Stepbrother Backstage (The Hawthorne Brothers Book 3) (49 page)

I stare up at my big sister, my heart wringing painfully in
my chest. I’ve never heard Maddie speak so bluntly about her own struggles with
Dad’s death. While I was off working through my own grief, she was all alone on
the West Coast with no one to help her through hers. Mom’s body goes rigid as
she throws her gaze my and Anna’s way.

“Is this how you girls feel as well?” she asks us, “That I
’
ve been ‘negligent to your needs
’
since
Archie passed away? Hmm?”

Anna’s blue eyes harden to stone as they fix on Mom’s face.
“
I don’
t know if you can say ‘
negligent
.
Since you never considered our needs in the first place. I
’
d
say indifferent, if anything.”

I stare at my little sister, taken aback. She never calls
Mom out on her shit, preferring to protect her feelings and let her keep on
living in the fantasy world she’s created. Christ, do I know anything about my
sisters at all?

“That
’
s ridiculous!” Mom says heatedly.

“Why bother asking if you
’
re just going
to shoot us down?” Anna shouts back, “The truth is, Mom, that we
’
ve
been taking care of you since Dad died.”

“Especially Anna,” I say, finally picking my jaw up off the
floor, “I got to run off to drama school and deal with shit on my own, but she
was left to pick up the pieces while you collapsed. We know that Dad
’
s passing was hard on you. Of course it was. But how can you
say that we didn
’
t feel it too? How can you know so little
about your own kids and not even care?”

“
Well,
” Mom says, rising to her feet,
“If this is the way you feel, then I
’
d think you
’
d be happy to be rid of me. I
’
ll stay here
with John, and take myself off your hands for good.”

“For good?” I cry, pulling all the punches now, “Mom, be
serious. You
’
ve had plenty of flings since dad died. How
is this one any different? You
’
re putting our family, our
home, everything at stake for him. Please, just take a second to consider—”

“You
’
ve given me plenty to consider
tonight,” Mom interrupts me, “I
’
ve apparently failed you
as a mother, isn
’
t that right? You
’
d
be better off without me?”

“That
’
s not what we
’
re
saying at all, Mom,” Maddie whispers, “What I
’
ve wanted
more than anything else since dad died was my mother. I
’
ve
always wanted you to be a part of my life. Please don
’
t
make that impossible.”

“I see,” Mom replies with disdain, “Well, girls. Thank you
for making this decision so easy for me. Since I
’
m
apparently incapable of being a good mother to you, I
’
ll
just go ahead and bow out. Seeing as I
’
m impossible. Anna,
you
’
re more than welcome to stay at the Vermont house
until it
’
s sold. Though I suggest finding other
accommodations quickly. I
’
m sure that property will get
snatched up quick.”

With that, she turns away and leaves us there on the porch.
Here one moment, gone the next. Same as ever. Only this time, she has no idea
of the heartache she leaves in her wake. The world goes blurry around me as
tears flood my vision, coursing hotly down my cheeks.

“
I just
… I can
’
t
believe her,” I mutter.

“I can,” Anna spits, “
As far as I
’
m concerned, this is pretty in-character for good ol
’
Robin.”

“Do you think she
’
ll really stay here
with John?” Maddie asks us both plaintively, “Maybe she
’
s just bluffing.
”

“Now she
’
ll stay, just to spite us,” I
say bitterly. “Where do you think you got your competitive streak from, Maddie?
We
’
ve dare
d to challenge her. Now we
’
re the ones who are going to pay.”

A sudden thought occurs to me in my desperate despair, and I
put words to it before I can think.

“
Fuck her
,” I snap, “If she cares that
little about us, why don
’
t we just follow her lead? What
if we just took a stand and cut her out of our lives, right now? If the three
of us broke off from her, think of how much happier—”

“If any of us could stand to abandon her completely, we
would have already,” Maddie cuts in, “No matter how badly she hurts us, she
’
s still family. That
’
s
not something you can ever forget.”

My heart sinks as I realize that she’s right. Family isn’t
something you can wash away, no matter how many tears you shed over the ways it
disappoints you. I almost have to laugh at the irony of it all. Your family is
supposed to be made up of the people who care about you the most. But now, I’m
being kept from the person I care about most,
because
of my family.

Not exactly “ha ha” funny, is it?

My ears prick up at the sound of a car engine approaching
the lake house. The men must be back from their job. I look up toward the
driveway and spot the family pickup lumbering our way. Cash drives while John
rides shotgun, the truck loaded down with wooden planks and slabs of concrete.
And there, sitting in the truck bed with his little brother, is Luke.

The sight of him sends a punishing blow of despair straight
into my solar plexus. Suddenly, there’s no denying the reality of my mom’s
decision to stay here with John. No getting around this obstacle that’s sprung
up in my path. I know that I should stay here, tell Luke the news myself…but I
can’t bear to watch the happiness go out of his eyes when he realizes that
we’re through.

Hating myself for it, I turn away from him. I dash away
through the front door at the same moment that Anna runs off down the front
stairs. My bare feet carry me through the cavernous house, out through the
patio door, and down toward the lake’s edge. I sprint out onto the dock, tears
blurring my vision. After just a few furious paces, I feel my feet fly out from
under me as I hit a slick patch on the wooden planks. I pitch forward, my hands
shooting out in front of me to break my fall.

Sharp pain shoots up through my arms as I land hard, my
wrists taking the full force of my impact with the dock. Rolling onto my back,
I hiss out my pain through gritted teeth as the clear night sky careens
overhead. Only now, as I lay here leveled, do I let the full weight of my
despair roll over me. Deep, wrenching sobs rip out of my throat, carrying out
across the still water of the lake. Laying here, alone between the water and
the sky, I feel smaller than I ever have in my life. Just when I thought the
universe was on my side, I find myself out of its good graces once more.

My voice catches in my throat as the sharp sound of
screaming shatters the night air. I pull myself to sitting on the slippery
dock, cradling my aching left wrist to my chest. Raised male voices ring out
from the front of the house. At first, it’s only John and Cash that are yelling
out there like madmen. But then I hear Luke’s voice as well, raised in outrage.
I’ve never heard him like this, before. Not even that night at The Bear Trap,
when he stopped me and Danny from getting attacked. The ire comes through loud
and clear in Luke’s every shouted syllable, but there’s something deeper
rumbling beneath his anger.

It’s pain.

The shouting voices give way to sounds of fierce struggle,
and icy panic floods my body. Luke’s told me about how his father used to hit
him and his brothers when they were small. I had no idea that threat of
violence still existed. I would expect a man who hits children to be too
cowardly to fight with anyone his own size. But as the men’s screaming reaches
a fever pitch, there can be no doubt of what’s unfolding out there in the dark.

Before I can form a single rational thought, I scramble to
my feet and start sprinting for the house. My wrist throbs painfully with every
step I take, but I couldn’t stop now if I tried. The hurt in his voice matches
my own pain. Our sorrow is vibrating on the same frequency, and his draws me to
him now. I fly across the grassy lawn, no plan in mind to stop the men from
beating each other into the ground…

But it looks like I won’t need one.

I skid to a stop as Luke storms around the side of the
house. He’s unhurt, as far as I can see. And thank god for that. His shoulders
are drawn up, his hands balled into furious fists. His strong, square jaw is
set like concrete, and his mouth in a straight, grave line. But it’s his eyes
that do me in—his pained, furious, perfect green eyes. The same eyes that have
seen to the very core of me, in whose gaze I’ve found deeper understanding than
I could have ever hoped possible, are alight with anguish. And the second they
land on me, a fresh wave of tears washes over me.

Luke catches me up in his arms as I run to him, burying my
face in his chest as I weep. He holds me tightly to him, bracing me as I shake
with sobs. We don’t need to ask the other what’s happened, the shared source of
our despair is perfectly clear. Our parents have decided to advance their
relationship, which means a future between me and Luke is impossible. Even the
rest of the summer, which we were supposed to spend together at Sheridan, has
been ripped away from us.

“It’s not fair,” I whisper fiercely, looking up at Luke.

“No,” he growls, wiping the tears from my face with his
thumbs, “No it’s fucking not.”

“What are we going to do?” I breathe, clutching my throbbing
wrist, “Luke—”

“What happened?” he demands, gently taking hold of my left
arm.

“It’s stupid,” I mutter, shaking my head, “I was upset, and
I lost my footing—”

“It’s swollen,” he says through gritted teeth, “Probably
sprained.”

“Don’t worry about me,” I say, “What about you? Are you OK?
I heard—”

“We need to set this,” he cuts me off, leading me back
around the house to the garage. “I’m sure I have a splint from one of my sports
injuries upstairs.”

He won’t let me ask about the fight, that much is clear.
Dazed, I give in and follow him to the garage. His car is parked there, and I
steady myself against the trunk as we reach it.

“Wait here,” Luke tells me, planting a kiss on the top of my
head, “I’ll be right back.”

I nod silently, and Luke disappears into the house. For a
moment, all is silent again. But just as I start to take a breath, I hear the
shriek of tires peeling out of the driveway. Rushing forward, I catch a glimpse
of the family pickup charging away at top speed. And standing there, watching
it go, is my sister. Maddie. Her body is rooted to the ground, still as stone.
She looks as gutted as I feel. I take a step toward her, hoping to offer what
comfort I can, but she turns and bolts into the house just as Luke reappears in
the garage doorway.

“Here,” he says, holding up a small sling, “I must have been
fourteen when I needed this, so it should fit you fine.”

“Ha, ha,” I smile tremblingly, as Luke helps me work my arm
into the brace, “Good to know your sense of humor is still intact. I have a
feeling we’ll be needing it.”

But he doesn’t respond as he ministers to my injury. Each
minute of silence that unfolds between us feels like another brick in the wall
that’s rising up to separate us. Just as I muster up the courage to speak, the
sound of a slamming car door jerks my attention away. I turn to see Maddie
hoisting her heavy suitcase into her secondhand car and hurrying into the
driver’s seat. She takes off like a shot down the driveway. And I know for
certain that she’s not coming back.

“This whole thing is falling to pieces,” I breathe.

“That’s for damn sure,” Luke replies, helping me to
standing. Once he sees that I’m stable, he goes back to the garage door and
grabs something else from inside.

It’s my suitcase. And another that must be his.

“What are you doing with those?” I ask softly.

“We’re leaving, Sophie,” he tells me, “I’m getting you out
of here.”

“We can’t just leave…Can we?” I breathe, as Luke walks
around me and heaves our bags into the trunk of his car. “Nothing’s been
solved, here.”

“And nothing ever will be,” Luke says heatedly, slamming the
trunk, “What just happened with my dad? That’s not news, Sophie. That’s been my
entire life. And now this thing with your mom? And what it means for us…? Fuck
it. I’m done.”

“Maybe we should just think this over. For a second,” I
offer quietly.

“Look at your arm, Sophie,” Luke growls back, “You got hurt,
because of this. Because of
them
. I don’t trust my dad enough to keep
you in this house with him. We’re going back to Sheridan tonight. It’s safer
there, believe me.”

Cold fear runs down my spine as I see that Luke is truly
afraid of what his father is capable of. What must this man have done to his
sons to warrant such fear?

“Look. Maddie’s already gone,” Luke says firmly, “I’m sure
Anna will be right on her heels. Just please, say you’ll come with me now,
Sophie.”

“I…I’m not sure…” I stall, shaking my head.

“Well I am,” he says shortly, “Trust me to take the lead on
this.”

“I do trust you, Luke,” I say softly.

“Then prove it,” he growls, “And get in the damn car.”

Numb and exhausted, I follow his orders and clamber clumsily
into the passenger's seat. My final view of the lake house dissolves into a
kaleidoscopic blur as tears rush in to obscure my vision. How such a beautiful
place has played host to such chaos, I’ll never understand. But if there’s one
thing I do understand, it’s the rush of relief I feel the second Luke and I hit
the open road. As long as we’re in this together, there’s still a thread of
hope to hang onto.