Page 23 of Ask No Questions

“One afternoon, he had been quizzing me for a little while, so we took a break to get a snack. He came up behind me when I was looking in the pantry and put his hands on my waist. He leaned against me and whispered, ‘I’ve been waiting for this for so long.’ Then turned me around and pushed me against the shelves. When I screamed, he slapped me across the face, again and again. I started tasting blood. I tried hard to make some things drop to the floor to get someone’s attention, but no one came. He pressed himself against me and held my hands down to my side with his. I saw later that he had left bruises from holding my wrists so tight. He put his lips on my neck and slowly moved up. I tried twisting out of his grasp, but he only held tighter.”

I shook my head trying to get the memory out of my head. I had to remind myself that I was safe, and he was far away now.

“He started kissing me. I couldn’t move, but I tried turning my head away. He didn’t like that. He grabbed me and shoved me against the shelf again a few times - so hard that a box fell from the top shelf. That made enough noise for one of the maids to come into the kitchen. Morgan heard her come in and finally released me. He walked back into the living room like nothing happened, and I had to sit there for another hour with him until our session was over. That night I told Mom what happened, and shocker! She didn’t believe me even after I showed her all the marks. She said Morgan was recommended by all of her friends, and I was making up stories. That I just wanted attention. She told me to never speak of it again since I could harm his reputation, or worse, hers.”

Brandon looked up and met my eyes. He looked pained from finally hearing this. “Aubrey, please stop. How did Mom not stop this? How was he allowed into your home?”

“I don’t know.” I didn’t like upsetting him, but at least he was listening. He believed me. He was asking the same questions I’d had about our mom.

“I just told myself I was making a big deal out of nothing. He came back a few days later for another study session, and it started out fine. He didn’t say anything about what happened the last time, and he sat on the couch opposite me. I was relieved and figured he got the message. After we finished, he came and sat next to me. I was more comfortable since he seemed normal this time, but I was wrong.

“He leaned toward me and pushed me down onto the couch. I tried to sit up, but he laid down on top of me, pinning me in place. He started kissing me again, and his hands were all over me, moving my clothes. I tried so hard to get him off of me. I started crying, frustrated I couldn’t do anything—I really thought he was going to rape me.”

“I’m so sorry. I wish you had told me sooner. I would have flown out and helped you.” Brandon kept his head down, staring at the floor.

I felt horrible, but I knew he wanted me to finish. “I managed to get one arm free, and I punched as hard as I could into his side.”

He smiled slightly. “That’s my girl.”

“Well, that only made him angry. He stood up and lifted me up before throwing me hard to the floor. He started shouting at me and kicked me in the stomach. I laid there praying someone would hear him and come in, but no one did. I looked at him and saw pure rage. I begged him to stop and to just leave. That set him off again, and he punched me in my face. Once he realized what he had done, it was like something in him switched. He grabbed his bag and left without saying one more word to me.”

I paused when I realized I was shaking. This was the first time I had let myself think about what had happened, and the memory was still fresh. Brandon came to my side and put an arm around my shoulders. I was determined to finish this and not let Morgan win, so I started again before Brandon noticed how upset I was.

“I went to Mom that night and showed her the bruises he gave me. Not that I could have even tried to hide it, half my face was swollen. Finally, Mom couldn’t ignore what I was saying anymore, so she called our lawyer and had a restraining order placed against him. I was certain I would never see him again. This was happening at the same time I was receiving the notes and pictures, but I didn’t make the connection. The night of the party when he grabbed me in the garden, I finally realized who my stalker was.”

“Did Mom notify the staff and security about the situation? Was anyone else looking out for you?”

I shrugged. I had no idea how far Mom went to protect me. I didn’t want to be disappointed when I found out.

“I’m sorry. I’m just so pissed Mom never told me what was going on. I’ll try not to interrupt.”

“That’s almost the entire story. Morgan held me to him, and I felt something prick my arm. I looked down and saw the syringe just as things went black. I woke up in my own bed the next day with Mom sitting next to me. She was crying, asking me to forgive her for not listening to me before. I asked her what happened, and she told me someone saw Morgan carrying me down the street from the house toward a car. They were leaving the party and recognized me, so they called for the security, then the police. I guess they stopped him in time, and they brought me back before he could do anything to me. Mom told me that he would be going to jail for a long time and that I had nothing else to worry about. She seemed so sincere then, but when you called, she was so quick to get rid of me. I don’t understand how she could send me away when I needed her the most, but she wanted to minimize the bad publicity.”

Relieved that it was finally all out, I looked at Brandon as he let my words set in. “She loves you, in her own way. I know that, and I want you to know it too. She thought you moving here would be the best way for you to recover and heal from everything that happened.”

“She hasn’t called me once since I’ve been here. Why would I ever think she loves me if she can’t even call to check in on me?” The few tears that were caught in my eyes gave way to a flood. I wiped at them but gave up and allowed myself to openly sob. Brandon got off the counter and walked over to me. He put his arm around me and held me like I always wished my mom would. Finally, someone listened to me and cared about me.

“I don’t want to justify her actions at all, but she’s probably scared. She let you down, and she knows it. She's just waiting for you to reach out to her. She misses you and is worried about you.” He kept rubbing my back as I slowed my sobs and caught my breath. “But all that matters to me is that you’re okay. That you feel safe, and that you’re able to heal. Take all the time you need to make that happen.”

“Thank you, Brandon. I’m so grateful that you let me come here, and that you actually listen to me. I love you.”

He pulled me into a hug and whispered, “I love you too.”

The food arrived a few minutes later, and we ate in a comfortable silence as we watched an action film Brandon had picked out. I felt closer to him after our conversation than I ever did with my mom or Neil.

He reacted so differently than when I first told her what was happening. She was getting ready for another fundraising gala. I caught her as she was sitting at her vanity putting on her jewelry. I watched for a moment, wondering if she had even noticed I was upset when she and Neil came home earlier. Probably not. She finally caught me behind her in the reflection of her mirror.

“What is it, Aubrey?” She turned her face just slightly to make it seem like she was giving me her attention. I had caught onto that trick years ago.

I tried to hold back my tears. “I don’t want Morgan coming over here anymore. He makes me uncomfortable.”

She smirked as she looked down at her selection of jewels. “Why is that, darling?”

I glared at the back of her head, knowing she wasn’t paying attention to me. “He flirts a lot, and he’s been touchy lately. I asked him to stop, but he doesn’t listen to me. I would like a different tutor.”

She held up a pair of off ruby earrings, then switched for diamonds. “Honey, he’s the best. I went through a lot to get him to agree to work with you. Morgan is a fine young man. Don’t flatter yourself.”

I stood there frozen. She didn’t care, and worse, she didn’t believe me. She spent all her time focused on keeping up appearances with strangers, yet she couldn’t give a second to her daughter.