Cadence Reflection (Wheels & Hogs Book 2) (11 page)

“So what’s the plan?”  I look at each of them, “I have a bad feeling that this is going to bring trouble from her old man.  She can’t stay at Dee’s, or with you and Fern, as you both live in town.  I don’t think it’s appropriate that she stay at my house here, and I’m pretty sure she’s not going to want to stay with Cadence so our choices are limited. I called someone to see if they could take in another abused soul.”  As I finish, the sliding door opens and in walks Wolf. 

Cadence shoots to his feet, “No fucking way is she staying with him! Absolutely no fucking way –” and we listen as he continues on with his ridiculous temper tantrum, “Des, you know how he is with women. There is no way in hell that I’ll allow her to go anywhere with him.” 

“We came out here to get some of her clothes before her shower,” but Trinity is already walking straight toward Cadence, never taking her swollen eyes from him.

“Who the fuck do you think you are? You have absolutely no say in what I do, where I go or who I stay with. You will never have any say in what happens to my baby and me!” As her body shakes with so much rage, she turns and walks to Fern, where Fern leads her out of the room. Cadence looks like she just kicked him in his balls.  I push him down into the chair then look at Wolf and explain the situation. 

Only Wolf, Cadence and I live outside of our little town so I figure it would be best to keep Trinity under wraps for a while so no one can locate her.  As we continue on with our conversation, the doorbell rings and the other guys enter.  As they all grab somewhere to sit, Dee goes to the fridge to grab beers and Coke’s for everyone, then goes back to the kitchen and begins pulling out pans and the toaster. I look up at her with a question in my eyes that she answers with, “Honey, she probably hasn’t had a good meal in a while.  I’m going to make her some scrambled eggs with toast,” so I nod and move back to the conversation at hand.

I
n the master bedroom, I help a trembling Trinity dress and make a mental note of all her injuries.  Her father should be shot for what he has done to his daughter.

Once she is dressed, I sit her on Des’ bed, grabbing a brush (probably Dee’s) and start to brush through all the tangles in her hair.  Neither of us speak but it’s comforting all the same.  Once all the knots are brushed out, I blow-dry it. Since she came here with bare feet, I go to the chest and pull out a pair of men’s socks. Bending down, I place the socks on her feet. 

“No one has ever taken care of me. Thank you so much.”

“I’m here for you if you need anything, okay.” The young woman just nods, and I continue, “I know right now you are angry at Cadence, but remember it was him who had Des start the search for you because he was worried.”

Trinity looks up “It’s been three months. Has he been looking for me all this time?

I have nothing to say to that because the answer is no. He only just started looking for her when he found out about the baby as far as I know.

“No, I didn’t think so. Please don’t try to make him out to be some hero that he’s not.”

“He didn’t handle this situation well at all, but I know that he is concerned for both you and the baby,” I reply.  Trinity shakes her head as her belly starts to growl. I laugh as I say, “Someone is hungry. Let’s go get you some food.”

We walk arm in arm back to the living room. 

I
smell the food first and my stomach growls again.  Dee looks to me with a smile, “Come on in here, Trin. Oh, sorry. Is it ok if I call you Trin?” I shake my head yes as she finishes, “I made you something to eat so let’s get you down here and fix you a plate.” Everyone watches me as I walk up to the breakfast bar and take a seat. I don’t even care that they are watching me, I begin to devour the food like this is my first meal in days, because really it is.

Des clears his throat, “Honey, we need to talk while you eat, is that okay with you?”  I nod and stuff more eggs into my mouth as he goes on, “We’ve been discussing what the next steps are for you. For now, we need to keep your location secret so your father doesn’t cause any trouble.” 

At the mention of that man, I drop my fork, losing my appetite immediately and hug myself tightly, trying to find that place in my mind where he doesn’t exist. Dee and Fern both hug me from each side, trying to give me some comfort where there is none to be had. I go through my routine in my mind, blocking any thoughts of him out.  Once I take some time to regain some of my composure, I look up to see Des standing on the other side of the island with another man, “Trinity, do you remember Wolf?”

I look at the huge man then back to Des, “He works for you, doesn’t he?” 

“Yes he does, honey, and he also lives about ten minutes from here on a secluded ranch. I think this is the best place for you to take some time and heal.” 

“Both Fern and I will visit you all the time,” Dee Dee says, “Wolf has dogs, cats, and even horses.  It’s so quiet and relaxing where he lives, and we think it will help give you some much needed time to concentrate on getting you and the baby healthy. You need time and a place to recover physically and mentally.” 

Wolf walks up to me, putting his hand on my shoulder, “My name is Wolf Youngblood, little one. I want to let you know that you will always be safe with me.  I will protect you as if you were my sister, my own flesh and blood.  I want you to find serenity for yourself and that baby, and most importantly, feel safe. This is something you not only need, but also deserve, so please let my home be a place of peace for you as long as you need it. ”

“Whatever you all think is best. I can never begin to repay you for what you’ve done for me tonight, even if it was done for Cadence and not for me. I’ve never had support from anyone because I’ve never wanted anyone to know. I need you all to know that I didn’t stay because I had nowhere else to go or because I didn’t want to. I tried to leave once but my father knows a lot of bad people, so when they found me and brought me back to him, he beat me for days, and not just a few. He made sure I knew what would happen if I ever tried to leave him again. After that, I was too afraid to try.”

After I speak, the room is suddenly quiet and I can feel the angry vibe from everyone in the room.

“I hope you don’t mind me asking you this honey, but how long has this been going on? How long has he been abusing you?” Des asks the question, but it almost sounds like he doesn’t really want to know the answer.

“It’s gone on for a really long time. My mom left when I was five. I think it was because she couldn’t handle his abuse any longer, so once she left, he took his anger out on me. He made sure I got the physical and emotional brunt of his anger, especially the more he drank. People saw what was happening, but no one, not even the people from my church or the school I attended tried to help me,” I don’t know if I should go on with this story. I’m in front of people I don’t even know, but they saved me tonight, and telling them what I’ve just told them has felt like a boulder is starting to lift from my chest. I feel as if I’ve gone this far in telling them of my father, I should tell them the whole story. I feel safe enough to do that with these people, “On my thirteenth birthday, he showed me what real hell truly was as he beat me for accepting a gift, just a small flower from a boy at school. That was the night that he sexually assaulted me, for use of a better word. He told me that I should get to see what that boy wanted from me and he should be the one to show me, and if I ever told anyone, they would all call me a nasty, dirty whore.”

I feel terrible about what I just told them because now they are all looking at me stunned, especially Cadence. Instead of breaking down, I calmly tell Des, “My father, Roman, is a lunatic and he will not take this lying down, I can promise you that. Like I said before, he has some really bad friends too, so please be careful. I would feel horrible if anything happened to any of you for saving me.”

Without knowing what else to do, I let them all gawk at me while I lift my fork back up and try to seem calm and finish eating my meal. I hear Dee Dee and Fern quietly crying next to me, but I continue on with my eating, waiting for this moment to pass. Finally Des clears his throat and grabs the girls, pulling them away, seeing that I need a little bit of space right now.

As everyone starts to leave me in peace, Cadence remains standing there, looking at me like he’s never seen me before, “It’s kind of funny to me, Cadence, that you’re still standing here. My dad may have broken me but you had to come along and just crush what was left of my heart and soul. My dad was proven right by what you did to me. That that was what boys wanted from me. I heard the rumors about you but I wanted so much to believe you because we were friends, and I thought I could trust you but you made me believe a lie. I’m so naive and gullible, right Cadence? Is that what made you target me?” He starts to speak but I continue, “I have never been able to choose anything for myself. All my choices and decisions have always been taken from me, but then I made a decision and I chose you, but you didn’t choose me. You, just like him, made me feel worthless and cheap. I have no more trust to give to any man because the two men that I should have been able to trust and depend on the most, have both taken that away from me too.”

“You can’t compare me to him, Trinity. I fucked things up between us, but you can’t blame me for all this.”

“You didn’t even have the decency to tell me about the condom ripping.  If Des didn’t say something to me I would have been completely lost. You never even thought twice about me after I left your shop. You humiliated me in front of everyone. You continued on with your loose women, not once thinking of what hell I was going through, waiting to find out if I was pregnant, and what my dad would do to me when he found out. I appreciate what you have done for my baby and me tonight, but just like I said, this is my baby. You will have nothing to do with my child until I see you grow some fucking balls and start being a real man and not a whore. Are we clear?” 

You could have heard a pin drop it got so quiet in the house.  Cadence looks down at me, responding quietly, yet menacingly, “First, before I go any further with what you just shared, I have to ask you if this is my kid. Call me a dick for asking, but if you weren’t on the pill when we were together, how do I know this isn’t his kid.”

As the men and women in the room gasp at Cadence’s insulting question, I see his reason for asking it, but how dare him think that I would sit here all night and not tell him if he wasn’t the father, “It sickens me right now just to think it could ever be either of yours, but he hasn’t forced himself on me for years because the asshole can’t get it up anymore. That’s why he beats me twice as bad as he used to, so just to clear this up for your simple-minded ass, yes, Cadence. You
ARE
the sperm donor.”

“Trinity, you know nothing about me and that’s on me, but listen closely. I don’t care what you say; no one is keeping me from my kid, not even its mother.  You had a shit life? Well so did I, but that’s a story for another time. This is
my
family that is willing to help you out, and they make me proud to know each and every one of them. You will not shut me out so you better get that through your head right now.”

“Then I’ll just say goodbye to
your
family and then I will be on my way. I don’t want to be here because you deem it so. There is no way in hell you will ever tell me what I will and won’t do regarding my child, so kiss my ass and move out of my way.”

I
look between Trinity and Cadence, knowing this is going nowhere fast. Before this can go any further, I look to Wolf who nods his head. 

Wolf steps forward, lightly touching Trinity’s arm “There is no need to go anywhere, little one. I made you a promise and I intend to keep that promise. Are you ready to go? We need to get you home so you can get some much needed rest.” 

Cadence glares at Wolf but says nothing.  Trinity looks up at Wolf and says, “No disrespect, Wolf, but can I trust a mammoth sized Indian?” 

At her comment, the tension eases within the room.  I laugh, looking her in the eye, “Honey, I would trust him with my own life with no second thought, so yes. You can trust this mammoth sized Indian.” Everyone else starts to chime in, but what Dee says grabs Trinity’s attention. 

“Trin, I would trust Wolf with both of my kids, and for the record, we are here not only for Cadence, but also you. Don’t forget that.” 

“You have kids?” 

“Yes, honey. I have two; my daughter’s name is Daisy and my son’s name is Jagger.  They aren’t much younger than you... actually, how old are you?”

“I’m twenty-two, Dee Dee.” 

Dee throws her head back laughing then looks at Fern, “Oh hell, Fern. To be twenty-two again, and Trin, call me Dee.  Damn, those were the days, weren’t they?” 

Fern smiles and replies, “Yes they were, Dee.”

I see Trinity quietly watching the interaction between Dee and Fern like she’s never seen anything like it before in her young life.  The love and friendship between those two ladies is a sight to see.

Both women walk over to Trinity and pull her into a tight hug while Dee looks down at her with a motherly gaze, “Honey, you are now part of all of this good, bad, and ugly, so you are going to need to get used to it.” 

Some of the men are speaking about heading to a bar in town while the women gather all of Trinity’s scarce belongings.  As her things are put into the back seat, Wolf walks her to the passenger side, opening the door and looking down at her with a smile, “Once we get you home, I want you to make yourself at home, okay?” She shakes her head and slowly makes her way into the truck.

W
atching the interaction between Trinity and Wolf from the back of my truck, I feel heat stirring in my body.  I start to walk toward the two people I want to address.  I’m pissed off at the circumstances and the way everything is turning out.  Wolf observes me approaching, seeing my emotions running across my face.  He helps Trinity into the truck, telling her to put her seat belt on and closes the door.  He meets me halfway down his extra-long truck bed where we stare at each other for what feels like minutes, then Wolf puts his arm around my shoulders and walks to the end of the truck, “Little brother, you need to stop with this jealousy you are feeling toward me because I am doing this for you.  You know me, Cadence – known me for years, and I’m offended that you would think I would step on your toes for a woman who is in pain and hurting. You don’t see this, but she needs a friend and someone to feel safe with, and I am trying to provide that for her for you.” I look up at the huge man who is looking down at me, “We may not know everything about each other, kid, but never would I risk a friendship by going down that road.”  Looking into Wolf’s eyes, I see that he means every word and I start to feel my eyes filling up with tears.  Fuck. The last thing I need to do is fucking cry in front of Wolf. Just as I start to pull away and head back to my truck, Wolf pulls me into his broad chest.