Page 30 of Her Saviors

Slowly, I get up, the tears falling down my face as I look around the room, shame and guilt filling me. I see there’s a box of tissues and grab one before I wipe my face.

“Can you walk us through the hours leading up to your marriage to Bennett Conklin?” his lawyer says, his voice hard and cold.

Guess he didn’t like being reprimanded like a little child caught with his hand in the cookie jar. Oh well, that’s what he gets for representing absolute scum. Keep speaking your truth, Brooklyn,I tell myself as I finally manage to regain a semblance of control.

“As I’ve said, I’m not married to Mr. Conklin. However, earlier in the day, I was on my way to Cricket’s in Odin’s Gap. There was one man riding behind me on a bike and he’s in the courtroom today. A vehicle hit him and swerved around his bike and body before heading for me. I was rammed into and forced off the road by the same vehicle. When I was removed from the club’s SUV, I was dragged over to another vehicle where Mr. Bennett Conklin and his father were waiting in the back seat. I was shoved inside with them and drugged.

“When I woke up, I was locked in a cage, naked. My clothes had been removed without my permission. Various men came into the room where I was being held and leered at me until Bennett finally came in the room himself. He dragged me out of the cage by my hair and beat the hell out of me. There are records at the hospital of the abuse I suffered at his hands. Two men came in once Mr. Conklin left the room and dragged me up to the first floor of the Conklin mansion. They locked me in a room with a woman and she dressed me in a wedding dress. That’s when I was brought in the room with Mr. Conklin, Bennett, and Mrs. Conklin. My parents were also there.

“The minister was there and I tried several times to get him to stop the farce of a wedding, but he didn’t listen to me. Before the ceremony was over, members of the Tattered and Torn MC came into the house and stopped the wedding. So, again, I’m not married to Bennett Conklin. And if the wedding ceremony was finished, I would’ve been forced into the relationship with an abusive man who enjoys raping women just to get off. He enjoys hitting those weaker than he is and won’t stop until he’s behind bars,” I inform the courtroom while keeping my eyes locked on my men and everyone else from the club.

“Miss, I suggest you only answer the questions you’re asked and don’t add any further commentary,” the lawyer states, his voice hard and cold.

“Then ask me a question that’s not a repeat of one I’ve already answered for you. I. Am. Not. Married. To. Bennett. Conklin,” I say in slow words so he can finally understand me, my voice leaving no room for argument. I notice the court stenographer thin their lips and wonder if they’re trying not to laugh at how foolish the defense lawyer is being. Something to ponder later.

Tears fall from my eyes and roll down my face as the lawyer proceeds to ask me questions with derision filling his tone as if I’m lying under oath. Bennett gets more and more pissed with every question I answer. He expects me to roll over and lie for him and it’s the last thing I’m going to do. By the time the judge excuses me from the stand, I’m a trembling mess. Jayce and Gavin pull me into their arms in front of Bennett and his parents as they escort me from the courtroom and lead me from the building without any hesitation.

I’m taken home where my men lead me straight to our bedroom. They strip me down to nothing and put me to bed as I continue to cry after reliving every horrible moment I ever spent with Bennett. Jayce and Gavin wrap me up in their arms and hold me tight while I cry until I finally fall asleep.

Chapter Nineteen

Wheels

THREE WEEKS HAVE passed since Brooklyn testified in court. Brooklyn has been a nervous wreck. At work, she’s dropped more bottles than anyone I’ve ever seen before. When she’s at home, she rarely comes out of our bedroom and hasn’t been to visit with Nanny at all. We’ve called in a therapist to come to the house to talk with her several times but we don’t know what’s discussed between them. All I know is Gavin and I wait in the living room for the therapist to be done with their session so we can escort her out. Fetch is usually the one who takes her to the gate and waits until she leaves the compound. Brooklyn is usually asleep by the time we go back in the bedroom and we just lay in bed with her. It breaks both of our hearts to see her tear-streaked face after each session, but we’re both hoping that the therapist is getting through to her.

What happened wasnother fault. She’s been lied to her whole entire life, and aside from the neglect and abuse she endured under the hands of her shitty parents, she has to overcome the hell she lived through while dating Bennett. Her body shows the evidence of that trauma, and I definitely understand why she feels as though we will tire of her and leave her too. All Soul and I can do is continue to support her and love her until we’re able to relegate the past to where it belongs, a bad memory that has made her into the warrior we know is inside of her. We’ve seen glimpses, but unfortunately, the trial set her back a little. I have complete confidence that it’ll happen; this is just a little bump in the road.

Theo has been brought up to the house and even that doesn’t get our woman to leave our room. Instead, we help him upstairs so they can visit. Theo is the only one she talks to other than the therapist. Gavin and I don’t know what we can do besides be there for her and wait until she’s ready to talk to us. It’s the worst feeling in the world to know we can’t help her. Gavin is going crazy as he looks at her with sad smiles and pain filling his eyes. I’m not much better than my best friend is. We honestly hate leaving her to go to work despite knowing the other one is home with her.

I’ve called Dr. Matthews and tried to figure out if we need to do anything because of the babies. She’s assured me that Brooklyn needs to grieve for who she used to be. The girl she was growing up to be has died and a new woman is in her place. That’s why this is hitting our wife so damn hard. She’s literally grieving because she’s never had the chance to do so since she was born and then met Bennett. Now, she’s just trying to figure out how to move forward with her new life and doesn’t know how to lean on us or the other club members for support because until she met us, it's never been offered to her. We’re all trying so damn hard and doing our best for her.

Fee and Scorch brought the baby up and Brooklyn didn’t even open her eyes. She wasn’t asleep, but was pretending so she didn’t have to talk to anyone. Fee started crying and Scorch held his wife as they both tried to understand what they can do to help Brooklyn heal from the pain she’s suffered through in her life. Still, every single day Gavin and I are there for her and most everyone in the club comes up to see her for a while each day. Nanny hasn’t been here yet, but I know it’s because when she shows up, she’ll pull Brooklyn out of her shell and she’s trying to give her the space she needs to heal and mourn her loss while we wait to hear what’s going to happen to Bennett and his family.

I’m sitting in the living room alone since Gavin is upstairs trying to get Brooklyn to eat something. She doesn’t feel good today and is refusing to eat anything solid. Our wife wants some soup and we don’t have any in the house. I’ve sent messages out to everyone in the club to see if anyone has any we can get until she’s good enough to go shopping with us. Now, I’m just waiting to hear back from someone.

My phone starts vibrating on the table in front of me where I left it after sending the last message out. Picking it up, I see a number from the state’s attorney office.

“Hello?” I answer the phone immediately, my heart racing in anticipation of what I’m about to hear.

“Is this Mr. Sord?” a woman asks on the other end of the line.

“It is.”

“Mr. Sord, we’ve been trying to get ahold of Mrs. Sord-Calhoun and she’s not answering any of our calls. The jury came back with a verdict and the judge has finally sentenced all three members of the Conklin family. We’ve been trying to let your wife know,” the woman says, her voice hesitant. “Mr. Sord, all three members are going to prison for the rest of their lives. On top of the charges against them for the abuse and sexual assault on your wife, they were charged with various other charges and that’s everything they’ve been sentenced for. Your wife won’t have to worry about them being free for the rest of her life and she can breathe easy moving forward.”

“Are you sure? There’s no way they can win an appeal and get out before their time? Or they won’t be able to get parole or anythin’?” I ask, needing to know if there’s even a remote possibility.

“There’s no way they’ll be granted parole. They were sentenced without it. So, they’ll be in prison until the day each of them take their last breath. Please inform your wife of this news and if she has any questions, she’s more than welcome to call the office and we’ll answer her the best we can,” the woman tells me as I thank her and hang up the phone.

Rushing upstairs, I enter our bedroom to find Brooklyn getting sick in a garbage can Gavin is holding for her. She’s covered in sweat and fear fills me with the thought of something being seriously wrong with her.

“I’m callin’ Doc,” I state, my voice wavering as Gavin looks over at me briefly and nods his head in response.

I place the call and get Doc to come out to the house so he can take a look at our wife. I’m debating calling Dr. Matthews. I’ll wait to see what Doc says before I get her to come out here too. If it’s not serious, Brooklyn will chew me a new ass for getting everyone out here without it being necessary. So, for now, we’ll let Doc come out and check her over and tell us what we need to do to help her.

“He’ll be here in ten minutes,” I inform them as I move to the bed and sit down with them.

Reaching out, I rub my hand up and down her back in comfort as she finally stops getting sick and collapses back against the bed. Gavin goes to the bathroom and I hear him cleaning out the garbage can with water. In a few minutes he makes his way back into the bedroom with a wet cloth in his hands. He carefully places it on her head and I pull the blankets up higher on her body.

---