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“There is no record of her ever being in a hospital six years ago,” he answers.
“You saw the fucking scars on her body.” I scrunch my face and frown when I look down to see I’m in a hospital gown—I don’t recall changing.
“I know, which is why I believe someone had her records scrubbed, Mr. Bronson. My team is working to figure it out—” Knox climbs to his feet, silencing the doctor.
“Don’t waste your time, I know who the fuck did it. Wipe any record you have of her or us being here.” The doctor nods and quickly scurries from the room as Knox makes his way to me. My legs dangle over the edge of the bed. He pushes his way between them, gripping the back of my neck, forcing my head back to stare up at him. “It appears there may be some truth to what your sister said if your father had your records scrubbed.” I cock my head to the side, trying to decipher what he means. “Get changed.” He steps back but when I don’t show any sign of moving he grits his teeth and scrubs a hand down his face, clearly frustrated.
Gripping my waist, he hoists me off the bed. Once he’s sure I’m steady on my feet, he releases me only to turn me so my back is to him. I feel him pull the strings of the gown. I don’t protest when he pushes the gown down my arms, then slowly turns me to face him again. I should be screaming and shouting but what’s the point, he’s stronger than me and showed that by taking advantage of me. Men always seem to have the upper hand because we are less, we are viewed as weak, we are the objects they can take whatever they fucking like from, we’re nothing but something to entertain themselves with when they please.
He grabs a handful of clothes from the end of the bed that I didn’t notice. I wish I had the strength to snort or laugh when he kneels before me and taps my leg so he slips the jeans on, he does the same to the other side and I move on autopilot. It does surprise me when he fastens the button that they are in my size. Next he does the laces on the sneakers that he slips on my feet. He tugs a shirt over my head—this is in my size as well—then next he pulls a hoodie over my head and tugs the hood up. It feels weird to wear clothes that fit. I’m not even bothered about the fact I’m not wearing panties or a bra. It’s not like either of those things would stop him from fucking me when he wanted to.
He grips my hand and interlocks his fingers with mine. A zapping sensation travels down my spine and a slight thud begins in the base of my skull as I stare at our intertwined fingers. If I was in the right frame of mind I would have asked the doctors for a prescription for my medication. Knox doesn’t seem to notice or if he does, he says nothing as he leads me from the room. I pay no mind to my surroundings as I let him blindly lead me to wherever the hell it is we are going. I just don’t have it in me to care.
We reach the parking lot and he places me in the passenger seat, securing my seatbelt before rounding the car himself. I stare out the window in a daze as he drives. I see everything and nothing at the same time. I know time is passing but I feel stuck, almost like I’m in a time loop and I don’t want to break that circle, I want to live in this moment forever. I look at the sky and wonder when it changed from darkness to light. That thought continues to circulate in my mind for a while until the sound of Knox’s phone ringing pulls me from my thoughts.
“Yeah?” he says.
“Where are you?” Comes through the Bluetooth system in the car.
“A couple hours out still, why?” he answers.
“We know who the rat is.”
“I already know it’s Tristan,” he growls.
“Percy crossed the border and is in Gio’s turf. It looks like Dario soldiers were the ones to help Percy.” At the mention of my father’s name anger courses through me.
“Percy will die.” My voice is scratchy and hoarse. Knox snaps his gaze to me and the strange look on his face, he shakes his head and focuses back on the road.
“We’ll be there soon. Get everything ready, I want to move on those cunts before they have a chance to hide,” Knox snarls before he ends the call. Silence stretches between us as he continues to drive. I see him out of the corner of my eye white knuckling the steering wheel, his face a picture of unfiltered rage.
I must have fallen asleep. I wake to Knox shaking me and the scent of greasy food hitting my senses. My stomach lets out a hideous rumble. Blinking my eyes open, I turn in his direction. He hands me a burger and fries, my mouth watering at the sight. I mumble a thanks and devour them, not caring that I can feel his gaze on me the whole time. I spy a large drink in the center, without asking I snatch it and down half of it before finishing off the last of my fries. I turn to Knox attempting to hand him my trash but he just sits there staring at me with a look of equal parts distaste and mirth. Rolling my eyes, I toss the wrappers onto his lap and go back to staring out the window. I gasp when I feel something soft hit the side of my head. Peering down, I see my wrappers on my lap. Slowly turning back to Knox, I meet his scowl with one of my own.
“Get your ass out of the car and put it in trash.” Gathering the wrappers, I toss them back at him, the shock is evident on his face.
“Fuck. You,” I seethe. He drops his own burger to gather the wrappers to no doubt throw at me, so I lean over to grab his half eaten burger, then toss it right in his face. It takes two seconds before he’s reaching for me. I fight the fucker and scream at him as I smack his hands away. I feel like I’m a woman possessed but releasing this pent up anger inside me feels too good to stop.
“Lakeland!” Ignoring his warning I continue to scratch, punch and hit him anywhere I can.
“Fuck you, fuck you, fuck you!” I scream as I try to get closer but my seatbelt keeps me restrained. “You’re a bastard. You’re a life ruining fuck. I fucking hate you!” I manage to slap him across his annoying face and feel proud. I continue to hit him without mercy, not realizing that tears have started to fall down my cheeks. My arms grow heavy and my movements turn sluggish, its then that I notice he is no longer fighting back but weathering my blows, allowing me to hurt him. “I hate you,” I choke out as I weakly beat my fists against his chest.
“I know.” Is all he says before he unclips my seatbelt and drags me from my seat to sit in his lap. I try to get free but he just bands his arms around me, securing my own at my sides and holding me against his chest. Without consent, anguished sobs claw their way free and tear my chest open as the loss of my sister truly begins to sink in. Knox’s hold shifts from restraining to comforting as he rubs up and down my back, while cupping my face and holding it against his chest as I grip his shirt in a tight hold and cling to his forearm.
“He took her from me.” I feel him deflate beneath me. It’s the first time since seeing my sister I have allowed myself to accept the fact that she isn’t coming back, she won’t be my hero anymore. She was my best friend, my person, the one and only person I have chosen! Before I can stop myself, I shift and turn so I’m straddling my asshole kidnapper, locking my arms around his neck and burying my face into the crook of it, sobbing. He doesn’t push me away, but holds me as I use him to find comfort in someone other than myself. Sometimes you just need someone to hold you while you break down and right now, that person happens to be the prick who hurt me.
The moment I feel his fingers tangle in my hair, I wait for the pain that normally accompanies his touch but it doesn’t come. He uses his hold on me to draw me in closer as he buries his face in my hair.
“I understand what you are feeling.” I slowly untangle myself and lean back as much as I can without honking the horn. I search his gaze trying to decipher his meaning. “Losing a sibling, someone who is your exact other half, the person that shares the same DNA make up as you is the worst type of pain. Losing a parent is hard but they were only half of you, a sibling is the exact same. That's why it hurts so much more because they are you essentially but with a different soul.”
“My soul is shattered,” I whisper brokenly.
“Shattered souls are something that can never be fully repaired, they are something we can mend over time but there will always be cracks in it. The imperfections of a shattered soul can be beautiful.” My mouth is ajar in surprise, I’ve never heard Knox speak so… lovingly before, he’s never shown me any type of kindness, only pain and fear.
“You say you know how I’m feeling, how? Was your sister murdered as well?” I brace myself for him to lash out and scream at me or throw me from his lap and demand I shut the fuck up. Surprise ripples through me when he allows me to see the pain in his eyes, he doesn’t mask it or shield his emotions from me.
“I lost my sister suddenly like you. Losing her shattered my soul and I’ve never been able to patch that thing back together.” I gasp.
“I’m sorry,” I blurt out without thinking. Hatred and understanding war in his eyes, causing me to tense.
