Page 40 of Deserving Ryleigh
Ryleigh gasped again.
Tiny regretted being so blunt, but talking about his brother was still painful to this day. “He was a Marine. A damn good one. He was badly injured while I was on amission. By the time I’d found out and made it back stateside, he was already gone.”
“I’m so sorry,” Ryleigh said, leaning against him.
“I miss him,” Tiny admitted. “He was all the family I had left.”
“No. Now you have your Refuge family.”
She was right, of course. The pain of losing his brother would always be there, but time had dulled the agony. And his Refuge brothers had a lot to do with that.
They sat in companiable silence for a long moment. The birds chirping around them, the wind blowing slightly.
“My mom loved my dad. He wasn’t physically abusive to her, but he was mean. So mean.” Ryleigh’s voice was soft, as if she was scared to speak too loudly about her past.
Tiny’s arm tightened around her shoulders. He’d wanted her to open up to him so badly. Ever since she’d told part of her story to him and the others, he’d known there was a lot more to her history.
He’d tired her out by bringing her here, plied her with liquor to help her relax—and he didn’t feel a bit guilty about that. Out of all the people he’d ever met, Ryleigh needed to talk to someone more than any of them. Purge the demons that plagued her, making her so desperate to help others.
He was glad she was talking, but he braced himself for what he was about to hear. His own story wasn’t good, but he had a feeling hers was ten times worse.
He wasn’t wrong.
CHAPTER NINE
Ry felt good. The moonshine was delicious, especially after those first couple of sips. The tart watermelon sparkled on her tongue and if she had her way, she could’ve drunk the entire bottle.
But Tiny had put it away. Had only let her take little sips, then tucked it back inside his pack before the bottle was even half empty. She felt pleasantly floaty, as if all her worries had taken flight in the breeze all around her. She knew that wasn’t true. That her dad was still out there, doing everything in his power to ruin her life and the only good thing that had ever happened to her…The Refuge.
But for now, she felt amazing. Having Tiny’s arm around her felt even better. She much preferred this nice Tiny to the man who used to glare at her and intimidate her with his harsh words.
She’d been shocked by the story of his childhood, and to learn that his dad had killed his mom…accidentally, but still. It made her feel not quite as alone. She never talked about her childhood. But out here, alone in the quiet with Tiny, she felt safe enough to speak.
“Your dad was mean?” Tiny asked, making Ry realize she’d started her story, then got lost in her head, the memories.
“Yeah,” she agreed. “I don’t remember much about my mom, only that she smelled really good. And gave the best hugs. Tried to encourage me to go out and play, but Dad wouldn’t allow it. Then one day, she just up and left. My dad told me she didn’t want us anymore. That I was too much trouble.”
“How old were you?” Tiny asked.
“Maybe five or six,” Ryleigh said.
“You ever try to find her?”
“Of course. It wasn’t hard. She’s dead. Heart attack.”
“I’m sorry.”
Ryleigh shrugged. “I had a fantasy that she’d come back one day. Apologize, beg for my forgiveness. Tell me that she never wanted to leave, but she’d had no choice. We’d hug and live happily ever after. But of course, that didn’t happen. Idobelieve that my dad probably forced her to leave. But I don’t have any proof of that. I never found any divorce papers on file, and she never remarried. She died in New York, and we were in Montana. She got away…but she left me there. Despite knowing how Dad was, she left me with him. I can’t forgive her for that.
“My dad, he was…unbalanced. He started training me when I was still learning to read. He taught me what the dark web was and how to navigate it. When I messed up and did anything that could be traced back to me, he punished me. Locked me in a closet, hit my fingers with a ruler until they bled, took away food…you name it, he did it.Told me it was for my own good. But worse than anything physical was when he screamed and yelled. Told me how worthless I was. That I wasn’t worth the money it took to care for me. That I was stupid and he couldn’t believe he was wasting his time trying to teach me anything.”
Ry took a deep breath. Now that she’d started talking, it felt as if she couldn’t get the words out fast enough. Telling Tiny the hell that her childhood had been felt cathartic. He was rock solid beside her and didn’t interrupt.
“When I was in the third grade, he took me out of school, saying he was going to home-school me. I wasn’t upset about it, because I didn’t fit in at school. I was the weird kid. The one others picked on. I was a nerd, even at that young age. I didn’t want to play with dolls or watch cartoons. All I did in my spare time was stare at a computer screen and try to figure out ways to hack into websites.
“I have a brother. He’s twelve or so years older than me. I’m honestly not sure how old he is or even when his birthday is. He was my dad’s first prodigy. From what I understand he was good. Really good. But he ran away from home in his teens sometime. Done with my dad’s bullshit. I guess my dad saw me as his second chance at having a partner in crime.”
“Wow, do you know where he is today?” Tiny asked.
