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“Sleeping at the moment; the doctor’s going to give me some recommendations for counselors. When we get them, I want you,” I say looking at Cohen, “to vet them.”
He nods instantly. “Of course.”
“If you need anything, boss, let me know,” Lance tells me and takes a step back from my family. He gives me a meaningful look and I realize that he’s heard everything that the doctor told me.
“Tell me; I know that look, John,” my mom demands. I look between her and my father, and I know that I’m going to need their help and need them to love her just as they did when she was younger.
“She’s been abused.” Their eyes widen with questions and I nod, explaining and telling them everything that I know. My voice hoarse as I tell them how she’s been sexually tortured.
When I get my hands on Talia Maine, she’s going to regret what she’s done to my woman.
Nine
Reli
Shame fills me every time I open my eyes and see John sitting beside me. He’s been here every time I wake up. I’m still in the hospital, healing from the last beating that Talia gave me, and John hasn’t left my side. I know that the doctor told him about what Talia had been doing to me; I had a moment of weakness and confessed to the sexual abuse I had endured. As soon as I said it, I knew I had made a mistake. She’s going to come for me, I know she will. I’m a dead woman walking, there’s no way I’m getting away.
“You’re awake.” His deep voice has my entire body freezing for a beat, but when there’s no movement I start to relax. “Reli, I’m not going to hurt you.”
John looks at me with sorrow and pain. I hate it. I loathe feeling like a victim, that I’m weak and vulnerable. I’m not. I’m far from it. If only he knew the truth, he wouldn’t feel sorry for me; he’d be disgusted. He’d turn away and leave me be. Leave me at her mercy.
As much as I’d like to believe him, I can’t. I’m broken and I don’t have any notions about being fixed. I can’t be; I’ve been destroyed time and time again. One thing I’ve learned is that I can only rely on myself. I’ve survived everything that Talia did to me, and I’ll survive whatever it is John has planned.
He sighs heavily. “I know that you have no reason to trust me, but I’m going to make sure that you’re safe. That woman is never going to hurt you again.” His voice is softer than I’ve ever heard before.
“You can’t say that. You don’t know that for sure.” Talia has always told me that I owe her and that she’d never let me go. I believe her. Of all the things she’s done, I know how evil she truly is, and she’d never let me get away. I’ve been her toy for over two years. I know her dirty secrets.
He reaches for my hand and squeezes tightly. “Reli, there’s a hell of a lot that you don’t know about me. So when I tell you that I’m going to make sure that that bitch can’t touch you again, trust me. Please. You're going to be safe with me, with us”
I grit my teeth; he doesn’t understand. He’ll never understand what it’s like to be at the mercy of a monster. “You just don't get it. You say that I’m safe, but it’s not true. I’m never going to be safe.”
“Reli…”
I shake my head. “It’s okay for you, John; you never have to worry about when you’re going to have your next meal. You never have to worry about what you say, just in case you say the wrong thing
and get punched. You’ll never have to worry about going to bed. I do, every single night. I can’t close my eyes because if I do, my monster will crawl into my bed and I can’t escape that. I’m tainted, John.”
He gets to his feet and leans over my bed, his fists either side of my body. His eyes tight and his jaw clenched. “That bitch isn’t going to get away what she did to you. I swear on my fucking life. She’s going to pay for what she’s done to you.”
I shake my head. “That’s not going to happen. She’s not going to let me go.”
He grips my face and my body tightens in fear. “I know that I have to go slow with you. You’re seventeen and have been through hell,” he says through clenched teeth. “But no one and I mean no one is ever going to hurt you again. Baby girl, I’m going to make that bitch pay.”
I don’t answer him; there’s only so many times I can repeat myself. I know he’s trying to help me, but he’s trying to give me something that I haven’t had in a very long time. Hope. To me, that no longer exists.
“My parents want to see you,” he tells me, changing the subject and I immediately shake my head. It’s bad enough that he’s seeing me like this, that he knows what happened. I don’t want Markus and Susan knowing too. “Baby girl, they love you; they want to help you.”
My throat constricts. “I’m not ready,” I whisper as the tears start to spill over.
He lifts his hand and gently wipes them away. “Okay. They’ll understand.”
I really hope they do.
“You’ll be leaving here in a few days; you have a choice as to where you’ll live,” he tells me and I frown. I didn’t even think about that. Right now I’m homeless. I have nowhere to go; I can’t go back to Talia. I won’t go back there. “You can stay with my parents. They’d love to have you, or you can stay with me.”
I lick my lips, the tears still falling and I can taste their saltiness on my tongue. “You?”
He grins. “Yeah, baby girl. You have a lot to work through, and I’m going to be by your side when you are. I don’t give a shit if you’re staying at my parents; I’ll still be there.”
