husband?”
Abigail sighed. “It would be a lie to say he wasn’t always like this, because he was. The truthful and honest thing to say is I’m the one who changed.” Her voice hitched, and when I turned back to her, her eyes brimmed with tears, which she swiped away with an embarrassed laugh. “I used to be like him. Driven. Determined. Then I had Luke, and things changed. I saw what Killian did . . .” The tears came in earnest now, and when she tried to sweep them away, she stained her clean hands with the blood streaked across her face. Quickly, I went back to her and ran the rag over her trembling fingers before starting on her cheeks, cleaning off the salty mix of tears and blood.
With a shaky, shallow breath, she started again, “Luke wasn’t allowed to be a child. We took that from him, but Killian just kept taking and taking. Luke was never good enough, never brutal enough. So we stole everything from that sweet boy. And h-he hated us for it. Hates us. He should. We’re monsters. Who does that to a little boy? Who takes their toys away and gives them knives? Who tells them they can’t have any friends because friends are a weakness? Or that he can’t ever fall in love because the monsters he must hunt will eventually kill everyone he treasures? We did that. We did all that. We broke hi-him.”
I gripped Abigail’s hands tightly in my own. She trembled too hard to keep cleaning her face. Her breathing turned to panic gasps and I worried she might hyperventilate and pass out.
“You did not break him,” I said with force. Abigail blinked, her eyes going between my face and our entwined hands. “You did not break Luke. Were you fucked-up parents? Yes. Did Luke have a fucked-up childhood? Yes. Is Killian the biggest fucker in the entire world? Yes. But Luke is not broken. You and Killian might have cracked him some, but he’s long since filled in those cracks with steel. He’s a good man, and he’s stronger for what you two did to him.”
Abigail stared at me, her face expressionless with her mouth hanging slightly open. I sucked at pep talks, but, hell, I could have told her she was a flaming C-You-Next-Tuesday and had better not even so much as look at her son if she didn’t want me to rip her face off, but I didn’t. I held back. I took the motherfucking high road.
After a moment, her shoulders sagged and the breath she’d been tightly holding laughed out. The corners of her mouth lifted up in a soft smile—the first real one I’d seen on her. “I like you, Ollie. I do. No one has spoken to me like that in years.”
I offered her a little smile in return and started back on her face. “In their defense, they probably assumed you were too drugged up to take it.”
She tensed beneath my hand, but a second later, she laughed again. “You’re right. Again. I don’t know why I drink so much. And I know Killian sedates me, but I let him. I just . . . I mean, this place, it . . .”
“Hey,” I said, meeting her eyes and holding her gaze, “you don’t have to explain shit to me, okay? Or anyone. You’re surviving up here in a hellhole with Killian Aultstriver. I’m not going to judge how you manage to do that. That’s on you, but if you need help, Luke will do everything he can. He can take you back to Kodiak if you want. You don’t have to stay here.”
She nodded, her lip caught between her teeth, but didn’t respond. She looked frail again, lost. I finished getting the blood off her face and mostly out of her hair. It still covered her gown, but at least she wasn’t drowning in it anymore. I didn’t bother rinsing the rag out again before I dumped it in the trash. I grabbed the thick terry-cloth robe hanging on the back of the bathroom door and helped her pull her arms through it. Once she was warm, I set the gun out beside me and lifted myself up onto the counter to sit down. With my arms crossed, I just waited.
“You like him, don’t you?”
I raised my brows. I
Abigail sighed. “It would be a lie to say he wasn’t always like this, because he was. The truthful and honest thing to say is I’m the one who changed.” Her voice hitched, and when I turned back to her, her eyes brimmed with tears, which she swiped away with an embarrassed laugh. “I used to be like him. Driven. Determined. Then I had Luke, and things changed. I saw what Killian did . . .” The tears came in earnest now, and when she tried to sweep them away, she stained her clean hands with the blood streaked across her face. Quickly, I went back to her and ran the rag over her trembling fingers before starting on her cheeks, cleaning off the salty mix of tears and blood.
With a shaky, shallow breath, she started again, “Luke wasn’t allowed to be a child. We took that from him, but Killian just kept taking and taking. Luke was never good enough, never brutal enough. So we stole everything from that sweet boy. And h-he hated us for it. Hates us. He should. We’re monsters. Who does that to a little boy? Who takes their toys away and gives them knives? Who tells them they can’t have any friends because friends are a weakness? Or that he can’t ever fall in love because the monsters he must hunt will eventually kill everyone he treasures? We did that. We did all that. We broke hi-him.”
I gripped Abigail’s hands tightly in my own. She trembled too hard to keep cleaning her face. Her breathing turned to panic gasps and I worried she might hyperventilate and pass out.
“You did not break him,” I said with force. Abigail blinked, her eyes going between my face and our entwined hands. “You did not break Luke. Were you fucked-up parents? Yes. Did Luke have a fucked-up childhood? Yes. Is Killian the biggest fucker in the entire world? Yes. But Luke is not broken. You and Killian might have cracked him some, but he’s long since filled in those cracks with steel. He’s a good man, and he’s stronger for what you two did to him.”
Abigail stared at me, her face expressionless with her mouth hanging slightly open. I sucked at pep talks, but, hell, I could have told her she was a flaming C-You-Next-Tuesday and had better not even so much as look at her son if she didn’t want me to rip her face off, but I didn’t. I held back. I took the motherfucking high road.
After a moment, her shoulders sagged and the breath she’d been tightly holding laughed out. The corners of her mouth lifted up in a soft smile—the first real one I’d seen on her. “I like you, Ollie. I do. No one has spoken to me like that in years.”
I offered her a little smile in return and started back on her face. “In their defense, they probably assumed you were too drugged up to take it.”
She tensed beneath my hand, but a second later, she laughed again. “You’re right. Again. I don’t know why I drink so much. And I know Killian sedates me, but I let him. I just . . . I mean, this place, it . . .”
“Hey,” I said, meeting her eyes and holding her gaze, “you don’t have to explain shit to me, okay? Or anyone. You’re surviving up here in a hellhole with Killian Aultstriver. I’m not going to judge how you manage to do that. That’s on you, but if you need help, Luke will do everything he can. He can take you back to Kodiak if you want. You don’t have to stay here.”
She nodded, her lip caught between her teeth, but didn’t respond. She looked frail again, lost. I finished getting the blood off her face and mostly out of her hair. It still covered her gown, but at least she wasn’t drowning in it anymore. I didn’t bother rinsing the rag out again before I dumped it in the trash. I grabbed the thick terry-cloth robe hanging on the back of the bathroom door and helped her pull her arms through it. Once she was warm, I set the gun out beside me and lifted myself up onto the counter to sit down. With my arms crossed, I just waited.
“You like him, don’t you?”
I raised my brows. I
Similar Books
