Page 39 of Echoes of Obsession

“Snow?” I hear Ghost say, but my ears are ringing, and a rage unlike any I’ve ever felt before rushes through my body.

“Amara,” Ghost says, using my real name. “I need you to talk to me, baby.”

I look at my daughter who is looking down, tears falling to the floor, then back up at Ghost. Venom and King are standing behind him, all waiting for an explanation.

Knowing words wouldn’t do it justice, I turn my daughter around so they can see.

Ghost’s eyes widen, and his face contorts with a fury I’ve never seen before. His chest heaves as he takes in the sight of Zoe’s bruises, a storm brewing behind his gaze.

“Who did this?” His voice is a guttural snarl, barely recognizable, his entire body trembling with barely contained rage.

His eyes shift to me, burning with an intensity that makes my breath catch. “Babe, you need to tell me who did this to our girl,” he demands, his voice cracking. “I swear, I’ll rip them apart with my bare hands.”

Venom and King exchange dark glances behind him, their jaws set, ready for whatever is coming next. Ghost turns to them, his voice dropping to a dangerous calm. “Call in the whole club. I want them all here in thirty minutes. I don’t care if businesses have to be closed down in order for it to happen.”

He turns back to me, and despite the fury raging within him, there’s a pleading look in his eyes. “Baby,” he whispers, his voice breaking. “I need to talk to her. Can you be her ears?”

Nodding, I pull her panties up as gently as I can. With each painful gasp, my heart breaks a little more. I decide to remove her jeans completely. Maybe Allie has a pair of pajama pants she can borrow.

When Ghost falls to his knees in front of my daughter, his face is calm despite his anger.

“What happened?” he asks.

Her response is more silent tears.

“Babydoll, I need you to tell me what happened so that I can make sure it never happens again.”

This time, Zoe looks at me to translate, and I try my best, but my hands are shaking, and it’s difficult.

Sighing, Zoe looks back at Ghost. This time, her tears aren’t silent as she breaks into hysterical sobs.

“My dad,” she says out loud. At first, I’m shocked that she spoke out loud again. She feels safe around these people. “I was bad.”

I’m about to tell Ghost what she said, but he simply shakes his head at her.

“You’re not a bad girl,” he says while I translate for her. “It doesn’t matter what you did or didn’t do. No one should ever hit you. Let alone hard enough to leave bruises like this.”

“He was mad,” she says slowly, trying her best to enunciate her words. I can tell Zoe’s getting frustrated with trying to talk as she goes back to signing.“He couldn’t understand what I was trying to tell him. His wife asked me if I would call and order a pizza while she was in the shower. I tried to tell her that I couldn’t hear to order, but I could use her phone if it had an app. But she shrugged her shoulders and went to shower. When she got out and saw that I didn’t do what she said, she got angry and told my dad that I was being disrespectful. I got punished.”

I’m pulling out my phone as I tell Ghost everything she just said.

“Where can I buy a gun?” I ask as I pull up the dial pad. “I’m going to kill that bastard.”

His hands reach out, trembling as he gently takes Zoe into his arms, his rage giving way to a heart-wrenching tenderness. “It’s okay, baby girl,” he murmurs into her hair, his voice cracking with emotion. “We’re going to take care of it. I promise.”

“She can’t hear you, Ghost,” I remind him as I search up the nearest weapons store.

“I don’t need her too, babe,” he says, kissing the top of Zoe’s head. “I just need her to feel it. You’re not buying a gun.”

“The hell I’m not,” I glare. “That man hurt my daughter. And not in a small way. He’s going to pay.”

“Damn right, he is,” Ghost says, taking my phone. “But I will not let you bloody your hands. You stay here and take care of our girl. Don’t leave this building.”

“Doc wants to check over Zoe. Apparently, he knows sign language,” Venom says, rolling his eyes. “I’d like to know when he found the time to learn without my knowing.”

“Doc’s one of his alters,” Ghost explains. “Would it be alright if he checked her?”

I spent over an hour talking to the girls and Knox about Venom’s alters last week. Any other time, I would have been so excited to see him in action, but right now, I’m just desperate to make sure my daughter isn’t seriously injured.

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