Page 15 of Take Me to Church
I knew who was involved the second she told me she found someone willing to take her sister. The Horsemen’s numbers have dwindled over the past few years, most of them managing to get themselves locked up or dead, but they’re still lingering. Like a festering wound that won’t heal.
And unfortunately, Rodney is the most infected of the bunch. He’s not simply a sociopath who doesn’t care about anyone else but himself. He didn’t just grow up locked into a system that drains children of empathy and hope. This guy would have been bad whether he grew up in foster care or with two rich as fuck parents who loved him and gave him everything he wanted. Hell, he might’ve ended up worse then.
Rodney’s ugly face stretches into a smile. “Well look who it is.” His smirk tells me he’s just as pleased with this change of circumstance as he was with the possibility of forcing himself on Lydia. “The golden boy of Memphis.”
Lydia edges closer to me, her small body pressing tight against my back as Rodney’s focus fixes on me. I need to diffuse the situation, and I need to do it fast. So I decide to offer up something I know I shouldn’t. “How much does she owe you?”
Rodney’s brows lift slowly, cutting creases into the black lines tattooed across his forehead. “Are you trying to make a deal with me, Golden Boy?”
I knew he’d be surprised. My brothers and I have never dealt with The Horseman outside of intervening when they cross the line. Not even before we turned our lives around. But I want them to stay away from Lydia, and I’m willing to bend the rules to make that happen. “Give me a number.”
I expect him to inflate it, and I don’t care. It’s just money. And I learned a long time ago that money doesn’t buy me anything I really want.
But Rodney just gives me another slow smile. “You don’t have what I want.”
Lydia’s hands latch onto my shirt as she gulps in a sharp breath.
“We both know you’re not getting that, so you might as well get some cash.” I keep my arms loose at my sides even though I want to reach back and comfort her, let Lydia know everything is going to be fine. But I’ve already given Rodney way too much ammunition. If he sees me put my hands on Lydia, he’ll figure out she’s much more than simply a random woman in distress. “How much?”
The smile slips from Rodney’s face, mouth pressing into a disgusted scowl. “I don’t want your fucking dirty money.” He practically spits the words at me before leaning to give Lydia a long look. She presses tighter against me, as if she can hide away from his stare. “I’ll be seeing you, little girl.”
Rodney gives me another glare before turning away and crossing the lot, steps slow and unhurried.
Lydia doesn’t move until he melts into the shadows, disappearing into the darkness from which he comes.
“What did he mean, he would be seeing me?” Lydia’s voice is soft and shaky.
I turn to face her, finally allowing myself to rest my hands against her skin. I slide both palms up and down her bare arms, trying to soothe away the goosebumps raised along her skin. “I think you know what he meant.”
Lydia’s eyes go wide and for a second I see a hint of the little girl I used to know. The one that was always too sweet and too soft and too shy for the world she’d been born into.
But now she’s found herself in another world. One that will chew her up and spit her out without a second thought. One that preys on the innocent. And even though she’s no longer the same sheltered girl, Lydia is still clearly innocent to many of the evils in this world.
“I’m so sorry.” She sniffs, shaking her head, eyes watery as they look up into mine. “I didn’t know—”
“It’s okay.” I slide a strand of her soft brown hair behind one ear, trailing my fingers along the curve of her neck. I can’t seem to stop touching her. I wish it was only because I want to comfort her, but it’s not. “You couldn’t have known.”
There’s a side of Memphis—and probably every other big city in the world—that people like to pretend doesn’t exist. They want to believe every child grows up happy and safe and loved and becomes an upstanding and productive member of society. But that’s not the way the world really works. Violence and neglect is a vicious cycle. One that’s nearly impossible to escape.
That’s why Tate, Simon, and I do what we do. To give at least a few of the women caught in that cycle a fighting chance.
Lydia’s lower lip barely trembles and a thin line of unshed tears frames each eye. “What do I do?”
The way she’s looking to me for help feeds the part of me that thrives on being needed. Wanted.
Trusted.
“You come home with me.” I drag my thumb across the smooth skin of her shoulder, wondering what it might be like to have Lydia haunting the halls of my house. Filling it with her sweet scent. Her quiet laughter. “So I can keep you safe.”
Lydia’s head tips back in surprise. “I can’t go home with you.”
“You have to.” Now that I’ve imagined what it would be like to have her close to me, there’s no way it’s not happening. “Rodney found you here, he will find you at home just as easily, Lydia. You’re not safe anywhere you go.”
Lydia’s eyes move over my face, narrowing the tiniest bit. “But I’ll be safe with you?”
I nod, wanting to convince her even though it’s already a done deal in my mind. “Yes.”
Rodney won’t come near my house. The block my brothers and I live on is nearly impenetrable. We own every building on the street and each one is equipped with a top-of-the-line security system.
