Page 183 of Shattered Silence Duet

My heart aches at seeing her upset. I hug her tightly as I try to soothe her. “Shh, shh. It’s okay, Sugar. You’re here with us now, you’re safe.”

Gideon, sitting beside us, reaches out to wipe a tear from her face, then grabs her hand.

“Love, I don’t want you to think about anything that makes you upset. But… you’ve never told us about anything happening in a bathroom before. And we’ve all noticed you only take baths. Are those two things related?” She nods, looking at him nervously.

“I know it will hurt, but maybe it’s best to get it out now, so you can put it past you? We’re all here to help you through it. Only if you want to, of course.”

She thinks about it as he hands her a glass of water. She takes a few sips then passes it back to him to set down on the table.

She stares at her fingers as she starts talking. “H-he wanted me to be clean, as I had only ever washed myself in the sink before. So he took me to the bathroom upstairs and made me strip and get in the shower.”

I swallow the lump in my throat as I exchange a look with Gideon, not liking where this is going. She never really explained how close he might have been to raping her or the details of that event at all.

“The shampoo and conditioner bottles were really small. I thought it was kinda weird but was too freaked out to give it a second thought. They were green with a little logo on them. It was three leaves or petals with two circles underneath.”

“That’s something. They might be from a hotel he was staying at. I can check out the motels and hotels online to see if any around here have that as their logo,” Ben tells us. “Good job, Princess. You don’t have to go on if you don’t want to,” he adds.

I can see the tears in her eyes, as her whole body trembles, already losing herself to the memory.

“Let it out, Sugar. Tell us what happened next. You’ll feel better after,” I say, stroking her back.

“He—he choked me, held up my face to the water. I felt like I was drowning. And he—he wrapped the shower curtain around me tightly but left a hole for the water to pour into. I started drowning as the water had nowhere to go. It was awful. I always wanted to know what a shower was like, but now I hope I never have to have one again.” She manages to say all of that without breaking down, and I’m so damn proud of her.

“Kitten, I’m so proud of you for telling us that. Good girl.”Dom says, mirroring my thoughts, and I pepper her head and face with kisses, pulling a giggle from her.

“What do you say we watchThe Officeand relax while Ben does his research?” Jasper asks, and we all agree.

Mina snuggles up between me and Jasper as we finish our pizza and watch the show.

Chapter 42

Mina

My skin feels like it’s buzzing. I’m so relieved to have cleared up everything with the guys and feel like I can finally trust them all again. It’s been a difficult few weeks, but I’ve realized I’d take these weeks over any of the ones before I met them, hands down. My worst day with them is still far better than anything I’ve experienced in my past.

Last night I slept between Tucker and Gideon and I felt so warm and safe. Gideon didn’t press me for anything, even though he’s the only one I haven’t slept with. That level of comfort made me feel even closer to him. Cuddling the guys is my new favorite thing to do, and since they don’t seem to mind, I always seem to seek out someone’s lap to sit on.

Maybe it’s because I’ve been starved for positive affection my whole life, or maybe it’s just because these guys are so kind, sweet, and incredibly hot. Either way, I love living here with them. But I’m ready to put my past behind me and move on with my life. Something I feel I couldn’t do until Simon and my mom were caught.

“I found it!” Ben yells, as he comes running down the stairs towards where we all sit, eating breakfast at the table.

“I found it!” he says again, his eyes alight with excitement. “I found the logo!” he says when we look at him in confusion.

“Really?” I ask in surprise.

“Well, I think so. It wasn’t the logo of a hotel like we thought—it’s the logo of the shampoo company. Took me a while to narrow it down, but I tracked it to two places. Both use that brand in their rooms, and they’re in completely opposite directions from each other, Carlington and Ajax.”

Relief washes over me. My description wasn’t useless like I feared it would be. I might have actually helped us find a lead on this case.

“Alright,” Dom says, immediately taking charge. “We’ll have two teams go and stake out the two locations to look for Simon or Helen. If either of them shows up, we regroup and make a plan. Jasper and Tucker, you’re team one, you head to Carlington. Gideon and I will take Ajax. The rest of you stay here, keep comms open, and be ready for anything. Everyone clear?”

“Clear,” everyone echoes, voices confident and ready.

As the room buzzes with preparation, Ben takes my hand and tugs me upstairs to his room. He’s grinning when he pulls me into his lap after sitting down at his desk.

“You get to stay here with me, Princess,” he says, his voice full of warmth.

“What about Atlas and Max?” I ask, leaning sideways into his chest, finding comfort in his arms.