Page 35 of Carmine

“Okay back there?” Liz inquired.

“Yes. I need to see the data coming in,” I said urgently.

Liz started the car and was near the command centre when an aftershock struck. My eyes wide, I turned to Carmine.

“That happened far too quickly after the main quake,” I gasped.

“What does that mean?” Carmine asked.

“I’m uncertain. I’d say we were heading for a big quake, but the signs are volcanic. Everything is confusing.”

“Let’s get you settled and grab what you need,” Carmine said as Liz opened the door.

Susan rushed past, calling me to join her. Awkwardly, I hugged Carmine and raced after her.

Carmine smiled when I glanced over my shoulder.

Carmine

Heads were going to roll. Whose was a mystery, but someone’s was. How the fuck had Freddie not caught wind of this and shut it down, I wasn’t sure. It’d been three days since the press conference, and everything started to settle. The mayor gave a press conference informing Rapid City that the team was working on the situation and there were cast iron plans in place. Molly’s parents had slunk away, and Dr White was under fire from a multitude of media who wanted to understand why he’d treated Molly so badly. And why he’d made claims he couldn’t back up.

Molly’s mother and father were torn apart for many reasons and were now hiding. Their great plan to steal Molly’s accolades backfired, and everybody had been shown their true motives.

But this, this was disgusting. Horrified and ashamed, I threw the newspaper down and ignored my phone again. As soon as I’d seen the article, I’d headed out. I couldn’t face the family. Now, I was out in the Black Hills, embarrassed, scared, and sickened. The truth was out there for everyone to pick to death.

The story screamed I’d sold my ass. I’d pedalled it so my siblings didn’t have to sell their bodies, and so I could feed Tye,Harley, and Serenity. And someone came forward and identified me as a child prostitute. Since my butt would have been raped one way or another, I’d decided I might as well get paid for being used and abused. Now, that was everywhere.

‘The Ball Player Prostitute’, the paper headline screamed.

Yeah, I saw the double meaning behind ball player. I got it, some fucks played with my balls before raping my ass. My phone rang again, and I ignored it, sliding it off.

I couldn’t go home. My past had embarrassed them all. Mom and Dad… they knew what I’d done now. They may have suspected, but I’d never admitted it. Wishing to die, I sank down to the ground and could only imagine what Molly was thinking.

Molly

Upset, I paced back and forth at Reading Hall as Phoe, and everyone kept dialling Carmine, only to find out he’d switched his phone off. Where was he? I’d been shocked when I’d read the headline this morning. There was more to his story than those so-called facts. Without a second thought, I’d raced to Reading Hall to discover it in uproar and Carmine missing.

“Mom, Serenity will find him. She’s on her way,” Carmine’s brother Tye said over a video call. Phoe was crying, and Drake stood with her, with his hands on her shoulders.

“Carmine won’t answer me,” she sobbed, wiping tears from her face.

“Carmine is running from the nightmares. He’s hurting and ashamed. Carmine wasn’t a prostitute. He was raped, and then, after it happened, he did what he did for Harley and Serenity,” Tye said somewhat awkwardly.

“You too?” Phoe wept.

“Five times, Mom. Carmine did it more than that. He only did it when Harley and Serenity were so sick they needed food desperately,” Tye replied, saddened.

“My boys! I want to kill those who hurt you,” Phoe snarled through her tears.

“Mom, we found you. You made everything better, but calm down. If Carmine sees you like this, then he’ll feel even guiltier,” Tye soothed.

“Should I leave?” I asked Albert, who sat with a grey face in a chair.

“No. Carmine will need you. Serenity will hunt him down when she arrives. She’s flying out now, so she’ll be here in two hours. Carmine has headed for the Hills. Whenever he wanted time alone, the boy always ran there. Serenity used to follow him, so she’ll know his hiding places. Wait for Serenity to arrive, and go find him together,” Albert said. He reached out and clutched my hand. “Bring my grandson home, Molly.”

“I will,” I promised.

Carmine would not face this shit alone. Jesus, he was a hero. What did he have to suffer to protect his younger siblings when they lived on the street? My heart bled for Carmine and the pain he must be feeling, seeing that splashed everywhere.

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