Hi everyone! This is the first chapter of Renegade and wanted to know what you think. I'm editing the rest of it before I put it on here, but wanted some input. This is my favorite book that I'm working on. (:
1
“Cameron, get down here this instant!” Deborah yelled from the staircase.
“What now?” I asked Duke, my Doberman puppy and then added, “Coming!” as I bounded down the stairs two at a time and stopped. Deborah, my mom and Mason, my stepdad were dressed elegantly as I saw they were about to leave again.
“We’re going out and if you try anything stupid… Be prepared to face consequences,” Deborah threatened.
I rolled my eyes when they weren’t looking and stood up straighter as she glared at me.
“I saw that young lady, now don’t say I didn’t warn you,” she said as she grabbed my arm and pulled me down hard to the floor. I felt defenseless but knew that’s what they were going for. I kept my face blank as she grabbed a fist full of my hair and pulled hard. She did not get a reaction out of me like she wanted and continued to pull and hit me.
Mason either was impatient on wanting to go to wherever they were going, or was not wanting to see me hurt. He touched Deborah’s elbow and said, “Darling it’s time to go.”
They retreated out the door and I watched them get into the car and drive off. My head was sore and my back hurt a little from the beating. But since it was regular I could not really feel too much of the pain. I immediately checked all the doors and windows to see what was unlocked and found they had missed a window.
“Bingo!” I whispered and grabbed Duke along with my knapsack as we ran to Shay’s house. I found a pebble and threw it at her window to get her attention. She appeared moments later and ran downstairs to unlock the door.
“Are you out for good?” Shay asked me as I came in.
“Yep,” I said and Shay gave Duke some food as I laid my knapsack down. Shay had been my friend since birth and she was basically my sister. We told each other everything and never before had I ever officially run to her house. Her parents knew the situation and what was at hand, so it was no surprise when I would show up for dinner at random times or ask if I could spend the night. This time was different though. After countless days of being degraded and abused I had had it. This was my only opportunity to escape and I had planned it out accordingly. Being only fourteen nearly fifteen didn’t make it much better.
I guess I should start from the beginning so you’re not lost. My real dad, Henry, died when I was three. Deborah, my mom remarried instantly and I became afraid. Mason never harmed me, but it was Deborah and her other “male friends” who did. Ever since I was seven, I think, I would remember getting abused for who knows what and hiding in my room until Deborah or her friends were too drunk to get up and harm me anymore. I had told Shay and her parents but begged them never to make a report until the day I arrive at their house and say I wasn’t returning. The plan was to adopt me and I was hoping it would still be that way.
“Are you sure you’re parents are still okay with this?” I asked Shay as we lay on the couch.
“Cam,” she said using my nickname, “I know they’ll take you in. Besides we’re basically sisters.”
Duke lay down next to me as we sat around and waited for her parents to come home from work.
About half an hour later the door opened and Kyle, Shay’s dad entered. Duke had run to greet him, so Kyle didn’t need to ask if I was here or not.
“Hello Cameron,” he said coming in and I hugged him like I always did when I came over.
“Hello Mr. Madison.”
“Gwendolyn should be home in a few,” Kyle said and started pulling out food to prepare dinner.
“Dad, Cam isn’t going back this time,” Shay said and her dad stopped cutting a tomato he had pulled from the fridge.
“I see, well let me call Gwendolyn and let her know.” He stepped outside and Shay gave me thumbs up as we waited to see what the next move was.
“Hello Cameron,” Gwen said as she walked through the door and hugged me fiercely. Her perfume of honeysuckle hung heavy in the air as I tried to relax. She told Shay to go wash up and asked me, “What’s been going on?”
I showed her my bruises on my forearms from where Deborah had used a belt and slapped me. I couldn’t remember what it was I had done but she took out a belt and slapped me with it. Occasionally she would get a swing at my head but the worst damage was when the buckle slashed the corner of my eye. Then I raised my shirt up to show her the purple marks starting to show on my back from this morning’s beating.
Gwen put ointment on me while Kyle and Shay finished up preparing dinner. We sat down to eat and Kyle gave grace before we ate asking to nourish out bodies, protect us and help with what was to come with my adoption.
Shay helped me lay down another mattress in her room so that we could talk.
“Shay, thanks for taking me in especially on such short notice.”
“No problem girl, I know you’d do the same for me.”
Duke yawned as he lay next to me and wagged his tail while I scratched his head. The moonlight danced in and out of the shadows of Shay’s curtains. It was around midnight when I officially got tired and fell asleep. In my dream I was thinking of all the possible reasons for me not being able to get adopted. Thankfully the dream didn’t last long and Duke woke me up, licking my face. Shay was getting ready and I grabbed clothes to change into as we headed to the adoption center.
“Alright Mr. and Mrs. Madison, the papers are all in order I just have one question for Ms. Haney here,” the man said who was assisting us.
I stood up straighter as he said, “Ms. Haney would you like to change your whole name or just keep it, and since you are being adopted your last name will change.”
I had always wondered if I would keep my name or not if I was ever to be adopted. I liked having Cameron as my first name; it described the tom boy in me. My middle name was Deborah and I was adamant about not keeping that for one second. But what would I want to change it to? Justice popped into my head and I knew that would be it. I wanted to have justice for getting into a new life and having a more supporting family.
“I would like to change my middle name please.”
“Okay what is your new name Cameron?”
“Cameron Justice Madison,” I said and liked the ring to it.
“It’s settled then,” the man said and added, “Deborah and Mason were notified and the police put them in jail for abuse and negligence. Ten years minimum at the moment unless the judge finds more reason to keep them longer.”
I felt relief wash over me and Shay beamed as I came out and hugged her. Gwendolyn and Kyle hugged the two of us and I was glad to belong to a family. Now I would finally have a sister and live a normal teenage life. The next obstacle I would face would be school. I had been going but didn’t always get to if I missed the bus, which happened rarely, I would not be allowed to walk or get a ride.
“Cameron, do you want to get a look at your new room?” Kyle asked as we came back home and was greeted by Duke.
“Sure,” I said and smiled when I saw the pale green walls and the turquoise bedspread with black.
“I love it, thanks mom and dad!” I said and hugged them. Shay had tears in her eyes as I said that.
“You’re welcome Cameron; we have some clothes in your closet to add to whatever you have. Shay and you can wear the same stuff since you both are the same size.”
“Tomorrow we’ll finally get to ride the bus together and get off at the same stop,” Shay said and I laughed at her enthusiasm on having me as a sister.
“Finally I can go and try out for swimming and tennis.” I stated and was delighted with the idea of doing something that I knew my new parents would have problem with me doing. I was already in Pre-AP classes but I never got to really participate much in athletics. Now was my chance to take full advantage of what I was being provided with.
“Hey Shay, Cameron,” people would say in the hall as we walked in on Monday morning.
“Hey,” I said while Shay would tell how I was now her sister through adoption. We were congratulated beyond belief and I was happy that people realized it was a big deal. I was able to actually focus today in my classes and was dancing with excitement when I did tryouts for swimming today. My time was fast and I knew I had a pretty good chance of making varsity. The competition was fierce but I had been preparing for it.
Coach Wilkinson stopped me before I made my way on the bus saying, “Cameron I just wanted to say congratulations on getting adopted. You’re performance today was magnificent. You definitely have a shot of making varsity.”
“Thanks coach,” I said and ran to the bus so I could find Shay and tell her the good news. I ran into a tall handsome blond before I found Shay.
“Whoops, sorry…” I had no idea what his name was but I knew he was older than me.
“I’m Hunter,” he said adjusting his backpack and I saw his brown eyes staring at me in awe.
“Cameron, though everyone calls me Cam,” I said and blushed as he smiled and we walked towards where the buses were.
“What year are you?” he asked me and I replied, “Freshman.”
“No way. You don’t look like a fish,” he said and I felt happy inside seeing that a hot and older guy was talking to me.
“What are you?” I asked and hoped he wasn’t a senior or something.
“Sophomore,” he said and I sighed in my head.
“Well I gotta go, it was nice talking to you Hunter,” I said not wanting to leave but felt that if I didn’t I would do something stupid.
“See you later Cameron,” he said and walked towards the bus that was in front of mine.
Shay was bouncing up and down in her seat when I sat next to her.
“Hottie at three o’clock, spill,” was all she said and I laughed. I told her what had happened and she gasped.
“Hunter Ford? He’s HOT,” she said dreamily.
“Yep, but I call him. You have Jeremy and all those other guys who worship the land your feet touch,” I teased. It was true though, Shay had strawberry blond hair and hazel eyes that nearly looked too real. She was average height, being 5’ 7’’ and I was only an inch taller. Me on the other hand had dark red hair with dark green eyes and really tan. It was weird how alike our personalities were compared to our physical traits. Either way we were both highly acknowledged for our brains, looks, and athleticism. Shay was dating Jeremy Bush who a starter for the JV basketball team. He was cute, but I thought Hunter was way cuter. Me, I had never dated before nor had a crush on anyone.
I was anxious to see him again tomorrow and I decided I was going to ask for his number. I had gotten a phone and received a mass number of text messages from friends and felt great having a cell. I told Gwendolyn about Hunter and she said I should go for a challenge.
“If he asks you out I have no problem with you dating him,” she said winking. I smiled and told her I was going to take Duke running. Shay went to go practice volleyball in the backyard and I went outside. I put my iPod on and ran alongside Duke as some of the sprinklers went off. Duke barked and wanted to play in them but I pulled him along and he continued to run. I ran into a guy as he was running and started to apologize when I saw it was Hunter.
“Hey Cam,” he said and I blushed yet again.
“Hunter, I didn’t know you lived in this neighborhood?”
“Yea, I take the bus that is closer to my house. I would ride yours though… he hinted and I replied, “maybe you will someday.”
“So,” he said staring at me as I realized I had gone running in a pink sports bra and shorts.
“I take Duke running every day,” I said and kept from smiling as I saw his chest and a six pack was clearly defined. I myself had abs from working out so I wasn’t embarrassed that we were both a loss for words.
“If you’re still running do you mind if I tag along?” he asked and I shook my head.
We ran alongside and talked as Duke ran and barked at squirrels that raced up trees when seeing him. Hunter chuckled as Duke ran in a circle around a tree getting himself tangled. He helped me unwind Duke to be thanked by Duke as he licked Hunter on the hand. We both smiled and I said, “He’s grateful.”
“He should be, he has an amazing owner.” Hunter said winking.
I blushed and instantly asked a question before I could do something to embarrass myself, “What sports do you play?”
“I’m in football and track, you?”
“Swimming and tennis,” I said and he nodded.
“I haven’t seen you at school before; you’re not new are you?”
“No but I just got adopted by Shay Madison’s parents yesterday.”
Hunter stopped running and grabbed my wrist.
“What?” he asked and I could tell he was concerned.
“It’s not really all that interesting,” I said feeling stupid and I didn’t want him to feel sorry for me like everyone else did.
“Cam,” he said and I caught my breath as he held my hand.
“Another time,” I said promising him and we ran in silence for the rest of the time.
When I got home, Shay was showering and I ran up to my room to wait for her and tell her that I got Hunter’s number. I kept replaying the scene of how I didn’t tell him why I was adopted and wondered if that had been a smart idea. ‘Telling a guy within the first day you meet him about your life story probably is too much’ I decided.
Shay smiled when I told her what happened and she told me that it was a sign that it was meant to be.
“Sure,” I said and she raised her eyebrows as if she was saying, we’ll see what happens.
I dressed nice the next day hoping I would see Hunter and I ran into him in the hallway again.
“Hunter,” I said as he hugged me and I felt warm and everything. The way he hugged me was like I was his girlfriend, different from how other guys hugged me.
“Cameron,” he said and pulled back, “you look fantastic.”
“Thanks,” I said and he walked me to my first class and I was aware of others seeing. I hoped he didn’t have a girlfriend since he hugged me and was walking me to my class but I had no way of knowing at the moment. ‘Enjoy it while it lasts’ my mind told me and I sighed.
I saw him again at lunch and he sat with my friends and his at the same table. We talked about random things and I could tell something was on his mind. He wanted me to tell him but he wasn’t going to pressure me. The question in my head was ‘how long do I wait?’ The right time is never a good answer because no one ever knows when that is exactly. He went with me to the library to work on some homework for study hall and we ended up talking the entire time.
“So do you have plans this Friday?” he asked me nonchalantly and I nearly fainted when I heard the words escape his lips.
“Nope,” I said and Hunter smiled, “maybe we can hang out somewhere, just you and me.”
I was debating in my head whether that meant he was asking me out or not and I figured it wasn’t yet.
“What are you thinking?” he asked me and he reached over to push my hair out of my face. The way he did it was quick and I shied away from it immediately and felt my cheeks go red.
“Hey Cam, its okay I was just going to…” he stopped when I tried to stop shaking and I got up.
“I need to go,” I said and Hunter grabbed my wrist.
“Wait,” he said and I stopped. He pulled me towards the back of the library and faced me squarely as he said, “Cameron tell me what happened. You shied away as if you’d been abused. Have you?”
I looked down as I said, “I was abused by my mother and her boyfriend’s when she remarried. My real dad died when I was three and my stepdad never interfered. I left on Saturday after she had slashed me with a belt and beat me on my back,” I said tapping the scratch by my eye and revealed the bruises on my arms and back. My voice was almost like a robot since I had already repeated this story only a million times before it seemed like. I then ended with, “Shay’s parents adopted me and I got Deborah and Mason in jail for ten years minimum right now.”
“Cam,” Hunter said hugging me hard and he pulled back to say, “I... I didn’t mean to scare you and I’m sorry I had asked.”
“I didn’t want to tell you being that we only met yesterday.” I admitted.
“Regardless of the scars and whatever else you’ve been through, you’re beautiful Cameron. Don’t forget that,” he said and added, “Text me okay and if it ever happens again or you need to talk I’ll be there.”
“Thanks Hunter,” I said and hugged him again and buried my head in his chest.
“You know I like you right?” he asked me on Friday after he picked me up and we were driving to go walk around.
“I figured,” I said adjusting my top and smoothing my skirt.
“Okay,” he said and I mentioned, “I like you too.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Because I didn’t want to make it seem weird that I liked you after only meeting you recently.”
Hunter laughed and helped me out of the car as we walked around the town center and enjoyed the cool weather.
“Weird question but if we both like each other is this considered a date?” I asked and Hunter smiled.
“Whatever you want it to be,” he said and grabbed my hand gently. We went over to the fountain and each tossed a penny in making a wish. I prayed that he would be the one as we left and went driving in his convertible with the top down. The night couldn’t get any better than this unless I got my first kiss but on a first date that normally doesn’t happen. Does it? As we just drove around, I could feel Hunter’s eyes on me half the time and I would gaze back. I would blush every time I met his gaze and he would pull me closer to him in the car as a smile crept across his face. I was pretty sure he was enjoying my reactions and that’s why he continued to do it repeatedly. Not that I didn’t mind, because it felt right being in his arms.
“What’s it like?” he asked me stopping the car at a park that was pretty much deserted for the night.
“On what?” I asked as we walked over to the grass and lay down. Hunter pulled me closer and held me as he clarified, “going through what you went through.”
“Well, the first time you think, wow I’ll make sure I never do whatever it is I did again. Then once you realize it’s a reoccurring thing, you learn to avoid it as much as possible. Sometimes you lock yourself in a secluded area until you know they’re too drunk to come after you. No matter what you do, even if you haven’t done something they still concoct an excuse to lay a hand on you. If they’re really upset it’s more dangerous than if they’re just being stubborn. I’ve been threatened to be killed, stabbed basically everything under the sun sometimes sexually along with physically, mentally and emotionally. Their main goal is to see you cry out in pain, wince or flinch like what I had done earlier. I was degraded and held onto the fact that once I was at school I could escape. Sleeping helped as well but I always escaped at school or when I went running.” After I said that I felt like I had been venting more so than explaining what it was like to be abused.
“What’s this?” he asked examining a scar on my wrist.
“I was suicidal when I had endured this for a while. Deborah told me I was a hassle and no one would want me so I should die. I believed her and tried to kill myself.” I stopped feeling tears brim my eyes and held them back as Hunter looked at me and wiped one that escaped.
“I’m sorry… How did you not fall apart?”
“I’ve built a wall around all my emotions since I was little and don’t let anyone affect me even if it’s good.”
“Cameron you know if your walls are down you may seem vulnerable but you’re stronger?” Hunter said and I just stared dumbfounded that he understood.
“How do you?”
“My story isn’t like yours I have both parents and no issues, but my best friend Bradley went through some similar stuff.”
Hunter got up and took me home as I digested all of this information. He walked me up to the front and hugged me at the doorstep whispering, “thank you for a great evening. I’m sorry you went through that. No one deserves that. Especially you Cameron, you didn’t deserve any of that. You’re amazing Cameron and for someone who’s been through so much deserves a welcoming family like Shay’s.” He kissed my cheek and hugged me one more time before leaving.
“See you tomorrow?” I asked and Hunter turned.
“If you want to go running, I’ll be up.”
“Eight o’clock?” I asked.
“See you then beautiful,” he said and drove away as I went inside and screamed into a pillow with excitement. It was official I had a boyfriend and I think I was in love.