn’t deny a thing. It’s probably for the best; no one would believe her.
“Where’s the baby?” Annie asks suddenly, looking around.
“Katie got Mattah to babysit,” I tell her. Mattah is an older woman who works in the kitchen. She’s great with Gabby and she’s been really good to me since I got back.
“Actually, Mattah had to go home. Her daughter went into early labor.”
“Then where is my daughter?” I ask, annoyed. I love Katie, but I just don’t trust Gabby with very many people.
“Oddly enough, she wanted her Uncle Torch.”
“He took Gabby into the meeting?” I asked, completely surprised.
“Yep. Along with something else…”
“What else?” I ask, knowing from that look on Katie’s face that she’s up to something. In answer, she takes out her cellphone and starts pushing buttons.
“Gather around, girls. We’re about to attend our first church meeting.”
“What did you do?”
“I slipped Father dear’s mini nanny cam he used against us onto Gabby’s hair bow.”
“No fucking way. That will be way too big! You’ll get us killed. They’ll see it!”
“Relax, Louise. When I say mini, I mean microscopic. It’s amazing what money and a twisted sick fuck can find when they want to spy on you,” Katie says hatefully, and that same hate twists inside of me too. I hate my father for so many things. I thought I hated him before, especially the day I discovered Katie was alive. That was nothing compared to the hate that grew once I traveled back to France.
“But…” Louise starts.
“She’s right. Trust me, I carried it around for months not even knowing it was there.”
“Where did he hide it on you?” Annie asked, studying my face closely, almost like she understands what kind of monster that Katie and I called father. I doubt that’s possible. My hand automatically goes to my upper arm, rubbing it through the cotton sleeve.
“It doesn’t matter. Just trust me: Torch will never see it.”
“Now let’s see what the boys are up to, shall we?” Katie, says, drawing attention back to her.
When I look at her, she’s looking me in the eye. Memories are there. The same ones I’m remembering. Nightmares even. She gives me a weak smile and I walk to her. I don’t want to remember those. Not right now. It haunts me enough at night. Katie pulls up the camera feed on her phone. Time to get my mind on the task at hand. The past needs to stay in the past.
Maybe I can bury it with the cold dead bodies of Matthew and Colin.
“What are you doing with Gabby? Where’s Beth?” I ask when Torch comes through the door carrying my daughter.
I immediately get up to take her from him. She’s already fucked up enough about not knowing me. She’s not going to get the chance to think of another man as her papá. That shit is not happening.
“Beth was sick. Katie was watching her, but she got a migraine. Mattah had to leave, so I volunteered to keep her.”
I ignore the fear that’s wrapped around my heart at the mention of Beth being sick. That’s not my concern anymore. It doesn’t stop the words that come out of my mouth, however.
“Is Beth okay?”
“Katie said the nightmares have been keeping Beth awake. She took the baby so she could sleep.”
“Nightmares?”
“Yeah. Living with Redmond Jr. and Senior wasn’t exactly a fun-filled ride. Katie gets them, too.”
His words burrow down inside of me and I don’t want to think about them—at least not right now. I’ll think about them later after I take down Matthew.