Twisted Deceit (Deceit #3)

Chapter 11

Who knew that a simple swing could make almost all the worries and stress disappear so easily? Or maybe it was the fact that I got to be outside. Or both.

The sun was shielded by the leaves of the trees, but even then, the warmth reached my skin, warming me from the outside in.

I swung lightly, not pushing or pulling my body to make the swing go faster. I just sat there, being human for once in my life.

My thoughts weren’t bombarding me with the past or what was to come. I simply gotta be me, whoever that was.

The only small issue was that I had to pull myself up to lift my body enough to sit on the wood plank. The thick rope that held the swing was thrown over the branch, then tied with some sort of metal gadget to the wood, keeping it hanging for years to come.

God, I hoped I’d get to be here for years.

Wiping the tears from my face with one hand, I forced all thoughts away. Now wasn’t the time to figure out what the heck was going to happen to me. I’d find out eventually.

The only reason I was off the swing now, my legs slightly weak from just dangling there for so long, was because Dawn called me in to eat dinner. Although, she had set everything outside at the small three-seater table.

“I’d ask if you enjoyed the swing, but I think I know the answer,” she smiled as I scooped food onto my plate. “Oh, I downloaded and logged into the movie streaming apps I have, and the reading app, too. On both the tablet and phone.”

I gave a thumbs up, trying to do something other than nod my head like an idiot all the time.

Like all the other times, Dawn happily talked about people she’d work with in selling houses in between bites. None of it required my input. She told me about the town that she fell in love with when she turned twenty, not wanting to leave again. It was on the smaller side, but not so small where everyone knew everything about one another. And being out here in the country certainly helped.

“I should probably call my parents, your grandparents,” she mused. “I won’t mention you being with me, because then they’ll all be here. Between you and me, I don’t want any of the other family knowing I got you. They didn’t want to be there for you before, so they don’t deserve the chance right now.”

I lifted a brow, pointing at her. I wasn’t entirely sure what I was asking, but she answered anyway.

“They didn’t want me either,” she shook her head. “I tended to be in my head too much as a kid. I didn’t connect with them. But they are family and I try to check on them every once in a while. Make sure they are alive and all that. But man, my sister – your mother – and I did not get along. Ever. She had a temper and fell in love with men who shouldn’t ever be around impressionable teenagers or adults. Rest her soul or whatever, but I did not go to that funeral.”

Neither did I. But for other reasons.

“Sucks I wasn’t old enough to take you in. I was barely eighteen at the time,” Dawn went on. “I still can’t believe that my mother refused to take you. Not that I knew about that until a few months ago. She doesn’t talk about certain things. But I guess maybe that’s what pushed me to get a house just in case. Maybe you’d find me somehow.” She swallowed, setting her fork down on her plate. “I’m glad I found you, Koda. I wish I knew you were…well not where I thought you were, sooner. I’d have fought for you. I should have fought harder, but when there was a group of adults who said I wasn’t capable, social workers tended to believe them over me. Just because I’m a bit different.”

I didn’t see why that would matter at all. At least she tried, and it answered one of the many questions I had.

“But my gosh, Koda. If I had known, I’d have fought harder.”

I gave her a watery smile, knowing she would have. I wouldn’t hold it against her at all.She had tried. She was the one that had shown up when Officer Sarah called.

“I will never be able to show you how truly sorry I am for the way the rest of the family deserted you. After everything, you really do deserve the entire world. It’s hard enough as an adult who has been in your situation, but as a child yourself, it’s ten times worse.”

I shrugged, not being able to confirm any of that. I wasn’t an adult, even if most days I felt like one. I was just…whatever I was.

“I’m going to do everything I can to make you want to stay here. I want to give you the world, and show you that I care more than anyone else in the family. I know that once they figure out, you’re with me, they will show up and try to fight for you. And I refuse to let that happen.”

Tears gathered as I sat there, staring at her.

“I may not know how to raise a teenager, but we’ll figure it out one day at a time. We’ve done well so far, haven’t we?”

I nodded slowly.

“Cool. I won’t get you any other gadgets for a little while. Can’t make you think I’m buying your safety.” She winked. “I’ll earn your trust, because I know I don’t have it yet. Two weeks is not long enough for what you’ve been through. And to be clear, I’m not trying to buy you things just to get you to like me. I’m doing it because you’ve missed out on so much in life. It’s the least I can do to help you have ways to search stuff up that you can’t ask. Ways to explore the world in ways I can’t show you.”

***

After sneaking down the stairs, the piece of paper in my hand folded in half, I made sure the coast was clear. Although, I knew that Dawn was in the bathroom, getting ready for bed. She enjoyed staying up too late, and then getting up too early. I liked my sleep, and nothing about that fact would change.

Sleep had been something I never took for granted, and now that I got a good amount of shut eye most nights, I still was not a morning person. I didn’t see that changing any time soon, either. If ever.

Placing the paper on top of the coffee pot, knowing that Dawn would see it there in the morning when I’d still be fast asleep, I made sure it wouldn’t fall. I highly doubted it, but I still double checked before I tiptoed from the kitchen.

Every light was off, the doors locked and blinds drawn on the windows. Seeing the downstairs in total night mode was strange. The dark never bothered me before, but the house felt empty with all the lights off and the outside hidden away.

In my room, I tended to keep my shades open, letting the moon and stars shine in. The naturalness of a night was ten times better than the pitch blackness I had been forced to deal with.

While most kids were terrified of the dark because of monsters that lurked under a bed, I was not. I never feared the dark. Dark was my best friend. The one time of night that the monsters came out and took me away to hell. The dark held my secrets.

One of my deepest secrets, one that even the monsters didn’t know about, was on that piece of paper for Dawn.