Beautifully Broken (The Broken Series Book 2) (35 page)

“Who’s
we?” Kadyn demanded. “You said
we
would be flying in.”

“Rafael.
Michael’s brother. He was my bodyguard… and my friend,” I choked out. I was no
longer certain who Rafael was to me. “He’s already gone back to Paris.”

Storm
clouds swirled through Kadyn’s dark eyes. “Did he hurt you?”

I
opened my mouth to speak, but my jaw snapped back shut. I couldn’t answer the
question. Michael had never hit me, and yet… I was in excruciating pain.

“Kristine,”
Kadyn warned in a low, rumbling tone. “Why do you look like that?”

“Like
what?” I asked, honestly thrown by the question.

His
voice rose. “Wrecked, Kristine… and emaciated. My God, what did he do to you?”

Lexie
was suddenly in Kadyn’s face. “Stop it, Kadyn. Don’t you dare talk to my cousin
like that. She’s been through hell. She doesn’t need you to browbeat her on top
of everything else.”

I
looked down and tried to see what Kadyn was seeing. The blanket had slipped off
my shoulders. I studied my arms and hands curiously. They didn’t even look like
they belonged to me. “It’s not what you think,” I said. “He didn’t hurt me,
physically. He wasn’t starving me for God’s sake. I was sick. I was sick, and I
couldn’t keep anything down. I ended up in the hospital…” My voice trailed off
as images of the fountain and the attacker robbed me of all remaining thoughts.

Lexie
knelt in front of me. “Kri, look at me. You don’t have to do this right now.
Take a few more days to recover, then talk to Kadyn. You can talk after he’s
calmed down, when things aren’t so raw for you. Please, honey. I’m afraid you
might end up back in the hospital. You aren’t ready to do this.”

My
gaze shifted from Lexie to Kadyn.

Kadyn’s
face grew determined as he stood his ground. “I have been looking for you for
six months, Kristine. I deserve an explanation.”

I
looked back down at Lexie.

She
closed her eyes and settled on her knees in front of me. When she opened her
eyes, she encouraged me to focus on her. “Just look at me,” she whispered.
“Just say it like you said it to me. It’s just you and me, Kri.”

A
single tear slid down my cheek. I nodded as Lexie reached for my hands. I fixed
my eyes on hers and took a deep breath. “Michael turned some investors and a
terrorist group over to the Portuguese government when he discovered the firm
he was working for was laundering and investing their money. The terrorists
lost billions when the government froze their accounts. Two general partners
escaped prosecution. One of them tried to drown me a few weeks ago. That’s how
I ended up in the hospital.”

My
entire body began to tremble. Lexie strengthened her hold on my hands. She
nodded, encouraging me to continue. “Jean, a different bodyguard, was assigned
to me that day. He nearly died trying to save me. When Michael and Rafael
returned home, the man was strangling me. He had me pinned beneath the water in
the fountain.” I pulled my hand from Lexie’s and felt my neck. I could still
feel the painful bruises he had left behind.

I
closed my eyes as I folded in on myself. “I’ll never forget his face. It was so
twisted in hate…” I trailed off as I waited for my head to clear. I slowly
opened my eyes. “Rafael broke the man’s neck when he pulled him off me. Michael
and Rafael forced the water from my lungs and performed CPR until I was
breathing again. I woke up in the hospital a few days later.”

I
swiped at the tears that had moistened my face. I looked into Lexie’s blue eyes
but saw Michael’s brown instead. My voice was barely a whisper. “I was pregnant...
with a girl. Michael named her Genevieve. She died when I was attacked. Michael
was devastated. He put a new sculpture up...” I sobbed as I clutched my stomach.
“It was Genevieve. She was watering the flowers and playing with a butterfly in
the middle of the fountain.”

I
rocked gently. “I wanted that baby. I wanted to stay, but Michael sent me away.
He said he couldn’t keep me safe. He said they’d come for him and kill me.
They’re going to kill him, and I didn’t even get to say goodbye.” I collapsed
in Lexie’s arms as I burst into tears.

I
never saw Kadyn walk away.

*
* * * * *

Lexie
told me she found Kadyn crying in their driveway, shortly after she gave me a
sleeping pill and settled me in bed. She asked Kadyn to come back inside the
house and offered him the guest room, but he told her he needed time to process
everything. He was feeling betrayed by the fact that I chose to stay with
Michael, that I agreed to marry him, and had been pregnant with his child. I
don’t think Lexie was supposed to tell me that part, but she did.

Lexie
managed to convince Kadyn to come over for Thanksgiving dinner, despite the
uncertainty surrounding our relationship. She hadn’t been planning to host
Thanksgiving dinner, since she’d been planning to spend the holiday with me in Paris;
but by the time I crawled out of bed the next morning, Lexie had already been
grocery shopping, and Nate was putting a twenty-five pound turkey in the oven.

Lexie’s
parents and sisters arrived in town midmorning. Thankfully, Lexie had already told
them about what happened to me so I wouldn’t have to repeat the story. Everyone
politely avoided the topic, although we still found ourselves in tears when
they hugged me and welcomed me home.

Lexie
corralled all the women into the kitchen, and suddenly there was a flurry of
activity. My Aunt Linda diced onions and celery for the dressing while my
cousin, Corina, cranked out homemade rolls. My cousin, Tiffany, pulled together
the sweet potatoes while I made mashed potatoes. Lexie threw together a green
bean casserole and then darted back and forth between the kitchen and dining
room while she set the table. Annie wove between our legs and happily served as
honorary taste tester. With all the knives and glass flying around, it was a
wonder any of us survived the morning without injury.

My
parents showed up with pumpkin and apple pies in hand shortly after noon. There
was a brief lull in the kitchen activities while we exchanged tears and hugs.
My aunt and cousins slipped silently from the room so I could speak with my
parents alone. Although it was the third time I had relayed what happened in
Paris, I didn’t find it any easier to relive. My parents handled the news much better
than I anticipated. I suspected, as parents, they could endure just about anything
as long as I was alive and in their arms.

Kadyn
arrived at three o’clock. I hung back and watched as my mother and father hugged
him long and hard. I could see that my disappearance had strengthened the bond between
them. Kadyn had only been around my parents twice before… when Lexie was
rejecting her transplanted kidney and shortly after Kadyn rescued me in Trout
Lake. Given the seriousness of those events and my recent kidnapping, it
shouldn’t have surprised me that Kadyn had become a member of my family, but it
did. Nate, my aunt, uncle, and cousins hugged and welcomed Kadyn, drawing him
further into the room.

I
was the last one to stand before him. I was too scared to reach for a hug. I
doubted Kadyn wanted me touching him after what he had learned yesterday. Finally,
I gathered enough courage to look him in the eyes. “Thank you for coming,
Kadyn. I’m glad you’re here.”

Kadyn
didn’t say anything. He just reached for my hand and pulled me in for a hug. My
shoulders tensed as I fought back tears, but Kadyn held me until I relaxed into
his arms.

Lexie
joined us just as we were stepping back from one another. “Nate’s carving the
turkey. Can I get you something to drink, Kadyn?”

Kadyn
offered the faintest of smiles. “I’ll take a Sprite if you have it.”

“We
have root beer and cream soda,” she offered apologetically.

He
shoved his hands in his pockets. “Cream soda sounds great. Thanks.”

I
stood there awkwardly while Lexie retrieved the soda.

My
aunt walked up and draped her arm around Kadyn’s shoulders. “Did I ever tell
you about the time Kri and Lexie broke open two cases of soda in the middle of
the night? They were four years old and couldn’t read the labels on the cans,
so they popped open and sampled every single can until they found the cream
soda. Chuck and I were lying in bed trying to figure out why we kept hearing
pop-shhhh, pop-shhhh, pop-shhhh.”

Everyone
laughed at my aunt’s rendition of the soda cans popping open. My uncle shook
his head as he finished the story. “I found them hiding in the closet drinking the
cream soda and eating cold hotdogs.”

“You
took our hotdogs, and we didn’t even get to finish the cream soda,” Lexie grumbled
accusingly. She handed Kadyn a bottle of cream soda.

“Turkey’s
carved. Let’s eat!” Nate hollered from the dining room.

Whether
by mistake or chance, Kadyn and I ended up sitting together.

Nate
asked my dad to lead us in prayer, and we all bowed our heads. “Dear heavenly Father,
we thank you for this day, for bringing our family together, and for bringing
Krissy safely home. We thank you for sacrificing your son for the forgiveness
of our sins, for being our rock in the storm, for your patience with us, for
your guidance and understanding, and for your love. We ask that you bless this
food that we are about to receive and the hands that so lovingly prepared it.
In Jesus’ name we pray.”

“Amen,”
we ended as one.

Chaos
broke out as everyone began dishing up. A number of conversations sparked at
once. I tried to follow the dialogue while we ate, but there were so many side
bar discussions that I eventually gave up. Watching everyone around the table
made me feel both happy and sad. Happy because I loved everyone so much and because
it felt good to be with my family again. Sad because I couldn’t see a place for
Michael here. If he reconsidered his decision to send me away, I would still
want a future with him, and it pained me to think that he wouldn’t be accepted
into my family.

I
could feel Kadyn’s eyes on me as I picked at my food and swallowed back tears.

“Will
you stay in Montana, Krissy?” Corina asked from across the table.

I
shrugged. “I don’t know. I need to go back to DC to take care of a few things.
My Senate fellowship is over, but I want to thank Senator Rockefeller and say
goodbye to my friends on the Hill.” I glanced nervously at Kadyn. “I don’t know
if my other friends will want to see me, given all that’s happened.”

“What
about law school? You could finally get your law degree and come work for me,”
Nate encouraged gently.

I
set my fork down. “I was considering law school back in March, but I found a graduate
program at the Institute for Conflict Analysis and Resolution that I applied
for instead. I don’t even know if I was accepted.”

Kadyn
cleared his throat. “You were accepted, but you’ve already missed most of the
first semester.”

I
looked down at my plate. “Honestly, I don’t know what my options are at this
point. I don’t even have a place to live.”

“I
kept your apartment, Kri. All of your things are still there,” Kadyn noted
softly.

I
looked up in surprise and was immediately flooded with guilt. “I’m so sorry,
Kadyn. I didn’t know. I’ll pay you back the rent and all of the other
expenses.”

He
shrugged. “I needed some space. Gabi has practically moved in with Mason, and I
felt more comfortable at your place.”

My
family slowly trickled out of the dining room so Kadyn and I could talk. I
continued the conversation once everyone left the room. “I still want to repay
you, Kadyn. That apartment was my responsibility. If you want to keep it, you
can. I’ll pack my things when I come, so you can move the rest of your things
in there.”

Kadyn
changed the topic. “You know your friends want to see you, Kri. They would be
hurt if you avoided them.”

I
sighed. “They’re
your
friends, Kadyn; and I’ve hurt you. They won’t want
anything to do with me.”

Kadyn
shook his head. “They’re
our
friends. They moved mountains to get you
back, Kri; and they’ll still be there for you when you come back.”

“But
not you,” I whispered.

Kadyn
stood. “Can we finish this conversation outside?”

I
stood, but I kept my eyes cast down. “Of course. Do you want to say goodbye to
everyone first?”

Kadyn
nodded. Then he disappeared into the living room.

I
walked out to the foyer and slipped my mom’s boots and coat on. Kadyn met me at
the door. We trudged silently through the snow as we made our way to his rental
car. Kadyn opened the door and pulled my purse out. “I thought you might need
this… it has your ID, your wallet, and your cell phone.”

I
took the purse and set it on the back of my dad’s car, which was parked directly
in front of Kadyn’s. Tears pooled in my eyes when I turned back around and saw
Kadyn. He was leaning against the front fender of his car with his arms
crossed. I wasn’t surprised he had assumed this posture. He had every right to
be mad.

I
forced myself to look him in the eyes when I spoke. “Kadyn, I’m so sorry. I
never meant to hurt you. I know it took a lot for you to come back here today,
and I understand if you don’t want to see me again. I want to thank you for
everything, Kadyn… for your kindness, your love, and for your determination to
carve out some happiness in my life. Thank you for helping my family through
this and for everything you did to find me.”