Page 26 of Broken

“Not only did Matteo tell me, but did you forget I was paying for the medical bills?”

“Damon, you are obviously overreacting. I was going to tell you once I got my bearings.”

“Why didn’t you tell me yesterday when you found out?”

“Because look at how you are reacting now! I didn’t even know if you wanted kids. I had to prepare myself on raising this kid alone.”

“If it’s my kid, of course I want to be involved.”

“Ha. If it is your kid. You’re fucking unbelievable. Who else would it be, you monster?”

He retreated. “That’s not what I meant, Kara.”

I gritted my teeth. “You think Jose raped me?”

“How am I supposed to know? You won’t talk about what happened.”

“Well, Jose killed a man for touching me. He did it right in front me, Damon. Unlike Olivia out there, Jose saved me more times than I can count. Yes, he was vile and I detested him with my entire being. So, don’t come at me like you know anything. And yes, it’s fucking yours, you idiot.”

“Kara, I didn’t know anything about any of that.” He ran his hands through his hair. “I didn’t know.”

I tried my best to calm down because I knew stress was not good for the baby. “I knew the moment you knew you would start being over protective. And I don’t need that right now. I’ve barely gotten my own head around this pregnancy.”

I stormed back to my room. Damon appeared, closing the distance between us. He made sure I met his gaze. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry, Kara.”

“If you just talked to me about what happened. Do you know how much of a wreck I was when Jose took you? I was a fucking mess. I could just barely function through the day. If it hadn’t been for Matteo and a few other people, I would have died without you. Don’t you understand how much I love you?”

I’d had an inkling from what Susie told me, but I stayed silent while Damon talked. “I don’t even remember what my life was like before you. I only know after. I cannot picture a life without you in it. There’s only you, Kara. You are it for me.”

“You are it for me, too, Damon. I just have demons I’m fighting.”

“Are you still having nightmares?”

“Not as bad as before.”

“Good.”

“Jose used to make Olivia and I scrub his marble floors on our hands and knees. My knees got so sore; they were practically raw.”

“Jesus,” Damon said.

I sat at the edge of my bed and Damon sat next to me while he listened. Tears streamed down my face. “My father was there one day when Jose had us decorating one of his ball rooms. I didn’t know what was happening. But my father mentioned how well I used to play the piano.”

“You do? You never touched mine.”

“I stopped practicing because I no longer loved it like I once did. Jose said I was going to provide the entertainment. So, I played the classical music on the piano in a fancy dress he provided me. I had no choice in the matter. It was either that or he’d kill me.”

Damon rubbed his hand over my back. “I’m sorry you went through that.”

“One time, Jose told me to tell him that he owned me. I told him no one owned me. That comment resulted in me getting slapped across the face.”

“I’m glad I killed that fucker.”

“What I went through is nothing compared to Olivia. She was raped by him and is pregnant with his baby.”

“Fucking Christ, Kara.”

“I know. I didn’t know it at the time. She was being snuck away when everyone was asleep and I guess he did it more than once.”

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