AllFreeNovel
Share Us
She sighed and took another few seconds before unveiling the whole thing in one piece.
"I was married to a man named Trent Waters. He's a very influential person in Atlanta, he works with the mayor. He has power and money and in the beginning he seemed nice . . . he didn't change until I became pregnant with Ben. He was possessive but I thought in the beginning it meant he really cared about me, but that couldn't be further from the truth. I grew up without a father so I thought maybe men were like that, I think I even found it flattering at first. But soon he was showing up at my work, threatening men I worked with and accusing me of cheating."
Daniel couldn't believe what he was hearing and wanted blood already, but he continued to listen.
"Even when I was in late pregnancy he thought I was running around if I worked late . . . it was insane and it scared me. It went on and on and he said he'd kill me if I ever left. I put up with it for a long time because I was scared for me and Ben. When I couldn't stand it anymore, I did finally leave. I filed for divorce and moved into my own apartment with Ben but Trent wouldn't stand for it."
"What did he do to you?" Daniel demanded.
"He broke into my place one night and choked me till I passed out . . . when I came to, I knew that he'd done things to me."
"He raped you?" Daniel exclaimed and then forced himself to keep his voice down.
"Yes, and as far as I know Ben slept through the whole thing. He was three at the time and he's a heavy sleeper, thank God. I went to the hospital and had an exam . . . they took pictures of my neck and everything. The police were called in and I tried to press charges but, like I said, he has a lot of influence in the city and they said there was insufficient evidence to arrest him. One detective even accused me of trying to cause trouble for him to extort money. He suggested that we'd had consensual sex and I was just spinning a lie to hurt him."
"Jesus Christ, honey, that's fucking awful," he sympathized. "Where is this prick? I want to pay him a visit."
"I don't want this to be a problem for you, Daniel. You've already been through enough."
"It's already a problem."
"I'm sorry that I lied to you."
"I don't care about that, honey, I'm just worried for you."
"I ran from Atlanta with just one credit card and enough money from his safety deposit box at the bank to get myself set up somewhere else. I took just enough to pay for the house with cash. As far as I know, he doesn't know where I am. He never wanted me to talk to my sister, so he didn't think she lived here.
"Christ Almighty! You poor thing."
Daniel wished he could hold her at that moment. She sounded tired and alone.
"Daniel . . . with everything you and Tina have been through, I don't want to bring you trouble. It was selfish of me to begin something with you when my life is such a mess . . . but you were so sweet and I couldn't help wanting to be closer to you. I never felt the way I do when I'm with you, but I don't have the right to hurt you or your daughter."
Daniel took it all in and thought about it for 5 seconds before pledging his devotion to her.
"Sounds to me like you need someone to stand by your side and not back down when shit hits the fan."
"It doesn't feel right to drag anyone else into this ugliness."
"I'm going to be that man for you, Anna," he stated plainly.
Calling her by a different name felt funny, but he couldn't care less about her character. A rose by any other name and all that.
"What will Tina say?" she asked.
"I think she'll understand, she's very mature for her age. This asshole doesn't know where you live, though, so it shouldn't be a problem, right?"
"I hope not. I'm being as careful as I can be and keeping an extremely low profile. I'm not online at all with my real name and I don't set foot in Atlanta for anything."
"We'll play it real careful then, right? I don't want this to end before it even begins."
"Me neither, but remember that if it's ever too much for you or if Tina isn't comfortable that I'll understand . . . I'll be sad, but I'll understand. I know firsthand that when you have a child they come first and I'd never blame you for putting her happiness or safety before everything else."
"You're a good woman, Anna, and you don't deserve to be alone forever just cause of that monster."
"Daniel . . . "her voice was soft and fragile, and he could feel himself falling for her completely. "Thank you for understanding. I was terrified that you wouldn't want me anymore."
"You don't know how bad I wish you were in my arms right now, honey," he sighed, laying back on his bed and imagining it.
