Page 5 of Liam James
“Yes, I am.”
“Okay then.”
My Aunt and I are hiding. I saw some really bad things I wasn’t supposed to see. First, my mom was missing, and so was my grandma. My dad said she ran off with another man, and grandma went with her, but I never believed that. She was gone for six months until I saw something in the middle of the night. We lived way out of town, in the woods.
She started having an anxiety attack. I rubbed her back and told her to take deep breaths. I looked over and saw Max there;I put my finger to my lips, and he nodded. She took some more deep breaths.
It was dark outside, and I saw a light in the woods, so I went out to see what it was. It was my dad; he had a large shed out there that I had never been inside before. He always told me that wild animals were often seen in there, and I was supposed to stay away from it. So I thought maybe he saw something. I carried a stick with me. I looked in a window, and what I saw...
“Take your time.”
“Aunt Jenny and I are hiding because I saw my father with a lot of dead bodies. There was one woman who was still alive, and he was cutting her. She looked like she was in shock, and then she saw me and mouthed Help.”
She started crying. “I was so scared, I ran. I hurriedly called Aunt Jenny, and she came and picked me up. She told me to grab my jacket and nothing else. I ran out to the street and saw her coming down the road. We never stopped driving until we got here. She let her car go over a bridge. It was a rental. She got it in another name. It was like she had been planning this escape.”
“Okay, sweetheart. I’m going to guard both of you. Take a breath and drink some water. I have to plan. What is your father’s name?”
“His name is Jarod Kennedy, and he’s a detective.”
“Do you know how many bodies there were?”
“Six, they were all sitting up against the wall.”
“So the other one would be seven.”
“Yes.”
“I need to talk to your aunt. What is her name?”
“Jenny Kennedy. My name is Poppy Kennedy.”
“So, your father is her brother?”
“Yes. I don’t want to dye my hair red anymore, I don’t want to wear colored contacts, and I want my father to be locked up forever. I think he killed my mom and my grandma, too.”
“Aunt Jenny is so afraid that he will kill me. She said when she was little, he was so horrible and evil. He killed her animals, but her parents were so afraid of him they did nothing.”
Big tears started to fall, and I picked her up and rocked her while she cried. She cried for ten minutes. Before I gave her a napkin to blow her nose and wipe her eyes. When I raised my head, her Aunt Jenny was staring at us as if we were all crazy.
“Poppy, what have you done?”
“I told Liam the truth. I’m tired of pretending to be someone else. I want my father to be locked up. We need help, and Liam is a protector. Please don’t be angry.”
“Sweetheart, I’m not angry, I just don’t want your father to find us. You know how he can get on that computer and find all kinds of stuff. Just one word heard by anyone can spread.”
I just want to ask for help. I don't want to hide for the rest of my life. I’m tired of everything. If I had a gun, I would kill him myself. I know he killed Mama and Grandma. They would never leave me with him.
I watched as Jenny wrapped her arms around Poppy and held onto her. I know, sweetheart, we’ll ask for help. She turned and looked at Fraiser.
“Yes, we’ll help you. How come you didn’t make up a name?”
Every time I made one up, I would change my mind and create another, until a year had passed, and I still had no name.
“I’ll guard Jenny and Poppy. But for now, they will be Cleo and Katherine,” I said, smiling.
“No, my name will not be Katherine. I knew a Katherine who was a bully. We’ll think of another name. Then she looked at Tessa. “I need some dessert. While…” She looked at me. “I forgot your name.”
“My name is Liam James.”
