Royally Broken by Elle Boon Page 0,9
more powerful than what they were. Hell, it’s kind of hard not to when I spent the first eighteen years fighting to live.” He didn’t let them see the hurt he still felt for the little kid he’d been.
“What about the cops or DFS?” Traeger asked.
Keys narrowed his eyes. “They were all in the Mayor’s pocket. That fucker hated me too. I don’t know why other than his granddaughter was my friend. Fuck, she was the sweetest thing this side of the Mississippi. Palmer Coker, she was too good for the likes of me. I was the unwanted piece of trash from the dirt road. She was the pampered princess who was slotted to marry the good ole boy her granddaddy chose. We rode the bus together, but she was a few years younger than me. I never touched her, never would’ve. When I’d just turned eighteen, she was fifteen—”he closed his eyes, the memory of that day still as fresh as if it was yesterday—“I was the last stop in the morning and first in the afternoon. I never missed the bus, or I’d have to walk to school. I knew getting good grades was the only way I’d get out of that town. Palmer knew that. One day when I wasn’t on the bus after she got on, little Palmer decided to get off and come looking for me. God, she shouldn’t have.”
He scrubbed his hand down his face. The memories he’d buried came back like an explosion in the desert. Yeah, he’d lived through one of those. He wasn’t sure he’d live through what was coming.
“Silas, are you okay?”
He lifted his head from the ground, a blast of pain shot up his arm as he tried to push into a sitting position. “Palmer, what’re you doing here?”
“Oh, my word, you’re hurt. Who did this to you?”
She slid onto her knees, getting close to him, closer than she should be, making him acutely aware of how filthy he was and the fact he had nothing on. “You need to leave, Palmer. Go on, get.”
“Hush, you need to see a doctor. You’re bleeding in several places and that arm. God, it looks like it’s broken,” she cried.
Silas looked into her cornflower blue eyes, seeing tears well in them, for him. He tried and failed to lift his hand. She was right, his right arm was at least dislocated and bruised really badly. However, he couldn’t go to the hospital. For one, he had no way to pay for it. For two, they’d probably turn him away. For three, they’d report to the mayor, her grandfather who’d then tell the Langley’s who would then repeat the lesson they’d taught him. No, it was better if he lay there and get better or die.
Gathering his strength, he lifted the arm that wasn’t injured as badly and brushed her tears away. “I need you to listen to me, Sunshine. You need to go before someone finds you with me and then punishes the both of us. I’ve been working my way to the river to get cleaned up. I’ll assess the damage afterward and then decide what to do.”
Not a total lie. He’ll decide if he should sleep farther away from the house or not, depending on the climate. Damn, he hurt everywhere. The Langley brothers were in their thirties, drunk bastards on the best of days, total fucking pricks on other days who had decided to teach him his place. Not that he had one in their home. Since he’d turned fifteen, he’d been relegated to the shed. Of course, the townsfolk didn’t know any of that.
Blaine and Blaire Langley had found him sleeping at two in the morning, using a ball bat and taser on him. He shuddered; the electric shocks had sent him into spasms he thought for sure he’d die from.
“Hello. Earth to Silas. See, you most definitely need to see a doctor. Come on, I’ll help you.” Palmer bent down, her sweet honey and jasmine scent chasing away the smell of burning hair that had invaded his senses.
He yelled, unable to stifle the sound as she touched his ribs. “Shit, sorry, Palmer,” he muttered.
“I didn’t mean to hurt you. I’ll go get the doctor and bring him to you.” She started backing away.
Silas held up his hand, the action hurting like a mothereffer. “Palmer, stop. If you do that, they’ll know and do worse to me next time.” The words tasted like sawdust on his tongue, but