Page 98 of Deserving Cora
The last words he’d ever said to Lara echoed in her head, over and over.
You’re my favorite. I’m never giving you up. You’re mine.
She shuddered.
“Are you cold?” Owl asked, not waiting for her response, but standing to grab another blanket from the back of the couch. She was cold all the time. Owl had turned up the heat in his cabin, but she could still never seem to get warm.
Lara didn’t understand Callen Kaufman. He was the first person she remembered seeing when she was rescued, and she’d latched onto him like a toddler with separation anxiety. He’d instantly represented safety for her, and while she’d gotten slightly better over the last few months, she still panicked when he wasn’t around.
There was something about the man that made her feel protected. Sheltered.
And that was all it couldeverbe. She was done with love. With the fantasy of happily ever after. She wished nothing but good luck to the men and women who’d been so amazing, who’d let her stay here at The Refuge, but her desire to be loved, to have a family one day, had died a spectacular death.
There was no such thing as happily ever after. Disney and Hallmark movies were a scam. Romance novels were nothing but fantasies.
Lara swore that as soon as she was able, she was leaving here and moving to Alaska and living in one of those off-the-grid cabins. She’d grow her own food, hunt for meat, use candles for light. That was preferable to being hurt over and over again by people. Bymen.
Owl draped the fuzzy blanket over her, and Lara forced herself to look at him and nod.
“I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again. As many times as you need to hear it. You’re safe here, Lara,” Owl told her gently.
Lara’s gaze dropped to her lap. It was obvious Owl believed what he was saying, and while she trusted him as much as she could trust anyone right now, and she was definitely using him as a crutch, she knew down to her soul that shewasn’tsafe.
And anyone close to her wasn’t safe either.
She’d overheard Owl talking to one of his friends—she didn’t know which—at the door the other day. They’d kept their voices low, trying to keep their conversation from her, but Lara had heard.
Carter was still out there. The police hadn’t been able to find him. Ridge was dead, which she felt a smidgen of relief about, but the real danger was Carter. Had always been him. And he was free. He was going to come for her.
She needed to leave. Hide. Because no matter what, Carter wasn’t going to rest until he’d taken her back. He’d claimed her, whether she wanted him to or not, and he would make her pay for escaping his warped basement prison of humiliation and pain.
Lara would rather die than be back in his clutches again.
In the meantime, she’d regain her strength. Try to get better, try to endure longer lengths of time without Owl by her side. Once she was capable enough, she’d disappear.
Cora would be fine. She’d found herself a protector as well, which made Lara happy, but also sad. She’d miss her friend. But she’d be safer with Lara gone.
Lara took a deep breath. First things first, though—she needed to shake herself out of the pit of despair she’d fallen into, at least on the outside. Needed to convince everyone she was okay, so she could leave. She didn’t know where she’d be safe from a monster like Carter, but she refused to drag others into the horror that had become her life.
She looked up at Owl and smiled tentatively.
He tilted his head as he studied her.
“Can we watch a movie?” she asked.
“Yes! Absolutely,” Owl responded quickly.
It was the first time she’d asked for anything, and it was obvious Owl was ready and willing to give her whatever she wanted. She didn’t like lying to him, and by pretending to be getting better, shewaslying. But it was for his own good. He’d protected her when she’d needed it the most, and it was time she returned the favor.
* * *
Owl settled on the other end of the couch from Lara and continually switched his attention from the movie to the woman sitting just three feet from him. In reality, was miles away. Yes, she’d asked to watch a movie, the first time she’d requested anything since he’d brought her to his cabin after her discharge from the hospital in Phoenix.
But she wasn’t okay. She might’ve asked to watch a movie, but she wasn’t actually paying any attention. She was lost in her head, just as she’d been for most of the last few months.
Owl had tried everything he could think of to help her, but nothing seemed to work. She didn’t want to talk to Henley, didn’t want to talk to her parents the few times they’d called. Even Cora’s regular visits didn’t seem to make any difference.
So yeah, her taking the initiative and asking for something as simple as a movie was a huge step…but it wasn’t a genuine one. Lara still had that haunted look in her eyes. She was deeply traumatized by whatever had happened to her in that basement, and it hurt his heart.
