At age five, she was taken from her family. At age eight, she formed a new family. At age sixteen, she returns to her old one.
Eloise Leroy is the only daughter in her large French family. She was kidnapped before she could ever truly know them, and...
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There are more bags than I can count. Apparently, Remi had done a lot of buying while we were at shopping. Now I sit in my closet surrounded by more clothes than I know what to do with.
I start hanging things up and putting other things in drawers. There are shirts, some with short sleeves that I'm not sure I want to wear in front of my brothers. My body is covered in bruises and scars, and that's not something I want them to see.
That mean lady told me they wouldn't want me if they knew the truth, and that's the bulk of the truth.
I hang up long sleeve shirts and sweaters, hoodies and coats, and put pants in the drawers, even a few pairs of the weird blue kind.
All of this must have been a lot of money, and I'm not sure I'm worth all that.
My head throbs and the room spins. I take myself to bed, hoping to squeeze a nap in before I have to do any chores. It'll be strange falling into a new routine. I'm not sure what my brothers expect of me.
Everything aches and laying down feels good. I've seen so many things now, it feels like my mind has room to wander. But the only thing I can seem to think about is that basement. Being thrown down there after a beating was a blessing, because it meant that I'd be seeing the girls again, and Naomi and I could talk for hours or sit there silently.
I want her here, enjoying this comfy bed with me and the huge house. The house I'm allowed to walk around and eat in. We could eat as many waffles as we wanted and no one would care. We could try on every piece of clothing in the closet. It'd be fun.
I fall asleep with the thought of Naomi on my mind, and how much better it'd be if she were here.
............
Someone shakes me awake, and I sit up quickly. It's Remi, smiling at me. I offer a small one back, but make sure I'm not looking at him. We had a good day, I don't want to change that.
"I'm sorry, I just didn't want to let you sleep for too long," he says, his voice calm as ever. "You still have to go to sleep tonight."
I nod, though I know I won't have a problem falling asleep. As long as my head hurts, I'll always be able to pass out.
"I had a question for you, if you're up for it." I nod again. "It worried me earlier today, when you couldn't tie your shoes. Why is that?"
I wrap the blanket around myself, like some inner false thought telling me the less of me he can see, the easier he'll forget about me. But that's not true. There's no one else here. He wants to know.
But I don't have that kind of courage. I shrug.
"You've been through a lot, things I may never know about. And you never have to tell me." He still smiles, even though I know he wants a real answer. "I just want to know that you were okay while you were gone. That not everything was awful."
