Fighting For You (Book 2)

The Calm Before The Storm

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"Are you ready to see Jessy?"

That was the fifth time in two weeks that he'd asked that question, and all times my response was no.

"No, I'm not ready."

I didn't know if I'd ever be ready. It's not that I didn't want to meet her, I just wasn't confident enough. This person was supposed to be my best friend. Closer to me than a sister would be. We would have shared all our secrets. Know each other inside out. But I didn't remember her. Would she resent me for it? Would she expect me to be the person she Knew before? What if I didn't live up to her expectation? What if we've grown so far apart that we could never get back to where we were? There were so many questions, but none that I was rushing to know the answer to.

"No rush, baby."

I smiled at him. He was sat on the couch with Liliane sitting on his lap. Her braid had come undone, and she had asked him to redo it. The way he brushed and combed her hair, told me that he had some experience.

"You're really good at that," I commented in fascination.

"I've had a lot of practice."

He continued plaiting her hair with a skill that would put a lot of mothers to shame. My daughter just sat patiently, enjoying the attention that she was getting. My boys were there also, just watching Killian in fascination. It had been like that for two weeks. They hardly ever left his side, and he was just as happy to be around them. He enjoyed spending time with them, and they enjoyed spending time with him.

I was happy. I thought that the change would have been hard for them, but they took to it calmly. They love Killian and I could tell that he loved them too. I knew that Richard never paid them much attention, but I didn't know how much it had affected them. They wanted the love of a father and Richard never gave it to them. Killian, on the other hand, was showering them in it.

I often left them to be alone. My time was spent getting to know my two daughters. It still felt strange to me that Rose and Freya were my daughters, but it also felt familiar as well. I still hadn't remembered anything, but at times I would get flashes. I could never fully make out any of the images, but I was slowly starting to get comfortable with being Lilly. It wasn't a very big progress, but it was one none the less.

Killian even told me about Noah. It was strange hearing him telling me things about my life that I should have known. However, from what I gathered, he didn't like Noah very much but appreciated that he kept me safe for seven years. There was a little tension in his voice. Well, not just a little, a lot of tension when he talked about the relationship me, and Noah had. I wanted to tell him that his anger and jealousy was missed place because at the time I thought he was dead. But I held back when I realise that nothing, I said would change his mind.

"All done."

Killian tied a purple ribbon on the end of her braid. With a bright smile, she twisted around on his lap, looping her arms around his neck and kissing his cheeks.

"I love it! Thanks daddy."

Hearing them call him daddy was still strange to me. I knew that he was their dad, but for four years, Richard was the only father they knew. But I guess it was all new to me and not them because they knew he was their real father before I did.

I still couldn't believe all the things that Richard did to keep me with him. And I still haven't figured out why he did them. Did he really swap my life with the real Lacey, or was there something more sinister involved? I wanted to know but at the same time, I didn't. I was afraid of what I'd find out once I open that door.

"You are welcome, princess."

Killian embraced her tightly. It warmed my heart watching them. My life so far was perfect and happy. But I knew that it wasn't going to stay that way forever. Richard was out there looking for me. I knew this because, I had turned off my phone and stopped checking my email after Killian took us away from the house. However, after almost two weeks of not knowing what Richard was doing, I decided to check my phone. I found lots of messages from him, Hayley and Olly. There were even a few from his mother and Lucy.

Killian was with me when I check my phone. Olly and Hayley were worried about me because Richard had come in one day and process my resignation. The reason he gave for me leaving was personal issues. I wanted to contact them, but Killian told me not to. Richard's messages were very threatening. He wanted to know where I was and who I was with. He told me to come back, and all would be forgiven, but if I made him look for me, I'd regret it. He went into great details about some of the things that he'd do to me if I didn't go back to him. His threats scared me, but they pissed Killian off. I had always thought that between Richard and Killian, Richard was the scariest, but I was starting to realise that Killian had levels of scary and I still hadn't seen them all.

"What's on that beautiful mind of yours?"

I felt his arms around me, and his voice breaking into my thoughts. I looked up and noticed that we were alone. The kids had run off, probably going in search of their older sisters. Freya and Rose had taken very nicely to them, and the triplets loved the attention they were getting from their big sisters, especially Liliane.

"I think I'm ready to see Lacey."

It was not what I was thinking, but I knew I meant it the moment I said it. I needed to see her. I lived her life, knew everything about her, including the fact that she had always wanted to run from Richard. For some reason, my gut feeling was telling me that she wasn't innocent in all this. I knew that she played a part in our lives getting swapped. However, I couldn't pinpoint what part. From what I knew of Richard, he wouldn't have given Lacey up to another man. So, what happened? How did I end up in her life, and her in mine?

"You sure about that?" He asked.

His brow furrowed as if trying to gauge my reaction. Lately, I've been very on edge, and any mention of meeting other people would send me over a cliff of emotions and anxiety. I still wasn't ready to meet new people, but I was ready to meet her. I needed to know if she genuinely thought she was me, or if she was faking it. I couldn't trust Killian's judgment on this matter. He was blinded by her face, but I wouldn't be. And besides, if anyone could tell if she was lying it would be me. There was one thing she couldn't do... Lie to herself.

"Yes, I'm sure."

Killian nodded, "Okay, then I'll arrange it for tomorrow."

I couldn't wait. I would meet her and if I found out that she was lying, that she was somehow part of all the f**kery I had to endure from Richard. I would kill her with my bare hands, sister or not. I felt sorry for her pain of living in that family, but to put someone else in it so that you could escape, was heartless. There were things that Richard did that I'd have to live with for the rest of my life. Things that I could never reveal to Killian. If she played a part in any of it, I would return the pain to her tenfold.