Forgive Me by Kateri Stanley (reading strategies book TXT) 📕

She walked to the kitchen, pouring herself a glass of water. She'd grown more comfortable in Isaac's home, even with those tall trees looming outside. Sometimes, late at night she'd mistake them for giants. The heat radiating from her skin was stifling but the nightmare was ten times worse.

“Your father is such a disappointment,” Beverley’s voice edged into the room.

Stripe turned, dropping the glass. “Momma?”

Beverley sat in the corner chair, shadows hiding her face. “Your father is a disgrace. He keeps wanting to talk to me, to explain about why he was such a secretive bastard. He doesn’t get the God damn hint, I don’t want to be around him. Those children are petrified if they even catch a glimpse of his face. He’s completely lost his mind. I swear Stripe, if I’d known back then, I would’ve divorced him in a heartbeat. I would’ve moved us miles away, from all of it.”

“It’s not your fault,” Stripe whispered. “I’m the one to blame.”

“Stripe, don’t…”

The wind blew outside making her turn. Stripe saw a shadow creeping out from Sofia's bedroom window. She pried the knife from the guard box, her knuckles tightening around the handle. She kept her tread light. Everything was quiet, until she saw the stranger outside her house. “You. I've been dreaming about you for a very long time.”

The lumberjack was tall as her father had promised.

Stripe threatened him with the knife. “Are you protecting my family? You didn’t do a good job before.”

He cocked his head, thinking. He propped the axe by the wall, raising his hands above his shoulders.

You’re half asleep. I won't hurt you. I love you, his voice was so intimate. The way it danced, caressing her ear. He removed his mask, she stepped back in shock.

Her fingers framed his face. “Your eyes are so beautiful.”

Stripe opened her shirt, dropping the knife to the leafy ground, an offering to him. The lumberjack gazed at her naked skin, a keen hunger rising. He looked at her, shaking his head and he closed her shirt. He stared for the longest time, before he pressed his lips to her forehead.

Chapter Fifty-Two

Little Sofia Payne pulled her teddy towards her chest and munched on her pacifier. They'd been to the park for the day and she was tired from running and playing. She missed Dolly, her cute purple haired princess, a gift from her sitter, Daisy. She wasn’t sure what had happened to her beloved toy, her tiny head had caved in under her palm after she’d combed her hair. Her mommy explained that toys only had a small shelf life and they broke, especially if they were played with for hours. Sofia had been gentle with brushing Dolly’s hair and she’d only been playing with her for a couple of weeks. Did she crush Dolly?

Sofia saw her friend standing outside her window. He always came to see her at night, just for a few minutes. He was very tall, taller than her daddy. He wore black and his face was covered in a mask. He constantly watched over her; she wasn't frightened of him, not like that other monster from before.

The twins crawled out from the bushes outside, they weren’t scared of him either. They lived in the woods; they were never clean and they didn’t have names. Sometimes she saw her grandmother outside her window, telling her to go to sleep, the twins hugged her legs as if they were scared of something. They wanted to play hide and seek, but it was sleepy time. They pressed their hands to the window in a loving gesture.

Sofia climbed out of her cot, swinging her teddy bear. They really took a shine to her fluffy toy. Sofia placed her hand against the glass, smiling back at the twins, her palm over theirs. She loved her two best friends. She wanted to introduce them to her brother but he was too small for playing, he couldn’t walk yet.

Sofia told them to come back in the morning, blowing them a kiss. They blew one back and scurried into the bushes. She felt a pinch in her hand and inspected her palm, noticing a tiny red line. She didn’t know where it had come from.

She retreated back to bed, hugging Teddy, whispering about playtime for the next day. She inspected her hand again; the little red line had vanished.

Chapter Fifty-Three

“What are you doing here?” I ask the intruder.

She stands by Sam’s cot, her blue eyes peering down, her long dark hair falling over her pale skin. Her arms are dotted with hideous purple bruises, she’s a mere shadow of what she once was, she looks so different than she did in the headshot.

My son twists in his sleep, his feet getting caught in the blanket. Her fingers hover to touch his shoulder, then she hears the sudden threatening click of my knuckles as my hands ball into fists.

“I just wanted to…” Heather whispers. She’s frightened of me, and I hope she’s scared. “I just wanted to see my grandchild. He looks so much like my baby.”

“You mean the one you abandoned?” I stand up, walking towards her, towering over her fragile figure. I’m older than her now. “The one you sold for money?”

“I didn’t want to abandon you, Isaac. I couldn’t look after you in my state.” Heather begins to scratch her arms. She can’t look me in the eye. “I couldn’t be the mother you needed.”

“You never were,” I reply. “Grace Payne was my real mother, and she didn’t deserve to die.”

“No, she didn’t. I know you’re disappointed in me, you have every right to be.”

A surge wants to erupt behind my eyes, I hate that I share the same colour eyes and hair of this woman. “Disappointed is not even the word.”

“Please, Isaac. I’m so sorry,” she whispers.

An ache erupts in my chest. “Get out of my sight. If you come back here again, I’ll kill you…even if you are dead.”

Heather’s sorrowful pleading voice sends