BK 2 - Chapter 38 - Leo's Mess
Kitty looked at Aiden in confusion. Why did that name sound familiar to her? Then it hit her; Leo Edwards was Cat's uncle who had abused her for years. That meant Cat was her cousin or aunt because Leo's dad was also Cat's.
"Kitty, are you there?" Sandie asked in concern.
"Yes." Kitty squeaked out.
"Are you okay?" Sandie wondered if she had said something wrong.
"I have to go. Please let me know when you will be here so we can set up a time to meet." Kitty had to hang up. She was frozen, knowing what kind of monster her father had been.
"Okay, dear. I will text you the details once we make arrangements. Take care." Sandie was a little sad to break the connection, but she could tell Kitty had something on her mind. She couldn't wait to see her in person.
"Goodnight, mom," Kitty said, feeling a warmth spread through her.
After she hung up the phone, she sat there for a minute without moving, and Aiden was worried. Why did she seem distant all of a sudden? Sandie was soft-spoken, so he couldn't hear much of what she said to Kitty, even with his lion's hearing.
"What's wrong?" Aiden slowly moved the swing back and forth.
"She told me my father's name," she said in a whisper.
"That's great. Does she know where he may be now?" Aiden asked enthusiastically.
"My father is Leo Edwards," Kitty said, still in shock.
"What? How is that possible? He lived in Indiana. Wait a minute, that means you and Cat are related. It explains why you two look similar." He couldn't believe that Cat's nightmare of an uncle was Kitty's father.
"I don't know what to do. I want to tell Cat, but I don't want her to think about that man." Kitty said softly.
"Tell Cat what?" They both jumped when they heard Cat's voice behind them. When they turned around, Cat and Trey were coming out the door.
"Well, I spoke to my birth mother just now, and she wants to meet me. It was amazing. She was so kind and said I could call her mom. She and her husband, with their two kids, are coming to Sacramento this weekend to meet us. " Cat ran over the few steps to Kitty and hugged her.
"That's excellent news. I'm so glad it worked out for you." She showed them the picture of her mother, who looked so much like her it was astonishing.
"She also told me who my father is," Kitty said while looking away.
"Okay, does she know how you can find him?" Cat asked, curious about her expression.
"It's Leo Edwards." Kitty looked up at her with tears in her eyes.
Cat felt like a knife had gone through her heart. How could Leo be Kitty's father? She vaguely remembered him taking trips to San Francisco when she was a child.
"How is that possible?" She asked quietly.
"My mom said he raped her when she wouldn't let him have any of the younger homeless kids with her." Cat shook her head as she processed this information. That bastard had ruined too many lives.
"I'm so sorry," Cat said as tears ran down her face.
"It's okay. At least now I know who my parents are. You and I are relatives. That means a lot to me. It scares me, though, that Leo escaped and is most likely hurting others now." Kitty watched as she and Trey looked at each other. Trey nodded slightly, and she realized that they were mindlinking.
"Leo is dead."
"What? How?" Kitty and Aiden both looked at them in surprise.
"This has to stay between us. No one else can ever know what we're about to tell you. Okay?" Trey looked at his brother and Kitty.
"Alright, we agree." Aiden took Kitty's hand as they waited.
"A few days before the wedding, Cat and I took Leo into the forest. We let Saira and Atlas have their way with him; long story short, there is nothing left of Leo to find." Trey watched their faces as he spoke.
"I'm glad he's dead. I wish I had already been able to shift into Zola so we could have had a piece of him to get justice for my mother. I won't say anything about what happened when we meet with her. Will you both come with us?" Kitty was nervous about asking, but she wanted their support and Cat's calmness.
"Of course, we'll go with you." Cat hugged Kitty again, and they all decided it was time for bed. It had been an exhausting day for everyone, especially the two women.
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The next day Aiden and Trey went to the group home to get busy on some of the work in the guest house. Kitty and Cat stayed at the pool house to talk. They decided to walk around the flower gardens at the back of the property.
"I'm so happy that you and I are related by our mates and blood. We were both brought into this world by rape. When I discovered that Leo's dad was my dad, I went through some rough times. It's hard as the child of a rape victim to know how to act or what to say. On the one hand, we wouldn't be here with our mates if our mothers hadn't been victimized. However, we also would go back and change it to take away their pain if we could, even if that meant sacrificing ourselves."
Kitty knew what Cat was saying. She had thought a lot about this overnight. She was thankful that her mother didn't have an abortion when she found out she was pregnant, but she hated the pain Sandie endured.
"It's difficult thinking about our mothers giving birth to their rapist's baby. I'm anxious to meet my mother, but I'm worried she will still think of Leo whenever she looks at me. I don't want to cause her any heartache when she has a life with a husband and kids. I was born in what sounds like the worst time of her life. How can she not hate me deep down?" She had tears running down her face as she talked.
"From what you said, your mom sounded happy to hear from you. I don't think she would have wanted an open adoption if she regretted having you. You don't look anything like Leo. When you showed me the picture of Sandie, you looked like sisters. I'm so happy you get to have a relationship with your mom. You said she has two small children as well, right?" Cat held Kitty's hand as they walked. Her heart felt full of love after discovering her familial ties to Valerie and Kitty.
"Yes, they have a son and daughter. She said they knew about me and had been asking to meet me. I'm excited to have a brother and sister, but I can't help feeling a little jealous that they could be with our mom and I wasn't." She wiped away the tears caused by her conflicting emotions.
"That's understandable. When you see them, just remember that the circumstances were significantly different when you were born. I'll support you, and now that I know I can help by touching you, if you need a hug or me to hold your hand, give me a signal." Cat was holding back her tears as she thought about her own mother. She would do anything to see her again.
"Thank you. I couldn't do this without you by my side. You and Trey have done so much for us that I don't think we'll ever be able to repay you." Kitty squeezed Cat's hand as they continued walking.
"That's what family is for." She smiled to herself as Saira and Zola began purring.
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Sandie couldn't stop looking at the picture of Kitty on her phone. She felt sick knowing that none of her dreams for her little girl had come true. She looked at Aiden sitting next to her and smiled. At least she had a man in her life that loved her.
"Mommy, what are you doing? Why do you look sad?" Four-year-old Gracie and seven-year-old Wesley ran up to her. She and Max had decided to tell them they were finally going to meet their big sister.
"I have some exciting news for you. We're going to take a trip to California this weekend." Sandie looked up as Max walked into the room. He had picked the kids up from their summer camp.
"We are? Why?" Wesley looked at his parents in question. They weren't ones to plan spur-of-the-moment trips.
"I received a phone call last night from your big sister, and she wants to meet us." Sandie felt tears in her eyes again as she looked at them.
"We get to meet our big sister? What's her name?" Gracie jumped up and down, clapping her little hands.
"Her name is Kittana, but she likes to be called Kitty. Would you like to see a picture of her?" She pulled out her phone and showed it to the kids.
"Mom, she looks like you. Who's that man with her?" Wesley looked at the man in the photo with his sister.
"That's her fiance Aiden. They live in Sacramento." Gracie and Wesley stared at the picture.
"Mommy, she's so pretty. I can't wait to meet her. Do you think she'll like me?" Gracie looked up at her mother with her big dark brown eyes and dark brown hair. Both of her small children favored Max, with the same hair and eyes as her husband.
"I think she'll love you." Sandie hugged the two children.
"Mom, will she come back with us to Colorado?" Wesley asked, unsure if he wanted someone else in their home.
"No, honey. Kitty will stay in California with her fiance. She may come here to visit us sometimes. Will that be okay?" Wesley nodded as he smiled.
Max watched the interaction and felt his heart tug. He knew what happened to his wife when she was a teenager. It broke his heart to know all the sacrifices Sandie made to get to where she was now. He had always supported his wife, wanting to reconnect with her daughter. He just hoped that seeing Kitty wouldn't send her back into the depression she had been in when they first met. Despite her brave front, he knew how fragile Sandie really was and would do everything he could to keep her from breaking.
