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Laughing, I finally walk into the room and pass her sundae over before curling up on the other end of the couch and powering up the TV.
“Reid Harris subscribes to Disney+. Who’d have thought it?”
“Trust me, I didn’t see it coming either,” I mutter before scooping up a huge spoonful of ice cream and pushing it into my mouth in the hope that the sugar rush will help me get through the next few hours.
We watch two of our favorite movies before the inevitable happens and Daisy’s terrified cry erupts from my cell.
“Is that Daisy?” Kristie asks, not expecting to hear it.
“Yep.” I’m off the couch and on my feet in a heartbeat, and she’s right behind me as I race toward Daisy’s room.
The second I surge inside, I find her sitting in the middle of her little bed with wide tear-filled eyes and her bottom lip quivering.
“Scawee,” she sobs, holding her arms out for a hug.
“Oh, sweetheart,” I breathe, pulling her into my arms and lying with her in her bed.
She snuggles into my chest as Kristie steps into the room and perches herself on the rocking chair.
“Is she okay?” she whispers.
“She has nightmares,” I explain. The second Daisy hears my voice, she pulls her face from my chest and turns to look at who I’m talking to.
“Who aw you?” she asks quietly.
“Hi, Daisy,” Kristie says with a wide smile. “I’m Alana’s little sister, Kristie. It’s so nice to meet you.”
Daisy studies Kristie for a few seconds. The inspection makes Kristie want to recoil, I can see it in her eyes, but she holds strong. And I’m so glad she does, because when Daisy speaks again, she says exactly what my sister needs to hear.
“You aw pwetty.”
The way Kristie’s face lights up makes all of this so worth it.
“She is, I agree,” I say, smiling at Kristie.
Sure, she’s got dark shadows around her eyes, and her cheeks are gaunt, she’s too thin and her skin isn’t quite the color it should be, but compared to how we found her in Chicago, she’s like an entirely different woman.
“Do you want to talk about your nightmare?” Kristie offers. I don’t ever remember her suffering with them as a kid. But knowing what her life has been like the past few years, I can’t help but think she’s probably as accustomed to them as I am by now.
Daisy shakes her head but then whispers, “It’s just a bad man who wants to hurt me.”
My breath catches and my eyes jump straight to Kristie’s.
“I have those too. Do you know what though?” she asks.
Daisy shakes her head.
“He hasn’t got me yet. I keep outrunning him. And you will too.”
My eyes hold my sisters long after those words have faded out around us. Understanding her unspoken request, I nod in agreement.
It’s time for us to stop looking over our shoulders and running, even if he is locked up with no chance of escape.
52
JD
Disbelief is pretty much all I feel as the five of them lower their guns and silence rings out around the room that Victor’s been living in for quite some time by the looks of it.
