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He can’t possibly assure me that it will be. Still, I take comfort in his promise.
“Now, please tell us what the hell happen? How did Matt end up helping you?”
I take a deep breath before explaining the whole story. Just when I’m done, we pull up to the house. Oliver kills the engine once we reach the end of the driveway and we all climb out of the car. Sullivan’s hand never leaves my body as he helps me every step of the way. Like he is scared that I’m going to disappear again.
Right now, I need his touch. I need it like I need my next breath. I want him to touch me more. I want him to wrap his arms around me and never let me go again. I want to curl up in bed with all three of them, having them surround me like a protective wall.
On the way inside the house, Banks comes up to my side, while Oliver unlocks the door.
“Are you hungry, thirsty, tired?” he questions as he takes my hand into his.
“I’m fine. A little tired, but definitely not hungry. They did feed me pretty well in that hospital. Since it was a private facility, they actually had restaurant-quality food.”
“I guess that’s the only good thing about the place.” I couldn’t agree more. I hated the place and hated that my father had tried to hurt my unborn baby there.
Walking inside, Banks closes the door behind him, twisting all the locks into place. Oliver leads the way into the living room, and the rest of us follow. Once we are all situated on the couch, I direct all my attention to Oliver. I can’t let this hang in the air between us. I need to know what he’s thinking. If he’s okay with the baby.
“Is me being pregnant that bad? Do you not want this… us?” My voice cracks at the end, emotions overtaking my ability to speak evenly.
Oliver’s angelic face falls. “I’m sorry, Harlow. I’m still trying to wrap my head around it. You… us, having a child together. The thought of it has my heart bursting with happiness. I just…” he trails off, running his fingers through his thick brown hair. I can feel his frustration from where he is sitting.
“What’s the problem? If you’re happy, then why do you seem so frustrated? Why do you seem so unhappy?” Oliver’s gaze clashes with mine, and everything around us fades away.
“We can barely protect you, Harlow. Every time we think you are safe, there seems to be another threat lurking in the shadows, ready to take you away from us.” The sadness that radiates out of him is stifling. “Do you have any idea what the last few days have been like for us? Now with you being pregnant, it’s only going to get worse. It’s like we can never catch a break.”
“Oh, Oliver,” I sigh in relief. Getting up from where I’m sitting, I crawl into his lap, wrapping my arms around his neck. He welcomes me into his arms, doing the same, his giant hands rub gently up and down my back while he peppers kisses all over my face. He does want the baby; he’s just scared of something happening to us.
“Oliver does have a point,” Banks mumbles after a while. “There is something we need to tell you. Another thing that we have to protect you against.”
Twisting around in Oliver’s lap, I look up between all three of them, waiting for one of them to continue. When they don’t, I open my mouth to speak.
“What is it?”
Sullivan gives me a sad look. “The police called earlier today… to warn us,” Sullivan explains, “Shelby escaped from the psych ward last night.”
It’s a good thing I’m sitting because if I wasn’t, I would be on the floor right now.
“What? What do you mean she escaped?” How can she escape? She was supposed to be locked up.” This is bad, so bad. Already, I can feel the pressure of what this means settling on my shoulders. She escaped, she’s out, free, doing god knows what. Before I know what I’m doing, my hands come to rest on my stomach, cradling my imaginary bump. There is so much more at stake now, so much more than just protecting me.
All of Oliver’s worries and fears, they come crashing into me then.
He’s right, as sad as it is, he is right. I can barely protect myself. How am I going to protect this child?
15
The weight of the world seems to sit on my shoulders. I do the basics; showering, eating, and trying to sleep. Days pass, and once again, I find I’m stuck in this house, hiding from the world. Oliver and Sullivan leave for class, while Banks stays behind with me. We all agreed me returning to classes again was all but pointing a bright red arrow at where I was. Shelby could easily get to me if she wanted to.
