"Fuck, Dakota," Karson grunted, grabbing his hair in frustration as rage danced through the gold specs in his eyes.

"She's arrested so we're okay now," I reassured as I gave him a small smile.

"That's not the point, Dakota," he rasped as his eyes lit up with frustration. We were still standing in the corner, not visible to anyone who was seated in the lobby. I couldn't believe we were having this conversation now. "The point is that she's hurt you many times and you've had to go through it alone. All this time, all this fucking time, you've been getting abused while everyone stood around, not doing anything."

"Nora is the only person who knows. How were people going to help when I didn't tell anyone?" I asked as my heart began to pound inside my rib cage.

"Nora knew?" He growled, his voice quiet, yet intimidating. "She knew this whole fucking time and didn't bother helping you? That's fucked up, Dakota."

"What was she supposed to do?" I fired back as rage seeped through my veins.

"She could've called CPS for fucks sake!" His voice shook with anger as his gaze hardened.

"It's not that easy, Karson," I sighed, my voice quiet as I bit the inside of my cheek. "If she called CPS, we would all get separated and put into foster care. I've told her and my siblings so many times that I'd rather take a beating from my mother rather than getting separated in foster care."

"Fuck," Karson cursed, his voice strained and low. I could tell he was trying to hold back as his battered knuckles turned white from clenching them so tightly. "Just hearing you say that makes me want to go find your mother and rip every strand of her hair out. I don't hit women, but I swear to fucking God if your mother even so much as looks in your direction, I'll be the one put in jail."

My eyes widened as my heart hammered in my chest. "You don't mean that."

"Trust me, I do," he seethed as he grit his teeth. "Just seeing that bruise on your face makes me want to find your mother and have a little chat with her."

"I'm okay, Ryder," I reassured, my voice merely above a whisper as I tried to calm him down. "She'll be put in jail and-"

"Tell me what she's done to you," he bellowed, his gaze never once leaving the bruise on my face. "I want to hear everything."

"Excuse me?" I asked as my face contorted with shock.

"What has she done to you, Dakota? I want the truth," he admitted as his chest rapidly moved up and down. He was furious. I knew he wasn't mad at me, he was just mad at my mother.

I gulped as my mouth went dry. I felt the palm of my hands begin to sweat as I watched his nostrils flare in rage. Fuck it. "When I was 16, she put the end of her cigarette butt on my shoulder blade and kept it on my skin until there was nothing left of the cigarette."

"Jesus," he mumbled under his breath as he shook his head in revulsion.

I slightly glanced at the palm of my hand as I slowly raised it up. I scanned the stitches that Karson gave me, before turning it around for him to see. "She used a broken piece of a vase we had and dug it into my palm. It was probably one of the worst things she's ever done to me and right before we went to your house, she almost knocked me out with the end of my fathers old rifle. She hit my jaw with it."

"Oh, baby," he frowned, his voice quiet as his eyes held a look of sorrow. There wasn't any glint of pity, only concern and worry. "You don't have to keep going-"

"There was also this one time where she was about to hit Jace, but I told her she could do whatever she wanted with me just so he couldn't get hurt," I interrupted him, my eyes blankly staring at him in front of me, even though I wasn't able to focus on anything. I couldn't stop talking, I just let everything out. "I ended up in the hospital and was put into a coma. She hit me so fucking hard that I ended up with a few broken ribs."

"Okay, Dakota, that's enough," he shook his head as an unrecognizable emotion flashed across his worried features.

"And that's only a few," I whispered, my eyes staring at the floor as my eyebrows creased in realization. My mother dragged me through hell for the past few years, and I never realized how bad it truly was until I was speaking out loud. I didn't deserve any of this.

"Look at me," Karson breathed as his index finger lightly grazed the bottom of my chin. He gently pulled my head up until I was met with his breathtaking emerald eyes. "What your mother did to you doesn't define you. You are so much more than what she put you through, and don't you even think for a fucking second that any of the verbal abuse she threw at you was true. She's mentally not okay, and she took it out on her oldest daughter. You didn't deserve anything she put you through and I'm so fucking sorry I wasn't there to help you. You are the strongest person I know, princess."

My lip trembled as Karson's words knocked the breath out of me. His eyes were filled with sincerity as he continued to stare at me. My eyes began to water as his words echoed in my head. You are the strongest person I know.

No one has ever cared this much, and it was almost overwhelming. I finally felt loved. I felt free.

With an overwhelming sense of emotions, I bit my lip to keep myself from bursting into tears. Happy tears, sad tears, everything. Instead, I just threw my arms around Karson's neck and pulled him close to me.

His arms almost immediately wrapped around my waist once again as he buried his face into my hair. I held onto his neck, his cologne filling my nostrils every time I breathed in.

"I'm here for you, Dakota. I'll be here for you when you are ready to talk about everything that's been weighing you down," he mumbled into my hair as he tightened the grip around my waist possessively.

I slowly unraveled my arms as I moved them down to grab the nape of his neck. He raised his head off my shoulder, but still held onto my waist as his thumb gently rubbed against my skin, slightly lifting the hem of my shirt.

I held my breath as we stared at each other. My heart was pounding in my chest as chills ran down my spine. His eyes flickered to my lips for a split second before I gently raised my other hand off his head and caressed his cheek.

My eyes flickered to his rosy lips before I leaned in and closed the distance between us. One of my hands held the back of his neck, pulling him closer as my other hand raked through his midnight black hair. His hair was soft against my touch, the smooth strands easily slipping through my fingers.

He pulled me closer, our chests pressed against each other as his lips slowly moved against mine. The kiss was gentle and short as I slowly pulled back, but it was perfect. His eyes lit up with passion as he lightly pecked my lips one more time, leaving a giddy feeling to rest in the pit of my stomach.

His lips hovered over mine, almost teasing me as he pressed his forehead against mine. We were both breathing heavily as a small smile crawled onto his lips. His contagious smile made my heart flutter in my chest. He was absolutely gorgeous.

"Thank you," I breathed against his lips. His minty breath fanned across my face as his lips slightly twitched.

"Anything for you, princess," he whispered before a small smile tugged at my lips. We slowly pulled away from each other, our foreheads no longer touching as his grip on my waist loosened.

We were two completely different people. Something was blooming between us, whether it meant something more than friends or not. Either way, it was obvious that neither of us hated each other anymore. Maybe, we never truly hated each other, just the front we both put up. We never knew each other's real personality until now, and that changed everything.

I slightly tilted my head as I grabbed his calloused hand and slowly turned on my heel. We walked out from behind the wall as we trudged together, hand in hand, to Jace who was still resting his eyes. I discreetly glanced at the front desk to see the young officer still concentrating on the screen in front of him.

I quietly sat next to Jace, not wanting to wake him up as his small snores filled the room. I let go of Karson's hand, immediately missing the warmth as he sat down in the chair next to me.

Without looking, I subconsciously rested my head against his shoulder as I focused on my breathing. I felt his chest move up and down as I tried to match my breathing with his. I closed my eyes, exhaustion hitting me as my mind raced with a million different thoughts.

I let my body relax as I felt myself drift off to sleep. I knew the officers needed to talk to Jace and I, but I just needed to rest my eyes for a few minutes. My thoughts soon became a blur as I finally let sleep take over.

The last thing I remembered before I finally let the darkness take over was Karson's lips lightly pressing against my forehead as he gently rested his head on top of mine.

~•~•~•

"Dakota," I heard a small voice say as I slightly stretched my tense muscles. I groaned, a yawn spilling from my mouth as I lifted my stiff neck off of Karson's shoulder. I blinked, my eyes adjusting to the light as I turned my head.

I scanned my surroundings, my thoughts fuzzy as I glanced at Jace who was on his phone, scrolling through social media. I shifted my gaze to look at Karson who was staring at me with furrowed eyebrows.

"What time is it?" I asked, my voice small as Karson grabbed his phone from his back pocket and checked the time.

"4:30pm."

My eyes almost bulged out of my head. I started to panic, not able to properly breathe. "Olivia."

Karson just smiled as he went on his phone, determined to find something. He quickly pulled up a picture of Olivia, Braxton, and Colton at the guys house watching a Disney movie. My eyes furrowed in confusion as I glanced from the phone to look at Karson.

"I wanted you to rest, so I called Braxton and told him to pick Olivia up," he explained, putting his phone back into his pocket as his breathtaking smile was on display.

"Fucking hell," I mumbled under my breath as I breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you so much."

"You've been through so much shit in the past few hours, so I wanted to help," he admitted, slightly glancing to the front desk before his hard gaze met mine.

I bit my lip, trying to fight off the smile that threatened to break out. I felt an odd feeling swarm in the pit of my stomach as I stared into those emerald eyes.

"Dakota?"

I quickly turned my head, breaking my gaze away from Karson as I glanced at the man in front of me. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Jace put his phone in his lap as he gave his full attention to Dawson.

"What did I tell you?" Dawson accused, one of his eyebrows raising as he crossed his arms. I watched his eyes flicker to my nose, causing me to tense as I totally forgot about cleaning myself up.

"Oops," I hesitated, giving him a sweet smile as I shrugged my shoulders. I guess I forgot to go to the bathroom to clean the blood from underneath my nose. "I look like a badass anyway, so it's okay."

I heard Jace snort next to me as I gently judged his side. He narrowed his eyes at me, those reflecting blue eyes holding no emotion. I lightly shook my head before giving my attention to Dawson in front of me.

"I'm glad you got some rest, Dakota," Dawson began, changing the topic as he rested one of his hands on top of his taser. "I'm so sorry you had to wait this long. I wasn't expecting it to take this long."

I shrugged my shoulders as I slightly straightened my body in the plastic chair I was sitting in. I was no longer hunched over as I bit my tongue to suppress a yawn that threatened to slip out. "It's okay. Olivia is somewhere safe, so I don't mind waiting."

"Oh great," Dawson smiled as he wiped the palm of his hands against his pant legs. "I just wanted to have a quick talk with you, if that's okay."

"Yeah, of course," I reassured as I slightly pushed myself out of my chair. Dawson nodded his head towards the direction of the corner Karson and I were at only a few moments ago.

I felt tremors shake down my legs, a rush of nervousness weighing down on me as I trudged after Dawson. I briefly glanced behind my shoulder, giving Karson and Jace a reassuring nod before I was no longer visible to them.

Dawson and I stood behind the wall, separated from the main part of the lobby. We stood directly across from each other as we maintained a good distance between the two of us. I fiddled with the hem of my shirt as I anxiously ran my tongue along my lower lip.

"We don't have a specific date set for your mother's court hearing, but we will need to keep an eye out on her while we wait. She will most likely stay in a jail cell for the time being until we get news on what day her court hearing will be. When we do get that specific date, I will immediately contact you, so you and your siblings can be there," Dawson explained as his eyes remained on me. I stiffly nodded my head as I still wasn't able to wrap my head around everything that happened in the last five hours.

"I don't want to keep you here any longer, because I know this has been a very stressful day. Why don't you three go home, rest for a few days and I will keep in contact with you. Don't worry about the money either, okay? We've got it covered," Dawson explained as his  lips morphed into a small smile. They got it covered? "I'm sorry we had to officially meet under these circumstances, but it was really nice to meet you, Dakota. I will also let you know when one of my officers will stop by your house to check up on you, Jace, and Olivia."

I took a deep breath, trying to grasp all of this new information. I heard my heart pound in my ears, the pulsing sound increasing as my thoughts mixed together. I closed my eyes for a brief second before meeting his gaze and nodding my head. "Thank you for everything. I'm also sorry about how my mother reacted in that room."

I felt guilty that he had to watch my mother lash out and then jump into action when she attacked me. He immediately shook his head as his hand waved in a dismissive manner. "Don't apologize, Dakota. It wasn't your fault. You didn't influence her to lash out like that and you definitely did not say anything to make her that angry. She's not in a good state mentally, and I'm truly sorry you had to go through that."

"It's okay, Mr. Dawson," I smiled politely as I felt my shoulders slump forward. I agreed with him. My mother was not healthy, mentally or physically. "Your help with all of this truly means a lot."

Dawson nodded his head as a genuine smile pulled at the corner of his lips. "Come on."

He began to walk back into the main part of the lobby, motioning his head towards me so I would follow him. I breathed a sigh of relief as my shoulders slumped in exhaustion. I was just glad we were finally able to go home.

We turned the corner as my eyes traveled to the two boys that were patiently waiting for us. They immediately stood up as they glanced between Dawson and I. My gaze lingered on Jace, finally realizing the dark circles that rested underneath his eyes. A frown crawled onto my face as I noticed how exhausted he truly was.

"It was nice to meet you, Jace," Dawson politely shook Jace's hand, breaking me away from my slight trance. Jace wore a fake smile as Dawson turned to look at Karson. They made small talk, but I couldn't entirely focus on what they were saying.

I watched their mouths stop moving as Dawson turned on his heel and walked back down the hall without sparing a second glance. Jace lightly shook my shoulder as my eyes tried to focus on him in front of me.

"Sorry," I mumbled, my voice quiet as his face became more clearer.

"What did Dawson say?" Jace asked, crossing his arms as he looked slightly concerned. I cleared my throat, an unsettling feeling twisting my gut.

"He said he'll keep in contact with me when they get a court date for mom. Until then, he told us to go home and wait until we hear from them," I briefly explained, trying to sum up what Dawson told me only minutes ago.

I slightly glanced to my right, staring into those emerald eyes that were already looking at me. He nodded his head as a reassuring smile grazed his lips, almost as if he was trying to tell me that it was going to be okay.

"Why don't you guys stay the night at our house?" Karson offered as his eyes traveled between my brother and I. "Olivia is already there and tomorrow is Saturday. We can lend you some of our clothes too."

"Yes, please," Jace quickly responded as Karson slightly chuckled. I didn't want to be alone tonight, so I was grateful Karson offered.

"Princess?" Karson asked, his eyes meeting mine once again as they briefly trailed down to look at the dry blood above my upper lip.

"I'd love that," I admitted as a relieved smile made its way onto my face. I inhaled a sharp breath, briefly getting a whiff of a strong smell of metal that came from the dried substance under my nose. I needed to clean it. The smell was making me nauseous.

"Just follow me then," Karson grinned as he was the first to walk towards the front door. I glanced at the front desk and gave a small wave to the young officer who briefly glanced up from his computer. He met my gaze and gave me a slight nod before focusing on whatever he was doing before.

Right before we stepped outside, I abruptly decided to go to the bathroom inside the station to wipe my nose. The smell was bugging me and it was making the area itchy. "Hold on."

I quickly made it inside and dabbed the area under my nose with a wet paper towel as it turned red. I looked in the mirror, satisfied with how easily it came off.

My eyes immediately traveled to my bruised jaw as I sucked in a sharp breath. That was going to be a bitch to cover up.

I gently shook my head as I looked into the mirror and stared at my reflection. I lightly shook my shoulders, blowing a strand of hair off my face before I finally stepped outside of the bathroom. I quickly walked back to where Jace and Karson were as they made small talk with each other.

When they heard me, their heads snapped to meet mine as they both scanned my face. Karson breathed a sigh of relief as he showed me his breathtaking smile. Jace gave me a thumbs up as a small chuckle fell from my lips. I lightly shook my head as all three of us walked towards the front door.

Jace and I walked shoulder to shoulder before I got in front of him to walk outside. The cool air hit my cheeks, sending my wavy hair to fly in front of my face. I tucked a few strands behind my ear as Jace walked out behind me. Karson held the door open for both of us before we went our separate ways.

Jace and I walked to my car while Karson walked to his. We were only a few parking spots away from each other so it didn't take long for either of us to reach our cars.

I fumbled with my keys before unlocking my car as Jace quickly slid inside. I huffed, slightly glancing up towards the sun as I shut my eyes for a quick second. I wanted to scream. I wanted to go inside and yell at my mother. But I couldn't.

I mumbled a few curse words under my breath before I slumped into the driver's seat. Jace and I didn't say anything to each other as I put my key into the ignition. I started the car and sat there for a moment until I saw Karson's black