The Professor's Second Chance Mate

Chapter 17b

Soon, Kelton returned wearing a t-shirt and sweats, and we were snuggled on the couch. He waited patiently for me to tell my story.

“When I was twelve, Kiren and his friends knocked me out, tied me up, and threw me in an old abandoned cabin in the woods. Two days and nights they left me there. I didn’t see them during the day. They had school. But at night, they’d creep around-then leave me to revel in my new-found fear of the dark.”

Kelton growled.

“It was a long time ago, and I’m not saying that makes it OK, but he was only fourteen.”

“That’s old enough to know better. Why are you defending him? He’s been horrible to you!”

“I don’t know why I still instinctively defend him. And I know he has been horrible to me. I just feel like that’s not really him. Once upon a time, he was a wonderful brother. The best. I’ve seen how he is with everyone else, and I guess I just hope that one day we can have a normal relationship. I know that sounds stupid.”

“It’s not stupid. You crave family. But you don’t need him. You have me. And my kids. My pack. They’ll all love you unconditionally. Now, about those shadow creatures…” he prompted.

“Right. When I came to, it was pitch black, and I could barely see. My arms and shoulders ached. My hands were tied behind my back. I fumbled around trying to get a feel for where I was. Wood floors. Small room. It smelled musty and stale, like no one had been here for years. I’d figured they’d left me there for good. I had to figure my own way out.

“My heart was pounding, I tried to shuffle towards the door and tried to push it open. But it wouldn’t budge. I was trapped. I don’t know how long I was alone for, but I was on my way home from school when they grabbed me. So it had to be several hours. It was winter and I was freezing and hungry. The sounds and shadows seem to be closing in on me. More than that, I would swear that the shadows moved unnaturally, especially since there wasn’t any light to create shadows. Like tonight, as I ran from that Haden guy, it felt like the trees were reaching for me, like they were actually moving and the shadows too.”

“Who’s Haden?” I felt Kelton’s arms tighten around me slightly with his question.

“We’ll circle back to him. Anyway, back to the cabin…. I wiggled my way up onto my feet so I could walk over to the window. Shut tight. I felt around the walls for a light switch, but there wasn’t one. I tried to calm myself down, but by then it was getting hard. I couldn’t see anything, while the only sounds I heard were those of my own growling stomach, and the wind in the trees outside. By the time they came for me it felt like my own fear was a physical weight, crushing me, suffocating me. I thought they were going to leave me there.

“Just when I was about to give up all hope, I heard a faint sound coming from outside. A car engine, then voices. Boys. They were calling my name. Not calling really, more singing tauntingly. My heart was racing so hard at that point I thought it might literally explode.

“I heard footsteps approaching, laughing, and suddenly the door burst open. A flood of light poured into the room, and I was momentarily blinded. As my eyes adjusted, I was still struggling to see. The three boys each had a powerful flashlight trained on my face.

“I begged them to let me go. Kiren laughed and said he would, when they’d had their fun. In hindsight, they didn’t really do anything to me in the room. That had been my biggest fear. What if he let his friends beat me or, worse, r**e me? I honestly didn’t know if my brother was that evil. I thought he might be, but no one touched me. They just taunted me with their words. Telling me how unwanted I was and that no one would care if I died. No one would look for me. No one would miss me.

“After they left, all night my imagination ran wild with images. Of shadows turning into figures. The trees outside the window seemed to grow and reach for me. I thought it was my fear overwhelming me, or a trick of the light. Like when you stare at a light, and it burns an image on your retina when the light is gone. Something like that. But now I realize the shadow figures I saw tonight and after our date, were exactly the same as they were that night, and the next. All night, both nights, it felt like those shadows were living beings, creeping around me. It felt like I was being swallowed up by the darkness. This might sound crazy, but it felt like they wanted something from me.

“I heard sounds too, coming from the wall with the window. It sounded like something was moving. Slow scratching, like nails raking down the wall. My mind started racing, the shadow figure things were silent. So I started wondering if there was someone or something else in the cabin with me. It felt like I was being held down by an invisible force, my own fear. The scratching got louder, like something was trying to break through the window. I was completely convinced that I was going to die in that dark cabin, with no one to hear my screams.”

Kelton was quiet the whole time I spoke, and now I was seriously concerned that he was going to think I’m insane and toss me out on the porch like an unwanted stray.

Instead, he holds me closer. “And your parents didn’t notice you were missing for two days?”

“Nope. Maybe Kiren told them I was with a friend or something. Or maybe they just didn’t notice I was gone at all. I don’t know. Either way, as far as I know, no one looked for me, no one cared. Kiren was right about that. I didn’t confront them about it. More like, I couldn’t confront them about it. I felt so worthless, so non-existent. I couldn’t stand the thought that my dad might actually admit that he had no idea that I was missing, or my mom say she wished I’d stayed gone.

“So I just did as Kiren did and pretended the whole thing didn’t happen. Occasionally, I thought that maybe he felt bad about what they’d done, since he didn't rub the incident in my face. Eventually, I managed to block the memories completely. Whenever I did think about it, I’d get a headache and my vision would start to blur. I’d end up with a massive debilitating migraine.

“I’m so sorry, darling. No one should have to deal with something like that,” Kelton hugged me a little tighter. I had a feeling he wanted to murder my family but was focusing on comforting me. “How did you get out?”

“I was curled up in a ball, hyperventilating, and ranting about shadow monsters when they came for me late on the third day. I don’t know what time it was when they came. The sun was very low, I remember. I don't remember how I got home exactly either. The funny thing is, Kiren was actually nicer to me than he had been in years after that. I think he could see how truly traumatized I was from the experience. I think, maybe, he felt guilty though.

“Actually, I know he did. I remember he apologized. At the time, I couldn’t focus on anything except that I was sure I was going to die in that cabin, but now I distinctly remember Kiren apologizing and telling his friends they took it too far. He was nice to me for a few months after that. They all were. But eventually they went back to their old ways, treating me like a leper. That was about the same time I stopped flinching every time I saw one of them or heard their voices. I just felt dead inside.”

Kelton was quiet, contemplating, I guessed.

“I hate that I have no idea what these things are or how to keep them away from you,” he said after a while. “I can take you home and stay with you if you like. I don't like the idea of you being alone.”

“Can I stay with you tonight?”

“I’d like that,” his gorgeous voice rumbled. Suddenly, all thoughts of shadow creatures and a$$hole brothers vanished and the only thing on my mind was the gorgeous man beside me and the earlier vision of his perfect n***d self. I couldn’t help but bite my lip a little. I was so nervous, but also excited. That wasn’t why I asked to stay, but if he wanted to, I wouldn’t say no.