Page 123 of Trove’s Purpose

The moment her father had been declared guilty lived in her head as one of the worst moments in her life. She had wanted to yell at the unfairness of it. She had to witness her mother collapse from the grief and the loss.

He was alive, but it sometimes felt like he wasn’t. But then Saturday would come, and she would get a peak at what it would be like to have him in her life.

Her father did okay in prison. He was a strong man, so he was able to hold his own behind bars, but he was a humble man as well, so he didn’t cause problems for himself. He was on trial there, in a way, as well, but his truth of protecting his daughter by killing his brother was a mark of honor amongst the dishonorable.

But it was still prison. He hadn’t had a home cooked meal in decades. He hadn’t been able to sleep next to his wife. There were times they had to go weeks without seeing him because some drama behind the walls they weren’t privy to meant he was put in lockdown.

And those weekends were even worse. Waking up, thinking she’d get to see him, just to be faced with the dashed hope of the prison telling them that visits were cancelled for the day.

It hurt. It was heavy. And no one ever sympathized with her.

The prisoners behind the wall might respect her father for what he did, but those outside it still saw him as a murderer. If she told people she was going to visit her father in prison, the reaction was always surprise, then weariness. Because if she still visited him, then that means she was forgiving a murderer and a criminal.

Some people were willing to hear her out. Some people, when she told them the true story, exclaimed at the injustice of it.

But it was like they were watching a movie. There was no real emotion in it. ‘Dang, that sucks’, but nothing could be done to change it.

If they even believed her at all, because there were those that didn’t. Those who trusted the courts too much and insisted that if he was found guilty, then he must be a ruthless killer.

Years and years of that built up to a weight she had become strong enough to carry. One she was content to keep bearing. She wouldn’t say she was happy to do it, but in a crappy situation, it was the best she could hope for.

Then, one day, she got a phone call. Hyde, on the other end, had made her an incredible offer. One that would sacrifice the comfortable life she had built, leaving her job and her friends and her home and everything she knew.

But one that would give her a chance to get her father back.

It was worth it. She would have done anything he asked if he could make it happen. No matter how hard or dirty or dangerous, she would have taken it on with a smile.

However, he did nothing so onerous. Nothing so terrible.

Instead, he gave her a male that her heart hurt to look at. One that made her smile. One that made her irrational. One she wanted to introduce to her parents. One she wanted to make part of her family. He didn’t have one for himself, but she could show him a great one. It only seemed fair since he was partially responsible for bringing it back together.

Being with Trove was no great sacrifice. She’d cut away a world that had betrayed her and her family and gained everything in return.

As far as she was concerned, this was the best outcome possible.

The breakdowns were just the rush of relief and success and the painful, horrible, terrible return of all that hope. And as much as it hurt to have it break, it was just as bad to have it resurrected.

But resting in Trove’s arms, his warmth, his touch, the strange triple beat of his heart that she had never noticed before, was a soothing balm to her soul.

The sunlight was gone by the time she opened her eyes, fully awake again. Once more, the room was dim, cast in shadows. The pale green lights from the garden barely illuminated the space, but Trove’s violet eyes, open and full, were shining at her in the darkness.

“Hey,” she greeted, her voice rough after her two crying sessions.

“Hello,” he said back, his voice soft and tender.

“I’m sorry for lying to you.”

He shook his head. “I don’t blame you. I understand why you did it. I just wish that Hyde had not used you like that.”

Chee chuckled. “He didn’t use me. And if he did, he can do it again anytime. Especially if I get so much out of it.”

She reached for him but then paused. “Can I touch you?”

“Always,” he assured her, taking her hand and pressing it against his cheek. “I never want you to let me go.”

Chee flushed with warmth as her heart kicked into high gear.

“Do you mean that?”