Page 152 of Patching Over

While I’m distracted by Short Guy’s actions, which include starting the fireplace and placing the brand inside to heat up, Tall Guy manages to wrangle me to a chair and tie me up. As tears steadily flow, I send up silent pleas for someone, anyone, to rescue me.

Because I have been living with the ‘biker gang’, I’ve been deemed unfit to be a breeder, so despite the pain wracking my body due to the open wound on my shoulder from the brand, I am now sitting against the wall in a room full of children.

The nursery, where little ones from infants to young toddlers are, being their caretaker is apparently my job. I watch several other women, whose names I don’t care to know because I suspect the end for me will be death, are currently feeding the babies as I sit there, lost in my head.

Recriminations against myself are bouncing in my mind. No amount of physical abuse these assholes could do to me would be worse. I’m concerned for my sanity at this point and wish I could speak out somehow.

It’s solely up to you.Wrecker’s voice from when he tried to help me reverberates. I get it, I really do, that it’smychoice not to speak, but I don’t believe he fully understands how indoctrinated those beliefs, however false, are imbued in my psyche.

I spent hours as a child copying down scripture that focused on how children should honor their parents, which as an adult, I realize is bullshit. When a parent, who’s supposed to love their child unconditionally, is abusive, I feel liketheybroke that trust, and the child has the right to walk away and emancipate themselves from them. I tried; I went away to college and have never been back home, but I realize that I was still underneath their thumb, especially when Tall Guy spewed a bunch of shit while we waited for me to be branded.

“Yeah, we control a lot of shit, bitch,” he sneered. “We used all that new technology to keep tabs on you when you were rescued. Knew when you left that biker gang, where you were holed up in the city, who you were with while you were alone. We’re gonna get that bitch back too, it’s just a matter of time.”

He’s talking about Selah, of course, as she’s who I was with while on the run. I’m afraid for her now since she was so helpful to me in so many ways. I hope the motorcycles we heard that morning was Butcher and his friends because I know beyond a shadow of a doubt, they’ll protect her with their lives.

Kracken and his brothers would’ve done the same for you,my brain whispers.

Lost in thought, I startle when a little girl crawls up onto my lap and puts her hands on my face. She looks familiar, which I don’t understand, because other than the baby at the clubhouse, I don’t really know many kids. Shaking my head to clear my thoughts, I wait to see what she’s going to do.

“It’s okay, Moira. It’s okay for you to talk,” she whispers. “You’re my mommy’s best friend and she’s worried about you, but Uncle Wrecker says when you’re ready, you’ll talk.”

Mommy’s best friend?My best friend is Belle, and she doesn’t have any kids yet, although I’m sure she and Jingles are working on it on a regular basis.Wait a minute, Uncle Wrecker? Is she… could she be Selah’s little girl? The one she always talked about trying to find?

“I’m Hannah,” she murmurs. “You’re going to be fine, Moira. Let me help.”

I don’t take my eyes off her but feel as though she’s looking inside of my brain, scanning for information I’m not sure someone of her tender age should have knowledge of. Not only can I feel it, but I canseeit, which is kind of freaking me out, if I’m being totally honest. She crouches in front of me in my head and gently touches the imaginary gag placed securely across my mouth to remind me not to make a peep.

“Childrenshouldbe seen and heard, Moira. How else can parents know when something’s wrong?”she asks my curled-up figure.“Children are allowed to move around, too,”she says, gently touching the self-inflicted bindings at my wrists and ankles.“Let me help you, Moira. You have the power, remember?”

Even though this is all going on in my head, I can feel tears steadily streaming around my face as Hannah takes the gag off from my mouth, then manages to get me untied. Suddenly, I’m free, at least inside my head, but fear now keeps me mute.

She sadly shakes her head, but reaches out her hand, which I take.“It’s okay, you’ll know when it’s safe for you to speak. And when you see them again, you’ll let Uncle Wrecker and Uncle Dragon finish helping you reclaim yourself, right?”

I nod, both inside my head and while sitting against the wall. I don’t know what she’s done to me, but even though fear and terror still claw at my very soul, I feel stronger somehow.

I ‘come to’ with Hannah now curled up against my chest, her soft breaths letting me know she’s asleep. I vow to protect Selah’s little girl with everything I have in me and if necessary, I’ll fight to the death.

CHAPTER

SIX

Kracken

I pound on the door where Butcher and Selah are staying, my heart racing a mile a minute. Ever since Moira took off, I know I’ve pushed my brothers away with my attitude, mood, and erratic behavior. I can’t seem to help myself; she wormed her way into my heart the day I found her lying there, and despite the fact that all of our conversations have been one-sided, I still want her in my life. So, when Hawg said he needed Selah right away, I didn’t hesitate to come and get him. I’m at the point I’m ready to burn the world down and wonder if maybe getting a few flamethrowers like Selah asked for is the way to do it or not.

“The fuck happened?” Butcher roars, his face reflecting the panic I feel. I’m rather disheveled at this point, which probably doesn’t help the situation, but time is of the essence now.

“Hawg called, he needs Selah on her laptop. Right the fuck now!” I bellow, uncaring that I’m talking to another chapter’s VP the way I am. I’m sure he’d like to knock my block off based on his clenched fists, but he surprises me when he talks instead.

“Brother, shake off whatever has you ready to come at me like a raging bull. I’ll get Selah and her laptop and meet y’all in Banshee’s room.”

I nod then quickly turn and stomp back to Banshee’s room. I hope and pray that Hawg’s request means he’s close to finding Moira. I don’t know how much longer I can go on like this without my brothers threatening my existence.

While I wait impatiently for them to arrive, the room around me is chaotic. It does make me happy to see they wasted no time in getting down here, because I know based on how Butcher looked, they were likely both asleep.

“Selah, how long will it take you to get set up?” Banshee asks her as he leads the two of them inside.

“I'm already connected to the Wi-Fi service here, so all I need to do is open up my laptop and switch it on. Did he happen to mention to you what server he wanted me to meet him on?

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