With a quiet sigh, I opened my eyes and saw that it was later than expected—the clock hanging on the wall said it was after ten.
Slowly, I removed my feet from Dominic’s lap, instantly feeling the loss of his warmth, and placed them on the floor. Then, I stood, ignoring the pain that stabbed me in my side. There was a dull pulling around the stitches.
I made my way to the bathroom off the living room, using the wall and furniture to keep my body upright. My entire body had hurt for so long now that I was used to the pain.
After using the toilet and washing my face with some cold water, I glanced in the oval mirror. My tired reflection looked back at me. Dark circles had been under my eyes for so long, they had to be permanent.
If I were normal, I’d be having the time of my life right now. I’d be happy, exploring what I wanted in this world. I was nearing the time of becoming an adult, where I’d get to make stupid choices and learn from them. But I wasn’t normal. I was…just here, waiting for the next blow.
Shaking myself out of my miserable thoughts, I finished in the bathroom and made my way out. I wasn’t surprised to see Collin awake. He gave me a small smile before heading into the bathroom and shutting the door behind him.
Dominic was still asleep out on the couch, a light snore passing his lips. He was laying the opposite way now, having taken over the entire couch since I got up.
His hair was falling over his forehead, the blackness a striking contrast to what I knew his eyes were. I hadn’t taken the time to really look at him, but with him asleep, unaware, I finally did.
He had this vibe about him that made him different. He wasn’t afraid to say things, or do what he wanted. He was his own person. He was also one of the few that weren’t afraid to give me the answers I needed to hear.
Pulling my eyes away from him, knowing there could never be anything more between us than our friendship, I padded to the kitchen in search of something to eat.
Other than a few new boxes of cereal and oatmeal, there wasn’t all that much in the cupboard or fridge.
“Zevon should be back soon with breakfast and enough food to feed an army,” Collin said, entering the kitchen. “One good thing that boy can do is grocery shop.”
“How long we will need to stay here?” I asked, mostly just to not have an awkward silence hanging in the air.
“A few weeks, maybe more. Ace will do everything he can to make sure you’re safe. He thinks Alan is behind most of it, in a roundabout way.”
“He’d rather have me dead than let me be safe anywhere,” I mused, closing the empty cupboard and turning around to face him.
“We’ve done some digging,” Collin said, leaning against the counter, “and he’s not who he’s claimed to be for years. Heck, we can’t even promise that his name is really Alan at this point.”
“How did he take me?”
“We aren’t entirely sure on that, either,” he answered. “He had to have been watching for the perfect moment and acted when the timing worked for him. None of us were prepared for something like that to happen. Well, they weren’t. I wasn’t part of the family at that time.”
“Oh?” he seemed to know so much about everything.
“Caesar found me when he was in need of having a bullet removed from his arm. I just ended up being in the wrong place at the right time. I never thought I’d be working for them, but now look. I’m more like an extra member than just staff, like so many others who come through. This family treats everyone with love and care, as long as you return it.
“Because of my service to him, your dad has given me a place to live and enough money to waste on just about anything—as long as I don’t blab to anyone about what I do or who I work for. Now, that will certainly end my life in an instant.”
I dropped my eyes, not sure how I felt about that. I’d picked up that this family was dangerous, but how much danger had they done to the world? Who exactly were these people? Was I truly safe in their hands?
“Don’t feel like that, kiddo,” Collin said, lowering his voice. “I know what I’m asked to do, and I’m prepared for what’s at stake. I haven’t always done the right thing, but neither has anyone in this family. I’m not worried at all about my own life; I have nothing to lose. Yours is what’s important.”
“Why?”
“You’re the lost daughter,” he said, waiting for me to meet his eyes. “I’ll do whatever it takes to keep you alive. I think I’ve proved that already. In time, you’ll understand why you’re important to each and every one of us. Eventually, you’ll even find your footing and do great things in this family.”
“What if I don’t want to be in this family?”
“You are already. No one will make you do something you don’t want to do,” Dominic said. I glanced up at him. He leaned over the counter, staring right at me. “You’re a part of this family, but that doesn’t mean you have to do the dirty parts of it. You are your own person, Scarlett. I know your parents well enough to know that they will never force your hand.”
Isat at the table, the light above on and the sun shining in through the window. Collin held my un-bandaged arm in one hand. The cut was still red and angry but healing.
“Can I trust you to not try something like this again if I leave it uncovered?”
“Yeah,” I said, moving my eyes away from the cut. It’d leave yet another scar on my body. The only difference was that I was the one who put it there. I wasn’t sure if I should be proud of doing damage to my own body or disgusted that I had been truly at the lowest of my lows.
