Page 54 of Beyond Repair: Part One

I was strong enough to cook and clean while starved, dehydrated, and beaten bloody, but I wasn't strong enough to take the out he gave me every time heofferedto help me heal. I should have denied the stitches and cleanings...but I didn't.

So... "That was my hell for two years."Because it wasn't life.Being here, with my guys,that'slife.

"And the fear of dogs?" Ridge rumbles in my ear and I can't help the shiver that zaps through my limbs.

Thisis almost as hard to talk about. I glance at Henry, glad one of them already knows. "The day I escaped...Mr. M was super drunk."

My natural response was to go back down to the basement, but after an hour I finally came to my senses.

"It was the opening I needed. But I didn't know about the thing he kept chained up outside the back door." Because I hadn't been outside in years. "I was clumsy..." Malnourished andcompletely weak. "When I ran, it was asleep, thankfully. But my feet were heavy and during my last few steps, it...it took a chunk out of my leg."

I tune out three horrified gasps.

"He trained me not to make too much noise."Cringe. "But that thing was the loudest alarm I have ever heard. I ran, ignoring the pain, like I was forced to learn, then ran and ran and ran until I collapsed."

Until I heard your voices urging me onto that road.

Even if they leave me now, I will love them forever because they boosted my hope enough to survive. "I saved myself, but the love back home was my encouragement."

Just as they are now. My encouragement not only to survive but tolive.

Chapter 44

Henry

No response would ever take away the pain my girl has suffered. So when she asks us not to say anything, I selfishly release a sigh of relief.

Ridge is frozen, his arms limp around Nina, allowing her to crawl off his lap without much effort. "I'm gonna go to the bathroom."

Then Neen's padding away with her arms wrapped around her waist. Her sniffles grow quieter as she finds the bathroom down the hall. My heart is in my goddamn throat, and I desperately want to chase after her, then never let her out of my sight.

I hate myself for how relieved I am that I didn't have to hear the details of what she suffered.How am I so incredibly selfish and weak that I can't hold on to some of her trauma?

The backs of my eyes sting and my head falls forward into my shaking hands.I can't handle this. Between the horrible relief and my brain filling in the gaps that she left open, I feel like I'm about to crumble.Imagine how Nina feels.

"Baby..." Kai's voice is rough, but his hands are gentle as he settles behind me on the couch and holds my hips. "She's safe now."

I lift my head and nod, but that doesn't stop the anxiety thrumming through my veins. "He's still out there. Why the hell isn't she in witness protection?!"

"I talked to her dad about that," Trevor states. "The psych facility she was in for the first year was heavily guarded, and they had frequent contact with the agents on her case when she first came home."

"What aboutnow?" Ridge snaps, clearly agitated and struggling to control himself. "What's stopping him from coming after her again?"

Trev shushes him. "Calm down, Ridge. She doesn't need to hear us bickering right now."

"Continue, please," I beg, needing to know there'ssomethingin place to keep her safe.

"Mr. M is being tracked along the Canadian border. All signs point to him being far away from here. He's just damn good at staying two steps ahead of the Feds." Trevor's jaw clenches in irritation.

With one hand on my hip, Kai tugs me back until I'm pressed against him. "So what are they doing to keep Nina safe?" he asks, sounding more curious than angry.

Trevor scratches his stubbly jaw. "Keeping her dad updated and ensuring she's somewhat hidden. Will and Meg were terrified to shove her into hiding after everything she went through, so they felt, if Mr. M was states away, she should live her life. I don't know if any of you have thought about the fact that we never saw any news coverage of when Nina was found?"

Our beat of silence is his answer. There's a reason we never knew she was safe, and I'm pissed I haven't thought to ask before now.

"Will said there was a major uproar about it for a few days, but they quickly got it under control in an attempt to keep her as hidden as possible while she recovered. If you search the internet hard enough, you'll find her story..." Trevor trails off, suddenly looking pale.

My breath catches. "You read it didn't?—"

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