Page 11 of Einar (The Brigands of Ruk #2)
Chapter Eleven
ROWAN
“ It’s safe to take the blindfolds off now, girls.”
The second the word “safe” leaves Janet’s mouth, I rip the blindfold off my face. Memories of the many times I wore one in the past are far too close to the surface, and I don’t have time to unpack all that trauma. Nor do I want to in front of a total stranger, even if she is helping me escape my sadistic husband.
Ruby’s next words are full of awe, pulling my attention back to our surroundings and providing a distraction from my torturous thoughts. “ Wow , Janet , this is sweet. How in the world did you find it?”
“ My husband built it, actually. Days after it was done, I lost him to a drunk driver.”
That’s …just awful. Poor Janet . Ruby must have had the same thoughts on her mind because she doesn’t stop there.
“ I’m so sorry, I simply assumed.”
Ruby’s stuttered apology seems like it’s almost forced out. There she goes again, apologizing for being rude. I wish that’s all I had to apologize for…
“ No need to apologize, child. You’re right to an extent because our daughter was killed by an abusive man. We tried and tried to get her away from him, but like all the others, she was scared and felt like there was no escaping him. After we lost her, this place became a labor of love for me and the hubby. At the time, we both felt like we’d failed her in so many ways. It’s taken me years to come to grips with the fact that we didn’t. Sometimes things happen that are completely out of our control, and it’s only natural to wonder if we could’ve done more. If anything, those horrible things had to occur in order for me to be able to help others in the same, if not worse situations than she’d been in.
I’d be lying if I said it was easy for me to move on. Losing both of them made it hard to function, and it took me quite a while to accept, although I’ve truly never overcome it. I was wrapped up in my own hell for many years, my heart breaking every time I opened my eyes in the morning. Until I walked into a supermarket one day and found a teenage girl hiding in the bathroom, bruised and scared as hell. From that very moment on, I decided to honor my loved ones the only way I could, by helping as many others as possible.
Come on, we’re all tired and that’s enough about me for now. It’s getting late and you girls have been through plenty these last few days. This place is not on any map and no one besides me and one other woman even knows how to get here from the main road. You’re as safe as you can get, for a while anyway. Once I get you girls settled inside, I’ll head back out and put the car in the garage. We make sure to never leave anything outside that can be seen by air, or a nosy hiker.”
The rest of her explanation fills me with relief. Surely , Robert can’t find me here. No one knows this place even exists. I’m not sure I will ever feel completely safe but not having to look over my shoulder, and be in a constant state of vigilance is nice. Wherever we are, the sun is rapidly setting, and shadows are lengthening in the waning light. There is a soft, low glow emanating behind giant glass doors set into the front of what appears to be an underground house.
Are we in a cave?
I’ve never really thought about being underground and I’m not sure if it bothers me or not. After all the shit I’ve been through, surely this isn’t going to be what pushes my mind to the breaking point. Looking around, I’m trying to decide if I’m scared. Who the hell has these kinds of thoughts? That I’m consciously deciding if this bothers me or not tells me a lot about the state of my mental capacity.
Before I can make a decision about it, Ruby grabs my hand and pulls me along behind her toward Janet .
Oh .
The nice lady was holding the door open for us while I stood there like an idiot.
How embarrassing.
Ducking my head a little, I try to hide my embarrassment from my sister. I don’t need her worrying about me over something as simple as making a fool of myself in front of Janet . After entering the room, I’m surprised to see quite a few women loitering around what looks like a common room. There are some playing cards at a small table while others are playing a game of dice.
Janet allows gambling down here?
Dismissing that thought, I notice yet another woman on a comfy-looking couch reading a book. All eyes turn to Ruby and I the second they notice us come through the door and my eyes fall to the floor as my posture curls in on itself. I still can’t handle people looking at me, even if it's other women.
Men aren’t the only ones that abused me while I was with Robert …
With a small wave of her hand, Janet introduces us to the women gathered in front of us. “ Everyone , this is Ruby and Rowan . They’ll be staying with us for a little while. They’ve had a long drive, and it’s late, so we’ll make all the introductions in the morning after they get settled.”
More than a few of the women greet us with a simple ‘ welcome ’ before resuming whatever activity they were engaged in before our arrival. Janet turns to the left and moves down a long hallway with doors on either side. We follow her all the way down to the end before she stops, opens one of the last doors and gestures for us to go in.
Ruby follows her unspoken request and pulls me in after her.
To my pleasant surprise, the room is a lot bigger than I expected it to be, especially since all of this had to be carved out to the surrounding rock. Peering around Ruby , I see two twin beds and a nook that appears to have a bathroom with a door one can shut for privacy.
Thinking of my unwanted jewelry, even more relief fills me.
I don’t want Ruby to see those. Ever .
The sound of Janet’s voice yanks my attention back to the here and now.
“ This will be yours while you’re with us. The bathroom is stocked and there’s also a small refrigerator in the corner with drinks inside. Get settled and some sleep. There’ll be plenty of time to figure out the rest later.”
She doesn’t wait for either of us to say anything, simply shuts the door behind her as she leaves. Well , she’s not very warm and inviting, but I think I prefer her semi-curt manner instead. I don’t want to be coddled by a complete stranger. To be honest, I have no idea how I would process any empathy coming from her. I could barely handle the sympathetic compassion Edith offered me.
As soon as Janet pulls, the door closed behind her with a click, Ruby throws her bag on the bed to the right of the door, running her hand across the rock wall in astonishment. “ Wow Rowan , I don’t believe I’ve ever seen anything like this place. You would think it would smell like dirt or even be damp on the inside, but it’s not at all. This is sweet.”
I haven’t moved from where she left me. Everything around me feels like it’s moving too fast and in slow motion at the same time, making it hard for me to process all the changes being thrown at me. Out of my peripheral, I see Ruby walk back over to me, reaching up and gently pulling the hood of my sweatshirt off my head. When a hand suddenly appears in front of my face, I jerk back in an instinctive reaction.
Guilt fills me when I see the tears forming in my beloved sister’s eyes.
Fuck . I just keep ruining everything.
“ Hey , talk to me.”
Of course, her first thought is to help me and not be offended that I jerked away like she was going to hit me.
“ I’m scared Ruby .”
Self -disgust fills me with how weak my voice is. I’ve allowed Robert to completely break me.
“ Lord baby girl, I am too, but right now we’re alright, so let’s be grateful for that. Why don’t you go grab a quick shower and change out of this old sweatshirt into something more comfortable?”
“ I don’t want to, I’m just gonna lay down. I don’t feel up to it right now, but you go ahead.”
It’s not a lie.
I’m exhausted and the thought of trying to navigate all my body jewelry right now sounds like a nightmare. Ruby starts to ease me into a hug, and I feel my body go ramrod straight. Never slow on the uptake, she alters her plan, leaning forward to place a sweet kiss on my cheek before moving over to the bed she claimed and start digging in her bag for a change of clothes.
Still standing there by the door, I watch her grab some ratty looking old pajamas before going into the bathroom, closing the door behind her for some privacy. The second the door closes, terror beats at me, and I feel like the rock above my head is going to crush me without the indomitable force of Ruby’s personality there to protect me. Logically , I know that doesn’t make any sense, but I haven’t dealt with logic in some time.
Dropping my bag on the floor next to my bed, making sure it’s out of the way so neither of us trip on it, I hastily climb between the sheets, pulling the blankets up to my chin for comfort. To my surprise, the sheets smell sweet and fresh at the same time. Some sort of essential oil blend for anxiety is what comes to mind as I bury my face in the material and breathe deep. The only light in the room is what’s leaking out from under the bathroom door. It makes the room cozy and lessens my anxiety about the ceiling falling on me.
Out of sight, out of mind.
I repeat that mantra over and over again until I see the light under the bathroom door go off before it instantly turns back on. The brief slice of darkness must have been too much for my sun loving sister because she opens the door to the bathroom and leaves it cracked. Soft light shines into the room, creating just enough of a glow to move around comfortably during the night.
Soft footfalls tell me Ruby is headed my way, and I close my eyes, pretending to be asleep.
I don’t want to talk. It’s a cowardly thing to do, but it’s exactly what I’ve become. A coward.
Ruby pauses beside my bed and I can feel her eyes on me, but I make sure my breaths are slow and steady. She doesn’t linger long before she scampers walks over to her side of the room and climbs into bed. I can hear the rustling of her bedding as she gets settled in for the night. Bit by bit, the stress, strain, and worry of the day ease, if only a little, but it’s enough for me to fall into a somewhat peaceful sleep.
I’m safe for right now, and it’s enough.