Free Blind Acceptance by Missy Martine Page B

been able to do. Her whole life has been spent in a type of protective cocoon, and she feels like she’s missed out on life. She begged me to let her experience a little of what the other girls talked about, so I agreed to stop and camp for a couple of days when I brought her home from school. Her grandfather passed away recently,” he sobbed, “and I thought it would be a good time to tell her, when she’s relaxed. I was bringing her home to stay.
    She wasn’t going to have to return to that awful school.”
    “No, he’s lying,” Laynee cried. David and Eric each grabbed one of her hands as the sound of her father’s interview went on.
    “Was there anyone else traveling with you?”
    “No, I wanted it to be a father-daughter bonding time. I just wanted to spend time alone with my little angel and to let her experience life like other, normal girls do.”
    Laynee pulled her hands away. “Turn it off, please.” A second later there was silence. She cleared her throat. “He didn’t have Jeremy with him when he picked me up at the school. We drove for about twenty minutes and then stopped and picked him up. When I complained about him coming on our trip, Father said he’d brought him along to do all the work so we could spend more time together.”
    “Laynee,” Remus asked, “what’s the last thing you remember?”
    “Father took me out of the car and sat me down by a tree. I could hear water nearby, so I had to be close to a river or pond of some kind. The air was cooling off, and the breeze was strong enough to ruffle the hairs on my head. I could smell pine and rotting wood.”
    “Wow!” Maddie patted her shoulder.
    “That’s a really good memory you have.”
    “That’s the first thing I teach new students. Their other senses will develop more fully when they lose their sight. Since I’ve always been blind, I’ve had years to focus on my other senses.”
    “Do you remember drinking or eating anything?” Eric asked.
    “Yes. Father stopped for gas and got me an orange soda. It was my favorite when I was a child, and I didn’t have the heart to tell him I haven’t drunk them in years. It was a long drive from Portland and I was thirsty, so I drank it anyway.”
    Eric picked up her hand. “What happened then?”
    She thought for a minute. “I got really sleepy. I knew he was picking me up to take me home, and I hadn’t slept much the night before.” She pulled her hand away and rubbed her palms over her jean-covered thighs. “When we stopped, he left me in the car. He said he’d come get me after they got the tents up and a fire started. I remember feeling sick at my stomach.” She shook her head. “I asked Father to help me, and he said for me to just relax and everything would be okay.”
    “Laynee.” Eric picked her hand back up and held it tightly between his own.
    “They put some kind of drugs in your drink. That’s why you were so drowsy and why you felt sick.”
    She bit back a sob. “Maybe it was just an accident.”
    Eric briefly pressed her hand to his lips. “Honey, they threw raw meat around on the ground behind the tree where they left you. I heard that Jeremy fellow ask if your father thought the bears had gotten to you yet.”
    “No,” she cried, yanking her hands away and covering her face. “It can’t be true.”

    It nearly killed Eric to see his mate experience such pain. He moved closer and drew her fully into his arms. David quickly knelt between her knees and slipped his arms around her waist.
    They’d take away her pain if they could.
    For a few minutes, the only sound in the room was her quiet crying. When she slowed to an occasional hiccup, Remus stood.
    “Laynee, I’ve sent my best investigator to find out why this happened. Nobody does this on the spur of the moment.
    Your father had to have some kind of reason for what he’s done, and I, for one, want to know what that reason is. I think you’d be safer if you stayed away from him until we have