Chapter Twenty-Four
Over the next hour, Kelley told Lee his story, every sick, twisted detail. Lee sat motionless throughout the whole story and only sipped from his cup. When he came to the part of the girls in the hotel rooms Mason was furious, Lee looked ready to kill and Kelley was seeing red, he wanted their blood. They sat in silence for at least ten minutes as Kelley tried to think of how to help Marella.
Lee cleared his throat and Kelley and Mason both looked at him. "I need to tell you guys my story. You trusted me with yours and now it's my turn."
Kelley shifted in his seat and he saw pain in Lee's eyes. "Lee, you don't have to ..."
Lee gritted his eyes closed and took a deep breath. “Do you guys remember about five years ago about that boy they found in the basement in Longview Meadow?”
“The boy in the cage?” Kelley had read the article in the newspaper and he remembered how horrified he’d felt when details made the headlines of just how terrible the abuse had been. He also remembered with a shudder that his father, Charles, hadn't seemed all that bothered about it, almost like things like that happening were the norm.
“That was me.”
Mason and Kelley’s heads snapped towards Lee’s and the shocked expressions on their faces were evident. “Shit, Lee.”
"My ... my father tied a collar around my neck and he always told me that I was his dog. Most days I ate dog food and crawled on all fours. I had a bucket and two bowls, one for food and one for water. I got fed when he remembered I was there. My mother never beat me but she also didn't help me. She stood by and watched whenever he raped me."
Kelley's hand gripped Lee's arm. "Lee ... you're not that little boy anymore and he can't hurt you. I won't let him." Lee hadn't noticed the tears that had fallen and he felt embarrassed at the display of emotion.
“I’m telling you guys this because I trust you both. I never thought I’d tell anyone this because my name was sealed from the records. Nobody will ever know that it was me.”
“We’d never tell a soul, Lee, that’s your story to share or not.” Lee nodded his head at Kelley.
“She’s a girl and from what you’ve said, one of the good ones still out there. This shit needs to end.” Mason’s statement was laced with revenge.
“We need to take those assholes down.” Lee’s jaw clenched and his hands clenched into fists again.
“Petey Johnson, Lewis Blackwell, Kirk Goodwin, Marcus Holt and Hanson Chadney.” Kelley listed their names and Lee seemed to memorize their names.
“This stays between the three of us, we’ll work out a plan, go after each of them.” Kelley had never heard Lee speak so much and he almost smiled at the thought.
Kelley nodded his head. “We plan and move nascosto.”
“Nascosto?”
Now Kelley did grin at the look on Mason’s face. “Unseen.”
“So what happens to Marella now?”
Lee had a point, Kelley knew that. “I can move back to the motel with her, look after her. Her father’s probably part of the pervert club.” Lee’s fists clenched again and the fleeting emotion in his eyes was gone again.
“We’ve got a spare bed in the shed outside, we can move it into my room and she can stay in your room, Kelley, we’ll share.”
“What about your mom?”
Lee sat there and for a moment Kelley thought he might smile. “Carey will take her in, I’ll chip in with expenses from our job at the harbour.”
“I’ve got money I can give Carey.”
“Kelley, when I said the three of us, I meant it. She’s all our responsibility now. It’s up to us to make sure she’s okay, not just you.”
“I agree with Lee. She seems too innocent to be a part of this.” Mason sighed audibly.
“Let me check on Marella, then we need to go for a drive.” Kelley’s eyes flashed with determination and both Mason and Lee stood up. They were with him, no matter what.
Marella was fast asleep and Kelley quickly wrote her a note saying that they’d gone to the store and would be back in an hour. He wrote the time with a P.S. and then closed his bedroom door again. Mason and Lee stood by the front door and Kelley grabbed his jacket.
“Where are we going?” Mason had the keys to the Escalade and they walked outside.
“Marella’s house, it’s the big ass house by the reserve.”
They drove in silence for a while, Lee sitting in the back and Mason driving through the quiet streets of the extremely wealthy. “I’m assuming you have a plan right …”
“We have the advantage of knowing exactly what they’re involved in. We’re going to get Marella’s stuff and I’m going to tell her father not to bother calling the cops.”
Mason parked the Escalade in front of the house and looked at the fountain in the middle of the driveway. “I’ll never understand these people with their fountains.”
“Trust me, it gets worse.”
Lee cracked a rare smile as they walked up to the front door and Kelley pressed the doorbell. They waited a few minutes before a maid opened the door and she smiled brightly at Kelley. “Hi, Ming.”
“Mr. Kelley! It’s very good to see you.”
“I’m here to see Mr. Carter, I assume he’s in his office.”
“Like always.” Ming smiled and opened the door wider so they could step inside. “Do you want refreshments?”
“No, we won’t be staying long. Thanks, Ming.”
Kelley led the way to Edward Carter’s office with Lee and Mason giving him odd looks. He knocked on the door once and then opened it, much to Edward’s surprise, where he sat on the other side of his desk with a laptop open in front of him.
“Kelley? This is a nice surprise.”
“Hello, Mr. Carter, I’m sorry for my unannounced arrival. These are my friends, Mason and Lee.”
“Sit down, I’ll ring Ming to bring us something.”
“I know what you’re doing with my father, the hotel, the girls.” Edward’s eyes widened enough for Kelley to know the truth.
“I see.”
“Marella won’t be coming back and if you call the cops or do anything, I’ll make sure she presses charges against anybody who’s touched her.”
“Kelley … they said she’d be kept safe.” Edward looked downright afraid now.
“She’s not safe, I found her next to the road, beaten to a pulp!”
Lee stepped forward and looked at Edward. “Marella stays with us now. Ring your Ming to pack her stuff, you keep quiet, we keep quiet. The bottom line is, Marella’s off limits now.”
