With Kol (Daniels Family 2)

“Dammit, Thea,” he growls and stands, pacing around the room. I watch him run his fingers angrily through his hair, and I want him to hold me again. I was at ease when he did that, but I have no idea how to ask for it. “I know Matthews isn’t your last name.”

My entire body freezes, and I’m left in shock. My chest tightens with the inability to breathe. White noise blocks out anything else he says as stars dance in front of my eyes.

“Thea?” I can hear him say my name, but I can’t respond. My voice is lost.

Losing strength, my body slumps over to the side, and I feel weak. Memories play over in my mind of when I tried to get help.

The failed investigations.

The suicide attempts.

The terror of having to stay in that house for a minute longer.

“You were a bad girl, Thea. Telling on me when we both know you enjoyed it.” Richard’s voice in my ear is sickening. “This”—he grabs my arm with the blood sluggishly dripping off my fingers—“was stupid and selfish. How do you think your mother would feel?”

“I don’t care,” I whisper hoarsely. My voice having lost any power. I didn’t cut deep enough. Richard came home early and found me in the tub. Naked, bruised, broken, and bleeding. He doesn’t comprehend the pain he’s caused me. The absolute disgust that rolls through my body because of him. Nor would he even care.

“This is weak, even for you, Thea. But it’s okay, I’m here to take care of you now.” I want to vomit as he throws me on the bed, face first, and climbs on from behind. The police didn’t believe me. They thought I was lying.

Richard convinced them I was only looking for attention. I feel the heat of his naked flesh trying to penetrate me, and my mind shuttles me to another place. One where I’m loved, protected, left alone.

I’m taken away to where when I say no, it means no.

I don’t even beg anymore. He only laughs. He takes pleasure in my agony, so I’ve learned to keep it to myself. It’s my one rebellion. It angers him when he doesn’t get the response from me that he craves. The reason he assaults me.

Rapes me.

Kol

* * *

I’ve been scared plenty of times in my life. When my parents died, and we had Ember to raise. Being shot at. Worry that Arsen may get killed on the job. Ember being hurt for being too trusting.

There’s plenty of fear to go around.

But never like this. Never have I witnessed something as agonizing as watching Thea shut down and getting so lost in her mind that she’s taken back to whatever hell she escaped. And I can’t pull her out of it.

Her tears flow in steady streams, her eyes are glossed over like she’s on drugs, but I know that’s not the case. Her body trembles, and no matter what I do, I can’t help her.

“Kol!” I hear Ember’s voice downstairs and check the time. She’s going to be pissed that I knew Thea lived here. “Kol, what are you- Thea? Kol! What’s wrong with her?” Rushing to her friend’s side, Ember drops to her knees in front of the woman I want to call my own and brushes the hair back from her face.

“What happened to her?” Em stares up at me like I’ve got all the answers.

“I have no fucking idea, Em.” I wish I did.

“You’re going to find out, though, right?” Not once in my life have I ever worried about letting my baby sister down, but right now, I don’t know how to answer her.

“I’m going to try, Em.”

“How long has she been like this?” She’s wiping Thea’s tears with a Kleenex as her mind pushes her own worry to the back and the caretaker in her takes over.

“Not long. A few minutes maybe. She just dropped over.”

Narrowing her

eyes on me, Em asks, “What did you do?”

“I tried to get her to open up to me, so I can help her. Someone broke into her apartment tonight. I told her I knew Matthews wasn’t her last name.” Gripping the back of my neck, I struggle not to pull my girl into my arms and just hold her. All I want to do is take away her demons. Fight for her to be free of whatever has taken her hostage.