Dana

Chapter Thirteen

"Hey," Stellar walked in after knocking twice, "Marcus said you could use some company right now."

I nodded, my eyes fixed on my clasped hands resting on my lap.

"He has some stuff to attend to so he can't be here."

Stellar plopped down on the bed next to me, "But you get me, and between the two of us I'm much better company."

She gave me a little wink and I offered a smile in return.

It was the first time I had smiled after my mother's death.

"So," Stellar crossed her legs under herself and faced me, "What should we do?"

I shrugged dismissively causing her to sigh exasperatedly.

"I'm sorry Dana, I really am, but you can't just shut the world out. Your mother would've wanted you to be happy, to move on."

Her words hit home but instead of comforting me they angered me.

"How Stellar?" My voice is strained, "How do I move on and heal in this godforsaken mansion? Where everything reminds me of what happened. Of my predicament? It hasn't even been a day."

Stellar exhaled loudly and made to lie down on the right side of the bed, patting the space next to her beckoningly.

"Let me tell you a story Dana," She glanced down at me and I nodded, eager to hear her story.

"Once upon a time, there was a little girl- happy as could be- she had a big family, three brothers, happily married parents, or so she thought," Stellar's cheerful voice took on a sad note that didn't go unnoticed by me.

Several beats of silence passed.

"What happened to her?" I asked.

"Her father was a drug dealer, he got caught up in a bad deal, her mother left one day after he told the family that he owed a lot of money to lot of different people. She never even said goodbye, not even to her kids, the little girl thought she was to blame. Thought if maybe she had listened to her when she told her to clean her room or do the dishes she wouldn't have left. Nobody told her otherwise, nobody told her it wasn't her fault so she went on believing it was."

Stellar choked on her words and took another long pause. I reached over and grabbed her hand, all doubt that I had in my mind that the little girl wasn't Stellar was dashed away.

"After her mom left, everything just came crashing down around her," She continued, "Her dad was never home, one of her brothers left for college, the other left for a month long trip to South Africa. And then one night her dad didn't come home. He never came home," Stellar took a deep breath and I gave her hand a squeeze.

I couldn't help but think about my own dad. He never came home.

"After a week of living alone, being scared half to death and waiting for a knock on the door, it finally came. It never crossed the little girl's mind that it could be anyone but her father on the other side of the door,"

"It wasn't her father was it?" I whispered.

Stellar shook her head.

"It was the love of her life," Tears had gathered in her eyes, "Standing opposite the door was the guy she fell madly in love with. Of course back then she saw him as an asshole with a gun, come to kill her."

"Marcus?" I asked, already knowing the answer.

"Marcus," She confirmed, "He brought me here when I was only 15, too young to understand half the things that went on, but I did understand they wanted me to lay off my father's debt by selling me off to some scummy men. But Marcus was there, he stood by me even when I didn't want him to. I made friends, I was happy- I am happy. Sometimes I wonder what would have happened if I hadn't gotten kidnapped. I would have never met Marcus. The bank probably would have taken away the house. My brothers never returned so I knew that I had no one."