Retribution (7 page)

“Claire? Talk to me, please. Are you okay? Do I need to call an ambulance?”

“No, no ambulance. I’m fine,” I blurted.

The thought of anyone else seeing me like this made me want to die. I didn’t want anyone to know how weak I really was. I hadn’t even tried to fight Robert off because I knew I couldn’t. I was weak, both mentally and physically.

“You don’t look fine. You look like someone just beat the hell out of you.” Cooper hesitated for a moment. “I’m going to help you up onto the couch, okay?”

I nodded, and his arms slid underneath me. I tensed as he carefully lifted me. I dug my nails into his arm as the pain in my stomach doubled. I could feel my pulse in my cheek, every beat of my heart causing my face to flare with pain.

He gently placed me on the couch before sitting down next to me. I lay my head against the back and closed my eyes. I truly felt as if I would break in two at any moment.

“I know you probably don’t want to talk about it, but I need to know what happened,” Cooper said.

I didn’t even bother to open my eyes. “We both know what, or rather who, happened.”

Cooper cursed. “My father?”

I nodded.

“But why? What on earth made him do this to you?”

“The firm lost the case he let go of to be with me. The girl I work with warned me that he was on a rampage today, so I made sure to avoid him. Then, he came home tonight, drunk and angry. He blamed me and took out his frustration on me.”

“Jesus Christ,” Cooper mumbled.

I winced as he pushed a few strands of hair out of my face.

“Are you sure you don’t want to get checked out, Claire? Your eye is black already, and from the way you were curled in on yourself, I’m betting he got a few solid stomach hits in.”

“I’ll be fine. He didn’t do anything more than bruise my face and ribs. If he had broken them, I wouldn’t be able to breathe this easily.”

We sat in silence for a few minutes. I kept my eyes closed as I tried to focus on the parts of me that weren’t throbbing. I needed to distract myself, or I was going to lose it and start crying. I couldn’t do that, not in front of Cooper.

“So, what happens now?” Cooper finally asked.

“I have no idea,” I said. “I really don’t want to think about it right now.”

“Will you let me help you up to your room then? You need to rest.”

I nodded as I opened my eyes and slowly sat up. Cooper watched me with a look of pity on his face. I hated that look, especially coming from him. I ignored it as I stood. I gripped the arm of the couch to keep me upright. My legs felt like jelly, and I wasn’t sure if they would support me or not.

Cooper was up and by my side in a flash. He gripped my arm and helped me make my way ever so slowly to the staircase. I held on to the banister while he held me as we made our way up the stairs. I was terrified that he would let go of me, and I’d go tumbling down, but he never did. When I stopped at the top to catch my breath, he waited patiently.

“Take your time, Claire,” he said.

I started moving forward again. When we reached my room, he swung the door open and helped me inside. As soon as we made it to my bed, I dropped down on it. I was totally exhausted.

“I’m going to grab you some pain meds. I’ll be right back,” Cooper said before disappearing out into the hallway.

As I waited for him to return, I fought not to cry. Robert had attacked me. My own husband had attacked me. It didn’t matter that he was drunk. Thousands of people got intoxicated every single day, and most of them wouldn’t use their fists to prove a point. While my body was bruised, it was nothing compared to my pride. I had been blind when it came to Robert. I should’ve run the moment he slapped me. Instead, I’d stayed and pouted like a child. If I had left, he never would’ve had the chance to do what he had done to me tonight.

“Here. Take these.”

I looked up to see Cooper standing in front of me. I hadn’t even seen him come in. I took the pills and the glass of water from him. I tossed back the pills and chugged the water.

“Thanks.”

“You’re welcome. They won’t make it go away, but they’ll help. Hopefully, you’ll be able to sleep some tonight. You’ll be even worse in the morning though.”

“Wonderful,” I muttered. “I doubt I’ll sleep much tonight.”

He stood awkwardly in front of me. Awkward didn’t suit him at all. Cooper always seemed to be calm and in control, no matter the situation. He certainly didn’t appear that way now. He ran his hands through his hair as he started pacing in front of me.

“I want to kill him for this, Claire. I want him to hurt as much as he hurt you.”

I stayed silent as he continued to pace around the room.

“I knew he was a pathetic bastard, but I never thought he’d do this to you!”

“You knew he would do
something
though, didn’t you? You tried to warn me over and over. I refused to listen. I thought you were just trying to use me to get to him.”

He stopped pacing and turned to look at me. “I didn’t think he’d attack you. I thought he’d manipulate and control you but never this. If I had known…”

“If you had known, you would have tried to warn me, and I would have ignored you. This isn’t your fault, Coop, so stop acting like it is. This is all on me.”

He shook his head. “This isn’t your fault at all.”

I looked away. “Can we please just let it go for tonight? I’m exhausted.”

“Of course. Do you…need me to help you change into pajamas or anything?”

Any other time, I would have assumed that Cooper was trying to be a pervert, but I knew that wasn’t the case tonight.

“No, I’m fine. But, Cooper?”

“What?”

“Can I ask a favor?”

He walked over to me. “Anything.”

“Will you stay with me tonight? I don’t want to be alone in case…well, in case he comes back.”

His eyes clouded over with sympathy. “I’ll stay.”

“Thank you.” My voice was so quiet that I wasn’t sure if he could even hear me.

It didn’t matter though. He knew how much it meant to me that he’d agreed.

Tonight was the turning point for us. I could feel it. All the anger I’d felt toward him had been unjustified. He’d really tried to protect me, and I’d turned my back on him.

I stood slowly and pulled the covers back. I slid in between the sheets as Cooper walked to the other side of the bed. I watched as he pulled off his shirt, leaving him in only a pair of shorts. I looked away, suddenly embarrassed by the thoughts running through my head. Cooper was incredible to look at. I had admitted that to myself long ago, but to think it at this moment was just wrong.

He climbed into bed next to me and pulled the covers over us. “Do you want me to turn the light out?”

I shook my head. “No, leave it on. I don’t want to be in the dark tonight.”

He didn’t reply. Instead, he just scooted closer to me. I rolled on my side, away from him. I felt the heat radiating from his body, letting me know that he was close without touching me. Without thinking, I reached back and found his hand. He tensed for a moment as I lifted it and rested it against my hip.

“I don’t want you to be uncomfortable, but I want to feel you so that I know you’re with me. Is that okay?”

“It’s fine, Claire. Whatever you need from me, just tell me, and I’ll do it. Right now, I’d do just about anything for you.”

“I know,” I said softly. “Thank you for that.”

We lay in silence. I stared at the far wall for a few minutes before finally closing my eyes. All I could feel was Cooper’s hand on my hip. It comforted me more than he could ever realize. Before I knew it, I was out.

I awoke to the smell of bacon and eggs. I opened my eyes and rolled onto my back. I jumped, causing pain to shoot through my body, when I saw Cooper standing above me.

I winced. “You scared the shit out of me.”

“Sorry. I made you breakfast.”

I sat up carefully, testing my body. It hurt like a bitch. “Thanks. What time is it?”

“Just after ten,” he said. He sat down next to me.

My eyes widened. “I’m supposed to be at work!”

“I took care of it. I called the office and said you wouldn’t be in today or tomorrow.”

“What did you tell them?”

“That you have a stomach bug. When you go back and they see your face, they’ll know I lied. You’ll have to figure out what you’re going to tell them.” He paused thoughtfully. “If you go back.”

“What do you mean?” I asked as I watched him place the tray across my lap. Suddenly starved, I picked up a piece of bacon and chomped away on it.

“I don’t know what you plan to do now. You could press charges against my father if you wanted to.”

“We both know they’ll never stick. He’s too connected in this town.”

He sighed. “You’re right. So, what are you going to do?”

“I don’t know,” I told him truthfully. “I hate your father, but I have nowhere to go. I need to find a place to stay before I leave here. I’ll also need to find a new job as well. Something tells me I’ll be fired from the firm soon.”

“So, you’re just going to run away and let him get away with what he did to you?” Cooper asked incredulously.

“What do you expect me to do, Cooper? I can’t file charges against him!” I said, suddenly angry.

He stayed silent for a moment. “I didn’t sleep much last night. Instead, I stayed up and tried to think of a way that you could get back at him.”

I raised an eyebrow. “And what did you come up with?”

“You’re not going to like it,” he said.

“I’m sure I won’t, but tell me anyway.”

He looked guilty for a moment, and my stomach dropped. I really wasn’t going to like this.

“I want to use you.”

“To do what?” I asked cautiously.

“To finally get proof against my father. Think about it, Claire. You are closer to him than anyone else. He would never expect you to betray him, even after last night. He thinks you’re a timid little girl who is too dumb to go against him. You have access to him at work as well. I have never been able to get into his office before.” He took a deep breath. “I want you to go to him and tell him you forgive him for what happened last night. Then, I want you to snoop every chance you can, so we can finally pin my mother’s death on him.”

I gaped at him with my mouth hanging open. “You can’t be serious.”

“I’ve never been so serious about anything in my life. I think you’re my one and only chance at finally bringing him down, Claire. I wouldn’t ask this of you if I wasn’t desperate.”

“You want me to
forgive
him.” I sucked in a deep breath. “No, it’s more than just forgiving Robert. You want me to act like nothing happened.”

“I know it’s asking a lot, Claire. I get that. But wouldn’t you rather make him pay for everything he’s done than just walk away and let him hurt someone else like he hurt you, like he hurt my mother? Your innocence is what got you here, and it’s what’ll get you out.”

“He really killed her, didn’t he?” My voice was so soft that I wasn’t sure if he heard me or not.

Finally, after a moment, he spoke, “Yeah, Claire, he did. And it’s up to me to make sure he pays for what he’s done.” His voice grew gruff as he said, “My mother is dead because she wanted out. I can’t let that happen to you, too. Please, help me, and I swear to God, I’ll protect you from him. I need you to do this though, Claire. Please.”

I stared at him. I no longer saw a sarcastic man. Instead, I saw a broken one. Marie’s death had destroyed Cooper. He’d spent so much time trying to avenge her, and he had come up with next to nothing. If I walked away, I wasn’t sure that Cooper would ever stop trying. He would either get himself killed, or he’d murder Robert and destroy his own future. I couldn’t let that happen.

Despite what had happened between us, I still cared for Cooper. I probably always would. That was why I had waited and waited for him to finally make his appearance once we returned. It wasn’t because I was afraid of him. It was because I’d wanted to see him. Cooper had left an empty feeling inside of me when he walked away.

I reached forward and grabbed his hand. I tugged gently until he would finally look at me. “Tell me what I need to do then.”

He tensed for a moment. “You’re going to help me?”

I nodded. “I’m going to do whatever I can to make Robert pay.”

He squeezed my hand. “He has always done whatever it takes to get him to where he wants to be. He’s never feared anyone. It’s time to make him fear, Claire. I want retribution for his sins, and I know you do, too.”

“I’m sorry for what I said before. I thought…” I trailed off.

“I know what you thought, but you were wrong. It doesn’t matter now anyway.”

I cleared my throat. “You’re going to have to help me, Cooper. I don’t know what you want or need to make him pay.”

“We’ll start with getting you two back on a comfortable level. I want you to wait a couple of days before you go to him. I doubt if he’ll come home, so you’ll have to find him at work. I want you to come off as weak and needy. Tell him how sorry you are for making him angry. You have to make him believe that everything you say is the absolute truth.”

“Weak and needy.” I gave a humorless laugh. “I seem to be a professional when it comes to portraying those two traits.”