Jayded (40 page)

I can
’
t squeeze her hard enough. I want to make this all go away for her. I should have protected her somehow. Her father just sat there, so calm and collected. He must have known she was going to react like this. She hasn
’
t talked to him since he left them. What makes him think she would want to talk to him in front of a room full of strangers?

She finally stops sobbing, but she
’
s still trembling like a cold, wet puppy. We pull up to the house, and I lead her in. Kinsey takes her upstairs and helps her get out of her clothes so she can lie down. Now I
’
m the one shaking. Those five minutes keep running through my head over and over. I can
’
t stop pacing; the rage is building up. I couldn
’
t even protect her. How am I any good for her?

Kinsey comes downstairs after calming Max down.
“
How is she doing?
”

She sighs and sits down on the barstool.
“
She
’
s a mess. I can
’
t believe Luke did that to her. That
’
s just not like him,
”
she says, shaking her head.

I sit down next to her.
“
Kinsey, she told me about the affair and her father leaving, but after what I witnessed tonight, there has to be more to the story.
”

“
Yes, there is. But if I tell you, you have to promise not to repeat it.
”

I hold three fingers up.
“
Scout
’
s honor.
”

“
Dennis used to drink a lot. When he was home, he was drinking. Max
’
s mother was never around. She was always shopping, out to eat, on girl trips
—
things like that. So, she was oblivious to what was happening. Not like she would have done anything anyways. When he was drinking, he liked to get physical.
”

My hands squeeze into fists.
“
Please don
’
t tell me he touched her.
”

She shakes her head, and I exhale loudly.
“
He would have if it wasn
’
t for Luke. Luke took the brunt of the beatings so Justin and Max didn
’
t have to. They sat there helpless while he pounded on Luke.
”

“
Shit. That fucking bastard. How the hell can Luke stand to be around him?
”

“
Dennis has been sober for over ten years now. They
’
ve made amends. Luke thinks it will be good for Max if she does too,
”
Kinsey explains.

I get up to grab a glass of cold water.
“
Yeah, he might be right, but it should be on her own terms, not theirs!
”

Kinsey holds her finger in front of her mouth, warning me to quiet down.
“
I know. That
’
s why I don
’
t understand what he was thinking. He
’
s always so protective of her. He did look a little caught off-guard when Dennis walked in, but still. Luke should have told him to leave.
”

I lean my hands against the counter.
“
I wish I would have known. I should have done something more,
”
I confess, beating myself up.
“
This has to be the reason why she always seems to be running. She
’
s afraid to get close to anyone, and now I see why.
”

“
Kyle, there was nothing you could have done. I tried stopping her, and she wouldn
’
t listen. And she doesn
’
t get close to people, because she doesn
’
t want to feel disappointment and hurt. The farther away she is, the easier it is to let go. She needs you now more than ever. Don
’
t disappoint her. Go upstairs and be with her. I
’
ll come by in the morning,
”
she directs.

I walk her out.
“
Okay, thanks Kinsey.
”

She turns to me before leaving.
“
I
’
m glad she has you.
”

I turn off all the lights and head upstairs. Max is still awake. I take my shirt and pants off and slide into bed with her, bringing her close to me.
“
I
’
m so sorry this happened, baby. I wish I could have done something to stop it,
”
I tell her. I kiss her forehead; she squeezes me tighter.

“
Kyle, there was nothing you could do. Thank you for being here for me, though. I must have looked like a crazy person to everyone else. Do you think I
’
m crazy?
”
she asks. She looks broken and defeated; a look I
’
ve never seen on her before. I hate her father for doing this to her. I don
’
t care how many years sober he is. He
’
s a coward for treating his kids like that in the first place.

I think she
’
s amazing to be able to come up from a childhood like that and be so successful and unbelievably strong. I admire her. In my eyes, she
’
s one of the strongest people I know.

“
Of course I don
’
t think you
’
re crazy. Your brother should have known better than to put you in that situation. You were caught off-guard. That doesn
’
t make you weak or crazy. It makes you human, Max,
”
I express to her truthfully.

“
That
’
s what is so weird about this whole thing. My brother would never put me in a situation like that normally. So, why now?
”
she asks herself. I know she
’
s just trying to straighten everything out in her head. It all happened so fast.
“
What did he say when he came in?
”

“
Well, as soon as we saw him, Luke looked a little confused. Kinsey immediately went to find you. Luke asked him why he was there so early, and your father asked where you were. You came in right after that. No other words were exchanged.
”

Max sits up, putting her face in her hands.
“
This just doesn
’
t make any sense.
”

I rub her shoulders and coax her back down to lie against my chest.
“
You should get some sleep. You
’
re exhausted.
”
She nods, and I kiss the top of her head. I continue to hold her tight, wanting to protect her from the world. She
’
s become
my
world. I need her just as much as she needs me.

I turn off the lights. It takes her a while to fall asleep, and even in her sleep she is uncontrollably restless.

“
W
hat the fuck is this, Maxine?!
”

I jerk my eyes open, thinking I
’
m in a dream. There
’
s a huge man standing over the bed, looking pretty irate.
“
Who the
fuck
are
you
?
”
he says. I quickly sit up and shake Max. She wakes from her sleep, rubbing her groggy eyes, still dazed and confused.

Finally she looks up.
“
Cody?
”
she questions with a rough, scratchy morning voice.

I stand up now.
“
Who the fuck are you, and how did you get in here?
”
I yell. I turn to Max.
“
Who is he, Max? Do you know him?
”

She gets out of bed and yanks her robe over her, looking between us. It
’
s clear that she knows exactly who he is.

“
I should ask the same fucking question about you!
”
This dude yells back.
“
I
’
m her fianc
é
,
”
he says so matter-of-factly.

I snap my head to look at Max. What the
—
?
“
Is this true, Max?
”
I walk to the chair and pull my pants on. I can see this isn
’
t going to end well. Either I
’
m going to deck this dude in his face, or he
’
s going to try and come after me.

I size him up. He stands a little taller than me, heavier built with broad shoulders and a thick neck. His hair is wavy and ashy blonde; he looks like a beach dude. I want to knock his face off.

“
Yeah it
’
s true!
”
he replies in a dickhead tone.

Max points to the door.
“
Cody, you need to leave right now! Why are you doing this? You
’
re acting psycho,
”
she screams.
“
Kyle, he
’
s
not
my fianc
é
. He
’
s my
ex
-fianc
é
.
”

Is she serious? She never mentioned that. If he
’
s an ex, why is he in here freaking out? None of this is making sense, and I start to question everything.  

“
Were those really your brother
’
s things in the medicine cabinet?
”
I ask. I fix my stance just in case he comes at me. I
’
m ready.

Cody laughs.
“
You mean the toothbrush, Degree deodorant, and the razor? Those are mine,
”
he answers with a smart-ass smirk.

“
That
’
s what I figured,
”
I reply. My heart crushes. I don
’
t know who or what to believe. I look to Max.
“
There was no reason for you to lie. You could have just told the truth. Now I don
’
t know if I can trust anything you tell me. I never lied to you about my past. I was an open book,
”
I say, grabbing my bag and beginning to walk downstairs.

She runs up behind me and yanks my arm.
“
Kyle, please don
’
t leave. I can explain,
”
she says desperately.

Cody walks up behind her and grabs her other arm.
“
Let him go, Max,
”
he demands.

She tries to rip herself from his grasp, but his hold is too strong.
“
Ouch, Cody. Let go. You
’
re hurting me!
”
she yells.

Something inside of me clicks and a switch has been turned on by her scream. I see red, and even though I can
’
t stand to look at her right now, I still can
’
t bear to see anyone hurting her. Especially this dickwad.

I turn around without warning and deck him. I can hear the noise from my fist hitting his face. He stumbles backwards, almost losing his balance, as blood comes gushing out of his nose.

I watch as Max goes to him and then looks back to me with judging eyes.
“
What the fuck, Kyle? You didn
’
t have to hit him!
”
she screeches.

Cody begins to come for me, but she begs him to stop.
“
You
’
re lucky, you son of a bitch! If it wasn
’
t for Max here, I would come beat the snot of you, kid!
”
he says.

Max continues to plead with him as he inches closer to me. I see where her loyalty lies. She
’
s catering to him as though he isn
’
t the cause of this all. I
’
m sickened by the sight of it. I turn to walk away.