Rated R
Disclaimer: I already did one of these! You should know by now that I don't own ANYTHING except Dakota!
Chapter 2: Heavenly Bliss
Days passed since the death of their mother and the Mercer brothers along with their little sister began to accept the fact that she wasn't coming back. Taking care of Dakota was blissful yet hard. She loved her brothers and allowed them to help her with certain things but then sometimes she was more independent than they expected. She never talked but there was a line of communication between Dakota and her big brothers that no one could decipher. The relationship between them was amazing and beautiful. Little by little Dakota was making progress. She smiled more then she ever had, she had giggled and tried to make speech.
"C... cu...c.." Dakota tried to say as she Bobby and Jack sat in the living room one day. Her face screwed up in frustration and pain. She was trying to talk but never could. At the time all she was capable of was stuttering. Jack frowned and rested a reassuring hand on hers. He knew she wanted her sippy cup. She couldn't drink from a regular cup after her father broke her jaw. Her jaw was so severely damaged that once it healed back, it was hard to eat or drink, let alone talk. Now, she had to eat only soup from a special straw bowl. And she had to drink from a sippy cup.
" You want milk?" Jack asked. Dakota shook her head and a smile creeped across Bobby's face. "No! Of course not! You want one of Angel's famous cotton candy milkshakes! Don't you sweetie?" he asked. Dakota nodded her head with excitement. She loved it when Angel made her milkshakes. They were never thick and easy to suck through the sippy cups, and were very yummy. Angel laughed and walked over to the little girl. He scooped her up and carried her to the kitchen. For the next ten minutes, the four Mercer brothers and their little sister sat in the kitchen making milkshakes. Dakota sat on the counter, her head thrown back in laughter.
Hours later, Dakota was tucked into bed with her blue monkey. Her pink sippy cup with stars, laid forgotten by her head. Her small eyes fluttered as she slept and dreamed. Jack smiled as he stood in the door way. Bobby came up behind him and smiled at how much Jack loved Dakota.
"Take a picture Fairy. It lasts longer!" Bobby spoke. Jack jumped a foot in the air as his brother startled him. Bobby walked past Jack and into Dakota's room. He leaned over the sleeping bundle and picked up her sippy cup. Sitting it on the bedside table, he turned to Jack and smiled. He turned off her lamp and made a gesture to Jack to let her sleep. Looking in on their little sister one last time, the two brothers smiled and walked of to their own rooms for a good nights sleep. Jack was restless as he lay in his bed. Just a couple days ago, Dakota's father showed up and demanded to have her back. He still couldn't forget the look of fear on her face, the way she cried silently or the way her tiny legs trembled. It had taken half the police force to get him to leave and it left behind a very petrified little girl who stayed up that night crying with her brothers there for comfort. Why did her father want her so badly? Bobby was so angry and it was hard to calm him down. He just wanted to cause Dakota's father so much pain. He wanted him to pay for the grief, pain and nightmares that he caused that little girl. No child should ever have to go through that. Bobby didn't care if he only knew Dakota for a while, he would NEVER let anyone hurt her again!
TBC