Page 114 of Anonymous Acts


Font Size:  

Very subtly, Kim shook her head. “N-not… not e-nough.”

“Not enough… as in, you didn’t think I could give you enough?”

“Y…yes.”

Shit. Must be bad…

“Who, Kim? Who is sick?”

She closed her eyes again, leaning back into her pillows like she was tired. “Mama,” she whispered, and I nodded. Ihadnoticed that the woman had lost a lot of weight since I’d last seen her, and was looking a bit fatigued. But speaking of fatigued – Kim seemed to be suffering from the same. As much as I wanted to ask more questions in this vein, to understand why she’d betrayed me, she had more pressing answers to give.

“Kim.Kim,” I said, getting her to open her eyes. “Do you know who did this to you? Who beat you up?”

Barely, she nodded. “Yes.”

“Who? I need a name, Kim. Who did this?”

She turned her head away from me. “N…no.”

“Yes,” I insisted, turning her face back toward mine and holding it there, not caring if it hurt. “Answerme. Who did this?!”

“I…can’t.”

“Yes youcan.Tell me!”

Kim squeezed her eyes shut as a few more tears rolled down her cheek. “I—”

“Don’t you fucking tell me you can’t. It’s the least you could do!Give me a name.”

“I’m…sorry.”

“Keep it. I don’t want it. What Iwantis a name, Kim.Who?!”

“A…ash. Ash...let… I…”

I stepped back, feeling like I’d been punched in the chest. Truthfully, that was the answer I’d already been expecting, but it didn’t make it any less painful to hear.

“Asher. Asher did this to you,” I whispered, more to myself than to her. I’d so wanted to believe that even if he were obsessed with me, even if he was a closet creep, that harming a woman was a line he wouldn’t cross. If he’d done this to Kim… what had he done to Amanda?

“N…no. No.N-no. no!”

In front of me on the hospital bed, Kim had gotten upset, and a pang of guilt flashed through me. Her eyes were closed as she shifted back and forth, flinching like she was being hit, and I wondered if my questions had brought up a repressed memory of the attack.

“Kim… hey, Kim,” I said, laying hands on her in an attempt to calm her. “I’m right here. Nobody is going to hurt you. He isn’t going to hurt you anymore. We’ll tell the police, and they’ll make sure, okay? Asher will never touch you again.”

“No,” Kim whimpered, shaking her head. “Ash… le…no.No,Ash—”

“Hey, you areokay,” I told her again. “Do you… do you know why? Did he say why he did this.”

Kim went still, and then opened that one good eye to stare up at me. “Y-you. The… the office.”

“This was retaliation for the office?” I asked, trying to clarify, and she nodded.

“Okay. Okay.”

I took a deep breath, trying to swallow the revulsion I felt, knowing that whatever delusion Asher had about our relationship, he’d done this because of me. Instead of subjecting her to further questions – questions that could wait – I left the room, finding Wick waiting for me in the small waiting area in the hall.

“I was just about to come and check on you,” he said, standing as soon as he saw me. Something about his tone sparked a little thread of suspicion, and I stepped back.

Source: www.allfreenovel.com
Articles you may like