Page 20

AUTUMN

“ C an you take me to my house?” I ask him, as I get inside his truck.

“Of course, Freckles, buckle up.” Heath replies.

I fasten my seatbelt. He reaches over and grabs my hand as he starts to drive.

We hold hands as he drives back into the main part of town and into the neighborhood, I have always lived in.

Large houses start to fill my view as we ride down the road.

We stop at my house, a large white two-story home that sticks out with a green door and a balcony on the second floor.

“Can you stay here? I need to have a private talk with my mom?” I ask him as he stops the truck.

“Whatever you need, baby.” Heath kisses my hand, and I get out of the truck. I wrap my jacket closely around me and go up to my house. I don’t bother to knock, instead I open the door with my key.

“Mom!” I call out entering. “Mom!”

“In the kitchen!” She calls back. I go into the kitchen to find my mom making her raspberry tea. “What’s the lovely reason you came over?” My mom asks, bringing over a plate of brownies and her tea to the table.

“I need to talk to you about this.” I hand my mom the business card I found. She takes the card, sighing, flipping it over in her hands.

“I never wanted you to find out about this.”

“You knew!” I answer shocked and fully confused on why she would let dad do this. My mom has always been the top advocate for girls protecting themselves and she knew about this!

How could she?

“It’s not what you think. Autumn, when we wanted to have a baby, we couldn’t and IVF didn’t work then your dad found a young girl at a store, she was upset and crying.

She was about eighteen and she was pregnant with you, but a man owned her, so your father paid him to have the baby, have you.

” Mom explains. They bought me! What kind of consciousness do you have to have to do that?

It’s kind of insane to do that just because you can’t have kids.

I have no words for this kind of situation.

Who buys a child from a pregnant teenager and not buy the mom?

Especially with her being so young. “I know this is shocking but he only wanted to make me happy. I was becoming so depressed I couldn’t have a baby, and he said he got something and told me everything.

We got the proper adoption papers too, but I didn’t feel good about buying you.

That was wrong. When you reached high school, the man came back blackmailing us to work for him.

Your dad talked him out of messing with me and you but in exchange your dad must find people to do our jobs.

Thus, the other young girls and the football players. ” My mother pushes the card back to me.

“Does anyone else in the town do this? And why not buy my mother?”

“Yes, and when talking to your mother she begged us to only take you and never look back,”

“Who is the man?” I reluctantly ask.

“You can’t tell anyone, but Caroline Dyer’s and Nora Eros' fathers run the whole thing, but the head boss is only known as The Mole. It’s an organization and their father’s only run it in a few states.

They are only part of the big man role,” They are two powerful men.

I think they are even involved in organized crime.

One being a senator and the other is mayor and owns all the real estate in this town.

Owns the town really and like half of New Jersey.

“I’m not okay with any of this but we are done after this year.

Come December we will never have to deal with this again. ”

“I need air,” I get up and head for the door. “And time to process.”

“We really love you, Autumn. Regardless of where you came from. I know it’s not great but believe me, we love you.” My mom sounds desperate, and her voice almost sounds laced with sadness.

“What was my birth moms name?”

“Emily Johnson. She wasn’t from here. She ran away from her abusive family. She died from an overdose a year after having you.” My mom answers.

“I love you too. I just need some space right now” I say smiling at my mom then I leave out of the house. The cool air hits my face bringing me back to reality as if I’ve been in a dream.

It feels like a dream. It should've been a dream. So many things are unfolding, and I have no idea what to do. Or how to handle it.

“How was it?” I hear Heath ask and turn to see him sitting on the porch swing. I sigh and sit down beside him and begin to explain everything that I just found out myself.

“I’m sorry, Freckles.” Heath puts his arm on my shoulders and pulls me into him. I settle into the comfort of his arms letting the feeling totally take me over. Calmness takes over my body and warmth pairs with it.

“It’s okay. They are still my family. I’m not hurt about that but it’s just that I can’t believe they did all of that.” I lean my head onto his shoulder.

“Plus, you have me,” Heath kisses my head, “And we will get to the bottom of this.”

“Unless I become a little traitor again.” I joke, causing him to laugh.

I wouldn’t dream of leaving him again. He’s perfect and I feel perfectly at home with him.

I stare down at my ring thinking of what I could possibly do next.

How will we figure everything out? I hope my dad truly does get out of this dark ring in December.

I couldn't bare to see him stressing over this. I just want him to be happy.

“I dare you to leave me again, Little Traitor. I’d love to see you try.”