Page 8 of Regret

“I want the girls and you to come to Pine View with me. I’ve got a house there you can stay in and no one knows where you’ll be. Conrad won’t be able to find you because we can get you a job with the club and keep everythin’ off the books. The only way I can protect you four is if you’re with me in Pine View. The guys here will do everythin’ in their power to keep you all safe, but I’ll do better. I’ve got more at stake than they do,” I tell her, not releasing her hands and she’s not pulling them from my hold.

“I can’t just move to Pine View, Valor. I’ve got a life here. The girls have lives here,” she says, tears filling her eyes with the threat that’s possibly out against her sisters and her.

“They can build lives in Pine View, Savannah. Go to school, join the teams they’re on now. Nothin’ has to change but the location. I will do everythin’ I can to ensure they don’t regret movin’ to Pine View and will be happy there. I’ll make you all happy there because you’re my girls. You’ve always been my girls and I will do whatever it takes to keep you all safe and happy the rest of my days,” I state, my voice filled with determination as I keep my eyes locked on Savannah’s.

“I’ll have to talk to them and see what they say. I’m not gonna make this decision on my own. I can’t do that to them. But, I’ll do what I can to make sure they agree to movin’ with you. This doesn’t change anythin’ between us, Valor. I won’t be with a man who uses women the way you do,” she says, her voice small and wavering with the emotions filling her as she finally pulls her hands from mine and gives me the look telling me to get the hell out of her space.

Savannah needs a few minutes to process what I’ve just told her. She needs to talk to the girls and make them see this is needed. I know she’ll do whatever it takes to make them see reason so we can get the house packed up and move to Pine View. For now, I make my way to the kitchen so I can make dinner. The girls are gonna be hungry when they get back to the house. Miracle makes her way in the kitchen and helps me after turning on some music. Another thing I’ve missed over the years. Cooking in the kitchen with music and dancing is something I’ll only ever do with the girls in my life.

Chapter Six

Savannah

VALOR TELLING ME what they’ve found on Conrad doesn’t really surprise me. I knew I was getting a horrible vibe from him from the second I first saw him in the coffee shop. Then with the way he acted through the messages we exchanged and then on the date, I’m honestly not surprised at all. Conrad is a fucking dick and I hope the guys take him the fuck out because that’s the only way he’s gonna stop. However, knowing he’s the governor’s son means they can’t just take him out like they would anyone else. If they do, they’ll all end up in prison and the club will be destroyed. Slim and the rest of the men will do everything they can to protect the club, family, and my sisters and I. The reality of the situation is that the girls and I really have no choice but to go to Pine View with Valor. He’s right—Conrad won’t know where we are and he won’t be able to find me if I don’t use my bank card or the few credit cards I have. I can talk to Vault about doing the books for the club like I’ve been doing here and earn money that way. If I still need money to take care of the girls after doing that, I can talk to him about working at one of the businesses to earn a paycheck.

Getting dressed in a pair of leggings and one of the tee-shirts I stole from Valor, I quickly brush my hair and throw it up in a messy bun. Leaving the room I’ve been staying in, I make my way out to find the girls and Valor in the kitchen preparing dinner. From the smells filling the house, I know we’re having chicken, mashed potatoes, and some kind of vegetable. Valor always makes sure we have a proper meal for dinner. And the chicken he makes is some of the best I’ve ever tasted before in my life. I’m not sure what he coats it in, but it’s so tender and juicy. Every bite is better than the last and I’ve missed his cooking more than I thought I would. It’s something I’ve enjoyed experiencing since he came when Ava called him to come help.

I stand back and watch them for a few minutes. Valor is giving all three girls his full attention as he continues teaching them to cook. The smiles lighting up their faces is something that’s been missing for the last few years. Ava is the most animated as she talks about the last competition she had for cheerleading. I’ve missed my sisters being so free and open like they are around Valor. Finally, I make myself known as I step in the kitchen and wrap my arm around Miracle’s shoulder. She’s almost as tall as I am these days. Ava is the same height as me and Chloe is slightly taller. I have a feeling I’ll be the shortest out of the four of us and I’m okay with that.

“Dinner smells amazing,” I say, keeping my eyes off of Valor as he flips the chicken before putting the pan back in the oven. “Why don’t you girls come sit at the table with me for a minute? We gotta talk about something before dinner is done cooking.”

All three of my sisters make their way over to the table and I take the seat Valor used to sit in at the head of the table. They look at me and wait for me to start speaking. Taking a deep breath, I look at my sisters before opening my mouth to say a word.

“The guys found something out about the man who hurt me. He’s not a good guy at all. In fact, he’s worse than any of us had a clue about. I’m not going to go into details about him because I really don’t know anything. I have the information that’s been brought to me and it’s time to make a decision,” I start out by saying as the girls sit up straighter in their chairs and don’t look away from me as fear fills their eyes and Miracle’s lower lip trembles. “We need to leave Benton Falls. It’s time for us to move on. But, I’m not gonna make this decision on my own. You all have lives here and plans you’ve made. Ava, you’ve got your sports that you’re already doing and I know Chloe wants to do some as soon as she gets in high school. So, you need to tell me what you want to do.”

“Is the man gonna come after you again, Vanna?” Ava asks me, her voice softer than normal as I look over at her to find her twisting her hands together.

“I can’t tell you he won’t, Ava. More than likely he will. There’s evidence of how bad he truly is and I don’t want to bring up memories that are better left buried since we’ve all already worked through them with the help of counseling,” I answer her the best I can without coming right out and saying he might be behind the group our mother sold us to when we were younger.

“You mean when we were forced in the back of that truck?” Miracle asks, the first tear sliding down her face and dripping onto the table in front of her.

“Yes,” I whisper, guilt filling me as I look between my sisters.

“Where would we go?” Chloe asks, removing her hands from the top of the table and setting them in her lap so I won’t see her picking at her nails like she does when she’s upset or scared. It’s something we’ve been working on.

“Valor wants us to go to Pine View with him. The club is there and they can protect us. I can work for the club so the bad man won’t know where I’ve gone. You’ll be enrolled in school and can continue your sports and everything you’re doing now,” I say, looking at Ava more than the other two because she does the most out of the girls right now.

“Okay. When do we leave?” Ava asks, no hesitation on her part as she looks at our younger sisters who nod in agreement with her.

“Are you sure this is what you wanna do?” I question them, needing to hear from all of them and not just Ava.

“Yeah. I don’t want to stay here if something else is gonna happen to you, Vanna. I was so scared when we came home to find you passed out on the floor. If we have to move with Valor to keep safe, then we’ll go. There’s no reason to stay here and be at risk,” Chloe says, lowering her eyes to the table as she remembers a little over a week ago and coming home to find me beaten and bloody.

“I agree, Vanna. We all love you so much and know Valor can protect us. We’ll do whatever to stay safe and make sure you don’t have to worry all day long. None of us want the bad man to get near you again. I don’t mind moving to Pine View,” Miracle adds in, her soft voice breaking with her emotions.

“Okay. Valor, I need a day to make arrangements. I’ve gotta go to the school to get their records and all that shit. We can leave in two days if that works for you,” I tell him, turning to look at him pulling the chicken out of the oven and cutting into it to make sure it’s cooked all the way.

“That works. It’s gonna take us a bit to pack up the house and get everythin’ ready to move. I’ll talk to Slim and Vault about an escort. I’ve got Chrome and Court with me, but I think we need more guys just to be on the safe side. Hopefully the club here can spare some guys to ride with us halfway to Pine View. Then, more guys from my club can meet us and take over,” Valor says, moving around the kitchen and finishing up dinner while the girls and I were talking.

“Okay. I want you three to start packing after dinner. I’ll have one of the guys go out to get us boxes and tape while we’re eating. Don’t leave anything behind because I don’t know if we’ll be back here and we want to make sure Slim and the club can use the house if they need to,” I inform the girls as I get up to grab plates, cups, and silverware so I can set the table.

All three girls get up and help me so I’m not straining my body as much. In no time we have the table set and Valor sets out dinner. He takes his seat and I make my way over to the opposite end of the table from him. Seamlessly we’ve fallen into our old routines and I’m not sure how to feel about that. It’s all I can think about as the girls dominate the conversation and continue filling Valor in on their lives and everything they’ve been doing. Then they switch to talking about the new school they’ll be starting and everything else they can think of. Before heading to their rooms to start packing, all three girls take care of dinner and rinse the dishes off before putting them in the dishwasher. When they disappear into their rooms after grabbing some boxes and tape, I take some and move to pack up my room. We’ll work our way from the second floor down to the first.

I’m in my bedroom and it’s late as hell. I should be in bed instead of finishing packing everything. It’s taking me longer than I thought because of the attack Conrad launched on me. It affects every single aspect of my life right now and I can’t wait until I heal completely. My back is to the door when I hear a light tapping on the door frame. Turning around, I see Valor standing there in nothing more than a pair of pajama pants. His chest and tattoos are on full display, making my mouth water like every other time I’ve seen him this way.

“What’s up?” I ask, trying not to let him know how much I’m hurting right now.

“You’re in pain, Love. You need to take a break and get some rest. I can keep workin’ in here if you want,” he states, walking in closer to me as I try to stand from the bed where I was sitting to clean out the nightstand I’ve had since we moved in here.

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