Page 27 of Sutton's Shadow

He’d easily bypassed the lock on her door. Bethany feigned sleep, listening to his obnoxious breathing as he approached the bed. Her entire body had trembled as she clutched the taser to her chest, and she’d feared the tremors would give her away. He smelled like ass and gasoline; a combination that made her want to puke. She concentrated on keeping her breathing even until the sheet covering her began to slide down her body. She struck without warning and watched as the big man fell to the ground, twitching. Unfortunately, he’d hit her when he’d jerked, giving her a fat lip.

As he convulsed on the floor, she jumped out of bed, grabbed her phone and shoes, and climbed out the window. Wyatt’s words ran through her head as she fled. Get to the woods, find the tree, call him. He’d drilled her on the plan so many times when he’d visited that she didn’t hesitate as she ran through the woods—her feet knew where to go. Hearing his voice on the phone had been amazing, but when he’d whispered his nickname for her just outside her hidey-hole, she’d felt a relief like she’d never felt before.

But now, huddled in the corner, listening to the unfamiliar sounds, absorbing the foreign scents, that feeling of safety felt more elusive than ever.

At least there was no party tonight.

Since arriving, the adults had hosted two parties, and they were nothing like the ones her mother had. Both the scents and sounds were different. There were no drugs at these parties, at least none that she could detect. And it seemed like they were playing poker or something. There were lots of men’s voices calling out numbers, like they were adding an ante to the pot. None of the other girls talked about these parties, and she was told to stay in her room.

There were two other rooms besides hers that housed other girls, at least four per room. The rooms were grouped by ages, six through eight-year-olds in one, nine through twelve in the next, while her room had thirteen and above. Melanie was the oldest at sixteen, and she never let anyone forget it.

Bethany had experienced bullying before but rooming with one was a challenge. It was strange, though, that the foster parents used Mel to help at the parties. Bethany liked those times; she didn’t have to spend the night listening to the mean girl bully all the others.

The parties never lasted long, which Bethany found bizarre. After the first one she’d experienced, they’d all woken up to the happy news that one girl in the nine through twelve-year-old’s room had been adopted. It seemed like strange timing to Bethany, but she didn’t know how these things worked. She just hoped good and caring parents adopted the girl. Just as she hoped to be reunited with Wyatt soon.

Lia plopped down beside her on the bed, shaking her out of her thoughts. “God, I hate this place,” the young blonde complained. Lia was one of her roommates, one of the nicer ones. She was fourteen, like Bethany, but had been in the home longer than her.

“Me too.”

“Maybe we should try to break out of here.”

Bethany scoffed. “And go where?”

“We could go find that brother of yours,” Lia reasoned.

“They’d just drag us back here. The legal system sucks that way.”

“Then we’ll leave and just disappear somewhere. There’s all those stories about runaway kids in the big cities living together on the streets. We could do that.”

“You wouldn’t last more than one night on the streets,” Melanie taunted. Amy, who sucked up to Mel all the time, snickered while the last girl to round out the roommate quintet, Allie, remained silent. Bethany had noticed that Allie never talked, or ate, for that matter. It was like the thirteen-year-old was wasting away in this horrible place.

Lia huffed. “I would too. I know how to do things.”

“Like what? Annoy all those around you?” Melanie suggested. Lia’s face reddened, and she lowered her head.

Bethany felt an instant need to defend her new friend. “Shut up, Melanie,” she snapped. “Why don’t you mind your own business?”

“Ooh, I’m so scared,” Melanie jeered. “I can’t believe they stuck me in here with you losers.”

“Since you’re so buddy-buddy with the foster-rents, why not ask for a room change? I’m sure they’d be more than willing to accommodate their favorite,” Lia challenged.

Mel’s face was as red as Lia’s had been. “Shut up, Lia. You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Bethany stared at Mel, trying to learn the truth behind the words in that statement. Mel looked almost fearful at the idea of being moved out of their room. She may have ranted and complained about being stuck with them, but Bethany thought that somewhere deep inside, she liked it. The foster parents, Hugo and Daniella, had used Mel’s help at their parties, allowing the girl to return to her room in the early morning hours. Bethany had heard the older girl try to stifle her tears as she crawled under her covers.

She’d tried to offer comfort once, only to be rebuffed by Melanie in the way mean girls did, by belittling her to make herself feel better. Bethany hadn’t tried again, but it didn’t stop her heart from aching for the girl every time she heard those tears.

Allie was another girl they had help at their parties. When she returned to the room afterwards, she’d stay in bed for most of the next day. She wouldn’t talk to any of them. Bethany had once brought her some food, but it lay untouched on the dresser near the girl’s bed. She worried Allie would not last much longer if she didn’t start taking care of herself. The two girls’ reactions to the parties made Bethany’s desire to escape the house even more dire.

The other girls wandered back to their own beds. The room quieted, the sleeping girls’ breaths the only sound to penetrate the darkness. Bethany was dying to talk to Wyatt, but the police had confiscated her cell because of the pictures she’d taken as proof of Ronnie’s neglect. Every night when she still hadn’t talked to him, she felt like crying herself to sleep. She’d done just that the first night, only to be humiliated and slapped by Melanie. After that experience, she’d choked down the tears every night since.

She had one thing going for her, though. She was quiet and unobtrusive, often going unnoticed among the so-called foster parents. They were unlike any foster parents she could have imagined.

First, they had heavy accents, which made it difficult to understand them sometimes.

Second, they didn’t appear as if they were a married couple. But then again, she didn’t know what two people in love acted like. She’d seen Wyatt’s boss with his girlfriend, and he was always touching her in some gentle way. But their relationship was new. For all she knew, this was how a couple acted after being together for years.

And third, they refused any request she had to contact her brother. She’d begged for a phone, an email, anything just to let him know she was okay. Wyatt must be going crazy since she hadn’t been able to talk to him. Being taken away from Wyatt that night had devastated her. She had wanted to go home with him. He’d assured her he was going to do everything possible to fix this, but as the days passed, the hope dwindled.

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