Broken Dreams(148)

“I’ll clean it up.”

“I will help you.”

“No. I need to do this.”

Claire cleared her throat. “If you don’t mind, I’m going to go lay down for a little while. Nick, can I lay down in your room?” she sounded somber. She had her own room but, apparently, she needed to use Nick’s.

“Yes, yes, of course.” Nick sounded a little shocked, but excited. “Is it okay if I come up and speak with you for a minute?”

Claire smiled. “Yes. That would be nice.” I watched their exchange, and smiled.

I looked over at Sophie. She was twisting her long, bleach blonde hair in her fingers, staring off into space. I don’t always have the best timing, but it was burning me up on the inside. “Why didn’t you tell us you have kids?”

“Elaina, don’t. Not now.” I don’t think Henry wanted to hear anymore of anything. I am sure his brain was in melt down mode.

“Now is as good a time as any.”

“Don’t push it. It’s a long story. I didn’t know until she showed me a picture back at our flat.”

“It’s quite alright, Henry. I really should talk about what happened. It may help me deal with it.” Sophie looked over to me. “Henry used to protect me when he was at the complex. He saw Roger looking at me one day. From that point on, he was my guardian. I ended up falling in love with him.” Henry shifted in his chair, looking very uncomfortable. He decided to get up and start cleaning up the mess in the living room.

“Shortly after he left, Roger called me to his office. He overpowered me, raped me, and sent me on my way. The whole time his disgusting arse was pounding into me, he kept asking where Henry was. I laid there like a board, hoping it would end sooner rather than later.” Sophie had a difficult time holding back her emotions. “When I arrived back in my room, I wept for hours. Every night, he would visit and claim me. Some nights he was more brutal than others.” I heard Henry’s sharp intake of breath. I felt like he still had some unresolved feelings for her. Her story upset him tremendously.

“If I refused my blood vials, I would be beaten into submission, then raped again and again.” She took a deep breath. She was fighting her tears. “Sometimes Roger would allow Kellan to have me when he was done. A reward for a good beating, I suppose.” The tears began to fall down my face.

“While Henry was here in the States, I ended up having two babies. A boy, Samuel, and a girl, Anna.” She pulled a tiny picture out of her bra and handed it to me. “When I got the call that I needed to bring Henry home, I didn’t hesitate for one second. I knew that if I could get him back to the complex, he would protect me again and it would all stop. But he refused to leave you. He loves you so much, Elaina.” She took my hands in hers.

“Do not take him for granted. He never loved me the way he does you. The night you kicked him out of his room and gave him that back,” she pointed at the ring, “he was absolutely devastated. I have never seen him that defeated before…until today.” She leaned in close and whispered, “He feels he’s nothing without you. He feels he isn’t worthy of anyone’s love.” I hung my head in shame, feeling like a complete ass.

I peeked over at Henry. He was sitting on the couch with his face in his hands. I could see the tears running between his fingers. He pulled his hands away, and when he spoke, he was full of sorrow and regret. “I should have taken you with me. I am so sorry I let all of that happen to you.”

“Henry, it’s not your fault that happened…or what has happened now.” Sophie got up and sat down next to him. She took his hands in hers. “Do not blame yourself. I’ve come to the conclusion that they would have eventually gotten rid of you somehow.”

“I thought you would be okay, and that another recruit would stand up for you in place of me.” He was beating himself up. It was a terrible thing to watch. I decided to go sit with him, as well. I started running my fingers through his hair, trying to comfort him in any way that I could. When he looked over at me, his beautiful eyes were full of guilt.

“Don’t do this to yourself. You cannot rest other’s actions on your shoulders.” He nodded at me and I wiped his face with my fingers. I leaned in and kissed him on the cheek. “You were so noble and strong, doing what you did for her. You risked your own life to defend hers.”

Sophie agreed. “Yes, he did. Thank you, Henry. You did all you could do for me.” She smiled at him. “Please, forgive yourself. I forgave myself ages ago. I used to think it was my fault, but I now know it was just a power hungry, disgusting animal who just wanted to assert more dominance over the ones he broke.”