Seeing what he must have been searching for he slumped onto the edge of the bed.
“Yeah, he’ll be fine,” he dipped his head.
I shifted on the bed and couldn’t stop the next words that came out.
“Are you speaking from experience?” I whispered.
He took an unsteady breath and looked up at me.
I stared into his ice blue eyes, not daring to move an inch. I waited for him, and saw his shields as they lowered letting me see all of his pain.
“Yeah,” he croaked.
I blinked, I hadn’t expected him to answer.
“My dad,” he said and looked at the half open door. Whether to see if anyone was listening or because he couldn’t look at me I didn’t know.
“You don’t have to tell me.” I whispered.
Shaking his head he continued “Every night, He’d come home and find some excuse to hurt her” he said in a haunted voice.
Not knowing what to say I kept my mouth shut and let him carry on, he was somewhere else so I doubted he’d hear me anyway.
“Nothin’ she did was ever right.” He turned, his eyes full of sadness and anger.
“I couldn’t help her” he choked out.
I moved closer placing my hand on his arm I squeezed reassuringly. There was nothing that I could say that would make a difference, but sometimes all you needed was to get it out into the open. To get it out of your system. It was funny because even though I knew this I still hadn’t told anyone what had happened that night. Maybe that would help my nightmares?
“I can still hear her screams. Every night she’d beg him to stop.”
“Luke-”
“I had to stop him” he said hauntingly. “He wouldn’t stop”
His arm was so tense, it was like touching a rock.
“I-”
“It’s oka.y” I whispered.
He startled, as if he didn’t realize that I was still there then flung himself up off the bed and stood frozen to the spot.
“He never saw anything.” I whispered.
“What-”
“Eli,” I met his eyes “I made sure he never saw anything.”
He laughed, his whole body shaking from the force.
“Kay,” he smirked “If you think that he didn’t know what was going on then-”
“He didn’t.” I gritted my teeth, sure he saw some bruises but I could have gotten them from anywhere.
“Darlin’ he saw your black eye and didn’t even question it. He hasn’t even asked about his dad.”
“But-”