Page 4 of I Don't Need Your Protection
So now he thinks he has a right to tell me when I can and can’t cry? Who does he think he is? I just learned my parents weremurderedand he expects me to hide my emotions like he does? That’s not me and it never will be. If being a Bradshaw means I have to live like a robot, I reject it.
His face softens for a second as his eyes move over my face. “I understand this is difficult for you, Addilyn, but we live in a harsh world. You need tougher skin.”
“It’sAddie,” I grit out. “And my skin is just fine.”
He sighs like he has no patience for my childish outburst. He gestures to the chair I just vacated. “Please sit down, Addilyn. There is still a lot we must discuss.”
I lower myself in the seat and cross my arms over my chest.
“Now as I said, you’ll be attending Harrington Bay Academy tomorrow. But considering your life may be in danger, I have hired a bodyguard to watch over you.”
“Wait, what? You’re giving me a babysitter?”
“He won’t be a babysitter. He’ll protect you with his life.”
Oh my gosh, how is this my life right now? This has to be a terrible nightmare. I think I’d rather live in the crummy group home with the mean guy who always stole my food.
“Various staff and faculty will be undercover security officers as well,” he continues. “And for your safety, your identity will be hidden.”
My eyes bug out. “What the heck?”
“You may keep your first name, but your last name will be Nelson. And your story is that you are attending the school on a scholarship.”
I fall back in my seat. “This is insane.”
“If word gets out that you’re my granddaughter, your safety will be compromised,” he says. “We must take every necessary precaution.”
“I’m going to be a prisoner in my own reality,” I mutter.
“This is only temporary, Addilyn. Until my private investigators catch the people who killed your parents, you’ll be in hiding.”
I rub my hand down my face. Can someone please wake me up from this nightmare?
“I’ll have Louis provide you with a guide of rules you must adhere to,” my grandfather says. “The most important one is that you cannot, under any circumstance, tell a single soul your true identity. Is that understood?”
“Yes.”
“All right.” His expression grows less serious as he says, “I’m very glad I found you before it’s too late. My number one priority right now is to keep you safe. I hope you will take this as seriously as I do and not put yourself in harm’s way. I understand that you are a teenager and might wish to rebel, but I cannot stress how imperative it is that you keep a low profile at your school. Do you have any questions for me?”
“Why didn’t you try to fix your relationship with my dad? With your means, I’m sure it wasn’t hard to find him.”
“He took on a completely new identity,” he says.
I give him a look. “That’s such a load of bull. You didn’t want to fix your relationship with him. That’s the truth, isn’t it? You didn’t like the person he became and decided you didn’t care to be in his life. But now you think you can try again with me. Look, um, Grand—what do I even call you?”
He shifts in his seat. “Whatever you like.”
“Fine. So,Grandfather, I get that you’re happy you have a grandchild, but if you think for one second that you can mold me to be…this.” I gesture to the area around me. “Then you should just give up and send me back to the group home. Because I’ll never be the person you want me to be. I’m the only one who can choose who I want to be. Maybe if you would have accepted that about your son, we would have been in each other’s lives years ago.”
His jaw tenses as he narrows his eyes at me. Then he shakes his head. “I admit, I regret some of my decisions regarding your father. And now that he’s gone…” His voice once again trembles. “Well, I suppose there’s no use mourning over the past. Addilyn, all I want is to provide a better life for you. I’m being extremely sincere. You’re all that I have left of my son and I would hate to lose you as well.”
Well, I guess this is as far as he’s willing to go with any mushiness. Still, he does seem like he wants to try. Maybe I should give him a chance.
“I’m willing to get to know you better,” I say with a small smile. “I’ve always wanted a grandparent.”
“I’m sorry, but I fear I’ll need to keep my distance from you.”
The small smile vanishes from my face. “What?”
