Dinosaurs, Christmas, and Sexy Men In Suits

Chapter Twenty-Five

Chapter Twenty-Five

I stare at the ceiling as I lay awake in bed. Caden's plea to let him and everyone in, kept me awake at night. No matter how hard I tried, my body refused to shut down. I sit up and decide to get dressed; Lexi would be awake soon, and looking for me. Sighing heavily, I muster the strength to pull the soft comforter off and place my feet on the carpet.

I pull on some sweatpants and a sweatshirt before pulling my hair into messy pony tail. As I open the door, Caden is standing there, staring intensely at me. I shook his intrusive look off and head for Lexi's room. I knock softly, and when I hear a small 'come in', I push the door open slowly. Lexi is sitting in the middle of the bed, her arms around her legs, as she gazed around the room.

"Hey you, did you sleep well?" I ask quietly. I still don't understand why I have a soft spot for her. I don't understand where the need to help her came from. Lexi nodded her head and her eyes strayed to right behind my shoulder. Without glancing over my shoulder, I knew that Caden would be standing there, watching us.

"I'm gonna be out for the rest of the day. I will see you later Dino girl." When he said my nickname, it was forced.

"Bye." I said simply. I looked back at Lexi who was just watching me curiously. I shrugged.

"What?" Lexi shook her head, but got up from the bed.

"How are you feeling today?" Lexi wrung her hands together as I watched her face. Her pupils weren't as shaky as yesterday, but she still seemed pretty unfocused.

"Better now that I was able to sleep in an actual bed." Her words saddened me.

"Can I ask you something Lexi?" She nodded and kept her grey eyes on me.

"Do you remember anything?" My voice was timid and weak. Deep down, I didn't know if I wanted to hear what she had to say.

"Yes. I remember every single second, even when they thought I didn't. At first I could fake that I was shooting myself up with Heroin. But then they found out, and did it themselves. Then I got hooked. I remember every man that forced themselves on me. I've gotten pregnant eight times, and all eight times they beat me until the fetus died."

To say I was horrified was an understatement.

"How did you get out?" My voice shook dangerously as I forced the bile back down my throat.

"When they first took me from here, they moved me to Seattle. I was there for a couple of months, then I was moved just a couple of miles from Port Angeles. The night I escaped, Max and his goons were out of their minds on Whack. I was given a break from the prostitution for a couple of days, since it was my week off. I took advantage of it and just ran. The need to get out of their was even stronger than my need for Heroin. I ran until I saw the first thing I recognized. Which was Freddy's Cream." Lexi smiled at the ridiculous ice cream parlor's name.

"You are a incredibly strong woman Lexi." I said softly as I grabbed her hand. Lexi smiled and shook her head.

"You're strong too Olivia. I can tell some shit happened to you, and you got through it." I sat there uncomfortable and twitching.

"You don't need to tell me, but from someone who's been through shit, it's always nice to have someone to lean on. To trust with your darkest secrets. My brother is good with that type of thing." At the mention of Talon, I let Lexi go, and look anywhere but her.

"Olivia?" I ignore her and stand up from the bed, my heart racing.

"Olivia, something happened between you and Talon didn't it? What happened?" Lexi stood up, but wobbled dangerously. I rushed over to her and placed her back on the bed.

"Let's get you some food, yeah?" Lexi nodded, her face pale.

Lexi and I spent the rest of the day in comfy clothes, eating plenty of food and talking. We talked mainly about her, and her childhood since I hated talking about myself. When it was just hours until Talon's fight, Mina showed up at Caden's house.

"Hey Liv! Lexi, how are you feeling?" All three of us sat on Caden's living room couch smiling.

"I'm feeling better, thank you for asking Mina." Mina nodded at Lexi then looked over at me.

"Are you two coming to Talon's fight?" I glared a hole into her skull as Lexi's shocked gasp filled my ears.

"Talon fights? Why on earth would he do that?" Lexi stood up, her face slightly panicked. I scowled over at a guilty Mina, and caught Lexi's elbow.

"Lexi, it's okay. I think after you disappeared he just needed a way to get his anger out. Don't worry about him. He's really good." I assured Lexi. It took a couple of tries, but she finally relented and sat back down.

"To answer your question: no. Lexi and I are going to stay here and wait until after his fight." Mina nodded, and suddenly her eyes brightened. My eyelids narrowed in suspicion.

"What ideas are swarming in that head of yours?"

"I think after his fight tonight, you and Lexi go to her house and surprise them. Tav and I will tell Farrah and Talon we have a surprise for them." I nodded along with Mina, then looked over at Lexi for confirmation. She looked between Mina and I, biting her lip.

"What if they reject me once they see me? I'm nothing like I was." Lexi looked down at her shaking hands in shame. Mina and I traded a sad look before looking back at Lexi.

"Lexi." She looked up at Mina's stern tone.

"Talon, your dear brother, adores you. He loves you so much. He searched everywhere for you. You are his sister. Your mother would do anything to have her baby girl back. She misses you so much. They will be so excited to have you back." Mina's words were firm, forcing themselves into Lexi's still scrambled thoughts. Lexi smiled and nodded, feeling more confident.

Mina left a couple minutes later to get ready. After announcing she was tired and wanted to take a nap, Lexi laid down on the couch with a fluffy blanket. I looked down at her snoring form as she snuggled against the throw pillow.

I walked to the kitchen to get a glass of water, but something outside caught my eye. I walked closer to the window, and I squinted my eyes as I peered around. My eyes strained as I scanned the darkness, and I was about to give up, but then I froze. In the middle of the street, several yards away was a man. I couldn't see his face, but the way he stood was intimidating. He took a step forward, and I slapped my hand over my mouth as I screamed. I frantically looked over at Lexi, then looked back outside but he was gone.

Cyrus.

No! It wasn't him. I'm seeing things. There's no way he found my mom and I. We did such a good job hiding.

I ran to the kitchen and grabbed a knife, my heart thudding painfully in my chest. My head started to swirl, along with my vision. Black and white dots filled my vision and my world started to spin on its axis.

It's getting worse.

"Olivia? Fuck." I whirl around, knife in hand, and groan. Caden rushes over to me, and rips the knife out of my hand. He picks me up bridal style and carries me up the stairs. He nudges the door to his room open and walks over his bed. He places me down gently, runs out, then comes back with a cold wash cloth. I greedily press it against my forehead, reveling in the coolness.

"What the hell just happened?" Though he tried to keep quiet, Caden's voice ricocheted around in my skull. I willed the dizziness to go away as I sigh heavily.

"I had a dizzy spell. I get them all the time, it's no big deal." I tried to play it off, but my voice was too strained. Caden scoffed and I knew he didn't buy it.

"Olivia. Bull-fucking-shit. Come on, just tell me." A surge of anger unexpectedly hit me as I sat up, and glare at me.

"Fine. You really want to know one of my "secrets"? I used my fingers to site quote. Caden mutely nodded his head. I closed my eyes and called upon any and all strength. You need to open up. I guess this was one step in the right direction.

"I have a brain tumor."

Vote, comment, and share!

A xo