Page 83

“Guys, I know you want a reunion and all that,” Corey said from the back. “But Ava needs to be checked out. Like, right now.”

Pulling apart, Ty grinned at me and shut the door.

For the next few hours, we were poked, prodded and examined. We’d all been split up; Ty stayed with me, Luke turned up and stayed outside Lindsey’s room and Ava still hadn’t let Corey go.

They stitched me up and sent me for x-rays, telling me that I had two cracked ribs and a broken finger. Something that I could have told them without the x-rays. They wrapped my ribs and feet in bandages because of the abrasions and taped my two fingers together.

All of the other injuries were just bruises and cuts that would heal with time. Though they wanted me to talk to a shrink but I refused. There was no way that I would be telling a stranger all about my life.

Ty wouldn’t let me walk out of there so I hobbled into a wheel chair, my feet still sore from the cuts on them, only now, I was wearing a pair of hospital issued slippers so that gave me some relief.

We all met back up in the waiting area and waited for Ava and Corey to come out.

“Ava?” I whispered as they came through the doors.

Corey shook his head at me and mouthed, ‘not right now’.

Looking down at my knees, I frowned. It was all my fault. If I hadn’t left her there alone, she wouldn’t have been like this right now.

We all went out to the truck and piled in, my head spinning with so many different things that I thought it would explode. All I wanted to do was see Eli but Ty told me that he was with Elena and Trevor at their house. Which was probably for the best because I wanted to get all the formal stuff out of the way first. Then I could concentrate on Eli, and getting better.

Ty’s hand drifted over to my knee, looking down at his fingers drumming his beat, I smiled. I’d missed that, the constant rhythm. Reaching down, I ran my finger over the top of his hand, running along his knuckles and down his fingers. Turning his hand over, I placed my hand inside his and looked over at him.

Without words, I knew exactly what he was thinking. I could see that he had lots of things whirling around in his head. Lifting our linked hands up to his mouth, he planted a gentle kiss on my hand and brought them back down to rest on my leg.

The sight of the gates had me releasing a breath, my ribs screamed at the motion but I didn’t care. This place really was home.

You know that feeling, where everything just seems fine, even when it wasn’t? That’s how I felt when I came into the compound. That no matter what was going on, as long as I had the people behind these gates, everything would be fine.

It was pure torture listening to Kay give her statement. Every little thing that she said made me angrier and fed to the need to find Max. I wished I could go back to change it all and for her not to get hurt again; to do more to protect her.

I hadn’t been there the first time he’d done this to her and I hadn’t been there this time.

The only difference between this time and last time was that she was more confident in herself. I could tell that she was being strong for Lindsey and Ava but she was also being strong for herself. Only time would tell how affected she would be by all of this, I just hoped that we’d be able to move past it all and start a fresh.

Charlie assured all of them that Serena and Max were being charged and wouldn’t get away with any of this. It was one less thing that we all had to worry about, the only downside being that I wouldn’t be able to get my hands on Max.

Time. I’d wait. I’d wait for twenty years if I had to but he wouldn’t get away with.

“What will happen now?” Kay asked Charlie.

“A social worker will be here soon to talk to you,” he said to Lindsey and Ava.

“They’re going to be put into the system?” Kay gasped. Charlie looked away, not confirming or denying. She looked over at Lindsey and Ava, wide eyed.

“It’s fine,” Lindsey said. “I’d rather be anywhere but there anyway.”

She didn’t seem to bothered by it, but Ava, she was freaking out. She looked around the room, searching for something. Her guttural sob bounced off the walls and I could practically see Kay’s heart break at the sound.

“Ava?” Kay whispered. She leaned closer to her as she whispered something back and frowned.

Turning her head to me, and then looking at Corey who was stood behind me, she tilted her head at him and he moved forward, crouching down in front of Ava. Whatever had happened inside that place when Corey went to get her, must have been bad. Her face was full of bruises and she hadn’t stopped shaking.

I saw the door handle move out of the corner of my eye and jumped up just as it flung open.

“Mama!” Eli shouted, running at her, a huge grin on his face. He stopped right in front of her, scanning her body from head to toe. His little face scrunched up as he moved his hand forward, cupping her cheek.

“What happened?” his little voice asked.