Hidden Truths (Violet Chain Book 2) (3 page)

“Are you sure?” Violet asked.

“Positive, go—you’ve been through enough today,” Vince responded.

Violet hugged him. “Thank you for being here for me, Vince.”

“You’re my sister. I would do anything for you. You know that.”

She smiled then walked over to Victor, curling her arms around him, giving him a hug. He lifted her up in the air. “Be careful, Violet, if you need me, just call,” he murmured as he placed her down.

She brushed her hair from her face. “I will.”

I traveled up to Vince, giving his hand a hard shake.

“Thanks for being there for my sister, Chain, I really appreciate it,” Vince said with a big smile.

“No problem,” I responded as I released his hand.

I walked over to Victor and he turned away from me. The big brother vibe, I got it.

“Come on, Callie,” Violet called out as she walked towards her.

“Actually, Violet, I’m going to stay here. I want to help clean up so you don’t have to come back and see all this. I’m sure Vince will give me a ride back,” Callie stated as she gazed at Vince.

Vince nodded. “I will give you a ride back.”

“Great,” Callie responded.

Violet hugged Callie. “Thank you.”

“I love you, girl. Go to Chain’s and relax.”

I clutched Violet’s hand and we made our way out of the house. As we walked towards the car, Violet picked up a stray bag lying by the side of the house.

“What’s that?” I asked her.

“It’s the bag I packed to go over to your house tonight; it was the reason why I came home before I went to my parents’.”

Guilt swarmed me. This was all my fault. Had I not asked her to come over tonight, she would never have stopped at the house to grab her things, thus never running into Phillip.

“It’s not your fault, Chain,” she mumbled. Was this woman a mind reader? “Come on, I want to get out of here.” I nodded, placing my hand on the small of her back, guiding her to the car.

***

During the ride to my apartment, Violet was quiet, staring out the window. I reached for her hand, rubbing it gently. “Are you okay?”

“No, Chain, I’m not. I can’t believe Phillip did this to me.”

I pulled up to my apartment, placing the car in park, the guilt still pressing on me hard. No matter how much Violet tried to convince me differently, I still couldn’t shake that all of this was my fault.

I swiveled my body to face her. “Violet, I’m sorry. If you had never met me none of this would have happened.”

A look of concern encompassed her face. “It’s not because of you that this happened, so stop blaming yourself.”

“The only reason why he was angry was because David and I stopped talking to him.”

“Even if you and I weren’t seeing each other, this still would have happened. He attacked me at the bar, remember? And he didn’t even know about you and me then.”

“I know in my gut, part of the reason he came after you
again
, was because David and I didn’t want to have anything to do with him.”

She exhaled. “So you think because we were seeing each other he attacked me?”

I blinked hard before answering. “Yes.”

“No,” she countered.

“How can you say that, Violet? He knew about you and me.”

“When he attacked me at the bar he didn’t. I’m assuming David would still have disowned him, right, even if you and I weren’t seeing each other?”

“Oh, for sure.”

“And if David had told you about it, you would still have done the same thing too, even if we weren’t seeing each other, right?”

“Of course, I’m not going to be friends with a man who forces women to have sex against their will.”

“Exactly. Don’t you see, this still would have happened. So it’s not your fault, Chain, it’s Phillip’s.”

This woman was beyond amazing; she just went through one of the most horrific ordeals a woman could encounter and she was sitting here, trying to make me feel better.

I leaned closer to her. “I think I may be in love with you,” I whispered as I slid my index finger across her collarbone.

“You think?” she queried.

I moved till my lips were almost touching hers. “I know. I’m in love with you, Violet.” Then I pressed my lips to hers.

As I deepened the kiss, she pulled away gasping, a frightened look splashed across her face. “I’m sorry,” she said as she turned away from me, looking out the car window.

“It’s fine, Violet, I understand,” I responded. And I did, she had just had a man try to violate her, rape her against her will, her actions were normal.

Violet and I stepped out of my car simultaneously. I strolled behind her as she walked quickly to the elevator, sliding the key card into the slot.

She leaned against the elevator as it zoomed up to my apartment, staring at the wall. I could tell she was in her own world, her mind deep in thought. Most likely about what had just happened, about Phillip. Phillip, that fucking bastard! I hated him for what he had done to her so much, I found myself wishing him dead, something I had never wished upon anyone before.

We stood by the front door of my apartment and I slid my key card in and Violet ducked inside.

“Do you mind if I take a shower?” she asked as she threw her backpack on the couch.

“I don’t mind.” She walked to the bathroom and I heard the door close.

I sat on the couch waiting for her. Twenty minutes went by and I began to worry, then forty, then a full hour. I decided to check on her, so I stood up and walked to the bathroom.

I knocked on the door. “Violet, are you okay?”

I waited for her to answer, but was met by only silence. I tried the doorknob and was surprised to see it was unlocked.

I walked inside of the bathroom and saw her in the corner next to the shower, naked, curled up in a ball.

I rushed over to her, kneeling down. “Violet.”

She lifted her head and the first thing I noticed were her red-rimmed eyes, swollen, like she had been crying the whole time she had been in the bathroom. Tears were still running down her cheeks. “Why, why did he do this to me? Why me, Chain? Why me?” she asked, her voice cracking from the tears that constricted her throat.

“I don’t know why, I wish I could answer that.” God, what I wouldn’t do to have an answer that would take away her pain.

I helped her up. “How about I shower with you?” She did a half nod and I guided her over to the shower.

I reached into the shower, turning it on.

As I went to undress myself, she let out a high-pitched scream that made me jump. I turned to see her slumped on the floor, her hands circling her head frantically. “I can still feel his hands all over me.”

I felt helpless, destroyed and ruined. To watch her suffer for even one moment annihilated me inside, ripping at my heart, shattering my mind. I wanted to take it away, I wanted to make her better, make her feel safe, but how? How do you take away something that was already done?

I reached down and scooped her into my arms, carrying her into the shower. She was sobbing so hard, tears welled up in my eyes as her pained engulfed me. I placed her on her feet, grabbing a bar of soap and sliding it across her shoulders and back frantically. “I’m going to wash him away, baby, I’m going to wash him away.”

I washed her from head to toe and it seemed to relax her; her sobbing ceased. I turned off the shower and grabbed two towels from the rack, wrapping one around my waist and the other around her. I scooped her out of the shower and carried her to the bed. I laid her down and went to stand when she grabbed my arm. “Please don’t leave me.” I could see the fear and pain in her eyes.

I lay next to her and pulled her to my chest. “I will never leave you, ever.” And I meant every word.

Chapter 1.5 – Violet

Phillip ended up spending only a few days in jail. His high-paid attorney was able to get him bonded and after three months of fighting in court, the judge allowed him to take a plea to avoid further prosecution.

Chain was livid when the judge made the announcement and started yelling out obscenities. The judge seemed very patient with Chain’s outbursts, until he attacked him personally, accusing him of receiving his law degree from a Cracker Jack box.  When the judge threatened to throw Chain in jail, my brothers and David forcibly dragged him out of the courtroom, leaving me to hear the finalities alone with my parents.

Overall, Phillip received only probation, where I received a lifetime sentence. I felt cheated, the punishment a slap on the wrist compared to what I had been through and was still enduring. The only positive thing that came out of it was that he now had a permanent record and had to register as a sex offender wherever he went. It made me feel a little bit better to know that at least another woman would never have to suffer the fate I had been handed. But unfortunately, it still wasn’t enough to wash away the insecurity that haunted me every second I breathed.

Phillip’s father was embarrassed by what he had done and thought it was in his best interest to move from Philadelphia. I wasn’t sure if his father was doing it for Phillip or to save his own reputation from the gossip that flooded the town after Phillip was arrested. Whatever the reason, I felt his father made the right decision in sending him away. Between my brothers and Chain I honestly believed that Phillip would have ended up missing or found in a dumpster somewhere had he stayed.

My father had put me on temporary disability from work after the incident with Phillip, wanting me to relax and see a therapist.  My mother fussed over me like I was a baby, constantly coming over and bringing me food and checking to make sure I was okay. Chain was very back-offish when it came to my parents, always making sure he was gone before they arrived. Although his reaction to my parents was strange, I chalked it up to him not having parents and not knowing how to deal with mine. Let’s face it, parents could really be a pain in the butt when they wanted to, always bossing you around and trying to interfere with your life.

Chain and I never spent a night apart after the Phillip incident. We took turns going back and forth from his place to mine. Maybe it was selfish of me to make Chain agree to the strange arrangement, but he was the only person who comforted me, who I trusted, who made me feel safe.

I was folding laundry when my cell rang and I picked it up from the counter. Callie’s number flashed across the caller ID and I shook my head.

I had been calling Callie’s cell for three days without an answer, getting her voicemail, which was unusual, as she always took my calls, even when she was ill. I called David and it was to no avail. He didn’t answer either which gave me a clear indication that wherever they had disappeared to, they were together. I attempted to fish information out of Chain—surely he would know David’s whereabouts, he was after all his employer—but all he said was that David had requested a few days off via email. When I tried to press Chain for more information, he threw his hands up and said, ‘David works very hard and when he needs time off I never question it.’ What kind of damn answer was that?

After calling Callie’s house a zillion times and pleading desperately with Chain to call David, he finally caved in and did it. Unfortunately, it didn’t get me any further in my quest to locate Callie, as Chain was met with the same irritating response, David’s voicemail.

I snatched my cell up and answered. “Callie, where the hell have you been?”

“David and I wanted to have you two over for dinner tonight.” Did she just bypass my question?

“Callie, seriously, where have you and David been? Chain and I were ready to call out the National Guard to find you two!” That was a slight exaggeration, but I was getting to the point where I was thinking of calling her mother and if you know Callie’s mother like I did, she most definitely would have called the National Guard, had she known Callie was missing.

“Relax, Violet, David and I are fine. So do you two want to come over for dinner tonight?” Why was she not answering my question?

I grunted. “You’re not going to tell me where you have been, are you?”

She paused before saying, “I will tell you, when you come over for dinner.”

I pouted at her words. “Why are you being so secretive?”

“I’m not, I just want you to come over for dinner, I miss you, girl.” It was obvious she was staying close-mouthed and the only way I was going to find out anything was if I went over there.

I exhaled impatiently. “Fine. What time?”

“Sixish.”

“Okay, I’ll be there.”

“Alright, Violet, see you then.” I hung up my cell and placed it on the washer and commenced to finish up my folding, still upset with Callie. We had been friends for years and not once had she ever kept a secret from me. And even though it wasn’t a big deal to her, it sure was to me. How would she feel if I kept secrets from her? I could answer that, she would be just like me, mad and annoyed.