AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Always,” I whispered finally, the strain obvious in my voice, my flesh crawling with the images that flashed through my mind. “Except for the first time. That’s what made it so much more terrible, all the times that followed.”
“You felt betrayed.” His voice was thick, strained like my admission had been.
I glanced up, and his gaze locked on mine. Behind his eyes was a contained fury and a terrible dark sadness that seemed to mirror my own.
More honesty tumbled clumsily from my lips like the bite from my fork had. “I felt stupid for believing what we shared was something real in the first place. I should have realized he was a monster.”
Barry nodded. “The scariest ones are like him. They look nice on the outside with their caring eyes, fake smiles, and pretty words of concern, but it’s all lies.”
“How do you know?” My eyes grew large. Barry had articulated my thoughts exactly.
“The aunt I lived with briefly after my dad went to jail.”
“I’d forgotten about that.” I nodded reflectively. “You never really talked about her.”
“Because I felt ashamed, like I think you feel right now,” he said, his expression softening. “Not to compare the two. I wasn’t sexually violated, just touched without my consent. My situation wasn’t nearly as bad.”
“You got away from her sooner than I got away from Martin.”
But abuse was abuse. All of it was horrific. Mine was only worse because of the length of time I’d endured it. No one should have to suffer even a single moment of it.
“You were younger too.” I blew out a breath. “I should have known better.”
“It’s on Martin what he did. Life is a continuous cycle that only changes if we make brave decisions like you did to leave him.”
I liked that Barry thought I was brave. Whenever I remembered my time with Martin, I felt foolish and naive.
I tipped my head to a reflective angle. “I’ve never heard you talk about life that way.”
“Life being a circle is a commonly held belief in the places I journeyed through in the east.” Barry squeezed my hand. “What energy you put out will come back to you. Good for good, evil for evil. A monster like Martin will eventually be destroyed by a bigger monster.”
“I hope so,” I mumbled without much faith. There was Martin, and his father before him. If one fell, another Skellin would probably replace him.
“Martin should have thanked whatever devil he made a deal with that he had you.” Barry’s eyes deepened to a darker brown. “He should have worshipped the ground you walked on.”
“He was the devil,” I said bitterly. “It was him I was forced to worship.”
“Never again.” Barry’s hand flexed tighter over mine. “He will never come near you again. I won’t allow it.”
“I’m glad you’re back.”
I didn’t dispute his declaration. Only I knew the lengths Martin would go to if Barry or anyone else challenged him regarding me.
Shaky just thinking about it, I made myself pick up the fork and nabbed the bite that had evaded me. It was time to gain control of this situation.
“It’s good to be back with you,” Barry said.
I nodded. When he gave me that serious look while using that lower raspy tone, my reasoning abandoned me, and parts of me grew warm that hadn’t been warm in a very, very long time.
Trying to ignore the warmth, I placed the bite from my fork into my mouth. The burst of flavor from a sweet tomato alongside the contrast of something spicy hot was divine. I moaned in pleasure as I chewed.
Barry’s gaze dropped to my mouth and stayed there for a while.
I swallowed, then asked, “What did you put in the eggs?”
“Huh?” He brought his gaze to mine. His eyes were hungry. Dark.
“In the omelet,” I said to clarify. Maybe my cook at Footit’s could replicate his recipe. “It’s a little sweet and spicy.”
