Page 31 of Grave Kisses (Graveyard of Hearts Collection #1)

“Just lie down and sleep, Kendra. They can wake you when they get here,” Chrissy says.

“No,” I mumble. “I’m okay.”

“Archer, will you take her upstairs?” Chrissy says. “The guest room on the first floor has a box of her old clothes. I found it when we were looking around. I’m sure she will be more comfortable in an actual bed.”

“No,” I groan.

“Come on, stubborn,” Archer says, scooping me into his arms.

“You should rest too,” I say.

“I will later,” he says.

“I’ll come help,” Decan says. He sounds sincere, but I guarantee it’s to make sure I am okay. They don’t trust him yet.

By the time Archer gets me to the room, I am mostly asleep.

“Ah. Here are some pajama pants,” Decan says.

They get the pants on me, and I try to tell them to stop babying me, but I can hardly form words.

Chrissy ends up coming in and sits on one side of me while Archer is on my other side.

He is still tense and in a protective stance, placing himself between me and the door, almost shielding me.

Chrissy gently strokes my hair, and it forces me into a deep sleep.

I am slowly waking up to the voices surrounding me. “She may trust you, but I don’t,” Marcus growls. “One fucking hair out of place, and I will fucking kill you. Understand?”

“I do,” Archer says gently. “I don’t deserve her forgiveness… but she won’t hear it. She’s as stubborn as Dad.”

“That’s the damn truth,” Martin chuckles.

“Look, son. I’ve known you your entire life.

I know your dad said some pretty harsh things to you, but I don’t think he ever fully believed that you killed her.

Hell, I didn’t either. You struggled and you were a little shit, but raping and murdering your sister?

It was hard to comprehend… But then Kendra came along. ”

“I don’t get why she is forgiving me… Even with seeing what Jeff did to me down there,” Archer says quietly.

“I just want to shake her and tell her she needs to stop being so forgiving, but knowing she is healing from that is a relief. I fucking hate myself for what I did. I can’t blame the drugs, because I was still the one hurting her.

She was so sweet and innocent… She just wanted someone to care about her… ”

“She is the kindest person I know,” Marcus says with a sigh. “None of us deserves her… But somehow, she finds it in her heart to care, despite how awful the world has been to her.”

“Well, all I will say,” Julie says. “She isn’t reckless. If she forgave you, you earned it.”

“I didn’t earn…” Archer starts to say.

“Shut up, Archer,” I mutter before pulling myself up. Everyone laughs when Bellamy snatches me up and pulls me into his lap to squeeze in a hug. “Bell! Jesus!”

“I missed you so much,” he says, kissing me.

“I missed you, too,” I say.

“Why did you tell him to shut up?” Bellamy asks me.

“Because he keeps trying to convince me not to forgive him,” I say.

“He sat down there with me, and every single second was spent taking care of me, protecting me, and making sure I kept hope. All while being violently raped and tied up like an animal for weeks on end. I think he has been punished enough. I’m not going to change my mind, and now he is stuck with me forever. ”

“Come here,” Marcus says. I turn and let him pull me into his lap. I curl up, and he holds me against his chest.

“So… I do have a few questions for you,” Andre says to Archer. “First, Jeff had claimed that you killed his wife, and he found her after a week. What do you know about that?”

“I didn’t know he had a wife,” Archer says. “When did she die?”

“He claimed it was roughly two weeks after the fire,” Andre says.

“Now, she did in fact die just like all of the others did. I found the files on the bodies found on the property, but he had the files way messed up. The way shit is handled here is ridiculous, but… that’s a rant I won’t go on right now…

Just by looking at you, I do believe you. ”

“How many bodies were on the property?” Archer asks. “Also, how were they placed without Dad knowing?”

“He didn’t go to the back parts of the property. No one did, really,” I say.

“So, from what I am gathering, the department's lack of recordkeeping allowed Jeff to get away with this. He was the lead detective, so he didn’t have anyone checking behind him. He essentially didn’t have a supervisor to report to and even made his own salary.

I guess that he was going to pin everything on you, Archer, or on Alan.

If it weren’t for Alan having the wherewithal to give Kendra that tracker, he would have gotten away with it.

No one would have thought to look here.”

“How did you get in contact with Tina?” I ask Archer.

“She found me,” Archer says. “It kinda fucked me up for a minute, considering she was hitting on me.”

“Oh, that would be weird,” Julie laughs. “Like this bitch has lost her mind.”

“I didn’t know what to think, honestly. I called her Kendra, and she never corrected me,” Archer says. “She was involved with Jeff for longer than I knew her.”

“Did you fuck her?” Marcus asks.

“Tina? No,” Archer says. “She tried a few times. She made up some sob story that he was hurting her, so I protected her from him. She portrayed to everyone that we were together, but I just felt… obligated, almost.”

“Wait,” I say. “How long did you know her?”

“Uh… about two years,” Archer says.

“Honestly,” Mom says. “I could have sworn y’all were together.”

“I don’t think I ever remember you reciprocating her affection, though,” Dad says.

“No, I just let her do whatever,” Archer says. “I got her off drugs, and it helped, but she was so… Manipulative. I didn’t really know the full extent of it until she tricked me into coming here.”

“There are so many parts to this that we will never understand because she is dead,” I say. “Also, seeing myself get shot in the head was…”

“Fucked up,” Archer says, and I nod.

“So… Let’s go kill this fucker,” Bellamy says, patting my leg. Marcus stands me up, and both of my men take my hands as we make our way back down to the basement.

We find that Jeff is tied up like Archer and I were. I can’t help but laugh because he is stripped naked. “So, who is doing the honors?” Chrissy asks.

“I think Archer should,” I say. “For himself, and for Kimberly.”

“And for you,” Archer says, taking the pistol from Marcus.

“And for me,” I say with a smile. He waves me forward, and I step up so he can hug me. “Thank you for keeping me safe, Archer.”

“You’re welcome, Kendra,” Archer says, finally not rejecting my gratitude. He turns to Jeff, who is staring at us with a blank expression.

“You destroyed my life,” Archer says to Jeff. “You destroyed my family… I could sit here and list all of the awful things you did to me, but it’s a waste of time. You don’t care because you are incapable of emotion. Any last words?”

“You’ll burn…” Jeff starts to say, but Archer cuts him off.

“I don’t actually care,” Archer says, pulling the trigger. I yelp at the sound, but when I see that the shot landed dead center of his forehead, I laugh.

The room is frozen as we all stare at Jeff’s lifeless body.

His eyes are open, his mouth is slightly ajar, but blood leaks from the hole between his eyebrows.

Looking at his body makes me feel the kind of stillness that settles in after your soul’s been cracked open and stitched back together.

I used to run from that silence by filling it with noise and chaos while keeping myself secluded from the world around me.

Anything to drown out the ghosts. Today, I let it settle around me like a blanket.

I have faced what broke me, looked my attacker in the eye, and chosen something I never thought I would…

forgiveness. Not for Archer, but for me.

I can finally stop bleeding from wounds that have already scarred.

Alan... God, Alan. Even in death, he found a way to save me one last time.

That little metal heart he promised would be what saved me…

It led us not just to safety, but to truth and justice.

Now, I can move on with two men who held my shattered pieces like they were precious, not sharp.

They helped me build myself into something new from the moment they met me.

Two men who kissed my pain and promised me the world.

I still miss Alan. I always will. He will live on in spirit through me, through Archer, and all of the memories we create with our gathered family.

As I walk upstairs, I say goodbye to the pain that kept me prisoner. With survival etched into my soul and love carrying me forward, I’m finally free, armed with hope, resilience, and grave kisses.