Page 49 of Salvation

“Where?” I snap. I’llkillhim. I don’t care if it happened nearly a decade ago. And once I’m done, I’ll make sure to visit Elain’s father too.

“Wesley.” My mom snapped. “Watch your tone.”

Elise shakes her head. “It’s fine, Ana. He has every right to be angry.”

She looks at me. “Do you think I didn’t want to get his ass locked up? Go after him myself? Blake is my daughter. But there wasnothingI could do to stop her from leaving.Nothing.She was legally an adult, and without the victim present, it was a bit hard to even convince the police to show up at all. I called him after both she, and the cops left. I antagonized him, and he reacted exactly as I expected he would. He showed up at the center. He may not have been arrested for hurting my baby, but I damn well made sure he didn’t get off scot-free.”

Tears slip down her face, and she doesn’t wipe them away as she continues, “I blame myself every day for what happened toher. For not being home. For leaving her with that monster. I’ve come to live with it. The only thing I can do now is be here for her. For however long she’ll let me. In whatever way she’ll let me. I can pick up the pieces and let the woman who’s struggling to come back up for air breathe again.”

I shake my head, avoiding her gaze. Elise continues, stepping in closer to me. "She doesn’t need you to save her, Wesley. She did that all by herself. But maybe she just needs you to be her friend again.”

When I meet her brown eyes, the ones that look so much like the woman I’ve spent years chasing, the feeling of tears prickle the back of my eyes. I should have tried harder to bring her back home. I should have paid more attention. I should have noticed what was going on.

How many of those scars on her body are from his hands? How many nights did I spend safe in my bed with my perfect parents just across the hall when she was cowering in hers? Elise, as if she can read my every thought, doesn’t hesitate in wrapping her arms around me. I bury my head in her shoulder. After a minute, my mom’s own gentle hands swallow us both.

And I let myself cry. I don’t care if it makes me less of a man. Or if it makes me look weak. I don’t cry for me. I cry for Blake. The two women hugging me do, too.

***

Blake and I sit at the edge of the pond, pants rolled up and socks off as we swing our feet back and forth in the cool water. It was one minute before midnight, and Blake and I would finally be turning eighteen this year. Celebrating our birthdays on the pond had become a tradition, one I made sure we never missed. We’d sneak out and stay out for a couple of hours untilmidnight hit, so we could always be the first to say happy birthday to one another.

“Happy Birthday.” I nudge her shoulder. “Now, make a wish.”

She turns to look at me and huffs out a breath. “I can’t in front of you, or it doesn’t count.”

“Best friends are exempt from that rule.”

“Are we? Just best friends?” She looks into my eyes, searching. She knows the answer, but I just smile at her, tucking a piece of blonde hair behind her ear. “We’ll never be just best friends, Blake.”

She looks up at the night sky. At all the stars twinkling above and closes her eyes as she speaks. “I wish...I wish I could call my older self. Just - just so I could ask how she’s doing. If this life gets any easier.”

“It’s stupid. I know.” Blake adds as she opens her eyes and sees me just watching her.

"It’s not.” I say softly.

“I want to leave, Wesley. If I don’t, I might never make it out.”

“Then I’ll go with you.” I lean my forehead against hers. “Where you go, I go.”

Chapter 49

Blake

“Did you take MMA classes or something?” Elain asks me from behind her steaming cup of tea.

I almost laugh. No, I didn’t. I can’t explain where that rage came from. I’ve never even been in a fight, and I doubt I could make something like that happen a second time. I made my way back here after I went for a walk, remembering that Elain had been in the shower during Wesley and I’s fight. Thankfully, the former had already left by the time I returned.

“Are you mad at me?” I ask.

“Why would I be mad?” She questions. “He got what he deserved.”

I toy with the tea string hanging from my cup, and she reaches over to place her hand over mine. “Look, I’m not going to pretend like it doesn’t hurt. He’s my dad, of course it does. But…talking with you? Being around you…It’s made things clearer. What he’s doing…It’s not okay. He needs help.”

Tears spring to my eyes. This girl issostrong. Stronger than I was. She’s not scared to fight, and she’s not running from her demons. The front doorbell rings, and it makes me jump at the sudden interruption. Elain stands from her seat at the island. “That’s probably my mom.”

I nod and go with her, knowing she’s not going to want to face this one alone. She opens the door, and her mom rushes in to hug her. “Oh, babe. I’m so glad you’re okay.” She sobs. “I would have gotten here sooner, but traffic was really heavy.”

“It’s okay,” Elain says as she lets go. “I’ll go grab my stuff.” But her mom catches her shoulder as Elain turns and blurts, “No. Don’t.”

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