Chapter Three-Hundred-Eighty-Two
After checking all of the nearest vents to see if any of them might be big enough for him to crawl through and not succeeding, Kevin walked back into the lobby where he found his brother, cousin, and the two remaining security guards standing there talking quietly to one another. They glanced over at him as he walked in, but neither of them made any signs that they might start helping him anytime soon. This is ridiculous! he fumed inwardly to himself as he glanced around at all of the three air vents in the room. He loves Ellie, he does and he didn’t need Jerald’s reverse psychology to figure that out either. He’s known that all a long…he’s just been a little lost. After his conversation with Ashley he was looking forward to telling her so. But how am I supposed to tell her if I can’t even get to her Goddamnit! he raged some more.
Daddy Sean would try the words haunted him some more. Daddy Sean would try huh? Well if daddy Sean is so great then why did he give you up in the first place? Because he couldn’t love you the way I do. I may be really screwed up right now Ellie, but that doesn’t mean I don’t love you. He knows that for sure, he swears it to himself and everybody else. He wouldn’t have adopted her if he didn’t. He just needs to get her down someway somehow so he can prove it to her. After thinking about it for a moment, he turned and stormed off toward the playroom. When he got in there, he was glad that all of the kids were outside right now so they wouldn’t be around to watch him be a very bad example. He went on over to the puzzle shelf and he pushed it closer to the vent before grabbing a chair and sticking it in front of it. As soon as he did this, he got up onto the chair and used that to get on the shelf and he looked up at the vent only to realize that even he isn’t tall enough to peer in.
“Damnit!” He cursed. He bit his lower lip as he pondered on what to do next and after a few moments, he bent down and grabbed the chair. He pulled it up and placed it on the shelf and then he grabbed onto the wall and got up onto the chair itself. Doing this made him tall enough to see into the vent and he grinned at his accomplishment. He reached out and opened up the air vent and peered inside.
“Ellie! Ellie baby I’m in the playroom! Please come here!” he shouted through the vent loudly in hopes that she would hear him. He waited awhile and when she never came, he stood up on his tiptoes to peer in further, causing the chair to wobble slightly and he quickly grabbed onto the vent to steady himself. “Ellie please!” he pleaded once more. He waited a little while longer, and when she never came, he sighed in frustration. “Fine,” he muttered to himself. “If you want me to come in there, come in there is what I’ll do…” he insisted.
He then hopped up toward the vent in attempt to push himself in and in doing so, he accidentally kicked the chair off of the shelf causing it to go crashing onto the hard tile floor behind him. He grumbled to himself and then pushed himself once more, using all of the upper body strength he has in him, only to succeed, but get himself stuck in the process. “Great…Just fucking great…now what do I do?” he muttered to himself. “I must look like a real dumbass hanging partially in an air vent.” He hung there analyzing his situation for a moment. He has only two choices really. Either call for Jerald and Brian to help him down…or try to squirm his way out himself. He could either be laughed at…or save his own butt. The answer seems pretty clear to him. The shelf is right underneath him. If he could just land safely on that…He placed his hands on either side of the vent then and pushed his way outward again. After a few struggles, he flew right out. Kevin let out a loud holler as this happened and he reached up and grabbed onto the vent with his hands so that he was hanging onto it for dear life. He looked down and noticed the shelf just underneath his feet.
He pondered the situation carefully for a moment, and after thinking about it, he let go and fell an inch right before landing on his feet on top of the shelf. Just before he could even muster a grin and celebrate his safe landing though, Kevin wobbled slightly and he held his arms out trying to steady himself. When he couldn’t find his balance he fell sideways right off of the edge. Kevin cried out in horror as he clutched onto the wall for one last desperate attempt to save himself only to slide down it and land hard on top of a beanbag and a bucket of blocks with a loud crash. The bucket shot out from underneath him, flew in the air, and landed upside down on the hard tile floor just a few feet away from him sending blocks flying everywhere. The crash was heard all the way out in the lobby and Brian, Jerald, and security was in there in a matter of seconds. When they found Kevin sprawled out on the beanbag with one leg still up on the shelf and the chair he was standing on across the room upside down, and the blocks everywhere, Jerald raised his eyebrow.
“What the hell are you doing Kevin?” he asked incredulously.
“Breaking every bone in my body for my little girl, Jer, what does it look like I’m doing?” Kevin snapped. Q turned around facing the doorway as he tried so hard to stifle his laugh, Laney had to actually leave the room, but Jerald however, wasn’t as nice. He stared at his brother and the ridiculous position he is in for a long moment before busting up laughing. Brian being the only one strong enough to hold himself together in the situation, simply out of undying love and respect for his cousin shook his head and walked on over to help him up.
“Q, tell him” Brian demanded after cleaning up the blocks and picking up the chair. “I think he’s earned our help.” Q remained with his back turned for a couple of minutes more and when he managed to put himself back together, he turned around and mustered up the best straight face he could.
“There is a vent over in the hospital wing big enough for you to fit in.”
“And you are just telling me this NOW?!” Kevin demanded incredulously.
“Doctor Johnson just told us about it?” Kevin scowled.
“Where is it at?”
“In the lobby. He only just realized how big it is. You will need help getting into it though, apparently, because it’s as high up as the one in here.” Jerald snickered amusedly and Brian swung an arm around Kevin.
“I’ll help you,” he insisted and then led him out of the room and when Jerald managed to put himself back together, he followed.
~*~*~*~*~
When Nick got upstairs to Dakota’s room, he twisted the doorknob and pushed the door open only to find the room empty. Nick raised his eyebrow.
“Dakota Ann, you had better be in here.” He walked further into her room and went to the right to her closet and he peered inside it both high and low for her. When he didn’t see her, he turned around and went to the only hiding place left – her bed. When he approached it he bent down and peered underneath it and much to his relief, there she was. She was lying as far back as she could go – up against the wall with her head rested lightly against it as she lay on her back and she has her legs hugged close to her chest.
“Goes away, I hates you” Dakota sniffled.
“You and I both know that isn’t true,” Nick insisted while reaching in to get her only to have her push herself further against the wall, and since Nick can’t fit under the bed he has no way of reaching her. Nick sighed and got up from sitting on the floor and he grabbed hold of the bed and pulled it out from against the wall. He crawled on top of the bed then and lunged himself across it so he was lying on his stomach and peering in at her from the other side. Just as she was moving to dart away from him, he reached down and grabbed her by the arm. She whimpered and he reached down and grabbed her other arm as well and he gently pulled her up onto the bed. He stuck her underneath one arm against his hip as he got up from the bed and gently pushed it back against the wall where it belongs, and then he sat on the bed indianstyle with her cradled in his lap. He went to tuck a strand of her hair behind her ear and Dakota flinched back slightly causing Nick to stop short. He gazed down at her in sadness for a couple of moments, and then sighed.
“Come on baby you know me better then this,” he pleaded gently. He enveloped her in his arms and leaned down and placed a soft kiss on her forehead before resting his own against hers. “You are my baby girl and I love you so very much, and I would cut off my own finger before I ever hurt you.” When she didn’t reply he began to gently rock her in his arms as he continued, talking quietly in her ear. “You and I go way back kiddo,” he insisted softly. “Remember I was the one who rescued you? I brought you back to Ramsey and I took care of you and loved you all your life in the best way that I knew how. Have I ever raised a hand to you at all?”
“No,” Dakota whispered softly.
“Then why are you so afraid that I’m going to now?”
“Cause I’m a bad girl,” Dakota insisted tearfully.
“You are not a bad girl,” Nick insisted while hugging her close to him protectively. “You are a good girl who sometimes makes bad choices. There is a difference.”
“But Thomas says I’m a bad girl.”
“What else did Thomas say?” Nick asked gently, happy that she seems to be opening up to them…finally.
“He saids…t-h-that bad girls had to be punished. He saids that I do bad things all the time an’ everybody lets me gets away withs it when they shouldn’t. So he…he takes me down to the basement an’ saids he was going to teach me a lesson.” Nick gently tucked a strand of her blonde hair behind her ear as he gazed into her watery eyes and his heart broke into pieces as he listened to her cry. “An’ then…then...”
“And then what baby?” Nick coaxed gently. “What were you going to say? You can tell me anything.”
“An’…then…he touches me…” she wailed. “All overs…an-n’ in my private areas that’s you tells me no ones allowed to touches an’ I didnts like it, an’ it hurts, an’ I begged him to please stop, an I cried for you an’ YOU WOULDNTS COME!”
“Baby I didn’t hear you…you know I would’ve come running if I heard you…the second I heard you I would be down in the basement stopping him, you know that.” Nick insisted tearfully.
“He tells me you weren’t coming because I was a bad girl an’ I hads to be punished.”
“That’s not true. Thomas is a sick evil man and everything he told you was lies that night Kota.”
“An’ now your gonna punish me now too right?” Dakota sniffled. Nick gently shifted her so she was straddling his lap and carefully grabbed hold of her arms so she was looking him straight in the eyes.
“I would never ever in a million years hurt you Dakota Ann Carter, do you hear me? Do you understand?” He asked sternly, needing her to understand.
“I—“
“—I love you so much. You mean the whole world to me and when I found out what Thomas did to you it about killed me. You are my little girl and nobody is ever allowed to hurt you and get away with it. Do you understand me? No one. If I ever catch them hurting you they will have daddy to deal with I promise you that.” Dakota slid her arms around Nick and buried her face in his chest where she continued to cry and Nick leaned down and kissed the top of her head softly as he slowly rocked her in his arms. “You are my sweet little girl and there is nothing you can do to make me angry enough to want to hurt you baby girl, do you hear me?”
“Yes…” Dakota whimpered in his chest and Nick rubbed his hand slowly over her back.
“I love you.”
“I love you too daddy…”
“But you can’t go picking fights with kids who are ten times older and much bigger then you are sweetheart okay? You just can’t.” He added after a long while and it was hard to hide his amusement.
“They hads it coming to them, daddy,” Dakota insisted as she kept her head rested comfortably against his chest.
“See this is the bad choices that I am talking about Kota.” When she didn’t reply, he continued. “Do you want to tell me what you were thinking taking on all of those girls?”
“I was thinking abouts my sister. I was thinking abouts how much…what Brian teaches me – verbal abuse they’ve been giving me for so long. I was thinking abouts how much I wanted to finally stick up for myself, an I kicked butts doing it daddy. An’ I’m nots sorry for what I did.”
“Yes well you were also clobbered yourself from the looks of the video Marcus got of it.”
“It was all worth it cause you know why?”
“Why?” Nick wanted to know as he gently tucked a strand of her blonde hair behind her ear, and lifted her chin with his forefinger and thumb so he could see her pretty eyes.
“Cause Joshy saves me,” Dakota insisted happily despite her tears and the emotional conversation that they just had and Nick couldn’t help but grin right back. He loves how happy Josh makes her despite everything else. “He rescues me an’ it was like something straight out of a Batman movie an’ the time we spent together up in those vents made me very happy daddy.” Nick leaned down and gently rested his forehead against hers as he gazed into her eyes.
“Well you know what?” Nick asked gently.
“What?”
“I think you getting clobbered by all of those girls is punishment enough. I take it Josh took care of that bloody nose I saw you had as well?”
“Uh-huhs. We snuck down an’ borrowed someone’s wash cloth.”
“Well fine then,” Nick replied. “I would hope that after getting beat up by all of them it will show you not to go picking fights with people much older then you, am I right?”
“How abouts people my age?” Dakota challenged. Nick chuckled slightly.
“What do you think?”
“I’m thinking no…”
“I’m thinking that’s the right answer.” Dakota sighed.
“Okay, fine…”
“Cause next time I’m not going to be as easy on you. I’m giving you the benefit of the doubt this time because you are going through a lot and because we’re going on vacation tomorrow, but next time I’m going to ground you to your room for a day and take all of your toys. Is this understood?”
“Uh-huhs.”
“But just so I don’t feel like the biggest softy in the world, you aren’t getting dessert for a week, you hear me? Nada.”
“Buts daddy, I always gets ice cream or cookies for dessert every night,” Dakota pouted somewhat.
“Well, now you’re not. Guess you shouldn’t have gone and picked that fight huh?”
“That’s nots fair.”
“Oh it’s plenty fair. You are getting off pretty easy kid so I would take it and be grateful.” Dakota looked up at him with her trademark pout and he made one right back and tickled her playfully making her giggle a little. He cupped her cheeks in his hand then and rubbed his nose lightly over hers.
“I love you princess.”
“I loves you too daddy,” Dakota whispered and she cupped his cheeks in return before leaning up and giving him butterfly kisses.
~*~*~*~*~
Once Kevin was finally up in the air vents he crawled through them until he knew he was on the Orphanage side and then he began to call for her.
“Ellie! Ellie baby where are you?” When he got no answer he continued to crawl through them keeping his eyes open for her. “Ellie please, I’m up here…won’t you tell me where you are?” he pleaded after a few moments more. Just then he heard a cough from the distance. Not just any cough though, a cough that a child would have when they are catching a cold. He rounded another corner then and right in front of him there she was curled up in her corner again where Aaron had left her. Except now her eyes were partially closed, her cheeks were caked with cold wet tears, and she was visibly shivering.
“Ellie!” Kevin exclaimed with immediate worry in his eyes and he rushed on over to her, gathered her in his arms, and sat down on the floor before taking off his leather jacket and covering her tiny form in it as she curled up into him and instantly started sobbing. Kevin enveloped her tightly in his arms as he cradled her, rested his forehead against hers, and he rocked her gently.
“Daddy, I’m c-c-cold…” She whimpered weakly, and Kevin nodded.
“I know baby, I know,” Kevin told her gently, and he crawled over to the nearest air vent leading to the playroom and he pushed it open and peered out of it where he found Aaron, Brian and Jerald waiting. They had rushed back there when Aaron somehow sensed she might be there. Jerald rushed forward then.
“Here Kev, hand her over to me” He insisted while getting up on the chair and reaching.
“No!” Elenore demanded tearfully and she clung to Kevin. “I wants my daddy!”
“Baby I just need you to go to him for a moment while I get down okay?” Kevin asked gently. “Then I will take you again and I won’t let go.”
“You promise?” Elenore sniffled.
“With everything I am,” Kevin recited and she felt Jerald’s hands on her. She turned and rolled forward toward him and Kevin kept hold of her until he felt Jerald take her. He watched him as he replaced his jacket with a very heavy blanket and then Laney went and stood next to the vent and reached up for Kevin.
“Come on Kev, let me help you.” Kevin turned around and laid on his stomach before pushing himself out so his feet were hanging out of the vent and Laney gently grabbed hold of them and helped him ease his way out until he was sitting on his shoulders.
“See how much easier this would’ve been if you just called for me instead of trying to help yourself down?”
“Yeah, yeah…” Kevin sighed. “I was trying to avoid being laughed at…not that it did any good.” Laney chuckled and shook his head before lifting Kevin up and setting him so his feet were on the ground and Kevin turned to Jerald and gently took his daughter from him before squatting down with her straddling his lap. He enveloped her in his arms and hugged her close to him tightly.
“I love you, I love you, I love you…” he repeated over and over again softly in her ear. “I love you so much Ellie, and that is the truth. I’ve never loved anyone as much as I love you.” He gently pulled back slightly and titled her chin back with his forefinger and thumb as she was gazing back at him with teary eyes. “Remember when I told you how it used to scare me? Well it doesn’t anymore Ellie. Its all that I am holding onto now.”
“I love you too,” Elenore whimpered, and she slid her arms around him and rested her head against his shoulder. “Please don’ts break every bone in your body for me daddy, I would never forgives myself.” She whispered into his ear.
Author's Chapter Notes:
Here's the next chapter.
I know for a fact that one of my reader's came up with this chapter title...I hope I got it right, if not feel free to correct me lol.
Enjoy =)
I know for a fact that one of my reader's came up with this chapter title...I hope I got it right, if not feel free to correct me lol.
Enjoy =)
