It was the follow day and Shelby woke up to her alarm. She groaned when she turned her head and noticed that it was 5am. She quickly got up and ready before wakening her daughter up.
"I'm tired" Rachel complained as Shelby struggled to dress the girl who was not cooperating with her at all.
"I know but we need to get ready to go" Shelby said stepping away once the girl was dressed. Rachel sighed.
"Go to the toilet and brush your teeth" Shelby said pushing the girl into the bathroom. Rachel mumbled something before closing the door. Shelby quickly checked that she had everything before taking the suitcase to the front door.
"Come on Rach, we need to go now" Shelby called and Rachel came walking through.
They quickly headed down to the car which was waiting for them and drove to the airport. Shelby had opted for an early morning flight hoping that the paparazzi won't notice and she was correct. Only a handful of people saw them getting into the car.
Once in the airport, they were quickly rushed through check in and security before heading to the executive lounge.
"Do you want some breakfast?" Shelby asked and Rachel nodded sleepily before putting her hands up and looking at her mom. Shelby sighed but quickly moved the girl onto her hip. Rachel placed her head on her mother's shoulder. She was really tired. It was after midnight that they got in last night and Shelby had woken the girl up at 5:30. Rachel loved it when her mother held her. It made her feel safe and loved, something that she hadn't felt for a long time.
"What do you want?" Shelby asked.
"Toast" Rachel whispered and Shelby nodded. She wondered why the girl was whispering to her but didn't think anything of it. She quickly put two slices of bread in the toaster and got some apple juice and a coffee for herself.
"Go and take these to a table please" Shelby said as she put the girl down. Rachel nodded and did what her mother said. Once the toast was ready, Shelby returned to the table. Rachel sat eating with her legs up to her chest. She watched her mother's ever move carefully with wide frightened eyes. Shelby looked at her. She wondered what was going on in the girl's head but knew the girl won't say anything to her, at least not yet.
"You can get some sleep on the plane" Shelby explained and Rachel nodded.
It wasn't long before they were told that they could board the plane. Rachel instantly became nervous but she didn't want to show it.
"Do you want to sit at the window or aisle?" Shelby asked.
"Window" Rachel whispered and Shelby nodded letting the girl sit down first. It was only a two hour flight so it wasn't too bad.
It wasn't long before they were ready to take off. Rachel got nervous and grabbed her mom's hand.
"It's okay sweetie" Shelby said placing her arm around her daughter's shoulder. Rachel held her breath and was relieved when they got into the air. She relaxed and took off her seatbelt when the sign went off.
"Get comfortable" Shelby said as the girl moved about. Shelby moved the girl's head so that it was resting on Shelby's lap and Rachel curled her feet up.
"Get some sleep" Shelby said and Rachel nodded before drifting off to sleep. Shelby smiled and played with her daughter's hair for a while before reading a magazine.
Soon, it was announced that they were landing.
"Wake up, sweetie" Shelby said softly to the girl.
"Are we crashing?" Rachel asked softly still half asleep.
"No sweetie, we are landing in Ohio" Shelby said and Rachel nodded.
"Daddy definitely won't get me will he?" Rachel said.
"I will not let him get to you baby" Shelby said and Rachel nodded. She did trust her mom. They quickly collected their bags and Shelby got her car. She had a friend who lived near the airport and she kept her car at his for easiness. He was licensed on it which meant he could drop it off at the airport for her.
Shelby fumbled around in her bag looking for her keys. She found them and they climbed in.
"It's about a 30 minute drive" Shelby said and Rachel nodded. She sat quietly and it wasn't long before they pulled into the street. Rachel watched in amazement. She couldn't believe the size of the houses.
"That's us here" Shelby said as she climbed out the car. She quickly took out her keys and walked around to the trunk of the car to get the suitcases out.
"Rach, hold the keys for me please" Shelby said giving the girl the keys.
"Lock the door once I close the boot" Shelby instructed.
Once the suitcases were out the car, they walked to the front door. Rachel followed close behind her mother.
Elizabeth, Shelby's mother was at the door waving crazily.
"Hello, Shelby. Long-time no see" Elizabeth said pulling her daughter into her arms.
"And this must be my eldest granddaughter. Let me have a proper look at you" Elizabeth said pulling Rachel from behind Shelby. Rachel face dropped as the older woman held onto her arms.
"Mom, let go of her, she is a bit shy and is scared" Shelby explained holding Rachel's shoulder.
"No, I am her grandma" Elizabeth said but Rachel started flapping about. Rachel didn't understand who this woman was, or why she was trying to hold her still. It scared her, she knew that her mom was just behind her but it reminded her of when her dad's friends would hold her in front of them to have a look at her, of course this time was different because she was wearing clothes but it still scared her. She knew that her only option was to run away. She managed to get out of both Shelby and Elizabeth's grip and she ran to the car.
"Don't you dare run onto the road" Shelby shouted.
"Shelby, you need to get more control over the girl" Elizabeth shouted but Shelby was already running behind Rachel. Rachel unlocked the car and jumped in locking the door behind her. She climbed into the back seat and sank down between the front and back seats in the car.
"Rachel" Shelby said as she tried to open the door. "Crap"
"What's wrong?" Elizabeth asked. "Open the door"
"I would if I could" Shelby said "Rachel was holding the keys for me so she has locked herself in"
Elizabeth sighed.
"You need to gain some control of that girl, she is running riot around you" Elizabeth said and Shelby sighed.
"You don't understand, just leave me to it" Shelby said and Elizabeth huffed before storming into the house.
"Rachel, can you let me in? I know that you are scared but my mom didn't mean to scare you. She was just so excited to see you. I should have explained to her first so she knew not to attack you when we arrived" Shelby explained.
"Can you please open the door sweetie? Momma just wants to speak to you" Shelby said as she slid down the car door.
"I promise, that as soon as you open this door we will go straight up to my bedroom and you can have a sleep. We will talk and sort everything out once you wake up, I just think you are over tired and overwhelmed" Shelby said. Rachel waited a couple of minutes before sitting up on the seat and unlocking the door. The sound of the door unlocked caused Shelby to stand up and she opened the door.
"Come on sweetie" Shelby said as she picked her daughter up and carried her up the stairs and into the house.
She walked up the stairs and noticed her dad coming down.
"I put the suitcases in your bedroom" Thomas said and Shelby smiled.
"Thank you Dad, I'll be back once I have put this little one to bed for a couple of hours" Shelby said and Thomas nodded.
"Of course" He said smiling. Shelby carried her daughter up the stairs and placed her on the bed. Shelby realise that the girl was holding tightly onto her top and that the girl's eyes were shut. She was glad the girl was dressed in joggers and a baggy top. It meant Shelby only had to take off the girl's jumper and shoes and she could go to sleep.
"Go to sleep baby girl, we'll speak when you wake up" Shelby explained and Rachel nodded.
"Momma, will you stay with me until I fall asleep?" Rachel asked sleepily and Shelby nodded.
"Of course" Shelby said as she snuggled up with the girl. It only took a couple of minutes for the girl to fall asleep.
Once Shelby was sure that the girl was asleep. She walked down the stairs and found her mother and father in the kitchen. She walked in and put the coffee machine on.
"Did you give her into trouble?" Elizabeth asked and Shelby turned around.
"She is sleeping" Shelby said.
"You need to tell her that what she did was wrong. She needs a good smacking to show her who is boss, if you are asking me" Elizabeth muttered.
"Well, luckily I was not asking you and I am NEVER laying a single hand on my daughter, not after what she has been through" Shelby said.
"I don't understand how she could have gone through a lot because you told me she went to a lovely gay couple" Elizabeth said.
"I thought she did but I was wrong" Shelby snapped.
"What do you mean?" Elizabeth asked.
"She was abused. Hiram died a couple of years ago and Leroy has been abusing her since. She is terrified. She is scared of everyone. It has taken me these three or four days that I have had her to get her to trust me enough to let me look after her. She loves getting cuddles but she is so scared. She doesn't know how to ask for a cuddle or tell you that she is upset" Shelby said and Elizabeth was shocked.
"Oh Shelby" Elizabeth said as she hugged her daughter. Shelby started crying and once she started, she couldn't stop.
"Oh Shels" Elizabeth said holding her daughter even closer.
"What's going on?" Ellie, Shelby's youngest sister asked as she came into the kitchen.
"Nothing sweetheart. It's good to see you" Shelby said wiping her tears and walking over to her sister.
"I'm not a baby you know" Ellie said before rolling her eyes and walking up the stairs. Shelby sighed.
Shelby spoke to her mom and dad before a bit longer before she decided to go and wake Rachel up.
She opened her bedroom door and noticed her daughter sleeping peacefully. She felt horrible wakening her up but she knew that if she didn't the girl won't sleep tonight.
"Come on sweetie" Shelby said wakening the girl up.
"I'm tired" Rachel complained.
"I know but you need to wake up" Shelby moved the duvet off the bed and curled up with the girl.
"Now we need to speak about earlier" Shelby said and Rachel sighed.
"I don't want to" Rachel complained.
"I'm sorry sweetie, but I want to know why you were so upset" Shelby said.
"I just don't like meeting new people" Rachel whispered.
"I understand it is hard but you have just met horrible people. There is some horrible people in this world but not everyone is horrible and you need to understand that I will never put you at danger" Shelby explained. She knew she couldn't say that there was no horrible people in the word so tried to work it as correctly as she could.
"Why were you so scared?" Shelby asked. "What did my mom do that scared you so much?"
"I don't like it when people hold me in front of them and look me up and down. I was scared of what she was going to do to me. She would be able to see what a bad girl I looked like and hurt me" Rachel admitted and Shelby sighed.
"You are not a bad girl, Rachel" Shelby said.
"Bad girls pay their sins in way that only a man could ask" Rachel said and Shelby looked at the girl confused. She thought about the words more.
"Rachel, what did men do to you?" Shelby asked as her heart pounded.
"I don't want to speak about it" Rachel said.
"Did they hurt you badly?" Shelby asked and Rachel nodded.
"I'm so sorry baby, can you tell me how they hurt you?" Shelby asked holding the girl into her chest.
"No, please I can't tell you. You will hate me" Rachel said sobbing even louder.
"I will never hate you. Whenever you are ready to speak to me, I will listen to you" Shelby explained and Rachel nodded. They snuggled up for a bit longer before Shelby looked at her daughter.
"Are you ready to go down the stairs and meet everyone now?" Shelby asked and Rachel nodded.
"If it gets too much just tell me" Shelby explained and Rachel nodded.
They walked down the stairs together and walked into the living room where the rest of the family was.
"Sarah is coming later" Elizabeth said and Shelby nodded.
"So Rach, let's introduce everyone properly" Shelby said.
"So this is your nana, she is my mom" Shelby explained and Rachel nodded.
"Now, this is your papa. He is my dad" Shelby said and Rachel didn't like this.
"No" She said when Shelby tried to move her.
"Listen, he might look tall but he is very cuddly. He will never hurt you" Shelby said but Rachel still didn't move.
"Now, this is my little sister, Ellie" Shelby said and Rachel nodded. She liked the look of Ellie.
"How old is she?" Rachel whispered to Shelby and Shelby looked up at Ellie.
"I've just turned 16, it was my birthday two weeks ago" Ellie said. "When is your birthday?"
"18TH December" Rachel whispered and Shelby smiled glad that the girl was speaking.
"Shelby do you mind helping me in the kitchen" Elizabeth asked.
"Sure" Shelby said heading to the kitchen but Rachel grabbed her leg.
"No please" Rachel said.
"Sweetie, I am just in the other room" Shelby said. "You just need to shout and I will come to you"
"So do you like New York, Rachel?" Ellie asked and Rachel nodded.
"Do you want to play snakes and ladders?" Ellie asked and Rachel nodded. They got the game set up and it wasn't long before Thomas was trying to cheat by going up the snakes.
"No papa, you are cheating" Rachel complained.
"Rachel shall we jump on him for being naughty?" Ellie asked and Rachel nodded. Ellie jumped on her dad's back and Rachel laughed before copying.
"Oi Girls" Thomas said trying to stand up. Ellie slipped down to holding onto her dad's leg while Rachel was still on his back.
Shelby and Elizabeth heard the noise so decided to go through and see what was going on. Shelby leant back on the frame of the door.
"I suppose the tickle monster needs to come out" Thomas said moving the girl to his front and tickling her. Rachel giggled. Shelby had never seen the girl like this before.
"I think someone wants their momma" Thomas said passing Rachel to Shelby.
Rachel snuggled into her mom.
"Was that fun?" Shelby asked and Rachel nodded her head into Shelby's neck.
"Hello" Sarah called as she opened the door. Rachel clung onto Shelby even tighter.
"Auntie Shelby" Emily called as she ran over to her auntie and hugged her waist. Shelby hugged the girl back but it was difficult as she was holding her daughter at the same time.
"Is this my little niece?" Sarah asked walking over to the girl. Sarah already knew what was going on as Shelby had called her each night needing someone to speak to.
"Hello, sweetie" Sarah said and Rachel looked up at her aunt.
"You look like my mom" Rachel said softly and Sarah smiled and laughed. A lot of people said that.
"Do we?" Sarah asked and Rachel nodded.
"Rach, this is your cousin Emily, she is 6 years old. Emily, do you want to show Rachel the play room?" Shelby asked and Emily nodded. Shelby put the girl on the ground. Rachel looked at Shelby.
"I'm right here sweetie" Shelby said and Rachel nodded. She could do this. She ran off with her cousin soon forgetting about her apprehension.
"Ahh look at how big he is" Shelby said walking over to Harrison and picking him up.
"I wish I knew Rachel when she was this size" Shelby said and Sarah looked at her sister.
"At least you have her now" Sarah said and Shelby nodded.
"So does everyone know what happened about from me" Ellie said before storming up the stairs. She was getting annoyed being treated like a baby all the time.
"I should go and speak to her" Shelby said.
"Wait until she has calmed down" Sarah said and Shelby nodded.
"Girls, can you come and help me with dinner?" Elizabeth asked and both Shelby and Sarah nodded.
They spoke for a bit about different things. Shelby told them about Rachel and the issues which they were currently having.
"You will get there, Shelbs she clearly trusts you already" Sarah said and Shelby nodded.
"I know, I love her so much and I hope she realises that" Shelby said.
"Oh she will, it will just take her time" Sarah said and Shelby nodded.
"Emily, Rachel come through for dinner" Sarah shouted "Ellie"
"Auntie Shelby, I want to sit beside you" Emily complained. Shelby smiled and helped the girl into the seat next to her. Ellie then sat down in her usual seat which just happened to be on the other side of Shelby. Rachel's lip started to bubble. She wanted her mom.
"Rach, you can sit next to papa?" Shelby said but Rachel shook her head.
"Ellie" Shelby said looking at her sister.
"For god sake" Ellie said getting up "I always sit in this seat"
Rachel sat down next to her mother. Shelby helped the girl to food, trying to work out what food the girl can have.
"Come on Shelby, give the girl a bit more variety" Elizabeth complained.
"Mom stop it, I have to watch what food Rachel has because it can give her an upset stomach" Shelby said and Rachel blushed.
"Okay, fair enough" Elizabeth said.
They continued to eat and spoke about different things. After the main meal, Elizabeth got the desserts. There were plenty for Rachel to pick from. Again, Shelby got a plate for the girl and started filling it.
After dinner, they all went through to the family room and spoke. Rachel sat next to Shelby and it wasn't long before she was sitting on her mother's knee. She was getting tired and it wasn't long before the girl drifted to sleep.
"I'm going to put this little one to bed and then I'm going to speak to Ellie" Shelby said. "I won't be long"
Sarah and Elizabeth nodded. Shelby was always the best person to speak to Ellie about things which were going on as they had the best relationship, no one knew why they got along so well, they just did.
Once Shelby placed a sleeping Rachel on her bed, she quickly changed the girl into her pyjamas before heading through to see her younger sister. She knocked on the door and walked in.
"Who are you texting?" She asked noticing her sister sitting on her phone.
"None of your business" Ellie said.
"Oh, is it a boyfriend then?" Shelby asked.
"Maybe" Ellie said not wanting to speak to her sister at the moment.
"What is his name?" Shelby asked and Ellie sighed.
"Jackson, now what do you want?" Ellie asked and Shelby was shocked with the attitude that came from Ellie.
"Well, I wanted to come and speak to you about earlier" Shelby said.
"What about early" Ellie asked.
"Well, you snapped and got upset" Shelby said.
"Well, I was annoyed. Everyone knew about Rachel apart from me" Ellie said and Shelby sighed.
"I'm sorry sweetie, you were only 7 at the time and it was complicated" Shelby said. She then went on to explain to the girl about the surrogacy and then how she got Rachel back. Ellie was pretty upset by the end of it.
"That poor girl" Ellie said and Shelby nodded.
"I know, that is why we need to all be there for her. She is a terrified little girl who needs to be loved" Shelby explained and Ellie nodded. They spoke for a bit longer before Shelby went back down the stairs. She was sitting speaking to her mother and sister when she heard screaming. Shelby ran to the bedroom and noticed Rachel crying and thrashing about.
"Oh baby" Shelby said as she held the girl and tried to awake her from the nightmare.
"Momma has you" Shelby mumbled over and over again.
"Mom" Rachel said as she awoke from the nightmare.
"Good girl, do you want to speak about the nightmare?" Shelby asked and Rachel shook her head. She snuggled into her mother and drifted back off to sleep.
"We'll speak about it in the morning, baby girl" Shelby said kissing the girl on the head. She then stood up again and changed into her pyjamas before climbing back into the bed and snuggling up with her daughter again.
Hope this is okay :) Please review and tell me what you think. I didn't get many reviews last chapter :(
Rachel and Shelby will develop their relationship more in the next few chapters. I am just wanting to get them out of New York and have them slowly develop their relationship before Rachel feels comfortable speaking to Shelby. We will see Rachel being more affected by the abuse as well. Just know she is just trying to erase it from her mind but she can't erase it forever.