“You aren’t the same, you are someone new,” Trent points out. “This is your chance at a new life, powered by your past. Your parents and brother would never want you to punish yourself. I think it’s noble you’re planning on stopping this someday. You’re smart and strong enough, that’s for sure. Now, you get to enjoy the rest of school worry free, with your adoptive mom, your girlfriend and boyfriends, and best friends. For the first time in years, Charlie... you get to just enjoy life. Moving on and living is not equivalent to forgetting.”
Trent surprises me with his speech. He's funny and outgoing, but sometimes you get a glimpse of the more serious and sensitive person underneath. I'm sad that he chose to take a different path with his relationship, but I don't hold it against him. He's happy with his new girl, and I'm more than happy with my relationships.
“So, movie night?” I suggest, ready to move on from the heavy topic. The debate starts back up like everything is normal. I finish my cocoa and work on using words out loud more. I'm ready to move on and heal, and I know speaking out loud is part of it. I don’t need the shield of silence and numbness I've lived behind for these three and a half years. And they don’t shy away from my voice, just accepting it as who I am.
Later that night, Cole and I are face to face, lying in bed. He kisses me gently and wraps his arm around my waist.
“I’ll hold you, babe. Also, I like your raspy voice, it’s sexy. Now sleep,” he whispers. I giggle at his comment but close my eyes.
As I'm lying in his arms, I think over Trent’s words. He's right. It isn’t wrong to move on. Hearing someone else say it makes it so different. Though I need time to get to that mindset. It's time to repair my broken soul and put it back together. It won’t be that hard now that I have a family who cares and friends who want to help me live. For the first time in a long time, I fall asleep fully relaxed and with a smile on my face.
Despite falling right to sleep, I wake up a few hours later and sleep is the farthest thing from my mind as memories flood my mind. Apparently rehashing everything had done more to my subconscious than I thought.
A girl can only stare at the wood paneled ceiling for so long, so I crawl out of Cole’s embrace and tiptoe from the room, shutting the door quietly behind me.
The lodge is silent and dim, the only light from nightlights they’d installed throughout. I let them lead me down to the kitchen. If I can make any guesses about the type of person Maria is, then I’d say she has cocoa mix somewhere in the huge kitchen. Or I can even settle for tea, just something to do with myself.
As I rummage through the cabinets, a voice calls out, making me drop the can of cocoa with a clang.
“Hey… shit, sorry,” Abby hisses, hurrying over. Thankfully it fell upright so the mess is minimal.
“Did I wake you?” I rasp, instantly regretting it. That will take a lot more work before it’s comfortable.
“No, I was already struggling to sleep then I saw you sneak out. Figured you might want some company. Did all that talking give you nightmares?” She starts opening and closing cabinets, grabbing two mugs down when she finds them and turning back to me. I rock my hand side to side to show that it wasn’t too bad. If I’d actually gotten real sleep it likely would have, though.
We work silently, side by side as I put some milk on to boil and she spoons the cocoa into our mugs. Not wanting it to get too hot, I stir lazily as it heats, Abby coming behind me and wrapping her arms around my middle, holding me close.
“I’m so glad I have you, Sweets,” she says softly, placing a kiss on the back of my neck. I relax back into it until time to turn off the stove. She backs off for a second while I pour the milk and we get our mugs ready and head for the dining room. Before she can sit, I tap her shoulder so she turns my way, then pull her into a kiss. My hands move to the back of her neck and her hip, holding her close to me as I give her everything I have, our tongues dancing together. My body reacts, but it’s hardly the time, so I slow down the kiss. Even if we haven’t had the chance to move our relationship further yet, the moments like these are enough for me. They’re giving me time to heal and that means more to me than anyone could fathom.
“Wow,” she whispers as our foreheads rest against each other and we catch our breath.
“A cocoa party, without me?” Adam’s sleepy voice is raspy as he joins us, a half smirk on his face as he flops down in the chair next to me. We don’t bother to jump apart, at this point I’m getting used to the idea of our relationship being open like it is. “Or should I have walked away since you two were kissing. What’s the rule on that stuff?”
“Oh my god, Adam,” Abby snorts, but turns toward the kitchen. “I’ll get you some cocoa.”
As soon as she walks away he turns to me. “You doing okay?” His frown deepens when I just shrug. The question is never an easy one for me to answer.
He grabs the notebook from the middle of the table and slides it over to me just in case. His hand finds mine as Abby walks back out with a new mug in hand.
“I have a feeling that things are only going to get easier for all of us from here. Charlie has her adoption, we are all open with our relationship, and other than the odd meeting the parents moments ahead, we’ve got this.”
“Even school won’t be bad, we haven’t kept it a secret and honestly, none of us care if they don’t like it. We do have this,” Adam agrees, taking a sip of his drink.
And the strange part is, even with a trial ahead of me, for the first time in my life since the tragedy, I truly believe it.
Today is the day of the first trial in a long list of trials. When they found the boss, I was called in as a witness. After his trial ends, they'll schedule Timmins’ trial. I'm mentally preparing myself to face the people that had nearly killed me. But I know they need to be locked away for the things they've done with absolutely no remorse. That's the part I can’t wrap my head around.
The rescue had managed to free two hundred and thirty victims. The agents worked tirelessly trying to find them a safe place to heal. Maria and Robert actually talked about opening a group home for the teenage survivors, where they could receive medical care and therapy. The victims deserve a new chance at life, and I'm touched that they'd give up their current practice to do it. Unfortunately, some have physical damage to their bodies that may not be able to be repaired, which means they'll need lifelong care.
The investigation into the offices didn’t yield fantastic results. The computers had a mass virus sweep through that wiped all of their data before the police could finish investigating. They managed to track down the boss, who I now know is Edward Parker. He had disappeared from the office, but they found him hiding out in a hotel room. The arrogant bastard actually thought it would blow over and he could move the facility.
I make my way through the long hallways of the courthouse with Sophia and Abby by my side. She didn’t think it would be appropriate to bring my whole group of friends, though I’m a bit surprised they didn’t just show up on their own. Abby had to argue with Adam and Cole for hours to finally be the one to come. But my girl doesn’t take no for an answer.
“Are you Charlotte?” The voice is soft and quiet, but I hear her anyway. I turn and face a small, teenage girl. She can’t be over seventeen. She has haunted but fierce eyes that I recognize. I'd seen the same look in my mirror for years. I nod, confused. She makes me yelp as she crashes into me with a tight hug.
“You are the reason we aren’t still there. You saved us all. I'd been there for four years, hope wasn’t something I gave thought to anymore. Yet, here I am. It’s because of you. Thank you,” she says, pulling away and looking at me as tears cascade down her hollow cheeks. “I’m Willow, by the way. Thanks again.
”