Divorced! Now what?
Chapter 98

Theo POV

Mum and Dad assured me it was best to stay in the kitchen away from the questioning for a couple of reasons; one was because I would want to go and serve justice myself, and I agreed I might do something stupid like that. Two, because of how upset I might get, they were concerned that it might stop her from answering if I got emotional while they were questioning her. Too afraid to upset me further. Both reasons sounded good, but I was still having trouble standing there trying to talk to Mum and Dad, trying to make it not seem like I would prefer to be in the other room and to try and pretend as if that was not happening in the other room.

'Son, how about we see if Bob is okay with us smuggling her out of here and to our den for sports day? Maybe a day away from here would be good for her! Kitty suggested. I think this was just as hard on her as it was for me. Working with battered women, she has seen some bad things, and though this is different in some ways, it is the same too. The beating she had been through by the instigation of a family member is almost the same feeling of betrayal, and from what I understand, the family had bullied her over the years, just not physically until now.

I asked about Bob and why he let it go on as he had. He had told them that, at first, he thought it was just sibling rivalry. When he escalated, Wendy told him to b**t out, which is part of why Bethany is so close to her Dad. When he was home, he put a stop to it. Still, he was often not there when the problems arose and could not protect her, and she would never say anything about it, thinking it was a phase or some other excuse she could use to justify their actions.

When they all left, I gave Bethany extra special treatment; she was so exhausted, and when it came to being intimate with her, I felt a little guilty for taking my pleasure; even though she seemed to enjoy it, I felt I had done it for self-gratification and should have waited for her to be less exhausted so that she could enjoy it more.

I cleaned up the place and looked at what I had planned for tomorrow before heading to bed. The night was rough;

dreams of Bethany's nightmare were in my head; it was like I was in the room watching but could do nothing to stop them. I screamed and shouted to stop hitting her. I woke with a start. Sweat covered my body; if my imagination was bad, what Bethany had gone through had to be ten times worse.

I looked over at her sleeping form and headed for a shower. I felt gross, and the images of her broken, swollen face stayed with me all through the shower. In the kitchen, I made a coffee for us both and decided to try my hand at cooking something for breakfast, but by the time I had it on the table, Bethany was awake and watching me. I hoped she could not see how bad my night was or that she was the cause of it. I did not want to explain that to her. If I told her I had a nightmare because of her, she would be sad, and there was little either of us could do about it except feel bad.

'How was your night babe?' I asked softly as she sat at the table, and I kicked myself for using the word 'Babe.' It was what the guy that beat her called her, but she did not flinch or show any signs that I had offended her, and I let out a long breath, happy I had not hurt her or triggered a bad memory.

'Good, no memories or nightmares. I guess I am lucky. You look like you have been through the wringer,' she stated. I nodded but did not elaborate. After breakfast, Bob arrived and joined us for another round of coffee.

'Bethany, after a long discussion with Hank, we have agreed that you can go to his den on Sunday and have a sports day there. However, you are to wear a wig and different clothes and whatever we can think of to make you look different, and you are never, I never repeat, to be alone; one of us must be with you at all times. Bethany squealed with delight.

'The place in my memory? Downstairs?' She asked in an excited voice, no complaint about dressing in something not sports-like.

'Yes, that is Hank's place. He had just finished refurbishing it. You went there on the first day. It was open for sports day. The party was at another time. I replied, thinking about both days and how much fun they were. 'Dad, will you be there?' Bethany sounded like she needed her Dad.

'Just try and keep me away. I had a good time when we were there last time, and I expect the same again. I can bring the ingredients here, and you can make pies; give me a list. Bob said, and you would have thought Bethany had just won the lottery. She beamed with joy.

'Bethany, we have raised a warrant to arrest your sister and Mother and a few others in relationship to the accident, and you're k********g and beating. They should be picked up within the next few days! Dad was watching me closely as he gave me that snippet of information.

'Am I safe now?' Bethany asked, thinking if they were arrested, she was safe.

'Not yet. We have them on a different warrant than previously. This way, they cannot get bail. They still have contacts out there that might do their bidding, so until we have them all caught and in jail, we need to keep you safe. Some of the lesser men involved have been given a chance to cooperate for a lesser charge, and we are working on it. We need to gather a stronger case against the others, so they have to spend time in jail and not have a chance to appeal. Bob looked concerned, thinking that some of the bigger fish must have some power behind them. I felt for Bethany; she would still be looking over her shoulder for a long time.

The following two days were quiet; no more memories returned, and no big nightmares came again for either of us. We are now ready for sports day. Bethany made pies, a few small cakes, and other pastries on Saturday. She seemed to be in her element in the kitchen, zoning me completely out. At one time, she kicked me out and told me to replace something to do.

I was at a loss. I had hoped to help out, not that I was that good in the kitchen, but I could learn.

The next day, we dressed Bethany up in a long, flowing dress, a long-sleeved shirt, and a hat that made her look like she was off to the races. She looked the part of a corporate box wife, heading off to have some fun. You could see that Bethany hated it but did not fight it, knowing that she would be stuck in the lab area longer if she did not follow the rules. This was like a trial run to see how she was leaving her safe place.

Getting her to the car was easy. Bob had a tinted windowed SUV, and that made Bethany feel safer. He reversed into the ambulance bay, and we smuggled her out as if she were a patient being transferred. We had a few staff looking at us weirdly, considering I was dressed up in my sports shirt, and so was Bob, but I think most thought it funny and did not think much of it.

Once on the road, Bethany clung to my side. She stared out the window and kept turning her head to look behind her. I think she remembered being in a car, and it was not safe, but she could not place where the fear was coming from. Bethany did not relax at all and was stressed out all the way to Dad's place, her head swiveling around, staring at each car as if it was going to attack us.

She was shaking and kept holding me tighter every time a car passed close by us. I was wondering when the memory would hit, but we made it to Dad's place, and she was still shaking and scared, but not one whimper or cry out. She kept it together. Only my arm was sore from where she dug her fingers in each time a car was next to us or we moved through an intersection.

Bob drove straight into the garage. Dad had made a space for him right near the door to the house. We waited for the garage door to close before any of us climbed out. Although you cannot see the garage from the road, we were taking no chances.

I have been caught out once already, and with Scott's team being hit, I am not willing to risk her safety. One good thing. After Bethany was taken, the contract was gone. Scott said that the contract had been completed, and unless they raised another one, she was safe from rouge gangsters wanting to make a name for themselves.