Chapter Sixteen

Bryn

I sat on the bed, staring down at my phone. Tory had used her one call to call me. I’d expected that. Who else would she have called? I was all she had. I was all she had ever had. Unshed tears stung my eyes. I fought to keep them from falling. Cullen was in the living room, watching some Spider-Man movie he loved with different versions of Spider-Man. It confused me, but it kept him occupied.

Tory was looking at up to forty-two months in prison. There would be no probation this time.

How blind was I that I hadn’t even realized she was addicted again? My working nights and leaving her here with Cullen. What kind of sister and aunt am I? I’d failed both of them.

The money had made our life easier—or so I had thought. That was why I had done it. But my being gone, the ease it provided Tory, it wasn’t something she could handle. She needed the stress of financial responsibility. I had taken that away. But then I didn’t know how long this had been going on. Until recently, she had been coming home.

Had she been high the night she beat Rio’s Jeep with the pole? Why hadn’t I considered that then? How long had she been doing this?

All day, I had felt a heavy weight on my chest, making it hard to breathe. Every moment that passed, it just grew heavier. I had failed Cullen when all I wanted to do was give him a better life.

The knock on the door, however, kept me from falling apart. Tonight was not the time to let Cullen answer the door. I had no idea who might be on the other side. There was the fear that Tory might owe someone also haunting me. The fact that Cullen could be in any path of danger terrified me more than anything else.

I stopped in the kitchen on my way to the door and glanced at the block of knives by the stove. Should I take the big one with me? Had our life really come to this?

“Someone knocked on the door,” Cullen said from his spot on the sofa.

I jerked my gaze off the knives and looked at him, hoping the panic inside me didn’t reflect in my eyes. “I heard it, honey. Just watch your show. I’ll handle it.”

I put 911 in my phone and had my finger hover above the Call button. Then, I walked to the door to slightly pull back the curtain covering the window beside it and peeked out. The first thing I saw was Rio’s profile. I paused, unsure if I was willing to deal with him tonight, but I was relieved I wasn’t about to get held up at gunpoint. Then, I noticed the figure beside him. It was Henley. With a sigh, I cleared my phone, so I didn’t accidentally call for help, then put it in my pocket.

As much as I didn’t want to see Rio or ever talk to him again, he wasn’t someone I feared. We would be safe while he and Henley were here. Or at least, we wouldn’t be alone. There was an ease that came with that knowledge, and right now, I needed some peace of mind, if just for a moment.

I opened the door and stepped back. “Come in,” I said, glancing behind them, suddenly thinking how it could be dangerous for them to be here and they didn’t realize it.

Henley walked inside first, and then Rio followed. His gaze immediately went to Cullen, who was on the sofa, looking at them with a curious expression. I closed the door and bolted it behind them.

“Hello,” I finally said in greeting now that everyone was inside and safe.

Henley hesitated a minute, and then she moved quickly and threw her arms around me, hugging me. “I am so sorry,” she said.

I wasn’t good with affection of any kind. I had experienced very little, if any, in my lifetime. Feeling awkward, I patted her back and stared up at Rio, who was now looking at me, amused. He seemed to know how out of place I felt.

“Uh, thanks,” I replied, not sure what else one could say.

Henley pulled back but held on to my arms. “I want to help. Whatever I can do. Watch Cullen while you work. He can come to the shop if you need to work days or stay at my house, and we can have a sleepover and bake things the nights you work. I want to help.”

I was at a loss for words. I couldn’t think of one time in my adult life that someone had offered to help me—or us. Not once. I had always had to figure things out and make it work. There was never someone I could call up for help. I barely knew this girl, and here she was, offering to do something as big as keeping Cullen while I worked.

Where had she come from? Were there more people like her in the world, or was she unique?

My gaze shifted to Rio, and the memory of him showing up at my aunt’s countless times to help me clean and do the chores she’d left for me came back to me. I quickly pushed them away, far back in my thoughts. That was a time when he had been different. I didn’t need to get that Rio confused with this one.

“I-I, uh … I don’t know what to s-s-s-say.” I stuttered on the last word, unable to control my speech with so much emotion whirling around inside me. I wanted to say so much more, but I was afraid I would stammer over every word, making it impossible to get a sentence out.

“Can we bake cupcakes?” Cullen’s small voice asked, and he was there beside me then. Reaching up and taking my hand.

Henley bent down in front of him. “Absolutely. We can make cupcakes, cookies, doughnuts, whatever you want. I also have another little friend who likes to come over and bake. I think you would like her. She’s about your age,” she told him.

Cullen thought about that for a moment. He had never had a friend come over from preschool, nor had he been invited to anyone’s house. The idea of having someone his age to play with would either be exciting or intimidating to him.

Finally, he nodded his head. “Okay,” he replied.

Henley beamed so brightly that it was as if I had just given her something instead of the opposite. She stood back up, and I focused hard on my words, knowing I needed to speak. She wouldn’t understand my silence.

“I don’t know how to thank you for this. It’s—no one—I’ve never—well, no one has ever helped us before. I am at a l-l-loss as to what to s-s-sa-say or do.” That was the truth. I was clueless. I was very close to bursting into tears.

Henley glanced back at Rio, who had stood quietly behind her since their arrival. It was clear by the expression on his face that he did not want to be here. He was here because of Henley. I could see the uncertainty there in his eyes and the concern. Henley being around me worried him. I understood. Right now, I was worried about our safety too.

“I, uh, I should tell you that I do not know …” I paused then and looked down at Cullen. He didn’t need to hear what I was going to say. Bending down beside him, I took his small hand. “Hey, buddy, go back and watch your show, okay? Let me tell them bye, and then I will get you a snack.”

His eyes lit up at the word snack . He nodded his head then, forgetting his new friend, and ran back to the sofa. The promise of a snack always seemed to work. It was still new to him. Having food in the kitchen that he could eat between meals.

I turned my attention back to Henley and Rio. As much as I didn’t want to look at him or speak to him, he was here with her, and he needed to hear this. It was clear his concern was for her safety, and her helping us could put her in danger.

“I don’t know what Tory was doing exactly, who she might have owed money to.” I paused, shifting my gaze between the two of them. “I’m not sure yet if I should be expecting someone to show up, demanding money or payback of some sort. It’s not a world I’ve ever lived in. It’s her world. Not mine. The little I know of it is that her addiction causes her to make selfish decisions,” I explained quietly, not sure if Cullen was trying to listen or not.

“Having help with Cullen so I can work would be great, but for now, I need to stay close. I can’t put you or anyone else in danger. I’ve got to wait this out,” I finished.

Henley’s expression didn’t change. “You’re afraid you and Cullen could be in danger, but you’re not sure?” she asked me matter-of-factly.

I nodded.

She looked back at Rio and said nothing. He, however, seemed to understand what she was saying without words. He gave one nod, and she turned back to me.

“I’ll look into things. I can find out if your sister left behind any debt,” Rio said.

“Thank you,” I replied, not sure how he would do that but thankful he could and was willing to.

“He will also stay here tonight to make sure you’re safe,” Henley added.

“He d-d-d-doesn’t n-need to do th-that,” I stammered, feeling my face heat at Rio’s reaction to that.

He would not want to be here or help me.

“If Tory owes someone, then, yeah, I do,” Rio said.

Henley smiled, obviously pleased with the plan.

I stood there, confused by him agreeing to stay and afraid to try to argue. My words were once again a struggle. I stared at Rio, torn between wanting the security of him being here and hating the idea of owing him anything. Even gratitude.