Page 111 of Dark, Forbidden, & Taboo

Sometimes, wars are won when the enemy has no idea that a move is being made, and I’m going to make one hell of a power move before the day is over.

Chapter 11

Celeste

“Ava!”

Her bedroom door creaks open slowly, and I watch from the end of the hallway as she peeks her head out and barely has the courage to look me in the eyes.

“I have something I want you to do for me,” I advise her as calmly as I can.

She steps out into the hallway and makes her way tediously slowly toward where I’m standing, then takes a deep breath. “Yes, Aunt Celeste?”

I give her a once over before I beckon for her to follow me into the kitchen. Grabbing my purse from the counter, I pull out some money and hold it out to her. “Do the groceries for me, please.”

She takes the money without a word, then heads for the living room. I wait patiently while I hear the closet door open then close, followed by the jingling of her set of car keys, then the front door closing firmly behind her.

I run a hand over my face as I lean against the kitchen counter and think.

He stole her innocence from her by somehow managing to talk her into that little performance, and I’m not going to stand for it.

Rolling my eyes, I make my way toward the front door and crack it open to make sure that the driveway is empty.

I don’t know what it is that this boy thinks he’s accomplishing by pulling this damn stunt, but I’m not going to let him bully me any longer.

Ava’s mental health is on the line now and I have to stand up for her.

___

I archan eyebrow when I get to Finley’s neighborhood. I stop at the end of the long, dirty alleyway before digging my phone out of my purse and bringing up the email again.

Stepping back slightly, I glance at the street sign a few feet away, then shake my head.

This is the exact address that Rya sent to me, but what kind of place does he live in that I would have to walk down a desolate alley to reach his front door?

Squaring my shoulders, I tell myself that I’ve had more than enough time to talk my way out of this, and if I’ve made it this far, I should at least knock on his damn door.

Tossing the phone back into my purse, I pull the zipper closed, then start down the alleyway.

Nothing about this should surprise me anymore. This entire situation is completely fucked all the way around, and I have to be the adult in this situation.

Just like always.

I never got the chance to be a child myself, and it was no one’s doing but my own.

I was raised by good parents, in a Godly household, and early on during childhood decided that I wanted to take the path I had finally been able to.

Only it was cruelly swiped away a few years later.

I blink rapidly when I find myself standing in front of a side door, not realizing that I had been so lost in thought on the short walk down the alley that I’ve already reached it.

Stepping back slightly, I glance up the decaying brick building, take in the dusty industrial windows, then grind my teeth together.

Finley Bradshaw may have gotten his outward appearance together, but this place that he calls home shows that he’s still exactly the same on the inside as he was so many years ago.

Rotten, unkempt, and miserable.

Here goes nothing,I think as I raise my fist and bang it against the rusting, industrial door.

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