Loving Her (Mitchell Family #9)(56)
Author: Jennifer Foor

Van paused for a second and gave me a look, then proceeded again. “I’m not lying to you, Bella. They had to get a protective order from the police and that’s why you two moved to North Carolina.”

From the look on Izzy’s face, I could tell she was starting to piece everything together.

“That’s not the worst Bella. When your Uncle and I got married, we wanted to have children immediately. We tried for months and nothing happened. Finally, after we’d given up hope, I found out I was pregnant. We were so happy and the doctors told me that I was in perfect health.” Van started to cry. She grabbed a couple tissues and blew her nose. “It was such a happy time for me, back then. I felt like the luckiest person in the world.” She sniffled some more before she could continue.

“You don’t have to continue, Van.” I didn’t want her to.

“Yes I do.” She turned her attention back to Iz. “I was abducted in a grocery store parking lot by Tucker Chase and his friends. They took me to an abandoned house and tied me up in the basement, demanding a million dollars for my life. He kicked me around and threatened my safety. When I was finally able to free myself and started to climb out a window, he caught me and threw me down on the ground. He kicked and beat me repeatedly, until I was bleeding and thinking I was about to die. I managed to fight to survive and hit him with a shovel. I didn’t mean to, but that ended his life. If I didn’t kill him that night, he would have killed me.” She began to sob, but when I headed in her direction she held up her hand. “I’m okay.”

She looked back at Izzy. “By the time the police found me, I’d lost my sweet baby. I’d been kicked so many times, beaten to a pulp. He knew I was pregnant and it didn’t matter to him. He was a monster, Bella. He took everything from me in that basement and after that I didn’t want to go on. It wasn’t until Noah came into my life that I started to want to live again. Being his mother brought me back from the brink of giving up. I owe him everything.”

Then she looked up at me. “Bella, I couldn’t live another day with thinking you’re willing to give up this wonderful person,” she pointed to me, “for that terrible man that did so much to hurt us. Tyler would die for you. He’d do anything to see you smile. You’re my family and I love you, but I can’t be a good aunt to you if I didn’t let you know the truth.”

Izzy stood up and placed her hands on the desk. “You’re nothin’ but a liar! Nobody would believe that story. You just want me to stop tryin’ to find out things.”

“Izzy, stop it! Aunt Van is telling you the truth. We all are.”

She ran out of the room crying. “I hate you all!”

I sat down in the chair that she’d been in and looked at Van. “You didn’t have to do that.” I had a feeling it would make things worse, but anything was worth a try.

“If I didn’t then who would? This is ridiculous. She’s a child, Ty. You can’t let her manipulate you like she is.”

I covered my face with my hands. “What am I supposed to do? I’ve tried being mean, being nice and everything in between.”

“Leave.”

“Come again?” I looked right at her, wondering why she’d be so cold.

“Go tell your daughter goodbye and leave. Pretend that you’re done with her, Ty. Just go.”

“But I’m not.”

Van rolled her eyes. “Duh! Look, Colt thinks that once my story simmers in her little head, she’s going to change her mind about staying here. If you walk away, right now, it will open her naïve eyes to the big picture. Bella’s a smart girl. I know she’ll make the right decision.”

“So, you want me to say goodbye and pretend I’m going straight home?”

“Yes.”

I shook my head, assuming she was stupid. After that story and the things I’d said to her in the car, she’d still said nothing to make me think things would be better.

I found her outside, standing with her old horse. We’d since got new ones at home, but she still felt close to the old one. “Iz, Da.., I’m leaving. I was wondering if I could have a hug for the road.”

She walked over and hugged me. I held her so tightly and could feel myself getting upset. She pulled away and walked back to her horse, like nothing had happened.

I climbed in my truck and waved to her as I drove away.

It was horrible looking back in the mirror and seeing her not paying attention to me.

After I sent a text to Miranda, I went in the guest-house and locked the doors. Then I jumped in the shower to clear my head. I appreciated the gesture from Van, but nothing was going to help me. I could only hope that at some point we’d be able to be close again. No matter how much she fought me, I knew I’d always love her.

She was my daughter and she always would be.

Chapter 36

Miranda

When Van called me and asked if she could tell Bella the truth, I wanted to beg her not to. The idea of Bella knowing what kind of monster her father was could ruin her worse. It definitely would change her perception, whether it would be for the good or the bad.

Finally, after we bickered for a while, I decided that anything was worth a try. I gave her my blessing and hung up more worried than ever before.

While waiting for a phone call, I bit off all of my finger nails, drank three cups of coffee and cleaned the entire house to stay busy. The boys were outside with their poppy, so the house was too quiet for me.

When I got the text from Ty, telling me that he was calling it a night, I knew things hadn’t gone well. If my husband didn’t want to talk at all, it meant he was too upset. My heart ached for him and Bella.

I lay in bed later that night wondering how we were all going to get through this. I couldn’t force my daughter to love Ty, not if her heart wouldn’t let her. I also couldn’t live with that kind of animosity between them. I balled up in the bed and sobbed uncontrollably, not understanding how our lives had turned so bad, so quickly.

The rationalization of what was going on was only half of our problems. In lieu of the truth, I worried that Bella would try to find Tucker’s living relatives. Had it not been for Van’s quick thinking about coming clean with her story, Bella and Noah could have already found the truth and planned to hunt down that wicked excuse for a mother, that tried to fight us for visitation of our sweet girl.

She was too young for all of this to be happening.