Babes Stripping For Love

It has been two days since the last time they went out. Keegan took them out to the park, they have revert their name to Mara and Cody until they decided on a new name for their new identity. Keegan said it was useless using their fake names since her stepdad had found out about her fake identities anyway. Keegan had pushed Mara’s fake ID guy and had found out that it was him who gave out her name and helped her stepdad find Mara at her place of work. The sleazy guy had accidentally recognized her dancing in the club when he visited Babes with a few of his friends a few months back.

“Mara, can we go out for dinner? I’m bored.” Her half-brother, Cody, was getting antsy since their last outing. It has been days since he played with his friends. Mara knew perfectly well that her brother won’t ask for more, he knew that they were in hiding and she hated that he had to be subjected in that manner.

“I will ask Keegan when he gets back, okay?”

“Can I call him? he said I can call anytime?”

Mara realized that Cody was getting bored, she was at least glad that he was being honest and not keeping things for himself. “Of course, Keegan would want you to call, he said so, didn’t he?”

Cody smiled and he pressed the call button after finding his name on his watch-phone. Mara studied his expression as her precious brother called Keegan. The little boy laughed when he said something back to him. Mara couldn’t hear their exact conversation but she did hear that Keegan was setting a time and place for tonight.

Mara hadn’t been working for almost a week and Cody was getting agitated though he knew of the dire situation, it still made him worry and Mara was not liking it. She didn’t want him to be concerned. she wanted him to be happy. All the damn time. When they did go out for dinner that night, Cody kept on looking over his shoulder, although Keegan had assured him that he was perfectly safe. It was the small things, and Mara wish she could keep Cody away from the stress. Mara had asked Keegan and he said that he’d help them get their new identities but he still hadn’t come through with his promise.

Mara didn’t like to think of being in the same city as her stepdad. She wanted out, though it felt like Keegan kept on holding them back with more promises. Though Mara enjoyed their intimacy, she was not fooling herself. She knew not to depend on others, especially not Keegan. She could still remember the feeling of being left by him and it was not pretty. Watching Cody getting close to Keegan was not ideal, she didn’t like to imagine her little brother being hurt, it was only a question of when. They need to leave town.

“Do you remember your mother’s side of the family?” Keegan asked when they were having their quiet time after she tucked Cody in for the night.

“Um, not really. I think I was five or six when I heard Mom talking about her parents with one of her friends. I couldn’t remember ever seeing her friend before. And after that, Mom never really talked about it. Why?”

“Well, I think I found your grandparents and surprisingly they’ve been looking for you and your mom.”

The news shocked her, Mara didn’t think that Keegan was going to dig into her past, let alone her mother’s family. She wanted out of the city, not finding more trouble. She wasn’t sure why her mom was keeping secrets, but Mara was sure that she had her reasons.

“Look, Keegan, I don’t know where you’re going with this, but what I do need is new IDs for me and Cody. I didn’t ask you to dig up whatever horrible past my mom was hiding.  Have you even found anything about my stepdad or where he’s been hiding this whole time?” Mara was feeling defensive, she didn’t want to open the can of worms, pandora box, or whatever people are calling in these days. She wanted Keegan to focus on her stepdad, if not, then she was going to take matters into her hand. Mara knew this was one of the reasons why she didn’t want to depend on anyone, she was afraid that she had been wasting her time for the last couple of days. Mara didn’t want to regret it but she did, and her chest tightened thinking that she had endangered her brother once again. She was tired. So fucking tired.

“Hey…” Keegan tried to get her attention, he was trying to explain what he meant by questioning her grandparents but Mara was not listening. She didn’t want to.

“Damn it, Keegan, I just wanted everything to end. I’m just so damn exhausted. I want my stepdad found, put him back in jail. I want Cody to use his real name, and not be afraid of his own shadow…” By this time she was breaking down, the back of her eyes was hot from her fierce emotional overload. “I want to stay, I want my friends, I want Cody to have friends, and you’re not making things better,” she exclaimed, frustrated with her situation. Sometimes she wished she would wake up from the long-time dream. Though she never did, and every time depression was creeping closer and closer. She didn’t want to fall back into it, Cody was too young to understand back then. But he would surely understand now, and Mara didn’t want to give a bad example.

When Keegan decided to back off and leave her to ponder his question, Mara left him to go to sleep with her baby brother. Her mind was busy with scenarios as she plans. She was entertaining an idea, knowing it will be hard, but staying would be harder.

When morning came, Keegan left before Charlotte arrived at Keegan’s. It was going to be hard, but Mara was not seeing any progress with Keegan. This was why she invited Charlotte, the only person she ever considered her best friend.

“I still couldn’t believe that Keegan haven’t found him. But seriously Mara… God, I’m still getting used to calling you Mara and now you decide to flee town?”

“Ssh… Cody doesn’t know about this.”

“W-what?” Charlotte’s face became puzzled as she waited for her best friend to explain.

“Yeah… um, that’s where you came in. I’m tired, Charlotte,” Mara took her hand in hers and gazed back to the living room, making sure that Cody was still entranced by his cartoons. “I… I don’t want to fall back into depression, cause I know it’s going to happen. The drinking and smoking, I… I need everything to be done, like yesterday. I get depressed, Charlotte, and it’s eating me up from the inside when everyone kept on telling me to be patient.”

“Okay… so what’s next?” Charlotte squeezes her hand giving her best friend the encouragement she needed.

“I’m going out of town. I’m going to lure him out.”Copyright Nôv/el/Dra/ma.Org.

“No… Mara, you can’t…”

“I can, and I will. It’s my life, Charlotte, and I’ve run out of patience. And I will need your help with Cody. I want him to stay with you. I know it’s a bit too much…”

“No… Mara, why don’t both of you stay with me? Oh God, I’m so stupid. I can’t believe I haven’t offered this. I’m back from our honeymoon, you shouldn’t be staying at Keegan’s when you and Cody would be perfectly comfortable at our place.”

“Charlotte, it won’t solve the problem. I just need to do this on my own. It’ll be faster. It’s me he wants. I just need you to keep this quiet from Keegan and your husband. Look, I know my stepdad, he’s a pretentious prick. He wouldn’t be able to resist getting to me,”

“But… but, you’ll be in harm’s way…”

“It won’t be for long. I’ll get somewhere safe. Please… I would never ask if I don’t think I can do this. I’ll call the police or Keegan when I know I got him on my tail.” Mara kept on pushing her, trying to convince her until Charlotte finally relent and nodded. In reality, Mara wanted nothing but to end the bastard. She wanted to make sure he won’t trouble her brother in the future. Ever.

“I’m giving you two days, then I’m telling Seamus.”

“One week,”

“Three days, damn it… Mara, I can’t believe I’m even agreeing to this. What do I tell your brother?”

“You worry about that to me?”

“How about Keegan?”

“I’ll handle him.”

“I don’t like this plan.”

“I know… but I need you to trust me.” Mara knows that she was asking too much, but she just wants everything to end. Whatever the consequences, she knows that Cody would be safe with Charlotte and Seamus. That was all she could ask for.