Family (COMPLETED)- Eldred Series Bk 3

Chapter 1

Luka shot straight up from his bed and set his head in his hands. Every night since he got away, to a new home, he's been having nightmares. Nightmares about his past. About his father. What happened to him haunted him.

"Luka?" A small voice asked. Luka looked up and saw Blaze wide awake in his crib. "Luka?" Blaze asked again and reached out to Luka. Once Luka got his heartbeat to go down a little, he slipped out of bed and walked over to his toddler brother. "Why are you up, Blaze? It's time to sleep."Luka said and picked Blaze up and out from his crib. "I can't sleep. And you were up." Blaze said as Luka laid down with Blaze next to him.

Luka shook his head. "It doesn't matter if I'm up or not, Blaze. You're growing and need to rest. I'll be fine if I loose a little sleep." Luka whispered, trying his best not to wake up his other toddler brother. Due to not having the space, and their Aunt Genevieve getting into older age and not moving around as she used to after an accident of falling which left her in a wheelchair the rest of her life and having to have her own room in the house, Blaze, Luka, and Mekhi had to share a room just like Olivia and Rosalia had to share a room. It wasn't too terribly cramped in either room. All of them were in their room really to sleep and maybe get away from their parents a time or two.

"Yes it does." Baby Blaze said to his older brother and refused to sleep until Luka promised to sleep right after Blaze fell asleep. It took twenty minutes and three made up stories to make Blaze fall asleep. But finally he was asleep. Luka was hesitant on falling asleep but he couldn't keep his eyelids open long enough to protest.

**

"No. Daddy, please." A younger Luka cried when his father came at him with a whip. His father abused him and also abused his mother.

Luka's father had chained in to a wall in the basement with his shirt off and his back exposed. Luka screamed in agony when his dad whipped him. Leaving small scars until the whip tore into his back three times, leaving long, big gashes in his back which would eventually turn into scars later on.

Luka's father left him there to bleed until Luka heard his father yelling at his mother to go down and clean him up.

"I'm so sorry, Luka. I'm so sorry I'm letting this happen. I'm a horrible mother. I'll get you out of here, my beloved baby boy. I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry." His mother cried as she unchained him and cleaned him up.

**

Luka gasped as sweat ran down his face and back, his back throbbing in a dull pain from remembering. Blaze was still fast asleep next to him and so was Mekhi in his crib.

Luka slipped out of the bed, careful to not wake his brothers up, and slipped out into the living room then out the door. He had to get fresh air. Had to feel the cool autumn breeze on his skin. To rid of his memories. He thought, being in a loving family for the last two years would help him. To show him that they wouldn't hurt him and that would help subside the memories. But still, after two years, at age fifteen, he still had nightmares.

He heard small footsteps come to him. He turned his head to look at his five, almost six year old little sister come to him. "Olivia. Go inside. It's cold out here." He told her as she slid into his lap and cuddled into him. "I saw you leave, Luka. Is everything alright?" She asked him as he wrapped his arms around her. He was still covered in sweat but Olivia didn't mind.

"I'm fine, my beloved sister. Don't worry about me." He told her softly and kissed the side of her head. "Are you sure, Luka?" She asked. Luka nodded. "I'm fine, Olivia. Don't worry about me."

"What in the Moon Goddess's name are the both of you doing out here in this cold? Get your butts in here now." Cordelia's voice called to them from the house. "Come on." Cordelia said when the two siblings just sat there for a second, staring at her before they got up and walked inside. "Are you two trying to get sick? I know you have higher body temperatures than humans but come on." Cordelia said and ushered them into their proper rooms.

Cordelia grabbed Luka's arm before he walked into his room. "Did you have another nightmare, Luka?" Cordelia asked quietly. "Don't worry about it." He mumbled and tried entering his room but Cordelia held her grip tight. "Luka Valentino Eldred. Please don't lie to me or tell me not to worry. You're my son. Of course I'll worry." Cordelia said.

Luka broke down crying and Cordelia closed the door that led to the boys' room. "Come here, baby." Cordelia said and brought Luka close to her. She lightly rubbed his back, being able to feel the bumpy scars through his thin tank top. She hated to see any of her children upset. Especially Luka. She hated to see him suffer from what his father did. She understood that no one can truly forget the physical and emotional pain of abuse. Physical pain from the initial abuse and emotional because it is usually abuse by someone you thought loved you.

Luka shook in her arms and sobbed. "I can't forget. I can't stop the memories." Luka sobbed. He hated remembering. He hated he felt small and worthless when he was the older brother and should help his siblings who felt that way. But he felt that way and couldn't even help himself.

Pierce walked out of Cordelia's and his room, to use the bathroom, only to look down the hall and see his oldest son and his mate both wide awake. But Luka was sobbing his heart out. "What's wrong?" Pierce asked in a sleepy whisper even though he had a good idea as to why Luka was crying. He walked down the hall to them and gently placed a hand on Luka's shoulder. "Another nightmare." Cordelia said gently to Pierce.

Pierce looked at Luka. He usually would tell any of his sons that it was just a nightmare and it wasn't real. And that sobbing about it wasn't going to help it and that if they had nightmares just to relax and try to think happy and they'll be fine. And if they couldn't shake the feeling off then coming to get one of them to talk about it was fine too. But Luka's nightmares weren't just any small nightmare that was made up in his mind. His nightmares were a reality at one point. So Pierce couldn't tell him he was going to be fine. Because it obviously disturbed him to no end.

"I got him, Dels. You go back to bed." Pierce said. Cordelia looked up at Pierce. "Are you sure?" Cordelia asked. Pierce nodded. "Yeah. It's fine." Pierce said before kissing Cordelia on the cheek as she stepped back from Luka and Luka clung onto Pierce. Cordelia hesitated from walking away from Luka, but Pierce claimed he had Luka so she left for the bedroom.

"Bud. Come on. Let's go to the living room." Pierce said as he led his son to the living room and sat down on the couch with Luka next to him. "I'm sorry dad.. I shouldn't be crying about it. I should be a man like you tell Blaze and Mekhi." Luka said, trying to wipe his own tears away. "Luka, it's fine." Pierce said as he held his oldest. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry you had to deal with that, Luka. I get you can't forget." Pierce said as he started to calm down Luka.

For the longest time, Pierce thought maybe if he helped Luka calm down from his nightmares, that Luka can see that not every man in his life was like what his birth father was. That maybe if Luka warmed up to Pierce and saw that Pierce was there for him, maybe Luka's nightmares would slowly come to an end and the things he thought about nonstop would just be nothing more than a memory and Luka could be a happy, young man. But that didn't happen. Luka's nightmares grew worse. He couldn't forget the pain.

Luka finally stopped sobbing and wiped away his tears. "I'm sorry." Luka kept repeating. "Don't be." Pierce said as he took Luka's face in his hands. "I want you to understand something, Luka. I get that what happened was horrible. I get that no matter how hard you try, you feel like you can never rid of the memories. And that's just fine. Sobbing doesn't make you any less of a man. I'll always be here for you and be the father that bastard wasn't. I wouldn't dare touch you the way he did. I love you immensely, Luka. Understand?" Pierce said and pulled Luka into a hug. "Yes dad." Luka said against Pierce's chest. "I love you too."