The Depths (Austin Carlile FanFic)

Chapter 24

*Austin's POV*

I watched Nikki's parents walk up the pavement and I wished I could make my house disappear. But at the same time I noticed how bad her mother looked. Her hair was turning gray and thinning out. She had lost so much weight she looked like she was just gonna fall apart. She walked with a cane with her husband holding her arm and supporting her. Even looking so frail, she still looked angry and scary.

"What the hell are they doing here?" I asked Stan.

He opened his mouth to say something but his parents walked up. "Where's Nicolette?" Mrs Jace said, giving me a dirty look.

"She's not here." I said.

"Lying is a sin." She said, hitting me with her cane and walked into my house. Mr Jace followed.

Stan and I went inside. "You need to leave." I said.

"Nicolette!" Mrs Jace yelled. She stood in the middle of the living room, Mr Jace at her side, holding her arm. As usual, he was silent.

I shook my head and went to my room. When I walked in, my heart broke. Nicky sat up in bed, her eyes filled with tears and her face pale as ever.

"Please please please tell me I did not just hear my mother." She whispered.

I shut the door and leaned against it. "Your parents and your brother just showed up. I don't even know how they found out where we lived. Your mother just barged in. She hit me with her cane."

She got up and pulled on a pair of jeans. "No. Fuck this. I'm not dealing with this bullshit." She pushed me out of the way and charged into the living room, going right up to her parents.

Her mother looked at her like she had the plague. "What is that metal in your face?"

Nicky took a deep breath. "You cannot just barge into my home. You are not welcome here." She got toe to toe with her mother. "Leave."

Mrs. Jace sighed. "Nicolette, we do not have time for your dramatics. It is time for you to come home."

She frowned. "Home?"

Mr. Jace stepped closer to Nicky. At the same time Stan and I both moved closer to them, ready in case things got out of hand. "Your mother is right, Nicolette. We saw the photos of you and we will no longer tolerate this ludicrous behavior. You will come home. No questions asked."

Nicky's eyes widened and she shook her head. "Do you guys realize I am almost 30 years old?! You cannot fucking control me anymore!"

Mrs. Jace reached up and slapped Nicky so hard in the mouth Nicky went flying backwards and fell to the floor. "You will not speak to your father that way." She said calmly. She looked at Stan. "Stanley, gather your sister's things."

I helped Nicky up and she wiped blood from her mouth. "Mother. I am not going with you." She shrugged. "I'm not afraid of you anymore." She looked at her mother. "You're a toxic human being. You abused me my whole life. Mentally and physically. You locked me in a cellar and beat me and starved me. You burned me with the fireplace poker, you cut my hair while I slept." Tears filled her eyes and I rubbed her back, hating seeing her cry but knowing that getting all this out was good for her. "You forced me to slave away in that house for your precious sons and your husband who you treated like a god while he cheated on you every chance he got." She was crying harder now. So was Stanley. "All I wanted to was try and please you and you put me down every chance you got." She took a deep breath. "What did I do wrong? You're my mother. You're supposed to love me. Why didn't you ever love me?" She turned and ran to the bedroom, slamming the door.

Stanley put his hand on his mother's back. "We should go."

Mrs. Jace looked at me. "She'll bring you down. You'll both end up in hell." She turned and they all left.

I went to my bedroom and wrapped my arms around Nicole, holding her as she cried. Once she had calmed down a little she sat down on the edge of the bed, wiping her eyes with a tissue.

"I'm sorry." She said.

I shook my head. "Don't be. You didn't do anything wrong."

She was quiet for awhile, just staring at the floor and tearing up her tissue into tiny pieces. Then she cleared her throat. "Those scars on my back, she did that."

I went over and sat on the floor in front of her, rubbing her leg. "Really?"

"Mhm." She mumbled. "More tears filled her eyes. "Me and Stanley went to her and Dad and simply asked why I wasn't allowed to eat until they finished. Mother lost it and dragged me to the cellar and chained me to the floor and beat me with a whip until I passed out." She sniffled. "She left me down there for days. Nobody came down to help me."

I kissed her leg. "Not even your brother?"

A tear slid down her cheek. "No. Nobody." She was quiet again for awhile. Then she shook her head. "I remember one day, when I was like 10, she caught me sneaking food from the kitchen." She paused, sighing. "I was already on punishment for not making my bed and she didn't let me eat for 2 days. So I tried to steal an apple." More tears came. "Just a fucking simple apple and she hit me so hard with a fireplace poker she broke my arm. That's why I loved going to the cottage with Bette so much. It was my escape." She rolled her eyes. "Stealing is a sin, Nicolette." She said, mocking her mother. "You're a horrible child. Satan will punish you for your sins." She looked at me. "Imagine hearing that as a child. I was so afraid my whole life. I prayed to God everyday to forgive me. And the more she hit me, the more I prayed for God to just take me. My whole life I hated myself because I was just Nicolette, the horrible sinning child."

I took her hands. "Listen to me, baby. You got away from that. You're not Nicolette anymore." I cupped her chin and wiped away a tear. "You're Nicky fucking Jace, the famous photographer." I smiled. "You're strong and smart and sassy. You made it, baby."

She looked at me, her eyes searching mine. "You're right." She said, wiping her eyes and then wiping her hands on her jeans. "You're so right. I made it. I'm doing what I love and she can't control me anymore." She got up and looked in the mirror, pushing her hair out of her face and wiping her eyes again, then she turned to me. "I'm Nicky fucking Jace."

I smiled. "Come here."

She came over to me and I kissed her. "Let's go make dinner. We'll turn on some Jimi Hendrix and you can sing and dance and do whatever the fuck your little heart desires."

She smiled and nodded. "Okay."