Make her bleed, p.22
Make Her Bleed, page 22
Defeat.
I turn and take a few steps up the stairs before he speaks. "I'm not giving up, Aria. You're mine."
"Did you tell Kaylee that, too?" Maybe it's petty, but the words falling from my lips give me a sense of power over him.
I walk straight to my room, pull the door open, and step inside. I close the door and lean back against it, fresh tears falling down my face.
I can't handle any more heartbreak. I can't stand any more torture. The pain has to end.
I slowly open my eyes as the sun blares through the window and I hear the front door close loudly. Kai must be leaving for football practice. Good. I don't want to see him after everything with Kaylee. Even small talk would be too much. I'd be tempted to slap the shit out of him.
I slowly push the covers off me and force myself out of bed. Walking into my bathroom, a flash of red catches my eye on the counter next to the sink and my eyes lift to investigate.
A small radio sits against the marble counter with a red bow on top of it, a folded piece of paper leaning against it with my name on it.
I pick up the paper and open it.
Happy birthday.
-Kai
P.S. You have a few surprises waiting for you downstairs.
No matter how mad I am at him, a smile rises across my face. It's not enough for me to forgive what happened last night or undo the damage, but it's the thought that counts.
I told him just to forget my birthday like he originally did, but he must've gone out while I was sleeping and bought me a few birthday presents.
At least I can listen to music. God, I've missed having something to fill the silence.
I flip on the radio and dance like nobody's watching, swinging my hips, as I brush my teeth. The music raises my spirits until I switch it off. Then, I'm reminded that Kai got me the radio. Why the fuck did he have to do everything he did last night? It was all so meticulous, like his only goal ever was to cause the most damage to me.
Does he hate me that much?
It sounds like a decent plan to break me. Rape me, torture me, then claim to want me, rape me again, make it so no one else can touch, spend the day making me feel special, leave me with the guys he doesn't want to touch me, get my best friend drunk, fuck her, and rub everything about it in my face. Yup, sounds like a master plan for breaking me in every way possible.
I leave the bathroom and head downstairs. The living room looks the same, no other red bows.
That's Kai's thing. No wrapping paper. Just a big red bow. Apparently, I was the only one he did that for.
Most kids like unwrapping a present, tearing through the paper and watching it flitter to the floor.
Not me. I liked the bows. I decorated my room with the bows to remind myself on bad days how loved I was.
I step into the living room, looking for the slightest clue.
A twinkle of red catches my eye and my gaze snaps to the wall under the staircase. A red iridescent arrow stuck to the wall points down the hall.
Suspicion flares in my stomach. Is this a trick?
I quickly check out the window and sure enough, Kai isn't here. His car is gone.
I follow the arrow to find another and another until I find a bow on the floor in front of a blue door. Grabbing the bow, I find another note attached to it.
Aria,
Open the door. Welcome to your safe space.
-Kai
P.S. Once you're finished acquainting yourself with your safe space, go to the kitchen.
My safe space? What does that even mean?
I grab the doorknob and push it open, a gasp leaving my lips.
The room isn't massive like mine or Kai's bedroom, but it has a mass of free space. There's a bench up against the window like in my room at my dad's house surrounded by bookcases, a desk against the furthest wall with a computer and a lamp, a daybed with a canopy, a TV, and a stack of journals on the floor beside the bed.
Is this a new bedroom for me? Is that what Kai meant by safe space?
There's no way Kai could've put all this together last night with how drunk he was. How long has this room been like this and why is he giving it to me?
I walk over to the daybed and see a big box in the middle. Hesitantly, I peel open the sides and see a bunch of red bows with a note on top.
Make it your own, princess.
My heart melts as tears spring to my eyes. He remembered my thing with the bows. Not only did he remember but he supplied me with bows to decorate with. It might seem silly to some people, but it's a part of my identity.
The girl with the bows.
Kai made that joke a long time ago.
I pick up the note and hold it to my chest, my lip trembling with joy. God, how is it that he can do this to me after everything he has put me through?
Because the Kai you remember is still in there. He wouldn't do sweet things like this if he was gone.
I know it's true, which is what hurts so much. The Kai I love is locked up behind all that hostility and, if I could have one thing for my birthday, it would be for him to come back.
I miss the man who took me to see the lights on Christmas Eve, the guy who played with me instead of watching the football game on Sunday, the man who held me when I had a nightmare on camping trips and held my hand on rollercoaster rides.
I miss the real Malakai Harris. I miss Uncle Kai.
It takes a minute to pull myself together and I slip the note into my bra for safekeeping. I walk out of the room and head for the kitchen where I see a huge stack of pancakes with strawberries, bananas, whipped cream, and melted chocolate on them. Another note is propped up next to the plate and the words break my heart yet make me grin like the Cheshire Cat.
The perfect pancakes for the perfect girl.
xoxo
-Nico & Kai
I know Nico made the pancakes, but only Kai would know the way I like them.
Screw butter and syrup! Pancakes should be sweet with a little bit of health in there for balance.
I stand there with happy tears streaming down my face.
Kai may be unhinged, but he has shown through his actions today that I do actually matter to him. He remembers things no one else would, like pancakes and bows and my love of music. Every single one of his gifts has a reason behind it, even enlisting Nico to make my birthday pancakes.
Kai is a shitty cook unless it's eggs or barbecue on the grill.
My birthday has proven that the real Kai is still in there. I'm not crazy even if he is. I'll bring him out, one day at a time. I'll do whatever it takes to have the real Kai back.
I sit on the bench in my safe space room eating my pancakes happily as I watch a bit of tv. Other than when I was in the hospital, it feels like it's been forever since I've watched tv. Probably last summer. Before Kai took me, I was always busy with homework, friends, and reading books that have been stuck on my to-be-read list.
Now, I can enjoy some soap operas that I used to watch with my friends back in Little Rock. We were so obsessed with As The World Turns and I need to find out if anyone will figure out Rose is masquerading around as Lily while Lily is stuck on that deserted island.
Holden, Lily's husband, has to realize that's not his wife, right?
I bite on my nails as I watch the episode, setting my pancakes off to the side.
Lucinda, of all people, seems to see that Rose isn't Lily, but the episode cuts off.
"No!" I scream as the news flashes on.
"We interrupt this regularly scheduled program to bring you an urgent news update," the robotic voice says.
I groan. "I don't give a shit! Put the show back on!"
If I had popcorn, I would've thrown it at the tv. This is bullshit. I haven't gotten to watch this show in so long and now they choose to interrupt it? I bet it's something stupid like a car accident or a political scandal I have no interest in.
Just give me Holden Snyder and maybe a bit of Simon Frasier. That bad boy is very scrumptious.
"In Royal City, the police were called to this scene a few hours ago. The body of an eighteen-year-old girl was discovered less than a hundred yards from the football field of Royal City High. The details of the investigation are being heavily guarded by the Royal City P.D. but my sources say the murder shows eerie similarities to the double homicide of Stephanie James and Teigan Harper twenty years ago." A picture comes on the tv of the beautiful brunette in the picture in Kai's office.
Kai was responsible for Teigan's death. Oh, god. Did Kai do this?
"Ms. Harper's father was convicted and is weeks away from his day of execution. He has remained adamant that he was wrongfully convicted and that the real killer is still at large."
The picture flashes back to the reporter, my heart racing.
"The victim, a student of Royal City High, Kaylee Masters—"
No more words register as I scream in agony, wrapping my arms around my body. I try to block out the pain, but it's too much. It hurts worse than any physical wound. Worse than when I had surgery, worse than my car accident.
No. Not Kaylee. Not my best friend.
"Kaylee!" I cry as her picture flashes across the tv, probably taken from the yearbook.
So happy. So full of life. A life cut short.
My best friend…was murdered. Her blonde hair with a purple underlayer sticks out along with her runway worthy makeup. Blue eyes. A sun-kissed tan.
No more. Kaylee is dead.
"No, no, no. Please!" I yell to the heavens as I clutch the pearls around my neck, my birthday gift from Kaylee.
I didn't say goodbye when she left. She was drunk…and Kai got her drunk.
Kai.
The gasp that leaves my lips is a struggle as my mind swirls.
It's not possible. Why the fuck would Kai kill Kaylee? I didn't break the rules and there are four people on the list above her.
You did break the rules. You spent half the night talking to the guys, eating whatever you want, and you kissed the guys before they left.
Kai gave me a rule-free night except…I didn't hold up my end of the bargain.
I was supposed to let him go down on me. That was the deal, but I was too emotionally raw to think straight.
No. No. No. This can't be happening. I broke the rules and Kai did everything for my birthday to distract me. He's killing everyone on my list of loved ones.
"Please!" I sob as I think of the guys.
Rowe with his beautiful blue eyes and brooding ways. Knox with his goofy sense of humor and looks that would put Brian Bloom to shame. Dax with all his pain and love and perfect brown skin. Nico with his mad baking skills, caring nature, and sublime hugs.
They can't be dead, but they must be. If Kaylee is dead, so are the rest of them.
Who's next on the list? The men I love, Knox, Rowe, Dax, and Nico. Then it was friends and…family. My dad…he's next.
I stumble to my feet and run down the hall as fast as my feet can carry me. I can save him. Kai won't kill me…or will he? We can run away…but what if my dad is already dead? I can't think like that. I have to do something.
I sprint across the house and run out the back door, an alarm sounding.
Maybe if Kai knows I escaped, he'll come look for me and it will give me time to get to a phone and call my dad. So what if Kai kills me? As long as my dad is safe.
I sprint straight into the tree line, not caring that my feet are bare. I push branches out of my way and dodge low limbs as I run as far and as fast as I can.
There has to be another house around here somewhere, right?
What if it's nothing but empty land?
I can't think like that. My dad needs me. I can't let Kai kill him, too.
"Help!" I scream as I keep running, my legs scraping against vines and bark, but I keep pushing through.
The noise of the forest is constant, always a bird chirping or an animal scurrying. It keeps my pace steady and my brain focused.
Dad.
Kai.
Murder.
Safety.
The words run in a constant loop.
I have to save my dad.
I reach the break in the tree line and tears fall down my face as I limp to the house on this piece of property.
It's like an old cottage with overgrown shrubs and wildflowers surrounding it.
"Help!" I yell as I slam against the door, pounding my fists against the wood. "Help me! Help, please!" I scream the words in a loop like a mantra, hoping and praying someone answers my plea.
"Please, answer the fucking door!" I wail until I hear the lock turn and the door flies open, revealing a haunting look in the future.
My future.
Fiery red hair.
Freckles.
My eyebrows.
My lips.
My jaw.
"Aria?" she says, tears lingering in her eyes as she pulls me into her arms, but I'm too shocked to hug this stranger back. A stranger I've longed for since I was a little girl.
"Mom?"
WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?
This story isn’t over! Kai has so many secrets that have yet to be revealed and so many adventures yet to be had.
Don’t worry though. Aria and her guys will be back soon. To stay up to date on everything, sign up for my newsletter on my website.
www.zepphora.com
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I would like to thank E.A. Pheonix and K.C. Bear for their continued support and love of Kai and his depravity. We all know Kai is the worst (but still kind of the best) and he deserves our love.
Thanks to Jlynn Autumn for always letting me vent about the stubborn characters in this series.
Thank you to all my readers who show so much love and excite over Aria and her boys.
Thanks to my mom for the support and love that helps me through every struggle.
ALSO BY ZEPPHORA
Reckless (Bastards of Grove Hill, Book 1)
Finnick O'Reilly became my dark prince the day he rescued me from my bullies. I hoped and prayed that my savior would return after the day he saved me, but he never did. I was heartbroken, but it was for the best.
He saved me just to torment everyone else in Grove Hill.
People shiver at his name. He is one of the Bastards of Grove Hill. He's a thug, a criminal, and I'm so glad I've managed to not attract his attention since the day he saved me.
That is until the day he sees me.
Now, he wants me and he'll stop at nothing to make me his. I'm the only person who doesn't cower at his name. He doesn't scare me and that's something he admires.
Finnick is possessive, controlling, manipulative, and he's one man you don't want to fight with yet I do.
Still, I fall into his trap. Now, I'm stuck in a bet with him I shouldn't have ever made. The bet is simple. He wants my virginity. I refuse to be bedded by a man I'm not in love with. He has six weeks to get me to fall in love with him or he has to leave me alone forever.
I'm not sure anymore which one of those options is worse.
Read It Now
Zepphora, Make Her Bleed
