Page 70 of Serena
“I think so too,” my father says, stunning me with his words. Then I hear a scream come from the kitchen. My father, Vee, and I rush to find Serena on the floor with her back against the stove. She’s holding my mother. Broken plates around them. The chocolate cake is on the floor along with the broken cake stand. Her panicked eyes meet mine.
“I was bringing your mom the plates, and she started to convulse. I just dropped everything when I saw she was going to fall. I made it in time, but…but—” My father goes to my mother.
“Vee, call the doctor now!” My sister stands frozen. “For fucks sake, now, Vee!”
My father’s screams bring her back. “O-okay.”
My father bends down. “Serena, listen to me, I can’t move my wife until the doctor tells me so. I’m sorry, sweetie. Just try to breathe.” My father recognizes the look in her eyes because he sees it in my mother’s. I inspect Serena's body and see blood onher right thigh, shit. My mother landed on some pieces of broken glass, but the full impact was taken by Serena.
“Baby.” She looks back at me. “Baby, I need you to just look at me. Don’t look at anything else, just me.” My sister runs in. “The doctor will be here in ten minutes.” That’s an eternity for someone with Serena’s trauma. She has to willingly sit in her worst nightmare.
“Respira, Mi Reina,” I say, but I don’t know if it's more for me than her. The doctor finally arrives and checks my mother, still in Serena’s arms. He gives my father the go-ahead to pick up my mother. As soon as he does, I pick up Serena and take her away from the room. I see the dry tears on her skin; she’s so pale, all the blood drained from her face.
“Baby, you're doing so good.” I try to soothe her. I bark orders at my sister to bring Serena some of her clothes. I remove Serena’s shirt and inspect her back; no cuts there. “Baby, you have a piece of glass in your thigh.” I’m pretty sure she can’t feel anything; her adrenaline is pumping. “I need to pull it out.”
“No, please don’t,” she pleads.
“Baby, I have to. It’s going to be okay. I’m here.” It takes a moment, but she finally agrees.
“Will you hold my hand?” she asks.
“Always, baby. Now count to three with me.”
“Uno, dos,” we count together, and on three, I pull the shard of glass, putting a towel on it for pressure. I touch my forehead to hers.
“You did so good,” I praise. She wraps her arms around me, and I enfold myself around her.
The doctor gives Serena a checkup. There are no major physical injuries to her or my mother, but that wouldn’t have been the case if Serena hadn’t been there to catch my mother’s fall.
We stay for a couple of hours to monitor Mom’s progress. I turn to see Vee, who’s fallen asleep on the couch with Serena stroking her hair. It’s endearing to see how much of a liking they took to each other. Even after the whole Yuri and Gabe comments were made.
I see my father coming down the stairs, and I approach him. “What happened to Mom?”
“It’s her new medication. We thought it was working well, but there are some adjustments that need to be made.”
He looks behind me, then at me before saying, “I made a call. I’m having my contacts look at the police officers who handled the investigation.” He looks up the staircase in the direction of my mother’s room. “What are you going to do?” he asks.
“Whatever I need to do to keep her safe.” I know he understands what I mean because he did the same thing for my mother.
“Thanks, Dad.”
“Thank me by not quitting. I know it’s been hard for me to let go of the reins.” His voice cracks. “Seeing your mother on the floor like that. It puts everything into perspective. I know I made the right decision leaving the company.” This is a side only Abigail Kayde can bring out of Miguel Kayde.
It’s been a couple of weeks since my trip home. A couple of weeks since I said goodbye to any possibility of having an actual relationship with my parents. A couple of weeks since I had dinner at Abigail and Miguel Kayde’s home. Since my new scar marked my skin, but unlike the others on my body, this one isn’t full of shame. Yes, Ian’s constant reminder of how I helped his mom helps, but it’s different. I feel different, not so alone.
The last couple of days, I’ve had a feeling of being watched, which isn’t unusual because I know I’m being watched by Ian. I don’t know why I’m no longer upset. The man is invading my privacy for fucks sake, but knowing that he’s watching me to keep me safe helps me sleep better at night. Plus, it does turn me on.
Ian has no problems sending me clips of our time at the gun range, mostly during meetings. He’s kept to his word of watching the recording, and after, he comes to my office and fucks me. My father’s words make me second-guess myself, butnot as much as they used to. I know I should be more bothered about Ian being my boss and the power dynamic, but truth be told, I love it.
As far as his extracurricular activity, Ian shared more about it, but I didn’t want to know the details. Being an accessory to murder is not on my list of things I want to be part of.
I think about Lester Moore, the man who raped me. Would I kill him if I had the chance? What about Kyle? The old Serena wouldn’t, but the old Serena was naive and a people pleaser. This version would without hesitation. Like me, Ian hides behind a persona, one that he willingly shares with me.
Gus pulls up to Kayde Investments, and for a moment, I think I see a familiar face, but it gets lost in the crowd. “Is everything okay, Serena?” Gus asks as he closes the door behind me.
“Yes, I just thought I saw someone.” There’s an uneasy feeling that settles in my stomach.
Pushing the uncomfortable feelings aside, I head into my office. Claudia is out for the morning; she had to take her son to the doctor. With her absent from her desk, it’s easy to see how the man in my office got there. Jacob is waiting for me. Sitting in my chair.
