Page 110 of Broken Bonds

Mrs. Wilson was the first one out of the room, her soft, caring eyes offering me warmth that I didn’t deserve. A young brunette followed her out with a small, timid smile. Amber came out last,her mouth set in a scowl as she took me in, her green eyes unnerving.

“Nice of you to show up,” she grumbled, pushing past me with a shove and an eye roll, her famous red hair in a low knot at the nape of her neck, pieces standing up in all directions. The young girl followed her, and the two got into a heated debate, hushed whispers thrown back and forth.

“Ace, honey, this is going to be unsettling. Please prepare yourself,” Mrs. Wilson said, catching my attention, her cold hand resting on mine. With a nod, I reached for the door handle and pushed it open, eager to finally see Celine. I stepped into the dark room, and the breath escaped my lunges with one exhale.

I wasn’t prepared for the sight before me. Unsettling was an understatement as my eyes took in the broken girl lying helplessly on the small, white bed. I dropped to my knees at the sight of her swollen face, her eyes closed, black and blue bruises covering every inch of her exposed skin, white casts on her left wrist and right foot.

A tear escaped my eye as I found the strength to stand and walk over to her, falling into the plastic chair beside her bed. “Who did this to you, baby girl?” I rasped, my gut twisting uncomfortably.

I held her bandaged hand in mine and found myself begging that this girl who had my entire heart would be okay. The steady beep of the heart monitor filled the silence of the room until eventually, Amber slipped into the room and slid into the other plastic chair on the other side of Celine. We shared a glance before the strong-willed girl I knew burst into tears.

“It’s all my fault,” she cried, her face falling onto the bed near Celine’s arm.

“Who did this?” My voice was soft and rough from the sadness and anger clogging it.

“Her worthless, piece of crap boyfriend.” Anger lit up in her eyes at the mention of him while tears still flowed down her cheeks.

“Who is he?” I demanded

“Julian Scott.” Hatred gleamed in her red-rimmed, green eyes. I tried to remember the guy; his name was familiar. Suddenly, I could see him clear as day in my mind.

“Of all the guys to choose from, she falls for him,” I scoffed. Shaking my head, I looked at Celine’s frail, battered body and momentarily saw red. “Where is he now?”

“Waiting for bail in a cell.”

I rolled my jaw around before forcing it to relax as I ran my eyes over my battered princess. “When is she going to wake up?”

She shrugged. “Hopefully soon.”

I looked at her then, ripping my eyes from Celine’s bruised face. “Where is Ryan? Why didn’t he stop her from dating Julian like he did me?” Sadness crept back into her features at the mention of Ryan.

“He enlisted in the military last summer—left on New Year’s Day. I can’t get in contact with him right now, but I don’t want to tell him over a voicemail.” She sighed. “There’s nothing he can do for her now anyway.”

I frowned. “Then why did you call me?”

“Do I really need to answer that, dumbass?” she snapped, narrowing her green eyes at me.

I drew in a deep, painful breath. “She isn’t going to want to see me when she wakes up.”

Amber shook her head. “She’ll come around, but she’s going to need time, Ace. You can’t just up and leave again. She’s going to need time to heal from this…” She gestured to the bruises all over Celine’s body. “And from you.”

I swallowed thickly, reaching up to brush Celine’s tangled, blonde hair back from her face. “I’ve got all the time in the worldfor this girl.” I wasn’t leaving her again. Never fucking again. I should have stayed. Even with Ryan pushing me away. Even with all my broken pieces, I should have fucking stayed.

A day later, we were all sitting in the room, staring at the broken girl on the bed, our hearts heavy when suddenly, she whimpered, the sound pulling at every piece of my aching soul.

“Cece?” Amber was right by her head, clutching her arm like it was a lifeline. One bleary, ocean blue eye opened and then the other before they fluttered back closed and then opened again, her eyes shifting all over the room.

“Mom?” she croaked, her eyes searching the room until they landed on Mrs. Wilson, and she began crying, breaking my heart. “It hurts.” Her voice broke, as did every person in the room.

It took a long time to get Celine to stop crying. I stayed in the shadows of the room, scared of her reaction, but eventually, there was only so much hiding I could do in the small room.

“How are you feeling, princess?” The term was foreign coming out of my mouth, but the shocked look on her face made it right.

“What…” She swallowed thickly. “What in the hell are you doing here?”

I shrugged and shoved my hands into the pockets of my jeans. “Came to see you.”

“Get out.” I flinched, clenching my jaw. I hadn’t expected a nicer welcome, but I’d hoped for one, nonetheless. Everyone shared a look before redirecting their gazes back to Celine. “Get out of my room, Asshole.”

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