The Salvation Knights MC: Jinx's Mistake

Book 2: The Salvation Knights MC: Feral's Fall: Prolouge

Nadine's P.O.V.

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~ Nadine: Age 6 / Feral: Age 12 ~

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I remember the moment I fell in love with Feral Calix Pavlov. I was six and he was almost thirteen. It was springtime, and I was home alone with my parents. That didn't happen often. War always made sure that he was around to shield me from everything.

Our parents weren't abusive. Not in the physical sense, but the way they hurt each other was more than enough to affect their children. They were the kind of people that loved with everything they had. Which meant they fought the same way. Unfortunately for us, they were pi.ssed off more than they were happy. And more unfortunately... they never seemed to share their passion with their children.

None of that love made it our way. They didn't hurt us. Didn't abuse us at all at first. I mean, they'd have to actually remember they had kids to do that. Our parents' abuse came in a different form. The forgotten kind.

I can't tell you how many times War and I were accidentally locked out of the house because Mom was trying to punish Dad and forgot she had kids. Or how many times I watched Dad make-out with the club bunnies in front of Mom to pi.ss her off. And the fights they would have... the screaming and yelling, the threats, the completely forgetting that they had two little people depending on them. It was a lot to go through before I was even old enough to understand.

Which meant that I lived most of my life pretty confused. I only had Kaizen there for me. He was the only one I had to teach me things, to help me understand life, to help me learn, help me get to school, make sure I ate. Pretty much everything. Because our parents couldn't be bothered to remember us.

Again, they weren't physically abusive to us, but... they forgot we were there most the time. Kaizen was always good about keeping me out of the way when our parents would start going at it too. Which is partly what got me into that predicament that night in the first place.

I was hungry. Kaizen still wasn't back yet. Mom and Dad were arguing in the kitchen. I waited in the hallway, hoping they'd stop soon. Just like always, Dad eventually tried to leave. Mom chased after him, screaming as they stormed through the house. I took the opportunity to go into the kitchen. I had to climb onto a stool to reach where the granola bars were. I knew Kaizen would feed me more once he got home. I just needed a little snack to tide me over.

Mom was yelling at Dad that she had made him dinner. I glanced at the table to see that two plates were set. Just two. Despite the fact that I was there, that Kaizen was coming home eventually. She had made them dinner but had completely forgotten about us. Tears pricked my eyes as I stared at the table while balancing on the stool.

I was so caught up in my emotions that I didn't hear them coming back, even though they were still arguing. I should have though, considering their arguing sounded worse than before. They didn't even notice me teetering on the stool. In the heat of their moment, Mom pushed Dad. He stumbled back, bumping into me. Just as I let out a scream, falling to the ground, the back door off of the kitchen burst open.

"Nadine!" Dad cried out just as someone else yelled too.

"What the hell is going on!?"

I groaned, tears welling in my eyes as intense pain shot through my left arm.

"Calix, what are you doing here?" Dad asked. This was so long before any of them had their road-names. Back when things felt simpler and harder all at the same time.

"Kaizen asked me to drop food off for his sister, since he was sure no one else would make sure she ate tonight," he replied, his voice sharp, that Russian accent of his thick. God, it used to be so much more prominent when we were younger. He lost a lot of that accent when he wasn't forced to speak Russian most of the day every day. "Said it was anniversary night. Which meant the two of you would be too busy fighting to remember you had children." He practically spat.

"That's not... true," Dad said weakly, trying to defend himself as always.

"Really?" Calix said, as he eyed the table that was only set for two. He shook his head as he set the carry-out container on the table and got on his knees beside me. I was crying silently and holding my left arm. It hurts really bad, but everyone is fighting, and I don't want to make it worse. "Are you hurt?" He asked me.

For just a moment, I hesitated. It wasn't like I didn't know Calix. He'd been part of the club for as long as I could remember. His parents weren't club members, but he's always been there. He and Kaizen had been friends since he moved here in the second grade. Feral was a couple of years older than Kaizen, but was held back a couple of times. And because Calix's home-life was such sh.it, he spent as much time in the clubhouse as he could. I only hesitated because... Well, because I was a little shocked he cared. Kaizen's the only one who ever cared about me. I didn't expect it from anyone else.

When I finally nodded, Calix seemed to get angrier. I remember his face going slightly red, making his freckles pop more. I always loved his freckles. He was covered in them. I wanted some too. I thought they were cool, interesting, unique.

"Where?" He asked.

"I can take care of my own daughter," Dad bit out.

Calix looked up, glaring at him.

"You ain't done a good job so far!" he yelled.

Dad scoffed at him. For a moment, they just stared at each other. Then Dad chuckled, surprising everyone.

"You got guts, kid," he said. "I like that. You plan to join the club when you're old enough?"

"Shooter," Mom hissed, but Dad held his hand up, stopping her.

"Are you?" Dad asked again.

"Maybe if I see the president start to treat his children better, I will," Calix replied as he scooped me up in his arms. My whole face went red with shock. I was too stunned to argue and in too much pain. "I think she needs a hospital," he told my parents. "Her arm looks broken. Are you going to put your petty feelings aside and take care of her? Or should I just take her myself?"

After that, my parents rushed me to the emergency room. I had indeed broken my arm. The doctor said he'd never seen a kid my age break a bone and barely make a sound. I think the doctor's statement, along with what Calix said, had gotten to my parents. For the first time in my life, they were quiet. The ride home was silent, and I found that I enjoyed it. It was peaceful.

I found myself thinking about Calix most of the time. I don't think I realized I was in love with him back then. I was too young. To me, he was just the boy who came in and changed everything. He was one more person in my life who cared about me. The only other person besides my brother. And in my little emotionally-malnourished mind, that meant everything to me.

Someone else in the world cared about me. He cared that I needed to eat. He cared that I was hurt. He cared that my parents practically ignored my existence. All I wanted was to be his friend after that. But first, I had to get through the night.

When we'd gotten home, Kaizen was waiting on the front steps for us. He made me go inside, but I could hear him yelling at our parents. Once again, I was shocked at their silence. They let my brother yell at them for a while and they didn't say a word. I'm not sure what else happened that night, but Kaizen was in a bad mood because of my broken arm.

The next morning, Mom and Dad were at the dining table together. They were... getting along, it seemed. Mom even had breakfast made for all of us. They made Kaizen and me sit down and have a long talk. I didn't understand a lot of it, but Kaizen seemed to. They'd told us that they were going to be better and try harder.

I was excited about that. It meant that they were going to stop ignoring us. That Mom was going to start treating me better. They were going to stop fighting. They had even promised to go to couples counseling together. They were going to make it work and be better. They were going to try for us. We were going to be a real family. They promised us that things were going to change.

And we were young and dumb enough to believe them.