Her Savior (Book Two Of The Brave Series)

17-The Big Bad Wolf

17-The Big Bad Wolf

 

      Aria felt like a Popsicle by the time she got home, the days events pushing her past the point of exhaustion. Her shoes squished as she entered the foyer and then she heard the footsteps. Any other time her heart would start pounding, anxious for what he had in store for her again. However, that wasn't the case. Something had happened to her when Karen and she fought, something that made her calm and collected, even now. She wasn't scared, she wasn't worried he'd hurt her. She could think clearly, even as Daniel rounded the corner.

        "Sweetie, are you ho-what happened?" He exclaimed as he walked up to her. He gripped her chin and forced her to look at him face to face. He was worried, she could tell, and if he wasn't a monster, she'd feel comforted by that worry. However, she merely felt disgust.

      "Aria, speak now, what happened?" His grip tightened on her face slightly, telling her his patience was wearing thin.

     "A girl jumped me." She said, no other explanation. She pulled away from his grip and started making her way into the house. "I need to clean up. Don't bother me tonight." She said, wanting to be left alone.

      "Excuse me? You think you can order me around?" His voice was clipped, angry as he gripped her sore shoulder, forcing her to turn back to him. She wasn't interested in dealing with him or being in any more pain than she already was. Daniel froze, his eyes widened in shock. Whatever look she gave him, made him release her, and she took that opportunity to go to her room. She dropped her backpack on the floor, grabbed fresh pajamas and went into her attached bathroom, turning the water on as hot as she could get it. When the curtain fell closed behind her and she let herself finally take a breath, but it hurt.

     Everything hurt. Her body, her heart, her mind, and her spirit. Ever since meeting Xepher, Raven, and the rest of the group, her life had gotten so much more complicated. Before them, she had been able to live for seven years with such a monster, without wavering. She had been obedient and the perfectly silent, exactly what he had wanted her to be. However, before them, she was also scared out of her mind, living in a perpetual nightmare that never seemed to have an ending. She had nothing and no one to lean on, to hold when times were the hardest. Now, she had people that worried and cared for her. She had friends that wanted nothing but her safety. She had defeated an enemy, and learned that, though she had her friends, she didn't need them to save her. She could save herself.

      As the warm water scalded her frozen body, Aria felt a new hope rising inside her. Yes, she still had to worry for her mother, but her mind was clear of the bone shaking fear she'd once felt at the thought of disobeying him. Instead, that cool and calm feeling settled around her. For the first time in the last seven years, Aria felt like she would be okay.

    Her birthday was coming soon, and she knew that he was waiting for that. She knew he wanted to finish what he started. In his mind, he was doing the right thing, because he loved her. It was sick, and it was twisted, but that was how his mind thought. She just had to figure out how to use it to her advantage, to get away and keep her mother safe in the process.

     Aria reached out, turning the faucet off with a sigh as her muscles ached. These next few days were going to be tough.

     Raven stood outside the door, Kenzy beside her in the cold December air as she nervously contemplated whether to knock on the door or not. She'd given them permission, so why wasn't she knocking? Maybe because there is a sick monster that touches and beats young girls behind the door? Her brain responded sarcastically, and it was not wrong. If the look Kenzy was giving Raven was any consolation, she was thinking the same thing, and that made the theoretical knife in Raven's stuff twist painfully. If they were scared by just standing outside the house, how has Aria felt all these years living in it?