Page 64 of Forgive Me Father
"Tell me where you are. Now." I interrupt, cutting off his rant.
"So you can tell my parents?" Aiden scoffs. "I thought confessing what happened with Zack might ease my conscience, not give you a reason to fucking pummel him. Whatever sick fantasy you have with my sister, it ends now," He threatens, the thought of her being taken from me turning my stomach.
"Is that right?" I respond, my gaze hardening as I glance over at Renee.
"Tread carefully, Father," Aiden warns, his tone venomous. "I’d hate for anyone to hear a rumor about just how personal you get with your altar servers behind closed doors.”
The line goes dead, leaving me staring at my phone in disbelief, fury surging through my veins. I’m ready to wring his fucking neck.
"Renee," I call out, catching the bartender's attention just as she tops off someone’s glass.
"Yea?" She asks, her eyes narrowing in curiosity.
"Where’s your daughter tonight?" I ask, keeping my voice steady, though my mind is anything but that.
Her face twists in mild confusion. "Somewhere her daddy wouldn’t approve of, that's for sure," She laughs, though there’s no humor in my expression mirrored back at her. "Why?"
"One of my cousins is friends with her and mentioned they were going out tonight. I’m worried he might’ve had too much to drink, and I’m not sure where they are."
She shakes her head, amused. "You’re a terrible liar, Father. But I have faith that when you do lie, it’s for a good reason."
I sigh, shaking my head in frustration. "I need to know where Eden Faulkner is," I admit, watching as Renee's body stiffens.
"David Faulkner's girl?" She asks, saying his name like it leaves a bad taste in her mouth.
I nod, and her gaze hardens, something dark flickering in her eyes.
"You tight with the Faulkners?" She probes, her tone laced with suspicion.
"No," I reply, my voice firm. "But I need to find her before her father does."
She gives me a long, assessing look, a genuine smile slowly forming on her lips.
She sighs, glancing around the bar as if weighing her next words. "The reservoir. There's a sunset spot and a swimming hole. That’s where Zoey said they were headed. But listen," She leans in, her voice low and serious. "Whatever ties you've got with the Faulkners, leave my girl out of it."
"What do you know about them?" I press, sensing there’s more beneath her warning.
She shakes her head. Her eyes are hardened with icy contempt. "When I was married to Zoey's father, I saw the twisted shit David and his elitist buddies pulled right under the church’s roof. I was ready to go to Father Kevin and the police," She whispers, her voice trembling. "Two days later, I got served divorce papers. Then, I was attacked at knifepoint by some masked thug after work. Lost my job too, courtesy of one of his wife’s cronies. Zoey didn’t speak to me for months. I nearly drank myself to death in this very bar. The only reason I go back to that damn church is to keep an eye on my girl. The Faulkner’s are bad news. I’d stay away from them.”
Her words sink in, and I stare at her, grappling with the weight of what she’s just revealed.
"How do you know I’m not bad news?" I ask, my voice low, testing the waters.
She flips my left hand over, her fingers tracing the smooth skin. "You're not branded," She mutters, almost to herself. "Not yet anyway."
Without another word, she closes out my tab, her face unreadable as I drop a twenty into the tip jar.
“Look at the fucking body on that pretty thing,” A drunken voice snarls beside me. I snap my head in his direction. My stomach churns as I spot my phone in the large man’s hand.
On the screen was a picture of Eden. She stood by a fire, holding up her shirt, exposing her scarred skin. I could see her full breasts pressed tightly together in the same black lace bra she’d had on at the church. Beneath the image, Aiden’s anger bleeds through in the caption:
This is your fucking fault!
I must have left my phone open after trying to search directions to the reservoir, and this nosey fuck had taken my phone when he’d seen the text come through.
The sight of Eden’s skin, her pain, being devoured by this creep’s hungry eyes makes me sick. I lunge for my phone. The thought of anyone but me seeing her like this is unbearable.
“This your pretty little plaything?” He sneers, leering at me as he holds the phone just out of reach. “Nice set of tits on that one,” He grins, his hand grazing his filthy crotch. “Mind sharing?”
