Surviving (Surrender 2)

I smile up at him, and he takes leans down for a quick kiss. “So what do you want to do until we have to leave for the bar?” I ask him.

“I’d like to stay here all day and worship your body, but I want to show you something in Franklin. It’s sort of a surprise.”

“I love your surprises!”

As we get dressed, I think about how Charlie’s pregnancy scare led to my own family planning discussion. Even though it scares the shit out of me, I’m excited at the thought of one day being pregnant.

Chapter 26

Meeting With Declan

We’re not even at my parents yet and I’m ready to go home. I really didn’t drink that much last night but when we got home from The Steamroom, Declan was very energetic. I don’t even remember what book it was in, but he continued on his crusade to play out scenes from the books he read this summer. He had me against the wall, bent over the sofa, and on the living room floor until I almost blacked out. Then we took another shower before we went to bed.

All day today, I worked on school stuff while he went out for a while. He didn’t tell me what he was doing, but I had a feeling he was looking for my birthday gift.

Now we’re on our way to dinner with my whole family. My dad called Declan this morning and told him we needed to come over because he had something to talk to us about. It sounded serious and he agreed we would be there by seven. When we pull into their driveway, I’m surprised to see David’s truck.

Robbie greets us at the door and I immediately go on alert. He’s not happy. My parents and David are in the living room having a drink when we join them. Our arrival interrupts their conversation and my mom looks at me with a worried expression.

I greet everyone with a hug and then sit next to my mom. “What’s going on?”

My dad speaks first. “Our attorney called today and has some news about Christie. Apparently her therapists think she has made progress and is mentally ready for trial. She is pleading not guilty by reason of temporary insanity, and her attorneys are asking for a lighter penalty and her time in the psychiatric facility as time served. The prosecutor is not happy and doesn’t think she has served nearly enough time. Since she wasn’t fit for trial and denied bail, we thought she would be in this facility for a lot longer.”

“What the hell does this mean?” Declan yells and comes over to sit next to me.

“It’s really not good to speculate, but there are several scenarios. No matter what, they will still file a felony charge. Christie’s family is trying to get her the least amount of time served and get her moved back home. Our attorney said if they cooperate fully there’s really no reason to send this to a courtroom. Save taxpayers money and shit.”

“This is not acceptable. Why the fuck would they let that psycho out after what she did to Raven?” Robbie asks my dad angrily.

“Son, I’m not very knowledgeable about criminal law, so I have to rely on the people I pay to explain it.”

“So what do we do? Can’t we send a letter or talk to a judge to try and influence them to send her to jail? We still don’t know what she was planning with Raven and we can’t live looking over our shoulders thinking she may be lurking.” Declan shouts.

“Calm down son. You need to get your attitude in check before we tell you the rest.” David says.

“There’s more?” I say quietly.

“Yeah, Christie has asked for a meeting with Declan.” Dad answers me.

“Why?” Tears pool in my eyes.

“From what I’ve been told, she had a breakthrough in a recent therapy session and realized exactly what she did. She has asked for a meeting to apologize and her doctor has requested that Declan meet with her so she can continue to improve.”

“Nope, no way. That bitch caused too much heartache for me to ever give her the time of day. There’s no way I can look at her and not want to kill her.” Declan tells my dad.

I can’t help the sob that escapes my mouth. This girl had intentions to hurt me and left me in the basement for days. Then it took weeks for Declan and I to get over the hurdle she put in our relationship. She scared my family to death and Finn almost lost his shit. And now she wants Declan to help her road to recovery?

“Calm down baby. It’s gonna be okay.” He rubs my back.

“Why now? It’s been almost nine months. I didn’t like it when she was moved to the facility, but I was relieved to know she was still locked away. Now, she not only wants to apologize to prove she’s getting better, but also to get a possible plea bargain? In a sense, she wants Declan to help her! Doesn’t that seem crazy to y’all?”

“Raven, I know this is hard. I can’t even imagine how you feel, but I actually support the meeting.” David tells me.

“What?” Declan and I screech at the same time.

“Me too.” My dad adds.

I feel like a bobblehead doll looking back and forth between our dads.