If Daniel’s brutal assault hadn’t caused one like I had planned for, then I doubted my body would be willing to serve that merciful eviction notice unprompted.Which meant I was probably stuck with this poor kid; and I would one day have to face the reality of their doomed future.
I sighed internally.At least they would have a cute older cousin to trauma bond with.
Katherine and I were currently helping that older cousin build sandcastles on the beach, Sloane watching quietly from the shade of the trees nearby.
How I had managed to convince Darren to allow us back to the open shore, I didn’t know, but I suspected the guilt of his brother’s attack made it difficult for him to deny me such a simple pleasure—even if it meant the possibility of Jason seeing me from wherever he was.It was also likely that same guilt allowed me to walk around without that stupid necklace around my neck that Darren got me for my birthday.
Knees deep in wet sand, I glanced over at Sloane who remained stoic in the distance.The red scar that dragged down the side of her face was still visible from my vantage point on the shore.If I was being honest, it actually made her look even more intimidating than she already was.And while I felt a wide range of guilt for its existence, she didn’t seem too bothered by it.But the fact she had earned it because of my quest for vengeance against Darren for killing Camaro just didn’t sit well with me.
I should have considered what he might do to her, especially after what happened with Clive and Owen, but she was busy following Darren’s orders while I slept.She had the perfect excuse for her absence.It wasn’t her fault she had been ordered away from me, but that was Darren’s logic for you.
Ella’s sudden shrill squeal caught my attention as a larger wave had splashed up against her small back, drenching her with a salty cold splatter.The wind had seriously picked up in the last twenty minutes, slightly enhancing the size of the waves.Thankfully, it had been an exceptionally hot and sunny day, making the water’s usual cold temperature much more tolerable.
Ella trotted around in her little pink bathing suit, stomping her feet into the sand in a fit of giggles like she could shake off the water’s chilling effect.She still had a blue ring of discoloration around her mouth from the Superman ice cream we all had enjoyed just a few minutes earlier.
Darren actually had it flown in from out of state by the gallons, so my pregnancy craving would never go unsatisfied again.Katherine laughed at her daughter from the other side of our mini city of castles, tickling her until she returned her focus back to shoveling sand into a bucket.
During sweet moments like these, I could watch the two of them for hours.So carefree and jovial in their deluded happiness.With Daniel finally out of their lives, they might have a chance atrealhappiness someday.And the child that was secretly growing inside Katherine’s body would hopefully never know of the suffering their father would have put them through, especially if that child turned out to be a boy.
Ella hadn’t asked about her father once, and Katherine’s restrained demeanor had shifted into something noticeably lighter.Both of them had technically lost their fathers on the same day, an event I hadn’t anticipated in the slightest.Katherine’s father was supposed to just spread the rumor he “heard” from Daniel, not confront Darren with it.
Men…
I couldn’t help but feel some level of remorse for essentially causing Katherine to lose another parent, but she assured me that while she had been mostly on friendly terms with him, she would not particularly miss her father.After everything she had been through, I couldn’t exactly blame her.
But I had hoped his loss at least wouldn’t be for nothing.I had no idea if my little plot had made its way through the ears of the criminal community, but I had to have faith that Richard had told at leastone person.Only time would tell, and I was running out of it faster than I liked.
Though her guard was still rightfully in place, I could see the weight of Daniel’s dominance had lifted from Katherine’s shoulders.The once prim and proper soft-spoken lady-bot was now replaced with a woman with hope and a smile that finally reached her eyes.Life had certainly become a little easier for her.
The only man she had to please now was the one I was unfortunately still married to, the task of which was easy to accomplish.All she had to do was keep out of his sight as much as humanly possible.Something she was only too happy to comply with.I didn’t know how long Darren was going to allow Katherine to remain here, but I was thankful for every second he allowed us to share until then.
To my surprise, he had decidedly broken the chains that had previously kept Katherine at a much farther distance from me than before.Now, it seemed I was able to see her every day, the change in company something I was incredibly grateful for.I didn’t know what brought on the change, but I suspected it was because Darren wanted to expose me to the constant interactions between a mother and her child.
Katherine didn’t waste the opportunity of her promising guidance over me and my pregnancy issues.I knew when I was being coached; I just didn’t know if it was because she was genuinely trying to help me or if Darren had threatened her somehow.
Either way, I couldn’t deny that any information or advice she was willing to lend me wouldn’t ultimately benefit me in the long run.Better to be knowledgeable and prepared than stupid and improvised.
But still, the more I watched them, the tighter my chest felt.Would I be allowed to giggle and play with my child like the two of them?How many smiles would I be afforded before they were inevitably ripped away, only to be replaced with the hard expressions of a monster in training?When would they stop being mine?
My time with my child was painfully limited, and I would never know who they would have truly become had they not been subjected to the cruel manipulations of their father.It was unfair to decide your child’s fate to such a degree that they would never know another version of themselves, one that they could have had a choice in crafting.
I sighed to myself in frustration, regretting every opportunity I’d had to stab Darren in the balls and not taken it.This all could have been avoided if I’d just been a little more violently proactive in the beginning.
From the corner of my eye, I swore the sun had to be playing tricks on me, but I was sure I was seeing Sid slowly making his way down the lawn and toward the shore.His stride was slow, a noticeable limp making his descent down the grass likely very uncomfortable.He’d lost so much weight in the last few weeks, his pale skin sagging over a gaunt body that looked as brittle as straw.
I watched him, thinking he might have been heading for the dock, but it was clear he was aiming for our little gathering.When he stopped in front of us, I looked up at his skeletal face, his head eclipsing the sun behind him.
“Hey, Sid,” I said in greeting, allowing my confusion to linger in my tone.
Sid eyed Katherine for a moment, giving her a quick nod of acknowledgment before addressing me.
“Jaden, could I have a word with you in private?”he asked, his voice dry and oddly hoarse.
A quick glance at him had me realizing I had never seen him dressed so casually before.With a loose white linen shirt and khaki pants rolled up at the ankles, Sid looked every bit of the retired snowbird my dad had longed to be before his passing.
“Sure, Sid,” I replied, and stood, brushing the sand from my knees.
I tightened the black beach wrap around my hips to keep it from flying away with the strong wind and glanced over at Sloane.When she nodded her silent approval, I turned away to join Sid as he walked his bare feet into the water and began to casually stroll along the shore.