Letting You Go (Stone Lake 1)

“I do love my daughter,” Dad says, roughly.

“Oh, that’s right. You love your daughter, it’s just your wife you left for your whore.”

That’s when the truth hits me. That’s when I know that my father is truly leaving. We won’t be a family anymore, because he has another woman. Everything I’ve ever known is suddenly changing. My life is falling apart.

“Lydia, stop! What’s between us, doesn’t involve our child.”

“But it does,” I yell, standing up, tears in my eyes. “You’re destroying my life.”

“Luna—”

“Moonbeam—”

“I hate you,” I scream. “I hate you both!”

It feels like the words are being torn from me. I can’t see them, there are too many tears in my eyes. I run from the house, slamming the front door and I take off sprinting. I’ve never been there, but I’m going to Gavin’s. I need him.

He’s all I have…

Chapter Forty One

Luna

I ran almost all the way to Gavin’s, but no one was home. I started to go to Jules’ house, but I remembered that she had a date with Darren. So, I kept walking and somehow, I ended up at the old dock in front of Stone Lake.

The place where I was first held by Gavin.

I’m feeling more than a little lost. I’m so cold, I don’t think I’ll ever be warm again, but I can’t go home. Not now… I don’t want to see my parents. There are things I’ll need to talk to them about… but not right now.

“Get out of here.”

“Gavin?” I gasp jumping. I search the area. Then I find him, standing in the shadows, looking over the water—his back to me.

“What are you doing here, Luna?” he asks, still not turning around. He’s standing at an awkward angle. His hand is folded against this stomach. He seems off and his voice is different.

“I had a fight with my parents.”

“Must be the night for it,” he says and he laughs. His laugh immediately turns into a cough, he wheezes next. “Fuck,” he mutters.

“Gavin, what’s wrong?”

“Got into a fight with my old man,” he says and that’s when he turns around to face me.

I cry out before I can stop myself. It’s not dark yet. There’s enough shadows around the copse of trees he’s standing near to somewhat hide him, but there’s definitely enough light to see that Gavin has been beat up. His lip is busted, his right eye is swollen, there’s a cut under his chin, and the blood has pooled and dried. There are varying degrees of bruising on his face and neck that disappear in a trail under his shirt. He’s holding his hand at an awkward angle, and I don’t even know how he’s still standing.

“Where’s your truck, Gavin?”

“I parked it in the clearing beyond these trees,” he says, his voice sounding lifeless as he looks over the water.

“You need to go to the hospital,” I tell him. “Let’s go and I’ll drive you.”

“I’m not going to the hospital.”

“You need someone to look at your injuries.”

“I’ve had enough of adults, Moonbeam.”

“Your dad’s not an adult. He’s scum,” I growl.

“Yeah, on that we can agree.”

“Give me your keys. I’ll take us to Jules’—”

“I don’t want anyone to see me like this, Luna. Not tonight at least. Besides,” he adds giving me a sad attempt of a smile. “I don’t think my body could take you driving my stick shift.”

I know he’s trying to be funny, but seeing him standing in front of me in so much pain, I’m not finding anything amusing about it at all.

“Hand me your keys, Baby,” I murmur to him. “I’ll go get a blanket.”

“Luna—”

“I’m cold, Gavin.”

He uses his good hand—at least it’s in better shape than the other one—and reaches in his pocket to get his keys. He hands them to me, and I go up on my tip toes to kiss his cheek.

“You’ve never called me baby before,” he says. “I like it.”

“I love you, Gavin,” I whisper, needing him to know that. “I’ll be right back.”

I run to his truck and find two old blankets and a pillow that we keep thrown in the back. When you have to hide to see one another, you get pretty creative and pillows and blankets become a must. Once I have them, I head back to the dock. I take the thickest blanket—which really isn’t great, they’re both pretty ratty—and spread it out on the dock and then place the pillow down on it.

“Let’s get you lying down,” I tell him, and he looks at me.

“Moonbeam, I’m not sure I can and if I do get down, I’m not positive I can get up.”

Anguish fills me. I think I could kill Gavin’s father right now. I know realistically I wouldn’t be able to, but I think I could at least make it hurt.

“You should have called me, Gavin. I would have come to you.”