Zailey (Sequel) ✔️

Part Fifty Four

The News came on the TV and I found myself staring at the screen because I had little else to do.
Reporter Julie Batesman has more, the lady behind the desk declared.
I'd missed the start of what she'd said, so I had no idea of the story that was coming.
A young man from the Southern beachside town of Reef Bay is missing.
The Reporter told TV viewers.
I frowned at the screen.
Who-?
A picture of a face that sent chills down my spine was pinned to the screen.
Twenty one year old Lane Allen was last seen at a house party in his home town.
The reporter explained.
My heart melted out of its freeze and gradually began to pound in my chest.
Lane's missing?
His Parents and Sister, Carl, Wendy and Alicia plead for information about Lane's whereabouts.
The reporter told us.
I closed my eyes, but the photo of Lane's smiling face wouldn't leave from behind my eyes.
The deep breath I tried to take was shaky.
I curled onto my side and into a ball, as a flood of hot tear's filled my eyes.
Images of Heath landing punch, after brutal punch, on Lane's face managed to slide through my mind, between seeing Lane's face hovering over mine in the darkness of that bedroom and the smiling picture the news had posted.
This doesn't make any sense.
If Heath had reigned so many punches on Lane, then he shouldn't have been able to walk on out of there too easily.
So did it mean that Lane was out and about, still as a threat, or...?
I buried my face into the Hospital pillow, trying hard to breathe through my aching lungs.
"Bailey!"
I registered Keegan's voice, but I couldn't pull my face out of the pillow.
Every inch of my body was violently trembling, like a Nokia 3315 on vibrate.
"Hey!"
I felt my brother's hands on my shoulders, but I couldn't stop shaking as I tried to breathe and hold in the terrified sobs.
"C'mon Bails, please!"
I felt my Brother pull me off the mattress, but it seemed like my mind was separated from my body.
Keegan settled onto the bed and wrapped his arms around my shaking frame, holding me tight.

"I'm sorry about that!"
I croaked, wiping at my stinging eyes.
"You don't have to apologise."
Keegan whispered, one of his hands gently rubbing my back.
"Never."
I do have to apologise.
I know it would've scared the hell out of him to find me in total freak out mode.
I used the back's of my hands to wipe at my eyes and my cheeks, sniffling against the watery snot that seem's to be mandatory after a big cry.
I wanted to tell Keegan so badly that there was a chance my attacker was on the loose, under the radar.
But I didn't know how.
He would be absolutely blinded by rage.
"Nightmare?"
My Brother guessed, his tone quiet and cautious.
The easy thing would be to agree.
Except I had the anxiety now, that maybe the nightmare was reality.
Was Lane on the loose?
Free to hurt me again?
"I g-guess you c-could say that."
I stammered, my throat burning.
"What aren't you telling me?"
Keegan questioned.
I had my back to him, trying to regain control of my emotions, but I could practically sense his frown.
Should I tell him?
It's on the new's, so he'll know at some point.
But the new's reporter didn't say Lane had attacked me, only that he'd been reported 'missing', so maybe Heath was the only one who knew.
But I knew Heath would tell the rest of my Brother's, because he wasn't the type to let something like this go.
If Lane was missing, my Brother's would surely be first in line in finding him.
I sucked in a shaky breath, trying to work out what I should do.
Do I tell him?
Don't I?

Keegan

"We need to tell her!"
I insisted, looking between Arian, Benjie.
"You wanna fell your traumatised little Sister that her Brother's and her Boyfriend's Brother's have her attacker held prisoner?"
I twisted around to find that Alice had managed to sneak up on us.
When she put it like that, I had to agree it made us sound bad.
Currently Corbin and Elliot were on 'don't let the fuckwit escape' duty, but nobody was telling Me, or Zander, where he was being held.
Not that I even knew if they'd told Zander from him, because He currently wasn't speaking to Me, or any of My Brother's or His Brother's.
"I gotta admit I agree with Keegan."
"Benjie!"
Alice gasped, sounding absolutely shocked.
I turned quickly around to face Zander's eldest Brother.
"You do?!"
I asked, surprised.
Normally Benjie is just like Arian, trying to keep everybody safe by 'only telling them what they need to know'.
"We're not telling my Little Sister that we're capable of holding someone hostage!"
Arian yelled, shooting his best friend a generous glare.
"You guys don't get it!"
Benjie insisted, leaving forward in his chair, not affected by Arian's aggro in the slightest.
He looked from Arian, to Alice, to Me.
"I know someone who had more or less the same thing happen to Her."
Benjie explained.
I froze and it felt like Arian and Alice were holding their breath, too.
"Leah's never told me anything like that!"
Alice yelped, her eyes wide and her voice super high in pitch.
She threw Her hands to cover her mouth.
"Not Lwah."
Benjie shook his head.
"But the fact of the matter is, what kept the person terrified, was that the attacker was effectively walking around free to hurt them again."
This was precisely why I wanted someone to tell Bailey we had her attacker under fist and foot.
I don't know everything about how my Big Brother's work, because even I was one of the people Arian had tried to keep sheltered, but I knew that the rage that I was feeling would be felt my Brother!/ too.
And more than one of My Brother's and Zander's Brother's have been in jail before...
"It's still better She doesn't know."
Arian protested, shaking his head.
But it was clear that regardless of his denial, He was conflicted.
Arian was always the head protector of our house, because our Father was a useless piece of shit.
It was in his blood to protect other's.
But Bailey was currently hurting in a way that none of us could possibly understand.
I'd imagine that having somebody have their way with you against your will, would strip you down even more than your own Father back handing you at just five years old, punching you at seven, or busting your ribs for the first time at ten.
"I know... it's gonna sound bad... that he's been locked up under someone's supervision since Saturday night..."
I agreed, my heart beginning to pound inside my chest.
"But She saw on the new's that He's missing! That's doubled Her fear's that He might be looking for Her!"
It had taken Bailey a while to confess this to Me, but finally She did.
And I was glad.
At least if She told Me what was bothering her, then I had a chance at helping her overcome it.
"Right!"
Arian laughed humourlessly.
"So I tell my Little Sister that since She was attacked, either Corbin, Darwin, Elliot, Ethan, Jace, Heath or Kade have been making sure the motherfucker can't get off the ground?"
"You need to take Him to the Police!"
Alice insisted, her tone and expression borderline hysterical.