Page 12 of Avenging Azalea

What the hell was wrong with me? I made it. I found the right bus and was sitting in the terminal waiting for the 9:30 to Dallas. But as it pulled up, I didn’t move. My limbs refused to work. My body was striking against the very idea of leaving this place. I didn’t want to end up under my stepfather’s thumb being used like that all over again. All that kept running through my mind was, what if I got caught? What would Neil do to me? My stomach rolled at the thought of him touching me ever again.

Tears fell as I realized just how much I feared going back to that house, even to save my brother. It gripped me like a hand around my throat. The memories of unwanted touches and showering robotically before going to bed like nothing had ever happened were ripped free from where I’d stuffed them to suffocate me.

But who was going to help George if not me? My mother said she couldn’t leave, chained by her reasons that I didn’t understand. I stared down at my lap, arms crossed and ass numb from the hard bench.

What the hell do I do now?

The question swirled around with no answer.

The bench moved as someone sat down, and his cologne hit me.

“Do you want to tell me why you ran away?”

Titus’s voice was soft. There was no judgment or anger. He was still the same caring person…and that made everything worse.

Covering my face, I cried harder than I had all day. The weight of everything pressing down on me felt like it would crush my bones. When he wrapped his arm around my shoulders, I lost it completely, breaking down into hysterical sobs that wracked my body.

He held me gently against his side and waited me out. I refused to look at him, even as he handed me tissues.

“I’m so sorry,” I said.

“Normally, I’d let it go and not push you to talk to me, but there is obviously something very wrong, Fawn. Tell me what it is,” he said.

Titus toed the line between gentle persuasion and making me want to jump up and yell, yes, sir. Wiping at my eyes with the arms of my hoodie, I tried to pull my shit together.

“Did I do something to upset you?”

I shook my head and forced myself to speak.

“No, you’ve been so nice to me. But I still don’t understand why. I keep looking for a motive.” I bit my lip as another wave of tears gripped me.

Titus touched my chin and forced me to look at him. His eyes, which reminded me of amber stones, were bright in the dim light cast from the bus terminal.

“Do you think I have some sort of hidden malicious intent?” My mind said that there was always the possibility, but when I looked into his eyes, my heart knew better. I shook my head. “Then what’s wrong?”

“My stepfather won’t stop.”

“He can’t hurt you now.”

“It’s not me I’m worried about,” I said, licking my lips. “He’ll keep gambling until there is nothing left to bargain with but his soul, and even then, he’ll continue and die because of it.”

“I’m sure you’re right. Were you close with your stepfather?”

“He liked to think so,” I muttered under my breath, not wanting to explain what exactly that meant.

If Titus heard the comment, he didn’t let on.

“No, not at all. We got along okay when I was a kid, but that changed once I was old enough to realize what he was doing to our family. The problem is my younger brother. He’s my half-brother, but we’re close, and he’s only eight. I can’t leave him there. He’ll end up sold like I was, and he won’t be so lucky. I…I’ve been trying to call and reach him, but my mom’s cell is disconnected.”

All the words and emotions I’d been holding in tumbled out and landed at Titus’s feet.

“It’s happened before when she couldn’t pay a bill. I’m sure that’s all it is, but I need to know if he’s okay. I…I’m his sister, and I keep him safe.” I held my arm out toward the empty bus lot. “And I failed. I couldn’t get on the bus. I was too weak and didn’t want to leave. I’m a horrible person.”

“No, you’re not a horrible person. That is a lot to be carrying around at sixteen. You’re not his parent. You shouldn’t be looking after your brother. Why didn’t you come to me with this?”

I wiped away the fresh batch of tears and shrugged.

“You took me in out of pity, and you’ve already been so generous. How was I supposed to ask you for more? I couldn’t, and I promise that I’ll find a way to pay you back for everything that you’ve spent on me.”