Chapter 2
Isabelle Turner looked in the mirror and wondered when her reflection would change. It wasn’t necessarily her face she was worried about; it was her expression. Sometimes it bordered on something non-human and she didn’t how to cope with that.
It was a never ending cycle that had her emotions up and down and around and around. It wasn’t easy for her to interact with people which meant it was probably even harder for other people to interact with her. There was a group of men out there that had taken their time, four months, dehumanizing her. Izzy wasn’t so sure she’d make it another couple of weeks if she didn’t start feeling something.
She didn’t much like the name ‘Izzy,’ either, but she couldn’t hurt Billie’s feelings and tell her so. Partly because she hated to admit it, but she liked her, and partly because every time she opened her mouth to speak she started to panic, and clamped her mouth closed instead.
It’s not that she didn’t want to say anything; she did. She wanted to thank the Seven Deadlies for their kindness and their hospitality. She wanted to thank Torch, Billie, and even Rayna. Izzy wanted to laugh and giggle with baby Flora and act like she wasn’t completely fucked up in the head; so much so that she didn’t want anyone to touch her or notice her.
“Izzy, can I speak with you?”
Izzy turned slowly, noting the way that more than one club member watched her like a ticking time bomb. She waited for him to speak, knowing that Ox expected her to say something while knowing full well that she wouldn’t.
“Follow me,” He said softly, gesturing to his office.
Izzy followed him into the room, her hair brushing against the back of her collar. She didn’t like the fact that she’d had to cut it to her shoulders, but there wasn’t much that could be salvaged after the way Blade chopped it all off. She still had a hard time figuring that one out. Why would he want to cut her hair? To humiliate her? To dehumanize her? Was the abuse and mockery not enough to accomplish that?
Izzy noticed that Ox’s demeanor wasn’t exactly happy go lucky, and she had to wonder why; although, as soon as the door closed behind her, he gave her a stern look and gestured towards a chair.
“Take a seat, Isabelle. I have to ask you a couple of questions.”
His tone left no room for argument, not that she would have. She didn’t say a word as she took a seat across from him, her mind practically buzzing.
“I need you to be honest, and if you aren’t capable of speaking, then I want you to write your answers on this pad of paper here, okay?”
Izzy was nervous but she had to admit that Ox’s penchant for patience was nearly unheard of, so she nodded fervently and took the pad of paper he held out to her.
Her fingers were shaking when she touched the tip of the pen to the bland yellow paper, waiting for him to speak. He sighed deeply before he pierced her with a deep stare that she felt all the way to her bones.
“I know what happened to you was awful. It seems to be the pattern around here, we’re like a God damn halfway house for battered women. But, something landed on my desk this morning, and it’s got me on edge. Jefferson, the sheriff, faxed this over to me this morning.”
When Ox slid a piece of paper across the desk towards her she grabbed it and flipped it over. She didn’t say a word, as she presumed he knew that she wouldn’t- but she did look him in the eye while she waited for his response.
He deserved that much, at least.
“Did you know about this?”
Izzy slowly shook her head as she looked over the missing person poster. Her face was on it, her age, her birthday. Her last known location. Her parents phone numbers. And, a very large reward for anyone that had any information on her whereabouts.
“I can’t harbor a missing person without taking the proper steps, and it looks like your parents have the means and the motive to look for you until the day you die. How do you think we should handle this?,” He asked.
Izzy hurriedly scribbled a response.
Ox took the pad from her and read what she wrote.
“You don’t want to go back?”
Izzy shook her head as she leaned forward in her chair.
“Why not?”
Izzy sighed in frustration before she took the pad of paper back from him and wrote down another response. Ox waited patiently for her to hand him the paper before he cleared his throat.
“I wanted to escape for years, and the only way I’ll be able to get over what happened to me, is if I look at it as a blessing in disguise. Please, don’t make me go back.”
As he read her words aloud to her, she was trying her hardest to fight back tears.
“Izzy, I don’t know if this is the right place for you. Your parents could tear this place apart in their search for you, and we don’t exactly have a skeleton-free-closet,” Ox explained.
Izzy shook her head and placed a hand over her heart as she shook her head.
“I know you wouldn’t saying anything, okay? I don’t think that- I just- fuck, this isn’t something I’m saying to hurt you. If you’re gonna stay then you have to do this the right way. A burner phone and a lengthy call, a letter, something to let your folks know that you’re safe and you’re alive, but that you choose not to come home.”
Izzy knew that Ox was right, and in the long run, his request really did only amount to a small sliver of her pride, but she was still hesitant. Her family would go to any lengths, regardless of what she wanted to make her come home; she didn’t know of much that would keep them at bay.
But, she didn’t want to go home.
She wanted to stay with the new family she’d found, even if it didn’t seem like it.
Finally, understanding that this was the sacrifice she had to make in order to get what she wanted, she nodded her head.
“Thank you. I don’t know your reasons for not reaching out to your family, and it ain’t none of my business, but if you’re gonna stay here and become a part of mine, we gotta make sure all the loose ends are tied up. You understand that, right? I’m not tryin’ to force you into anything here, the decision is ultimately up to you. Those are just my conditions.”
Izzy nodded again, and slid the pad of paper back to him, a fresh question written on the lines.
“Please don’t tell anyone that I didn’t want to go home,” Ox read aloud.
His eyes met hers over his desk and she bit her bottom lip as she waited for his response.
“Okay, we can keep this conversation confidential. Let me know what form of communication you wanna use-,” She interrupted him by pointing to the pad of paper. He smiled wryly at her.
“A letter, how didn’t I see that coming, you little mute? Give it to me when you’re done, and don’t put a forwarding address on it, unless you want your folks to know where you are.”
Izzy understood and stood up, ready to leave and waited to see if Ox wanted anything else.
“Before you go, I just want you to know that Torch will be leaving tomorrow morning. He won’t be back for a few days. I know him and Billie are your go-to people, but if you need anything, please let me know.”
Izzy frowned at the information, because she didn’t want him to leave. She didn’t know who she would spend her time with, because he was the only one who was comfortable to share the silence with her. She cared for Billie a lot, but the woman would damn near chatter her ear off if she let her.
No, the silence she shared with Torch, sprinkled with his deep voice from time to time, was the closest thing Izzy got to security, and she pretty much needed it. She didn’t know if she could last a few days without seeing him. Would she remember to eat if he didn’t remind her? What about sleeping?
What about her sanity?
Just as she stepped into the bar, she saw him, behind the worn wood and she headed towards him. He didn’t usually smile, and he didn’t this time, but she knew that the second he saw her she had his undivided attention. She didn’t know how she knew that, but she did. Torch never half-assed his time with her.
“You okay?,” He asked. She shrugged.
He set down the rag that he was holding and leaned his elbows on the bar, making his t-shirt sleeves tight around his arms. She tried not to look at his muscles, and she almost accomplished that, until he took a deep breath and she saw the way his wide chest stretched the fabric.
Torch eyed her closely, “What’s wrong? You look worried.”
How does he know that?
I haven’t even spoken…
She pointed to him and then her watch and then shrugged. Torch looked thoroughly confused before she did it again, this time more agitatedly.
“Calm down, are you asking me when I’m leaving?”
She nodded, huffing her hair out of her face as she did so.
He started to smile then, a gesture that transformed his usually fierce expression completely.
She placed her hands on her hips.
“Are you gonna miss me, Izzy?”
She shook her head.
“Well, you seem like you will. It’s okay if you do, ya know. Maybe I’ll miss you, too,” He said with a wink.
She snorted.
He came around the bar and stepped towards her, something that had her taking a slight step back. She didn’t think he would hurt her, but she had no clue what he was doing. When she tried to take another step back, he caught her around the waist and gently pulled her towards him. He nudged her chin up too, so that she could see into his dark eyes.
“I have to take care of some business, just like I promised you. Do you remember what we talked about?”
Yes.
The Madmen…
Izzy nodded.
“I’ll only be gone for a few days at the most-,” She stopped him by pressing a hand to her own chest before she patted his. She gestured towards the air between them and then patted her chest again before planting a palm firmly against his.
His eyes narrowed as he seemed to ponder what she was trying to say.
“I know you ain’t askin’ to come with me, Izzy.”
She nodded adamantly, her hair falling into her face. He swept it out of the way and tucked it back behind her ear before he said no.
“You know that you can’t come with me. You’ll be fine for a for a few days without me.”
Izzy slammed her palm into his chest again and shook her head, no. His eyes narrowed again as they roved over the curve of her face, his mouth pursed.
“What are you gonna do if I bring you with me, Izzy?”
She reached down and tapped the top of his gun, which was holstered at his side. Torch sighed and ran his fingers through his own hair before he shook his head.
“You and I both know that ain’t a sin you need tainting your soul. Let me take care of it.”
Izzy bit her bottom lip again, wondering how in the hell she could ask him why. Instead, she decided to mouth the question.
“Why? Why? You really gotta ask me that?”
She nodded again.
He dipped his head and shook it real slow before gripped her chin tenderly and ran the pad of his thumb across her cheek.
“You ain’t stupid, Izzy. You can figure it out on your own. If you don’t, then we can talk about it when I get back.”
She gripped his arm and tugged om his shirt in frustration, something that didn’t settle well with him.
“Don’t even try to take that tone with me. I can see the anger in your eyes, woman, and you better believe that I’m just trying to help you. I need to do this, and you need me to do it, even if you don’t get that yet,” He said sternly.
He released his hold on her and walked past her, in the direction of his room. She knew better than to follow, this wasn’t the first time she’d seen him mad, but he was mad at her which made her feel bad.
She hadn’t meant to be difficult, she’d just wanted to go with him. She didn’t want him to fight her battles for her, even though she had no fucking idea what she was doing. Torch hadn’t ever been so comfortable with touching her, either, but she wasn’t so sure she minded. She wanted him to trust her enough to take her with him, but in the end he was probably right.
She didn’t have it in her to commit murder, or maybe she did, but she wasn’t ready to find out. No, instead, she would go back to her room and write the letter she needed to write to her parents. If she didn’t get it done, she never would, and that wasn’t an option. She had to face it now, at the least they deserved to know she was alive.
“When are you gonna start talking?,” She heard over her shoulder. When she turned around, Scarlett was watching her.
Izzy shrugged.
Scarlett pointed to the seat across from her and Izzy meandered over to it, taking a seat.
“I know that this place can be overwhelming. My husband is going with your man to take care of Blade,” Scarlett said softly. Izzy’s head snapped up immediately and she glanced back down the hallway that Torch had disappeared.
“Hey, don’t panic. They know what they’re doing,” Scarlett reassured her. But, she didn’t understand- it was Blade. Blade. The fucker that had cut her up for weeks. Also, Torch wasn’t hers, he was just Torch…
Scarlett seemed to understand her apprehension because she scooted her chair closer to hers and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. Izzy balked at first, but Scarlett scoffed.
“Stop it, I am not going to hurt you. Sometimes we all need a little comfort,” She whispered. Izzy’s body slowly went limp as she accepted the hug from Scarlett. It felt somewhat nice, but foreign. She didn’t know what to do, so she gently patted her back.
“It’s all going to be okay, Izzy. Torch will take care of this for you, because he cares. You understand that, don’t you?”
Izzy slowly nodded.
He’s doing this for me, and now we’re mad at each other…
I’m an asshole.
Izzy sighed and stood, squeezing Scarlett’s hand in thanks. Scarlett smiled at her and pointed towards the door, “I’m heading home. I’ll check on you tomorrow, okay?”
Izzy smiled at her and nodded.
“Try not to be too hard on him, he’s a good man.”
Izzy had no intention of being hard on Torch, she was trying to tell him that he didn’t have to do anything for her sake, she didn’t expect it. She didn’t need him to do it, either.
As Scarlett pulled away, Izzy looked down the hallway again, and Scarlett chuckled under her breath, “Go see him. Make up.”
She wasn’t so sure she knew how to do that, but Izzy definitely didn’t want to leave things on bad terms, especially when she knew that even though Torch was working for the club, he was doing this for her.