Burn in Hail(17)

The time that she'd broken up with me while I was a month into deployment. I guess at least she hadn't cheated on me, precisely.

"Gross."

At that, she burst out laughing.

"That about sums it up. Walked in to find the two of them on our couch.  That was the day I decided that college out of town was going to be good  for me." She shrugged.

"And it was," I told her. "You were a scared little mouse when I used  to watch you when you were younger. When I first found out that I was  going to have to see you for my anger management, I gotta admit … I was a  little worried. But it turns out that you've really grown into your  skin. It makes me happy that you've not fallen into that same ol' same  ol' once you got back."

"My father was … my father." She shrugged.

I could also tell that she was uncomfortable with the subject, but then she surprised me.

She grinned, and was about to say something more when a truck pulled into the parking lot.

It as a familiar truck.

Bright red, flashy, with polished chrome wheels that screamed ‘clean.'

Speaking of the devil.

Reverend Hanes stepped out of the truck, his eyes locked on his daughter … and me.

He missed nothing.

Our closeness, nor our smiling faces-at least until he'd pulled in.

His eyes were on my arm that was running along the back of the bench, my  fingers playing with a small strand of her hair that was near my hand.

"You've not been stupid, have you Henny?" the pastor asked carefully.

I wanted to smack him as I let the strand of hair I was playing with go.

I hated this man. I'd always hated him.

I hated the way he looked at my mother like she was a lowly piece of  trash, and then used her when he needed something to fill the void his  wife had left.

I hated when he looked at me like I was no good for his daughter, as if he knew my inner thoughts and didn't agree with them.

Mostly, though, I hated the way he'd treated his daughter.

I didn't think she was abused physically-at least nothing more than any  other child, but emotionally was a completely different story.

And the hate in his eyes right now? Yeah, that was directed wholly at me.

"I've done nothing wrong, Father." Hennessy stood up and bent down to reach for her empty cup.

My eyes automatically went to her ass, and when they returned to the man in front of me, I nearly winced.

Yeah, he'd caught me checking out his daughter's ass.

My bad.

"Little late for you to be eating lunch, isn't it?" he asked. "I thought  you had appointments all day? That is what you told me about an hour  ago when I checked in to see if we were still on schedule."

Hennessy sighed and threw her cup into a high arc, making it barely into the trash.

"I did have appointments," she confirmed. "One canceled last minute,  though, leaving me with a half hour of free time. I do have to be  getting back, unfortunately."

With that, she left, and didn't look back.

Her father waited until she was all the way onto the highway before he turned to me.

"You don't go there." He pointed his finger.

I wanted to laugh.

The man should know that he couldn't tell me I couldn't do something.

He had, after all, told me that I'd never amount to anything. That I  would be a loser for the rest of my life living off of my momma's pussy.

Yes, those were his words, in case you were wondering.

But I had made something of myself. I had gone into the Marines. I had built myself a life I'd been proud of.

And even if I'd been to prison, I wasn't upset about that.

Going to prison was worth it if I got to see a fifteen-year-old girl smile after what she'd been put through.

"We'll see," I said and walked to my truck without looking back. "We'll see."





Chapter 12


My ‘give a fuck' is still broken. However, my ‘go fuck yourself' is still highly functional.

-Text from Tate to Hennessy

Hennessy

"I know you committed the ultimate sin."

The snarled voice had me opening my eyes a split second before I was  dragged out of my bed by my hair, wrenched upward, and shaken.

"Stop!" I cried out, knowing who it was without opening my eyes.

"Tell me you didn't."

I couldn't tell him. Because I did it.

I knew what he was asking.

Did I have sex.

Yes, I had.

I wasn't a good liar. All my times being beaten when I was younger attested to that.         

     



 

I couldn't lie for shit, and my father had excellent lie detection.

"I don't know what you're talking about," I cried.

My head was on fire where he was holding me up, and I knew better than  to struggle, though everything inside of me was demanding that I should.

"You know what I'm talking about, little girl," he growled.

Then a sharp pain burst over my face, making me cry out involuntarily.

"I have to go to work tomorrow," I cried out, feeling the pain of his slap on my cheek. "People will see."

"You'll cover it like you did all the rest," he growled. "Now, stand up."

I found my feet, and knew what was coming next.

The slice of the blade through my hair, the way I could feel his cold fury over my back.

"You're lucky I don't take it all like I did when you were younger."

I was, I supposed.

Still, it hurt to know that all the work that I'd put into growing it  out, and nurturing it over the last four years, was all gone.

By the time he was done, my hair was hacked off at my shoulders, leaving me to stare at the floor in defeat.

I should've fought back.

I should've done something!

But then I remembered the last time I tried to ‘do something.'

It hadn't worked out then, and wouldn't have worked out now.

As I heard the door slam, I dropped to my knees and started to cry.

Only later did I stand up, get dressed for work, and go into the office over two hours early.

If I was in that house one more single second, then I'd literally scream.



Hours later, as I looked up at the sound of the outer office door opening, I saw Tate opening the door.

He was looking down at his phone, his fingers typing out a message with one hand, while the other pulled on the knob.

I took a deep breath, ran my hands down my hair, and immediately winced.

Yeah, today I didn't look like the Hennessy I'd been hoping to turn  into. Today I looked like that old, scared girl that used to hide in the  corners with the shadows every time my father pulled one of his many  stunts.

My neck was freakin' cold.

And my eyes were starting to sting.

Stop it, Hennessy! This isn't helping matters!

My inner torment went unnoticed to the man as he stepped into the room, still on his phone.

"Morning, darlin'," he said. "Give me just one more minute. Gotta figure  out this map where I'm supposed to pick up a car in an hour, bothering  the shit out of me."

"Okay," I replied as I leaned forward, grabbing my cup and taking another sip of coffee.

Thank God, I had a coffee maker at the office. Otherwise, I'd be lost right about now.

Coffee was my only addiction. My one vice that I overindulged in, and probably shouldn't.

I had a heart condition. One that caused my heart to skip beats, and  beat irregularly the rest of the time. It was suggested to me to stop  drinking anything with caffeine in it entirely. Oh, and give up  chocolate.

Neither one of those had happened as of yet, and I am still ticking!

"Done."

I looked up to find him staring at me oddly.

I knew that he was going to ask the moment he walked in the door.

"Hennessy," he hesitated. "What's going on with … "

He gestured toward my head, and I grimaced.

I shrugged. "I haven't been able to get to the beauty salon yet today."

That wasn't a good answer. I knew it.

What I also knew was that he likely wouldn't stand for it.

I had to come up with a plausible lie. One that slid out of my mouth easily.

I could …

Tate walked up to me and cradled my head. His breath was on my face, and  I couldn't make my mind form cohesive thoughts between one breath and  the next.

All because I could smell him. And he was touching me.

"Try again," he ordered. "This time tell me what happened."

I tried to think. Tried to make my brain formulate a response that wouldn't piss him off.

But I couldn't.

"My … dad."

He frowned.

"Your dad?"

I nodded.

"What about your dad?" he asked. "Did he spit some gum in it?"

He was joking.

Oh, God.

That smile was about to be wiped straight off his face, and he was going to be one pissed off alpha male.

Then a horrid thought occurred to me, and I had to rethink my strategy. Not even his closeness could stop me now.

"Will you promise me something?"

He pursed his lips.

"Is this promise going to mean that you won't tell me if I don't promise?"

I nodded.

I didn't want him going to jail again because of me.

"Okay, hit me with it."

I worried my lip for a half a second, then shrugged, deciding to hell with it.         

     



 

"Promise me that when you hear what I have to tell you, that you'll not do anything stupid."

He studied my face with humor filled eyes.

"Define stupid," he ordered.

I contemplated what ‘stupid' was for a few moments, then nodded.