“Did he rape you?” At this she nods.
“Hit you?” Another nod.
“Share you with his men?” A shake of her head.
Thank fuck.
“What about making you run errands for him?” Yet, again, another shake.
Good.
“Now, baby, look at me when I ask this one.” I command and wait for her to open her eyes. With a deep breath, she slowly opens her eyes and meets my own. “Did Justin use your body against you to keep him from killing just me or Anabelle as well?”
“B–both of you. But as long as I did as he said he never mentioned Anabelle. Always you,” she whispers.
Nodding, I release her chin I’d still been holding and palm her cheek in my hand. “Thank you, Starlight. As of now, I’m making sure that he doesn’t get you ever again. You said earlier you doubted I loved you. Well, baby, you couldn’t be further from the truth. I’d been waiting for you to turn eighteen. Shit, your dad knew I was waiting. Now that you are, you’re mine Mackenzie. However, due to this hiccup I’ll give you time to heal, but you’ll be doing it at my home where I can keep you safe.”
Mackenzie’s eyes grow wide with each word that comes out of my mouth.
“Y–You love me?”
“Babe,” I grin for the first time since entering the room. “Haven’t I always told you I have whenever I come by the house for dinner?” Well, I used to until she started avoiding dinners when I was at the house. Now I know why.
“I thought it was as, you know, your sister’s best friend or something like that,” she mutters.
“Kenzie, I could never see you as a sister to me,” I chuckle.
Nodding Mackenzie gives me a slight smile before it vanishes from her face and she looks at me with a sadness within her eyes.
“You can’t love me, Lex, and I can’t be yours,” she murmurs.
“Why the hell not?” I demand.
“Well, because of your girlfriend.”
Leaning back, I furrow my brows at her. “I don’t have a girlfriend.”
“Then who were the women Doctor Connors mentioned?” she asks.
“Bethany is Chaz’s woman and Alexis is Tanner’s,” I state.
“Oh.”
“Yeah, so you want to give me an actual reason, besides, some crazy notion that I’d be in a relationship with someone,” I press.
“Because I’m tainted, covered in filth, and nowhere near the girl you knew. Plus, Justin would never allow it. He’ll kill us both, along with Anabelle.”
“Don’t you worry about Justin, baby. I’ll handle him. As for you being the same girl. I don’t want the girl. I want the woman you are becoming. And as for being tainted or covered in filth. I’m just as tainted by the past and demons surrounding me. Maybe I’ll tell you later when you’re ready to hear it. But covered in filth Kenzie, no fuckin’ way. I can still see your light shining through, showing me the way,” I state firmly letting her know I’m dead serious in what I see in her.
I’m not about to let her go deep into her head with thoughts so dark, I’ll never get her out. I’ve seen how the guys from the club are with their own women. Some of them had gone through far worse, like Ally. If anyone can help her through any fucked-up thoughts it would probably be her; albeit I want to be the one who helps her through it all.
Mackenzie opens her mouth to speak but immediately shuts it when the door to the room flies open. Her gaze widens at the three people who rush into the room.
“Sweetheart, what on earth? Are you okay?” Lisa cries as she rounds to the other side of the bed and sits next to her daughter.
Anabelle though she hugs me and pushes me away from Mackenzie, sitting where I’d been sitting. “You scared me to death, chickadee,” she states.
“Baby girl, I’m gonna leave you to your momma and bestie. Lex and I are gonna step out to give you all privacy,” Nick says, from the foot of the bed.
“You don’t have to Daddy,” she whispers.
“Yeah, I do, Kenzie,” he mutters through clenched teeth. He must see the vulnerability shining through her that I do.
Stepping around my sister, I palm Mackenzie’s face once more and stroke her cheek. “I’ll be back, baby. Remember I’m not going to let anything else happen to you ever again and I meant every word I said to you, okay?”
Nodding her head once again, “Okay, Lex.”
“Good, now talk to your mom and my sister, but don’t get out of the bed without help. Connors wants you to rest.”
“Don’t worry, Lex, we’ll make sure she doesn’t move,” Lisa says softly as she tries to regain control of her emotions.
Fuck, I hate seeing women cry, especially the ones closest to me.
Chapter Six
Mackenzie
“Are you okay, sweetheart?” my mom asks again once the door closes behind my dad and Lex.
Turning my attention to her, I try to give her a smile. “Yeah, I’ll be okay, Mom.” As much as I want to strangle Lex for calling them, I can’t be upset. Not at seeing the way my mom’s torn up about seeing me like this.
Granted, she can’t really see anything. Not really, the marks are on my back and you can’t see the bruises marring my inner thighs.
“That’s good, sweetheart. Now what on earth is going on? Your dad didn’t tell me anything other than you were hurt and here at Lex’s friend’s clubhouse.” And there you go. My mom doesn’t know anything about what’s happened to me. However, from the look my dad had in his eyes he knew.
“Umm.” Tears well in my eyes and I know I need to tell her the truth, but I don’t want to put her through the heartache. Same goes for Anabelle.
“Do you want me to leave the room?” Anabelle asks.
I shake my head immediately. “No, umm, what I say affects
