Marigold chewed nervously on a nail. She couldn't believe she had allowed Seth to agree to come to dinner. Mark and Kane had everything ready. They were looking as mean as they could. Mark in leather pants. Kane in black jeans. Both of them in normal t-shirts so their muscles were on display. She herself wore a pair of light blue jeans and a yellow and white striped t-shirt.
"Water or wine?" Kane asked.
"Just put both on the table," Mark answered.
The door bell rang. Marigold's heart skipped a beat. Up until that moment she had kind of hoped that Seth would chicken out.
"Aren't you gonna let your friend in?" Mark asked.
"Of course," Marigold answered.
She walked out and opened the door for Seth. She was greeted with a smile and a kiss. She took a deep breath, took his hand and escorted him into the living room. Both Mark and Kane stared in disbelief.
"A guy?" Mark asked.
"Mark, Kane, this is Seth," Marigold said.
"It's a pleasure to meet you," Seth said.
"A guy?" Mark repeated. "A fucking guy?"
"What were you thinking?" Kane asked.
"Just give him a chance," Marigold said.
"No!" Mark growled.
Mark and Kane both crossed their arms and stared Seth down. The message was clear already. Seth wasn't welcome in their home.
"I got everything I need in order to hunt you down, boy," Mark warned. "Stay the fuck away from Marigold."
"But..." Seth started.
"No!" Kane cut Seth off. "Get out. Stay away from her."
Seth looked at Marigold.
"I better leave," Seth said.
"I'll escort you out," Marigold said.
"A guy?" Mark talked to Kane. "What the fuck was she thinking? Didn't we raise her better than that?"
Marigold ignored the two men's talk. She walked Seth out to his car. To his surprise she got in on the passenger side.
"Goldie?" He asked.
"Drive before they notice," she said.
He started the car and hit the gas. He wasn't gonna let her ask him twice. They drove in silence until they reached the vacation home he was renting.
"So that was awkward," he said once they were inside.
"I warned you," she said.
"I didn't think it would be that bad. I should have listened to you," he said.
"Yes, you should have," she sighed. "You do realize we can't see each other anymore, right?"
"Don't say that!" He grabbed her face and kissed her hard. "Don't fucking say that!"
He caressed her cheeks while searching her eyes for answers she couldn't give. He could only hope she would fight for him despite not knowing him well. It felt right to him to be with her. She had to feel it too. He refused to believe otherwise.
"I found something," he said.
"What?" She asked.
"Remember how I think someone carried you out of there before starting the fire?" He asked.
"Yes?" She asked.
"What if it was Mark or Kane?" He asked.
"You gotta be shitting me," she said.
"No, take a look at this," he said.
He took her hand and pulled her to the couch. On the coffee table were the drawings of her childhood home. He pointed at her room in the basement.
"I never thought too much about the window, but look. Look at the measurement. It's too small for anyone to crawl through. You couldn't have gotten out that way," he said.
"I was a small child," she said.
"Not that small. Maybe you could push an infant through but not a 9 year old child," he said.
She looked at the drawings and shook her head.
"Just let it be," she said.
"No, I'm right. I know I'm right. Someone started that fire and got you out of there," he said. "Someone burned down your house and killed your parents. Someone..."
"I started that fire!" She screamed.
The room dropped silent for two seconds while they stared at each other.
"You what?" He finally whispered.
"I started that fire," she repeated. "Mark and Kane covered it up to protect me. They've been filling me with lies about it being an accident all these years. I'm not allowed to remember what I did, but I remember everything. I started that fire at the bottom of the stairs and then I walked out of the house and watched it burn."
He blinked a few times while taking in her words. She didn't seem evil to him. There was a deeper story there that he didn't know about.
"Why?" he asked.
"My father was a god damn hero to this town but to me he was a monster. They both were. I was beaten and molested for as long as I remember. My room was in the basement because I was an animal according to them. I didn't belong in the family. I belonged down in the basement with the cockroaches and the filth. His office upstairs was a torture champer to me. Do you know how many times I was made to lie on that desk while he did whatever he wanted to me? While my mother stood by and watched? And if my father didn't feel like it, she would use toys because one way or another, I had to be punished for their sick entertainment," she said.
He blinked again. Everything had changed so fast. She had started a fire. She had killed her parents. But it had all been done to protect herself.
"I didn't know," he whispered.
"No one fucking knows!" She growled. "No one but Mark and Kane. I told Mark everything that night. I was sure I was gonna go to jail and I didn't mind. I just wanted the monsters gone. Mark took me in along with Kane. They covered it up, tried to brainwash me into not remembering, and they keep a firm grip around my throat to avoid me getting close to anybody so I'll never tell anyone anything."
She stood up and stared at him as he remained seated on the couch.
"There's your story, Seth. Use it however the fuck you want. I don't care anymore," she said.
She headed for the door. He jumped up from the couch and ran after her. He reached her before she could open the door.
"Please, wait," he pleaded. "Two minutes. Give me two minutes to prove it."
"Prove what?" She asked.
"I don't know. To prove myself and that I'm serious. Just listen. I'm calling my boss," he said.
He took out his phone and called someone. The call was answered after two rings. She could only hear his side of the conversation but that was all she needed to hear.
"Hi, it's Seth," he started. "You know how my gut instinct only fails once in a blue moon, right? Turns out this is one of those times. There's no story here. Everything went by the book. It was a short circuit. A tragic accident that left a young girl without her parents. She doesn't even live here anymore. No one knows where she was adopted to. I'm driving home tomorrow. I'll be back at work Monday."
He hung up and looked at her. He had just let go of this entire case because of her.
"Thank you," she said.
"Don't thank me yet," he smiled. "Go home and pack. Call me when you're done and I'll pick you up."
"Where are we going?" She asked.
"You're moving to Iowa," he smirked. "They're keeping you a prisoner in your own life. Time to say thank you and goodbye to them. You need to start living for yourself."
"And that starts with you?" She asked.
"Yes, that starts with me," he said. "Let me take you away, goldie. You get to start your life over in another state where no one knows you. No more bullying and whispers in the corners. Just you and me together. I can even get you a job at Discovery. We always need new film crew. I can train you personally."
He leaned down and kissed her.
"What do you say?" He asked.
"Yes," she answered.
"Do you want me to drive you home?" He asked.
"No, I'm gonna walk. I need the air to clear my head before facing them. I'll call you once I'm ready," she said.
"Great," he kissed her again. "I'll pack my stuff meanwhile. I'll see you soon."
She walked back home while the sun was setting. It was all the way down once she got back. Both Mark and Kane were waiting for her.
"Do you have any idea how worried we were?" Kane stood with her phone in his hand. "You left your phone here so we couldn't call you. I'm very disappointed in you, young lady."
She hated being called young lady. The words had never sounded right to her but they sounded even worse than ever today.
"I wasn't gone that long," Marigold said.
"It doesn't matter," Kane said.
"Did you say goodbye to little lover boy?" Mark asked.
"I'm actually gonna move in with him," Marigold said.
"Oh, hell no!" Mark raised his voice.
"You can't stop me," Marigold said.
"Try me," Mark said.
"I remember everything about the fire. I remember everything they did to me leading up that point. I know I started it, and I know you covered it up. No more secrets. Seth knows too. I told him," Marigold said.
She walked past them and headed for the stairs.
"I'm grateful for all you've done but I need to do this for myself. I'm gonna pack my stuff and then I'll be out of your way," Marigold said.
She ran up the stairs and into her room. Kane still had her phone but she could get that back by the end. She grabbed her wallet and put it in her back pocket. Arms suddenly grabbed her and yanked her back.
"You're not going anywhere!" Mark growled.
"Let me go!" Marigold yelled.
"We gotta do it, Mark," Kane said.
"Do what?" Marigold asked.
"I wish it hadn't come to this," Mark said.
Mark dragged Marigold out of her room and down the hallway. Kane opened the door to the attic and pulled down the stairs. Marigold started fighting even more. If she went up there, she wouldn't be able to get down on her own. It couldn't be opened from upstairs with the bolt lock on this side. Mark didn't seem to care about her fighting. He managed to drag her up the stairs without dropping her. He threw her on a mattress on the floor. She was surprised to find a mattress up there, and not only that. There was also a pillow, a blanket and a bottle of water.
"You planned for this," Marigold said.
"We had to when you decided to take off with him earlier," Kane said.
"I can't believe you remember any of it. We did everything we could to make you forget," Mark said.
"Don't lock me up here. You can't do this to me," Marigold said.
"We have to. It's for your own good. No one can know the truth. You didn't seem to think about us in all this. Our jobs are on the line. We will go to jail if anyone finds out. But like a selfish little brat, you didn't stop to think about us in all this," Mark said.
"Don't hurt him," Marigold pleaded. "Please, don't hurt him."
"We won't," Kane said.
"But we will have to do some damage control," Mark said.
Both men walked back to the attic door.
"Don't worry, we're not gonna let you sit and rot up here," Mark said. "We'll come let you out to use the bathroom and get some food. Prove yourself to us again. If we feel like we can trust you again, we'll let you out. Until then you gotta be up here and think about what you've done."