CHAPTER SEVEN
The front door slams as he leaves after their nightly argument. My mother’s footsteps race down the hall to my room as I curl up in the corner, making myself small.
She pushes my door open. It bangs loudly against the wall, forming another dent. “This is your fault!” She screams, sticking her finger in my face. “If I would have just done the smart thing and gotten rid of you before you were born, he and I would be happy! I hate you! You’re a worthless little shit, and I wish I never had you.”
This is nothing I haven’t heard before on more than one occasion, but it still hurts. Isn’t a mommy supposed to love their child? That’s how the moms in movies and books act. They hug each other and show affection. I wish I could have a hug. I asked for one once, and I got slapped. Mommy told me I was too ugly and stupid to hug.
I stare hard at the ground, wishing I was alone again.
She grabs me by the hair and drags me to the attic door, surprising me. I want to scream out, “No! Not the attic! It’s dark and scary up there!”
Instead, I stay silent. They don’t like it when I talk.
“Tomorrow marks eight years since you ruined my life, and you get to spend from now until midnight tomorrow in here, alone. This is my gift to everyone else on your birthday. No one wants you around, and I don’t want to be reminded of my biggest mistake in life. Now get in there.”
She roughly throws me in and slams the door shut, thrusting me into blackness.
With a quiet gasp, I awake and bolt straight up in bed, a thud against the wall beside my closet shaking me further. My eyes dart around, expecting to be in the dark attic. It only takes me a second to realize I’m in my room, in California. I sit for a few moments, trying to slow my breath and gain my bearings.
A quick inspection reveals the decorative box Leanne had on the dresser was the source of the thud I heard, which is odd because it had been in the middle of the dresser. The wall it hit is clear across the room. While I’m trying to calm my racing heart, the memories of the day before rush back, and I completely forget about the box on the ground.
How did I end up here, in my bed? I remember crying on Caleb, which is really embarrassing. I remember there wasn’t a punishment for my stupidity yet. Did someone carry me up to my bed? How strange.
Checking the clock, it’s already nine in the morning. Worried about what everyone thinks of me sleeping this late, I slide out of bed to head to my closet to find an outfit for today. I may have gotten home in the early hours of the morning, but that doesn’t mean I’m allowed to rest.
The second my feet hit the ground, I regret jumping out of bed. My legs shake with every wobbly step I take, the muscles screaming for rest. While trying to steady myself, I stumble into my bed. It takes a lot longer than I’d like to put on a pair of jeans and a plain gray top.
I quickly take care of my morning routine in the bathroom, then head down the stairs. From the walking yesterday, my leg muscles burn with every little movement, but hopefully, once I stretch them out a bit I’ll be able to walk easier. Right now, the stairs are my biggest enemy. It shouldn’t take five minutes to get down a simple flight of stairs.
When I reach the kitchen, I find everyone at the table. Cassie notices me first, and her permanent grin widens.
“Riley!” She squeaks happily. “You’re up! How did you sleep? Do you feel better today?”
“Um… I-I-I… U-u-uh, yeah, I s-s-slept well.” I pause, shifting awkwardly. “I-I-I’m o-o-okay, today. Th-th-thanks.”
I rock back on my heels when no one says anything more. The move sends shooting pain through my leg muscles, and I grit my teeth against the hurt.
To distract myself, I find cereal and milk on the table with a clean bowl in my spot. This must be part of my punishment. Until now, my plate has had food on it when I come to the table, but this time it’s empty. It must mean I’m not allowed breakfast. A small price to pay for my actions.
I slowly make my way to the table and sit down, hoping that’s at least allowed.
“Do you want frosted flakes or raisin bran?” Leanne asks, holding up both cereal boxes.
It takes me a second to realize she’s staring at me, waiting for an answer. A quick search around the table shows no one objecting to Leanne offering me food.
Scratching nervously at my arm, I turn my attention back to Leanne. “E-e-either one?”
She hands me the frosted flakes with a smirk. Cassie beams when I take the box and pour a little bit into my empty bowl. I risk a glance at Jaxon to find tenderness in his eyes. A hand comes to rest gently my back, causing me to flinch at the surprise touch. My head jerks up in time to find Caleb standing up behind me. When we lock eyes he gives a small, reassuring nod. A light blush colors my cheeks when I remember sitting on his lap last night.
He gestures to my empty cup. “Hey, babe, you want some juice with your breakfast?”
His easy use of the pet name throws me. Peering around the table, I assume no one else heard him, or if they did, they’re not going to acknowledge it. Maybe this is a normal thing for him. He did say it last night, although I assumed that was more in the moment than intentional. I turn back to Caleb who waits patiently for a response.
“Um… O-o-okay?” It comes out as more of a question than an answer, but he chuckles anyway and pours orange juice into my glass, then refills his own.
“Sis,” Jaxon speaks up after a few minutes of silence, his tone defeated. “I didn’t mean to scare you last night. I’m sorry for making you run like that.”
Unsure how to respond, I simply shift in my seat and wait for him to reprimand me for my actions. A long, silent stretch fills the room and Jaxon hangs his head and lets out a forlorn sigh.
“You don’t have to be afraid of us, kiddo,” dad promises, putting a hand on Jaxon’s shoulder. “Jaxon would never hurt you. Caleb was telling the truth last night. None of us would hurt you. We’d like to help you feel safe here, but we don’t really know why you ran. Can you tell us?”
As I look around the table, I check for signs of agitation or anger. Cassie joyfully bounces around in her seat while she shoves sugary cereal into her mouth. My dad keeps his hand rested on Jaxon’s shoulder, but his soft gaze remains trained on me. Caleb bounces his knee up and down quickly as he listens to the conversation take place. Leanne folds her hands gingerly in front of her, patiently allowing me time to gather my thoughts. Jaxon keeps his head down and rubs at his temples as if he has a headache.
None of them display threatening body language, which gives me the courage to answer my dad. “J-J-Jaxon was a-a-angry. We w-w-were talking about shopping and h-h-how I haven’t really gone b-b-before Leanne took m-m-me. I w-w-was s-s-stupid and shouldn’t h-h-have said a-a-anything. I didn’t m-m-mean to upset a-a-anyone.”
“Oh, Riley,” Jaxon murmurs somberly. He gets up from his seat and comes over to me. He moves with exaggerated slowness as he kneels next to me. It helps I’m able to watch and anticipate his every move. When he pulls me in for a gentle hug, I don’t shy away from him. “I wasn’t mad at you, not even a little bit. It pissed me off to no end that you were treated like shit, and you’d never done something as simple as shopping or hanging out with a friend before. I was mad for you, Sis, not at you.”
The idea of having someone upset for me, not at me is shocking. “O-o-oh.” I blink, trying to figure out what to say about his confession. His words baffle me.
Dad gives me a sympathetic smile. “It’ll take time, kiddo. This is new for all of us. Just know that we are on your side, always.”
While having people on my side sounds wonderful, I remain skeptical. This life seems too good to be true for someone like me.
~
“Good morning, sunshine!” Cassie chirps, skipping into the kitchen early Saturday morning. “Ready for some volunteer time?”
“W-w-where are we g-g-going?” I fidget with my cereal bowl. This is my first time doing charity work with everyone, and I’m a little nervous about what to expect.
Cassie grabs a bowl for herself, then plops down next to me. “We’re going to the animal shelter this month. Mark and Leanne mentioned they wanted to work with the cats this time. Jaxon and I will be helping up front. Caleb suggested you help him with the puppies.”
“T-t-that sounds like f-f-fun,” I admit. I love animals. Standing with my bowl, I head to the sink to rinse it. “I’ve always w-w-wanted to v-v-volunteer at an animal sh-sh-shelter.”
“Perfect,” Dad calls as he comes into the kitchen. “We picked a good place this month then. Let’s get ready, girls. We need to be there in an hour.”
Wordlessly, I head upstairs and ready myself for the day. When I come back down, everyone sits around the table, dressed and ready to go. They notice me come into the room and stand.
“Let’s get to gettin’!” Leanne orders, shooing us all from the house.
The drive to the shelter is quick, mostly because Cassie fills the time with chatter. As soon as we file into the building, a heavy set, Asian man comes up to us with clipboards in his hands.
“Hello, again Sullivan slash Montgomery clan.” He gives Dad and Leanne the top clipboard before continuing. “You two mentioned wanting to work with cats this time around. You know the drill, this is a list of tasks needing to be done in that area.”
He repeats himself with Jaxon and Cassie, sending them to the front desk area. “No answering the phones ‘Thank you for calling Golden Tiger Chinese Restaurant, how can I help you?’ That means you, Cassie!”
“You never let me have any fun, Tai!” Cassie cries dramatically, stomping her way around the front desk.
Tai rolls his eyes, turning back to Caleb and me. “You’re new.” He raises a curious brow at me. “Are you a Sullivan or a Montgomery?”
“I-I-I…” My eyes pop wide, and I turn to Caleb for help answering. Technically, I’m neither. My mother gave me her maiden name, Storm.
“She’s Mark’s daughter,” Caleb informs him, then introduces us. “Riley, this is Tai. He’s a cool guy, usually. Tai, this is Riley.”
Kai nods once at me. “Good to meet you, Riley. You two will be working with the dogs. We have quite a large group of puppies today. Here’s the list of things to get done for you two.” He hands us the last clipboard before turning around and rushing back toward Cassie and Jaxon at the front desk.
Caleb scans the tasks on the clipboard. “Ready to bathe some puppies?”
Grinning wildly, I lean over the top of the clipboard and scan it. It really does say to bathe the dogs. “I’m e-e-excited to play w-w-with them.”
Caleb chuckles at my enthusiasm. “Let’s get to it, then.”
He leads me to the dog cages and shows me around the area a bit, stopping in front of a door at the end of the hall. “This is where the supplies are kept. We bathe the dogs outside,” he explains, opening the supply closet and digging around for some buckets and shampoo. “It’s a lot less messy to use a hose outside, which is why I love it when we come here in the warmer months. The dogs love the cool water baths, and we don’t have to make a big mess inside.”
I take a bucket and some leashes from him as he holds them out. “How m-m-many times have y-y-you been here?”
Caleb turns back to the closet and grabs the shampoo and his own bucket. “Too many to count,” he admits. “My parents took us here constantly as our community service when we were kids. They usually let us decide where we wanted to volunteer each month, and we always picked this place.”
“I-I-I can s-s-see why.” Following him down the hall, I peek into the cages full of dogs and puppies in all shapes and sizes. “Playing w-w-with animals all th-th-the time must have b-b-been a dream as a k-k-kid.”
“You never had a pet?” His question is innocent enough, but it stings.
Shaking my head, my gaze drops down to my feet as I continue to follow him. “No, I w-w-wasn’t allowed.”
His brow wrinkles in confusion. “Your mom didn’t like animals?”
Again, I shake my head, but don’t say anything more. He seems to get the hint I don’t really want to talk about it because he keeps silent.
Leading the way outside, he shows me to the fenced in patio. He opens one of the dog kennels from the outside and puts a large lab on a leash before leading him over to me.
Caleb pats the overly excited dogs head. “Do you want to hold the leash or hose him down?”
“E-e-either.” I kneel next to the dog and let him sniff my hand.
Caleb hands me the leash and picks up the hose. “I’ll hose him down,” he offers. “He’s staying still for you, maybe we won’t get soaked if you hold the leash.”
“Does he h-h-have a name?” I rub the dog behind the ears.
Caleb tilts his head from one side to the other. “Sort of. The shelter provides names to the animals when they arrive, but they’re usually changed when the animal gets adopted. This guy’s name is Bruce.”
“Hi, Bruce,” I whisper into his furry ear. Animals are easy for me to talk to. I don’t second-guess myself, so I don’t stutter through my words. “We’re going to give you a bath, now. The water will be nice and cool for you.”
Bruce barks loudly in my face, startling me and causing me to fall backward from my kneeling position onto my butt. Caleb’s eyes widen with concern for a second, but when I snicker and rub Bruce’s head, Caleb lets out a breath and chuckles along with me.
Bruce’s bath is quick and straightforward. I’m sad to see him go when we put him back in his kennel, though the next five dogs are just as fun to be around.
“Okay.” Caleb sighs dejectedly. “This is going to be the last dog before we can move on to the puppies. He’s a good dog. He’s just easily excitable and really fucking big.”
With his warning left hanging in the air, he walks to the final kennel door and opens it. He wrestles with a dog the same size as a bear. It takes him a good five minutes to put the leash on the massive animal.
“You’re going to have to work the hose and spray him down,” he tells me, using his full strength to hold the dog in place. “Tiny here weighs more than you do, and he’ll drag you around this patio if you try holding him.”
Readily agreeing with Caleb, I pick up the hose and turn it on. “You’re j-j-joking about his n-n-name, right?” I stare at the drooling giant.
“I wish.” Caleb cackles, still trying his best to hold Tiny still. “We should probably make this quick. He’s a strong son of a gun.”
Without another word, I aim the hose at Tiny and soak him down. It takes a few minutes because of his size. When I finish getting his fur wet, I grab the bottle of shampoo and squirt a generous portion onto his back. Tiny yips excitedly, his tail swishing back and forth at such a quick speed, it’s almost hard to see.
“This is his favorite part,” Caleb informs me, gritting his teeth as he struggles to keep his hold on Tiny. “He gets a good scratch, and he loves it.”
Trying to hurry so Caleb can get Tiny back into his kennel, I squirt more shampoo onto the dogs back. Rushing to get Tiny scrubbed down, I bend at the waist and work my way in a circle around him. Without thinking about it, I back my butt into Caleb’s hips while I’m working. Caleb gasps, then grunts and lets the leash go. Tiny takes his chance at escape and rushes off, racing full speed around the patio. He barks loudly as he finishes running a full circle, then turns his massive body toward Caleb and me.
“Oh, shit,” Caleb grabs me around the waist and turns our backs to Tiny.
Feeling the impact of Tiny jumping onto Caleb’s back, I grunt and brace myself when the momentum pushes us toward the ground. In the process of falling, I drop the hose, and it goes spinning out of control, spraying the entire patio, including us and an extremely soapy Tiny.
Caleb manages to take most of the impact when we hit the ground, keeping me from getting too banged up. Tiny must think we are down on the ground to play because he continues to bounce and jump on and around us.
“Tiny, no!” Tai’s loud voice comes from the door to the patio, and I’m grateful he’s here. He manages to get Tiny back to his kennel and help us up. “You know Tiny can’t be off his leash, Caleb. Are you crazy?”
“Yeah, I did it on purpose, Tai.” Caleb grunts, pulling his shirt away from his body and wringing the water out of it. “I thought to myself, ‘I wonder what would happen if I just took Tiny off his leash and let him run wild. Why not give it a try?’ I’m crazy like that sometimes.”
Tai snorts and shakes his head. “Maybe you two should go play with the puppies for the rest of the day.” He rubs his hand over his mouth, trying to hide a smirk. “It’s probably safer for you both.”
Caleb takes my hand and leads me back into the building, through the hall of dogs and into another hall full of puppies. “At least, these little guys will be easier to bathe,” Caleb offers, pushing open a kennel with three tiny poodle puppies inside. “Let’s get to it.”
Caleb was right, the puppies were much easier to handle. Still, being with Caleb made every part of our day at the animal shelter fun.