Monster Slayers MC-Book 1

MSMC Bk 1-Chapter 8

Chapter 8-Marley meets Hunter

Charlie and Dixie had barely sat down in the living room when a large older model SUV pulled into the yard and parked near the front doors. A large older man got out from behind the wheel and walked around to help the small woman with him down from the vehicle. They walked up on the porch and knocked on the door. Dixie walked forward to answer it just as Rooster came out of the dining room.

"Hi, you must be Joe. I'm Rooster's wife, Dixie. Come on in." Dixie said, just as Rooster came up behind her.

"Papa Joe, it's so good to see you again." The two men shook hands vigorously.

"Hi Rooster. Good to see you again and it's nice to finally meet you Dixie. This pretty little lady here is Marley Connely." Papa Joe said, putting his hand on her elbow and gently urged her forward.

Marley's POV

"Hello, Marley. Come on in. Don't worry, he just looks scary but he's really just a big old teddy bear and won't bite you, I promise." Dixie said. She immediately picked up the vibes that Rooster was making me feel uncomfortable. She grabbed my hand and pulled me away from her husband by saying "Charlie is in here."

I let Dixie pull me away but looked back over my shoulder to make sure that Papa Joe was still there. I know I can trust him not to leave me here but I needed to be sure of exactly where he was.

I was rather shocked when I saw Charlie. She was even tinier than me but had long, pretty blonde hair and big blue eyes that were currently framed by a raccoon mask of bruises. She had on a pretty yellow dress that looked really good on her, even if it seemed to be a little big on her but her feet were bare. Her left hand was wrapped with a stabilizer splint and there were bruises all up and down her arms, especially her shoulders.

I knelt down in front of her and smiled at her. "Hi Charlie. I'm Marley. Except for the blonde hair and blue eyes, you look a lot like me when I first arrived at the Farm. I'm so thankful for them and grateful to Papa Joe and Mama Mae and Aunt Chris. They really are wonderful people. Do you have any questions before we go?"

Charlie nodded her head and looked over at Papa Joe then back to me and in a voice that was barely above a whisper she asked "I'm going to turn 18 in May. What's going to happen to me then? Will they just kick me out, even if I'm not ready to leave? I don't have any real parents and my foster family won't take me back because they won't get a check for me anymore."

"We don't kick girls out at all unless you get violent and become a danger to others there. You will be allowed to stay as long as you need us. I came to the Farm just before my 14th birthday and that was almost 10 years ago. When were you kidnapped?" I asked.

"Today is Wednesday, right?" Charlie asked and Marley nodded. "I was taken last week Monday night on my way home from the library."

"The men that took me held me for almost a year before I was rescued so I understand what you've been through and I can assure you that you are going to like the Farm. There is a very nice lady by the name of Jill that you can talk to about anything and everything and she will help you get past the fear. Mama Mae and Aunt Chris are wonderful women that can teach you all kinds of things and you can stay as long as you need. You'll have your own room too."

3rd Person POV

No one was aware of it at first, but Hunter had stepped into the doorway and when he saw Marley, he froze. "Oh by God. Is that Marley? She is beautiful!" He thought to himself as he ran his eyes over her face which was mostly her profile and her beautiful auburn hair which was about all he could really see of her without moving closer, which he was dying to do but Rooster had told all the men, including him, to keep their distance from her. Hunter immediately wanted to kill whoever it was that had hurt the tiny, gorgeous woman and he felt his fingers curl into fists.