Page 30 of Claiming Charlotte

Charlotte’s demons were dragging her down, and I had to find a way to stop it, but it was a hard feat without knowing what would make her feel better. She wasn’t opening up to anyone and that, perhaps, would be the start of her demise. The mind is a dangerous place, being stuck within it is such a scary place to be. You’re trapped with no way out.

Hearing a soft knock at the door right before sleep overtook me, I sat up slowly grumbling, the sound barely registering with me. Who the hell is bothering us so late? I glanced at Charlotte, but she didn’t stir. I stood and padded to the door. Cracking it open, there stood?Thomas who held out a stack of manilla folders.

“What’s this?” I asked, groggily taking the papers from him and paging through them.

“It’s the files of the remaining six men who had a hand in Charlotte’s rape,” He said smugly. “I was told to aid you in your healing process.”

As he spoke, a soft rustling distracted me, and I turned to check on Charlotte. The light streaming through the open door illuminated her face, and I could see that she was beginning to stir, tossing and turning frantically.

“Thank you, Thomas,” I said, nodding my appreciation before tilting my head toward Charlotte. “I’ve got to go, man.”

“Of course. Sleep well, brother,” Thomas admonished, and I closed the door quietly before returning to her side.

14

CHARLOTTE

I gasped, clutching at Richard’s hands as they closed around my throat.

“Do you like that? I can have you even in your own dreams,” he growled as he slammed into me. “Fuck, this is better than I imagined it would be.”

Istruggled to draw in breath as a silent tear escaped my eyes, and I turned my face away from him as he took me….

“No!” I cried out as my eyes shot open and darted around the room.

A shadowed figure loomed over me and I struck out, determined to keep Walker away from me. Pain radiated from my fist as I made contact, and a frightened look crossed my face as an audible breath was forced out of his body.

“Charlotte, it’s me,” Rowan said as the shadow backed away.

Light flooded the room when he flipped the light switch, and my face fell as I saw the blood trickling out of his nose.

“I hit you,” Roe wiped at his nose and looked back at me. “I hit you,” I repeated in shock. What have I done?

“It’s okay, Charlotte. It’s my fault. I shouldn’t have approached you like that,” he replied softly, holding his arms up in surrender.

I shook my head frantically. “No, Rowan, it’s not okay. None of this is okay!” I shouted, clambering out of bed and running to the door flinching when he reached for me. On the way out I smashed my elbow against the door frame in my haste to leave, and a zing of pain crawled up my arm. In a way it felt nice, I don’t feel much anymore.

“Lottie, come back!” he yelled, but I was already out the door, and I ran until my legs hurt.

As my nerves settled, I realized that my feet had taken me to the office. I entered my father’s— my office, and?looked around; memories from that night ran rampant. Jason was right…I don’t deserve all of this. Opting to keep the lights off I walked further in closing the door softly behind me. It was the middle of the night, and I didn’t want to wake anyone.

The room seemed chilled, as though a window had been left open, but on closer inspection they were all shut tightly. I shivered, imagining my father sitting on the couch telling me how to run things, move the money, where we received and exchanged product, and from whom. Who our allies were and their part in the business. Pacing the room, I blinked away the tears that threatened to fall as I tried to remember my father.

He was intelligent, brave, and always knew what to do no matter the situation. And I found myself needing him now, more than ever. The memories seemed distant now, so I coped by trying to chase away the good memories that threatened to pull me out of the darkness. It’s not that I didn’t want to be happy; I just felt I needed some sort of closure over what happened to me, and I had no idea how to find it.

I never got to say goodbye before my father passed away, and that was my biggest regret. And before I could even begin to mourn his loss, I’d been tied up, drugged, and abused in ways I never thought possible.

Being questioned about my motives and intentions in the meeting a few days earlier hadn’t sat well with me, and I couldn’t stop thinking about it. Why not hit them hard like they hit us? I had the power to give them what they deserved, yet I hesitated to act. Lacing the contraband was just the beginning, but it wasn't enough, and killing innocent people was starting to weigh on me. The man I loved used to handle the same supply and that was what made me realize who I was hurting.

There was always a better way, maybe I didn’t have to be as ruthless as my father before me, but that would mean one thing. Trying to negotiate peace with the Walkers, and I wasn’t sure if I could do that, at least right now.

I chalked it up to respecting my father’s wishes with the company. I knew he had done some terrible things to people, too, but after experiencing what the Walkers devoted their lives to, I felt I could easily forgive him for the times I caught him torturing one of Walker’s men for intel.

I walked closer to his desk and paused, my fingertips resting gently on the lacquered wood, and stared intently at the chair that had sat empty all this time. That chair was where it all started; it was where my father had conducted his last meeting, where I’d been tied up and forced to watch Roe fall to Jason. It was the beginning of my torture and the murder of my men.

I was expected to sit in that chair and lead the company. I heard the door open behind me and I let the sound distract me from my rampant thoughts. I knew it was Roe, but I didn’t turn. I didn’t want to see him, or for him to see me like that. I felt very vulnerable, and I wrapped my arms around my midsection tightly.

The muffled footsteps stopped a few feet behind me.

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