Total pages in book: 61
Estimated words: 57161 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 286(@200wpm)___ 229(@250wpm)___ 191(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 57161 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 286(@200wpm)___ 229(@250wpm)___ 191(@300wpm)
“What did he do to Quinn?” Anne asked from where she stood by the couch.
Henry Sr. and his sons turned sympathetic gazes on her; she must not have picked up on what Johnny did to Quinn. She looked between all of them nervously. Maybe she did get it and just did not want to believe it. Margot did not blame her, she could not imagine how she would feel if something like that happened to her child.
“Mom,” Henry said gently. “Mom, Johnny raped Quinn when he was ten.”
Anne’s eyes widened and she started shaking her head furiously as she repeated, “No,” over and over. She dropped down onto the couch and just stared off into space. Henry Sr. went over and sat down next to her; he put his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close. He whispered quietly in her ear, but Margot was too far away to catch any of it; she was sure he was trying to console her.
“Margot?” she heard Henry’s voice ask.
Margot tore her eyes away from Anne and Henry Sr. to look at Henry Jr. “Oui?” she replied quietly.
“Where is Quinn?” he asked, concern furrowing his brow.
“He said he needed to be alone for a while then started walking down the street.”
“Did he say where he was going?” Christian asked.
“Non, I do not think he even knew, he just wanted to be alone,” Margot answered.
“Alright, let’s give him some time, and if he’s not back in fifteen minutes, we’ll go look for him,” Henry said.
Everyone agreed. Margot took a seat on the smaller of the two couches. She could not imagine how Quinn must be feeling right now; he had to be an absolute mess. She wished that he wanted to be with her instead of alone, but that was who Quinn was. He would pick being alone over being coddled any day, so all she could do now was to wait for him to return.
~~~~~
Christian’s cell phone rang about thirty minutes after Henry and Sebastian went out looking for Quinn; Henry found him and was bringing him back. Johnny and his parents left with Johnny cradling a bag of ice to his face. That asshole had the nerve to say that he was going to call the cops and press charges. Christian’s father, Henry Sr., threatened Johnny, saying that if he called the cops then he would ‘shove a broom handle so far up his ass that he’d have splinters on his tongue.’ Johnny’s reaction was comical; he immediately paled, and said that he changed his mind about pressing charges.
Christian still couldn’t believe that Quinn kept something like that a secret for twenty years! Not that Christian had any room to talk; he has been keeping his secret for about twelve years or so. He was also the biggest hypocrite ever, telling Quinn that his family was going to love him no matter what. Shit, Christian needed to heed his own words. He was just waiting for his balls to make an appearance.
Christian paced in his parents’ living room. His mother, Anne, was sitting on the couch, staring into space. Henry was the one to tell her what happened, and she has been out of it ever since. His father was sitting on the couch next to her, rubbing her back. Quinn’s girlfriend, Margot, was sitting on the love seat, her elbows on her knees with her chin resting on her palms. Claire and Raelynn were in the kitchen feeding the kids, but Christian knew that they were both very upset.
Christian heard a car door slam outside and turned to face the door. Sebastian walked in, his nose a bit swollen, and both of his eyes were turning black and blue. Christian hoped he healed fast because his wedding was in a week, and black eyes would not look good for pictures.
“Babe? Can you get me some ice?” he called before sitting on the love seat next to Margot.
Margot turned to look at Sebastian’s face. “Quinn got you good, non?”
Sebastian snorted then groaned and touched his nose delicately. “Hell yeah, he did,” he grumbled.
Raelynn emerged from the kitchen a couple of minutes later with a bag of frozen peas and a rag. Sebastian laid his head back on the couch and Raelynn gingerly placed the rag and the peas on his nose. He hissed and cursed but held it in place with one hand while giving Raelynn’s hand a squeeze with the other.
“Thanks, sweet cheeks.”
“You’re welcome,” she said and stroked his hair with her hand.
Five minutes later, two more car doors slammed outside and Henry came walking in the front door, followed by Quinn. Christian’s heart broke for his brother. He looked horrible - his shoulders hunched and his face was completely and utterly blank, which really freaked Christian out. Quinn usually hid his emotions well, but this was extreme, even for him. Margot got up and took his hand. She led him over to the love seat where she had been sitting, and sat him down next to Sebastian.