Redeem Me (Kin #6)(30)
Author: Jennifer Foor

Since I was so upset over everything that had transpired, I wasn’t able to get much rest. By the time the sun came up I was ready to head to the hospital to be with Cameron. As soon as visiting hours began I was walking inside of the hospital with a bouquet of flowers in my hand. Cameron was about to find out that I’d stand by whatever decision she wanted to make. I wanted her to know that I’d be her shoulder to cry on, and her supporter for whatever was to come.

The front desk associate was a petite dark-skinned woman. She smiled when I approached. “Good morning. Can I help you with something, sir?”

“Yes, ma’am. I’m here to see my girlfriend. They kept her overnight, and I was told she’d be in her own room by now. Her name is Cameron Hynson.”

She started typing on the computer. “You said Hynson, with a Y?”

“Yes.”

She frowned, but kept typing. Then she shook her head. “I’m sorry, but she was released overnight.”

I was at a loss for words. I’d been in the room when the doctor stated he wanted to observe her. I knew he wouldn’t have allowed her to go home unless he was persuaded. It rubbed me the wrong way knowing that it concerned her health.

“Thanks for lettin’ me know. I’ll try to reach her at home then.” I walked out of there feeling defeated, but remained determined to locate where she was staying and letting her know my intentions.

I hopped back in Cameron’s car once I reached the parking lot, and headed on my way to her parent’s estate. I was more than certain that she’d be there, and that they were going to give me a hard time about seeing her.

On the way there I tried her cell phone several times, continuously getting the voicemail. I didn’t leave a message on account of wanting to tell her how I felt in person. It wasn’t something I’d ever consider leaving over the phone. Cameron deserved more than that.

Until I reached that mansion, all I could think about was being in that hospital room and hearing the doctor announce that she was pregnant. Another thing I continued dwelling on was the fact that it had been twins. Had it survived, I would have been the biological father of four children before the age of twenty-two. That made me very aware of how serious this situation was, and also that I needed to do the right thing. All night I’d tossed and turned imagining myself being a father. I pictured the way it made me feel to hold Lyla, and how I knew my own child would be more enlightening. I wanted to feel that way again, even if it scared the shit out of me. It was an experience that I’d never felt before, and although it was overwhelmingly scary, it made me feel loved. That child that Cameron was carrying was going to love me. It only made sense for me to want to have that in my life. I’d made mistakes, and maybe in many ways I didn’t deserve to be a father, but it was happening.

I pulled up at the gates to enter into the private yard. After pushing the intercom button I heard the maid’s voice. She was just a nice old lady that had lived with them since Cameron was a small child. In many ways I think she was more of a mother than Mrs. Catherine. While she was busy with her career, Miss Mary would do all of the cooking, cleaning, and also take care of Cameron. My girlfriend loved the woman, and every year for Christmas and her birthday she would buy her something very nice. Sometimes I wondered if Cameron also considered her and the other help her best friends. It wasn’t like she was given the opportunity to play with other children outside. Their estate was a damn fortress.

“Can I help you?” Mary’s voice filled the intercom system.

“Miss Mary, it’s me, Parker. Can you open the gate so I can pull the car in?”

It took her a couple seconds to reply. “I’m sorry, Parker, but I’m not supposed to let you in to see Cameron. Mr. Hynson gave me strict orders.” I could hear it in her voice that she was upset about it.

“Just let me in. I won’t tell them if you don’t.”

Suddenly the voice on the other end changed. Her father sounded pissed. “I’d advise you to drive back to college and leave my daughter alone, son. Just turn around and head back before I call and report my daughter’s car stolen.”

I beat my fists on the steering wheel realizing that driving Cameron’s car had left me vulnerable to her father’s wrath. He had me by the balls, and there was nothing I could do but leave before he went to extremes to get me to go away. “I’ll leave because you’re threatenin’ me, but I won’t give up on your daughter. You can’t keep her locked up forever.”

I peeled wheels down the road, unable to control my frustration. They were f**king with me because they could. Not only was I pissed, but it hurt me to not be able to hold my girlfriend. She needed to know that I wasn’t going anywhere. It was bullshit.

Cameron

They’d taken me out of the hospital in the middle of the night like some secret protection agency. I couldn’t believe how low they were stooping to keep me away from Parker. I awoke to the sound of someone ringing in on the intercom. Before I could hop out of bed and get to the hallway, where the answering device was placed, I heard my parents walking down the hall. I stood, silently against my bedroom door listening to what was being said. First our housekeeper answered, and I immediately heard Parker talking. For a moment I was utterly excited that he’d come to see me. The last time we’d spoke he’d walked out, and I wondered if after a whole night of thinking, he’d decide that all of this wasn’t worth the trouble. He could easily walk away, and my parents would help him do it.

Just as I was about to rush out and hit the gate release button, I heard my father speaking, basically threatening that if Parker didn’t leave it would be bad for him. I couldn’t believe my ears, and the lengths he was still going to. I sank down on my floor and began to weep. I was a prisoner in my own home, and my parents were the dictators, deciding my fate before I even had a chance to fend for myself.

I knew I couldn’t climb out of the window and run down the road after Parker. My pregnancy was high risk, and I was still bleeding pretty heavily from the miscarriage of baby number one. I put my hand up to my stomach and left it there, reminding myself that what was growing inside of me was already something that I loved. No one was going to take it away from me, not even my parents.

It took a while for my father to calm down from his rage induced mood. He got on his phone and started giving orders to someone at the office, and then finally settled when he began speaking to my mother. I heard them talking about what clinic they should take me to. I felt disgusted with both of them. They weren’t going to get the benefit of the doubt from me as to what was best. The truth of the matter was that they didn’t know me at all. I was a stranger to them, a pawn brought into the world to carry on their name.