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“She’s not going anywhere with you.” Blake takes a step forward, forcing Tess to take a step back. “If you know what’s best for you, you’ll turn around and not fucking say a word about this to anyone.”
“Are you threatening me?” she challenges.
“Tess, please,” I try again to reason with her.
“Shut the fuck up, you stupid bitch.” Blake turns his gaze on me, warning in his eyes.
The next set of events happens so quickly, I’m not even sure I know what’s happened before it’s all already played out. A loud smack echoes down the long corridor as Tess lays a hard slap to the side of Blake’s face.
Before I’ve even registered the movements, he’s got Tess by the forearms and slams her into the wall hard. I watch her head snap as it bounces off the drywall and the pain that distorts her face.
“Stop!” I lunge at Blake who moves too quickly for my delayed reaction time, managing to land another hard backhand to my face. I stumble backward, not sure how I manage to stay on my feet.
I’m prepared to go at him again, not willing to let him hurt my friend, but before I can even take one step I watch Tess swing her right arm forward, the high heeled shoe that seems to have magically appeared in her hand connecting with Blake’s face. It cuts into the flesh below his eye, and he growls out in pain seconds before slamming Tess into the wall once again, only this time his forearm presses firmly against her throat. I can tell by the panic in her eyes and the way she struggles to pull in a breath that he’s restricting her ability to breathe.
“You really shouldn’t have done that, little girl,” I hear Blake say, but I’m too busy trying to find something, anything that I can use to get him off of her. Turning toward the staircase, I freeze in place when Ant suddenly appears at the top of the stairs.
His reaction time is so quick I feel like I barely blink and he’s got Blake pinned to the ground, punching him over and over.
Tess stumbles to my side, grabbing my hand as she pulls me toward her.
“Are you okay?” She wraps her arms around me and squeezes tightly.
I can’t bring myself to speak right away. I think I’m still trying to digest everything that just happened. From Tess, who fought a man twice her size to try to protect me. To Blake, who now lays pinned on the floor beneath Anthony.
All I can think is that this is all my fault.
Ant’s eyes meet mine for a fraction of a second and like all the other times before now, I swear he can see right into me. He can see it all, and it’s like I can literally see him connecting the dots in his head.
As if everything finally catches up with me, I break down in Tess’ arms, crying in a way I haven’t cried in years. And it’s not because Blake hit me; he’s done that more times than I can count over the course of our relationship. It’s because by turning a blind eye to his abuse, I put not only myself and my unborn child in danger, but I also inadvertently put Tess right into Blake’s path of destruction.
And what’s worse is that after everything, I have to fight my knee-jerk reaction to run to Blake’s aid.
What is wrong with me?
I don’t move, don’t speak, I stay there wrapped in Tess’ arms for what feels like several minutes but is likely much less, until I hear Tess say, “Get him out of here please.”
I look up just in time to see Sebastian who nods only once before him and Ant are dragging Blake down the stairwell, disappearing within seconds.
Tess sags forward into me, her relief evident, and another wave of guilt immediately washes over me. As if we’re both trying to figure out where we go from here, a long silence stretches between to the two of us as we stand in the now vacant hallway.
“How long?” Tess finally asks the question I already knew was coming. Reaching out, she gives my shoulders a light shake when I don’t answer her right away. “How long?” she repeats, her voice thick with emotion.
“A couple months,” I finally answer, unable to meet her gaze.
“A couple months?” she questions, clearly upset. Not that I can blame her considering what just unfolded merely minutes ago.
“Why would you let him do this to you?” she continues.
“Because I love him,” I find myself saying, not even sure how I can mutter the words after what he just did.
“You love him? He’s been hitting you for months, and you love him?” She looks at me like she has no idea who I am even, though we’ve been best friends since second grade.
“He has his moments. He’s not always so bad,” I try to explain, though I’m not entirely sure why. What can I possibly gain from trying to defend him?
“Do you hear yourself right now?” she bites, throwing her hands up in the air.
“I don’t expect you to understand.” I hate how defensive my tone sounds, but I can’t stop the way it’s all coming out. “Not everyone can be as perfect as you and Sebastian.”
