Southside Duchess || S.P.

Chapter 22

Get home. Now.

That's all the text said, but it was enough to freak me out. "What do you think happened?" I shook my head. "I don't know." I told Sweet Pea as he got on his bike and I got in the jeep. We headed off to my house, him leading the way, we had been at the wyrm for about 4 hours after the race when I got the text from mom. So many scenarios ran through my mind, was dad hurt? Did someone die? Is she okay?

We pulled up the driveway and I found mom's car, dad's truck, a Lincoln town car, and uncle Freddy's truck. I started panicking as I jumped out of the jeep, I sprinted for the front door, Sweet Pea hot on my heels. "MAMA?" I yelled as the living room came into view. I noticed my dad standing with Hiram Lodge, fist clenched as Hiram seemed to be calming him down. My mother was in tears as Hermione and Betty were trying to calm her down and Veronica had her face buried in Archie's chest as she sobbed. "Oh god. Mama?" I ran up to her as Betty and Hermione stepped away, I pulled her into a hug, and closing my eyes. Preparing for bad news. "What's wrong?"

"Do you feel like you can't trust me?" I pulled her back to look at her. "Of course I trust you mama." She quickly jerked away from me, she was really freaking me out. "Then why didn't you tell me?" I was confused. "I tell you basically everything mama, what are you talking about?" She threw her hands out towards me. "Then why didn't you tell me what that monster did to you?!" It clicked in my head. I couldn't have this conversation, not with Sweet Pea, Archie or my dad here. "I-I don't know what you're talking about." She smacked her hands together as she yelled out in frustration. "I have seen the damn pictures Caila!" My eyes snapped to Veronica.

"You told her? Why would you do that?" Veronica shook her head. "No! It slipped when I was telling my parents about how he tried to hurt me." I rubbed my face as tears escaped my eyes. "I thought you were my friend V." She grabbed my hand. "She is, because someone hurt you and she knew something needed to be said. Right, Veronica?" Hermione tried to calm the situation. I heard footsteps fast approaching me from behind. "Someone hurt you?" Shit. I turned to Sweet Pea, he placed a hand on my cheek, wiping my tears. "You give me this fuckers name, and I swear Caila. I will kill him." I didn't know what to say, I was turned around to Archie. "You lied to me Caila. I straight up asked you if he hurt you, and you said no." He said as he came to stand next to Veronica.

I ran my hands along my face. "Archie, my friends had just been arrested, we had a fight days before, I didn't-" "Bullshit! You know that even if we wound up hating each other, if you told me someone hurt you I would take care of it." My mind was racing, it was all so much to process. "Take the makeup off Caila." My mom spoke up and more tears fell from my eyes.

"Please, mom. Please, don't make me." She nodded towards Betty who disappeared into the den. "Your father and I need to see for ourselves how bad this really is." I shook my head. "Caila, if these aren't healing properly it could cause some major health issues. I think it'd be best for your parents to see them, get a true understanding of the severity of this." Hiram spoke up from next to my father. Betty came back with a pack of makeup wipes and handed them to me. I took them but played with them in my hands instead of using them. "Caila?" Betty asked and I shook my head as she came closer. "I don't want him in here, I don't want him to see." I whispered to her. I looked to Sweet Pea who seemed hurt, he slammed his hand into the wall before storming out the front door.

"Why?" She whispered back, our foreheads almost resting on each other's. "Be-" My emotions got the best of me and I had to take a deep breath just to talk without sobbing. "Because i'm so ugly with them." My voice broke at the end as I sobbed. "He made me ugly, Betty." She quickly pulled me into her arms as I started sobbing. It was true though, I was never a vain person. I never considered myself to be drop dead gorgeous, but I felt pretty most days, there were a few where I didn't and those days seem to be becoming more common. She pulled away and wiped my tears off my cheeks, "You're not kaykay. You're beautiful, always." She kissed my forehead before taking the makeup wipes from me. "Do you want V and I to help you?" Veronica stepped up next to me and gave me a sad smile. "Yeah, please."