Bella woke up feeling refreshed and oddly better than she had the past few days. She stretched, gazing over at the clock. ‘Holy shit! The kids! Fuck! I shouldn’t have slept so goddamn long!’ She tripped out of bed, her legs getting tangled in her sheets. She held in a cry of surprise as she tumbled to the floor.
A humorous laugh rang from the doorway. Bella groaned, as Danny looked right, towards the stairs just outside her room and shouted, “She must’ve known I was comin’! But this was way better!” His boyish grin revealed three missing front teeth. His sapphire eyes sparkled in amusement. “Owen is leavin’ to hang out with your brothers. He said to tell you that you need to get Eli out of his room.” He whirled around and ran away as the front door slammed shut.
“Ah…” Bella moaned dropping her head onto the polished hardwood floor. She untangled herself from the blankets as soft footsteps slipped down the hall. Lucy’s babyish cheeks were rosy and her forest-y eyes were livelier than they’d been the past three days Bella had been around.
“I wanna play outside!” Lucy exclaimed trying to push her arm through the sleeve of her jacket.
Bella dropped her blankets onto her bed and glanced towards the windows behind her. The sun was shining blindingly and the sky was a clear robin’s egg blue. Bella smiled as Lucy dove onto her bed. She was wearing one lime green Converse on her right foot, and a black Vans skate shoe on her left, neither were laced up. She was wearing a plaid, black and red checkered skirt, and a purple long-sleeved t-shirt, with a light pink wind breaker, and a purple and silver baseball hat.
“Come on Bella!” she urged. She was lying on her stomach with her face in the palm of her hands, kicking her shoes up and down.
“Just lemme get dressed. You want help tying your shoes?” Lucy’s eyes grew wide and she slid to the floor.
“No way! I can do it myself!”
Bella laughed. “Alright, alright. When you’re finished,” she lowered her voice to a mischievous whisper, “we’re gonna get Eli outta bed to come with us.” Lucy grinned, looking so similar to her brothers, Bella couldn’t help wondering what the poor girl was gonna be like when she grew up.
“Danny comin’ too?” She frowned.
“Of course.” Lucy’s eyes lit up.
“Yay!”
* * *
“Come on you guys!” Anson complained, following his older brothers into the basement. “Please let us help,” he pleaded. Frankie chuckled. His youngest brothers and sister had been begging to help as soon as they’d heard why five of their six older brothers had showed up unannounced.
“Listen Ans, you can help by not telling Mom and Dad,” Frankie replied, much to their annoyance.
“Whatever,” Rebecca mumbled, “at least let us help plan.” Zane opened his mouth to tell her there was not a chance in the world she could stay, but Oliver cut him off.
“Alright, but this stays between us.” He grinned at his littlest sister. She was twelve years younger than him, but he was closer to her than he was to Frankie, who was his biological brother, or Samantha, who’d been like his best friend.
“Let’s get down to business,” Jake muttered, eyeing Owen distastefully.
“Why didn’t you call us as soon as she left last night, you fuckin’ idiot? She coulda been killed!” Zane asked, trying to keep the malice from his voice as much as he could. His dark brown eyes gleamed furiously, as he shoved his straight, dark brown hair away from them.
“I was busy,” Owen answered, dropping notebook THIRTEEN onto the table, “reading this.”
“What’s that?” Frankie asked, folding his tattoo-covered arms.
“Becca! Anson! Damien!” Thomas called from the top of the stairs.
“What?” they shouted back.
“Dentist appointment. We’re gonna be late, hurry up!”
“Goddammit,” Anson grumbled. Rebecca’s face went sheet white. She hated going to the dentist, or the doctor. She was so afraid of being touched, that she wouldn’t even let anyone cut her hair.
“Don’t worry Becca,” Oliver said soothingly. “It’ll be alright.” Damien and Anson shared a knowing look as they each took one of Rebecca’s hands (it had taken two years, but they were finally allowed to touch her a little bit. She knew they wouldn’t hurt her).
“We’ll be right there with you Becca,” Damien reminded her as they slowly led her toward the stairs.
Zane, to everyone’s amazement (they didn’t get along very well), stood up and extracted something from his pocket; a shiny golden necklace, with the pendant the shape of a spider. “I was gonna give it to you for your birthday, but I guess you can have it now,” he grumbled slipping it over her head, careful not to touch her. Rebecca’s eyes lit up, and she grinned.
“Thanks Zane!” He would never understand her love of all things creepy crawly, but he loved her all the same.
“Kids!” Anna called.
“I love you guys!” Rebecca said with a thin smile, not quite reaching her eyes.
“Love you Becca,” her older brothers replied. They may not have been siblings by blood, but they were part of the Harken family. And that meant something to all of them.
Owen sometimes forgot how much he enjoyed being around them. They accepted each other no matter what, and they looked out for one another, despite some significant age differences. He got a kick out of the fact that they were constantly playing jokes and fighting. They were always fun to be around.
The three youngest siblings ran upstairs, grumbling and whining about how much they hated the dentist. When the basement door was slammed shut Zane, Jake, Bryce, Frankie, and Oliver all turned to Owen the Outsider.
“What’s that?”
“It’s her journal for the years 1997-1998, when she was kidnapped by Georgie.” He clenched his fists. Just thinking about it made him want to murder the bastard even more so than he already did.
“We’re not gonna read it,” Jake snapped. “Just tell us what the fuck is so goddamned important!”
“Jake,” Oliver said calmly, “get a hold of yourself, the kid’s obviously trying to help.”
Owen waited for Bella’s brothers to be quiet before he went into the horrors he’d discovered among the pages of THIRTEEN. When they were too much for her brothers to believe, he began reading from the journal itself.
“Stop!” Zane shouted, shaking with anger. “Just… stop reading!” Owen snapped his mouth shut mid-sentence and was met by silence.
“I don’t care what you guys do or say,” Owen began, his voice dripping with venom, “but I’m going to kill that sonofabitch… first, I’m gonna make him suffer.”
“Hell yeah,” Frankie agreed, thinking of his two-year-old daughter. He would never do anything like that to hurt her. Ava, and his eleven-month-old son, Nico, were his pride and joy. He felt his rage building up at the thought of a father doing those things to his daughter, and it ate away at him that he couldn’t have done anything to stop it from happening to Bella. He’d known Bella since she was five and he was twelve. The day she’d disappeared had been one of the worst days of his life. If only he’d just picked her up that day…
“Let’s go now. I have my dad’s gun-”
“No,” Oliver interrupted firmly. “We’re gonna do this the right way.” His eyes shined with a calm rage.
“What’s the right way?” Owen asked curiously. The Harken family had their own way of doing things, especially when it came to taking care of each other.
“You’ll see,” the five brothers answered in unison.
“Is Gus coming to help?”
“No, the baby is due any day now, and he’s got his hands full with the boys and the twins,” Oliver answered.
“I call dibs on his face,” Bryce growled. He glanced over at Jake, who was frantically flipping through Bella’s journal.
“We gotta have a plan,” Frankie muttered, “any suggestions?”
“Bella had a good idea…” Owen told them what her plan was.
“I hate that idea,” Jake groaned. He didn’t want Georgie to ever lay eyes on her again, but he was outvoted.
“She’ll be okay,” Oliver said confidently. “Owen,” he turned his attention to the boy who’d been forbidden to go anywhere near his sister, “we’re still not giving you our blessing. You haven’t earned it yet.”
“But,” Frankie continued his older brother’s thought, “you’re not as bad as we thought.”
“Yes he is,” Jake and Zane snapped. He wasn’t good enough for Bella, not even close. Bryce rolled his eyes, agreeing with his two older brothers. He didn’t share Jake and Zane’s ridiculously intense dislike for the kid. Especially after he met Mina and found out what love felt like.
“Bella is a big girl who can make her own decisions. It will be her choice whether or not she wants to be with me,” Owen said with an arrogant tone in his voice.
“You fuck up a lot Owen,” Frankie noted, amused, “and yet you still think our sister will fall for you?” He laughed.
“Oh,” Owen’s confidence had returned, “I know she will.”
“Shut up guys, stop arguing and get back to work. Harriet will be furious if I’m not home by the time my sons wake up tomorrow.”
* * *
“This is delicious Bella,” Eli muttered, stuffing his mouth with her lasagna. She didn’t like Eli acting that way. When she and Lucy had dragged him and Danny out to the playground about a half a mile away from the house (but still on the property), he’d been nice and helpful. He’d played with the kids and tried to have a civilized conversation with her. And when dinner time came around he’d offered to set the table.
Bella didn’t like it. It was way too strange. Why couldn’t she have the Eli she knew and loved back? Danny was suspicious of the new Eli too. He was way too nice. The real Eli would never offer to do his chores. No way in hell.
Bella’s phone vibrated abruptly in her pocket and she jumped to answer it, pushing herself away from the table. “Hello?”
“Bella darling, how are the kids?” Mrs. Sweeny asked. She was yelling over loud music in the background. Bella wasn’t sure if she should tell her the truth, or lie to her like she normally did when really bad shit happened.
“They’re fine,” Bella sighed, dropping onto the couch in the den, “except for Eli.”
“What happened?” Mrs. Sweeny asked, alarmed.
“It’s Dizzy…” Bella began, “she-”
“Oh thank god!” Mrs. Sweeny exclaimed. “Don’t scare me like that sweetie! I thought something was really wrong!” Bella scowled. Mrs. Sweeny was becoming less and less motherly with every passing day. Bella had begun working for her under the impression that she would be working as a nanny once a month, but that turned into two weekends a month, and then, the past four months, Marianne had called Bella almost every night to come and rock Lucy to sleep, or calm Danny down from a temper tantrum. It was almost as though she were completely forgetting that being a mother meant more than just putting a roof over their heads and clothes on their backs. Hell, Thomas was just as successful as she was, and he still managed to make it home to help cook dinner every night.
“Sorry Mrs. Sweeny,” Bella mumbled. “You’re still coming home tomorrow night, right?”
“Oh, honey, I don’t know,” she shouted in Bella’s ear, “I’ll have to get back to you on that. But don’t worry, I’ll pay you extra!” The teenager rolled her eyes. She wasn’t worried about the money. She was worried about the kids. They deserved a mother who would care about their heartbreaks and fevers.
“That’s not what I care ab-”
“I’ve gotta get goin’ sweetie. Tell my kids I love ‘em!” and she hung up before Bella could say another word.
“What’d mom say?” Danny asked, sauntering into the den and diving onto the long couch.
“Said she loved you,” she answered as he switched on the TV, turning it to The Simpsons. Danny rolled his eyes.
“Sure she does,” he mumbled. He glared at the large television, folding his arms. Bella took his face in her hands, forcing him to look at her.
“Your mom is doing the best she knows how. She loves you very, very much. Remember that.” Danny squirmed out of her grasp.
“Whatever,” he grumbled, ignoring the girl. She stood up and went back to the kitchen/dining room where Eli was silently doing the dishes, with tears he was ashamed of, running down his cheeks. Bella decided not to bother him, turning around to go find Lucy instead. She stepped out into the hallway as the front door slammed open.
There, in the doorway, stood Georgie, holding a crying, squirming Lucy. She was wearing her coat over her pajamas. ‘Goddammit Lucy! How many times do I have to tell you not to go outside by yourself?!’
“Hello Bella, I think now’s the time to come with me,” he laughed, pulling his long knife out from behind his back and holding it to Lucy’s throat. Bella’s eyes widened as Lucy released an earsplitting scream. It was Bella’s worst nightmare coming true.
“Let her go Georgie,” Bella demanded, keeping her voice calm. Georgie loved chaos. He loved goading her until she lost her cool.
Georgie stroked Lucy’s throat with the knife. “Bella!” she wailed reaching out to her nanny. Her dark green eyes were swimming with tears and she trembled, terrified.
“What the fuck! Put her down!” Eli shrieked stepping out of the kitchen, at the same time that Danny emerged from the den. They both were getting ready to be heroes, when they noticed the sharp blade being held against their baby sister’s fragile neck.
Bella put up a hand, warning the boys. “Georgie, I’ll go with you, just do not hurt her.” Georgie’s smile grew wide, once again revealing his rotting teeth. ‘Why couldn’t it have rotted his goddamned brain?’
“I knew you’d see it my way honey.” Georgie’s voice oozed with false sincerity.
“Who the hell is this guy Bella?” Danny asked his legs were shaking as he stumbled to his brother’s side. Eli put a protective arm around his shoulder, pulling him closer.
“He’s nobody.”
“Oh, now don’t be like that Jelly Belly,” he laughed. He turned his treacherous eyes on the boys. “She’s just upset ‘cause she’s gonna die tonight. I’m her father.” His green-blue eyes glinted with a humor only he seemed to understand. He stroked the crying baby’s cheek and smirked. “She looks so much like you did when you were a baby, don’t you think Bella? Such a shame I wasn’t there when you killed your mother. Then all those poor girls would still be alive.” He grinned pointedly at Eli. “I’m tired of playing games, come on Jelly Belly.” Bella made her way over to him quickly, ripping the baby from his disgusting, unwashed body. Lucy wrapped her arms around Bella’s neck.
“Don’t go Bella! Don’t go. Please!” she sobbed. Bella gently unwound the baby’s arms and set her on her feet.
“It’s okay,” Bella whispered, “I’ll be okay.” Georgie laughed loudly as Lucy ran into Eli’s outstretched arms, still crying.
The man grabbed his daughter by the honey blond hair she’d received from her mother. After Alice died giving birth to Zane, he didn’t think he could ever love again, but then he met Brooke. She was everything Alice had been and more. She loved his boys as if they were her own. When he left to fight in the war, when Bella was just eighteen months old, he didn’t expect to hear that the woman he loved even more than his first wife had committed suicide. A purposeful drug overdose. His children had been awarded to the state. But they wouldn’t let him return home. It was all Bella’s fault. She’d been there when Brooke took her own life. In Georgie’s mind, she was to blame. She would always be to blame.
“Let’s go,” he sneered dragging her out into the freezing night. She was wearing nothing but her favorite gray sweats and a plum and silver tank-top, she didn’t even have shoes on. The cold wind whipped loose strands of golden blond hair into her face. She didn’t say a word; she had to keep control of herself.
* * *
“Okay, slow down Eli,” Owen snapped, “what happened?” Eli was speaking so fast that his words ran together. Owen couldn’t understand a single thing the kid was saying.
“A man came in and threatened Lucy with a knife and took Bella! I think he’s gonna kill her!” Eli shouted frantically, stringing his words together as slowly as possible.
“Who took her?” Owen asked, even though he already knew the answer. He felt the Harken brothers’ eyes on him, but he didn’t lift his gaze from his hands, he was trying to keep the fear out of his voice. What use was he if he was terrified?
“Georgie.” Eli lowered his voice. “I think he killed Dizzy.” He let out a deep, shaky breath, leading Owen to the uncomfortable conclusion that he was crying. “I-I-I’m s-sorry ‘bout Bells. Know you l-l-like her,” he mumbled.
“Eli, just take care of Danny and Lucy. No drinking! We’ll get her back.” He hung up the phone and jumped to his feet. “He’s got Bella! We’ve gotta go. We’ve gotta find her! He’s gonna kill her!” He was freaking out, unable to control himself any longer. He wanted that fucker dead. He heard someone shouting his name, but wasn’t listening.
Jake stood up and hit Owen so hard in the face (on his right cheekbone) that he knocked him backwards on his ass. Owen looked shocked. Jake knelt down next to him. “Listen, you need to calm the fuck down. That’s the only way we’ll get Bella outta this mess. Got it?” Owen nodded silently as Jake helped him to his feet. He rubbed at the bruise that was already forming on his face.
“Shit,” he mumbled, a half-smile pulling at the corners of his lips. He clapped Jake on the shoulder. “Forgot how hard you can fuckin’ hit.” Jake shrugged his hand off, but had to work to keep a smile off his face.
“Just don’t fuck up like that again.” Owen nodded.
“Right,” he muttered, remembering Bella’s rules. “Number ten, Always Stay Calm.”
“What’d you say?”
“Nothin’.”