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No way.
Sucking in a breath, choking on words I never wanted to utter, I glowered at my mother and said, “The night I went to Zara’s to patch up our friendship, I was drugged and restrained. I was raped in a house full of people, and no one heard me screaming because the music was so deafening.”
Mum froze beside my unconscious dad.
I had front-row seats to the shattering devastation in her stare. For the longest time, she couldn’t speak. She choked on a sob, her face blanching white. But then she found her tongue and so many awful tears. “Oh, Neri...baby. No.” Scrambling to her feet, she charged me and wrapped me in the tightest embrace.
A groan came from the carpet as my dad rallied. Sirens once again echoed in the thickening twilight, either police hunting Aslan as he ran or the ambulance here to help my father.
I struggled in my mum’s arms, my thoughts fleeing through the streets with Aslan. Was he hiding? Could I prevent them from deporting him if they caught him?
I have to stop this.
Now.
Squirming in her hold, I stepped back. “I’m fine.”
“You’re not fine. How the hell could you be fine?” Mum cupped my cheeks with shaking hands. “Why didn’t you say anything?”
“Because I didn’t want you to know.”
“But, Neri—”
“Aslan knew.” I pulled her hands away and embraced a fresh wave of anger. “He knew. He’s the only one who knew. He was trying to help me, Mum. It was stupid and looks far worse than it is, but he’s never ever hurt me. Never done anything against my will.” Stepping away from her, I braced my spine and became the hurricane that my father had always likened me too.
A hurricane that’d petered out for a time.
A hurricane that’d become a tepid frightened breeze.
But now, that force was back.
I wasn’t meek, I was howling and snarling and ready to tear cities apart, uproot trees, and destroy anyone and everyone who got in my way from protecting Aslan the same way he’d protected me.
Glowering at the police, I hissed, “Aslan Avci didn’t hurt me. But I’ll tell you who did. Call off the hunt for him and take me down to the station. I’ll make a statement. I’ll answer any questions you want. But if you try to prosecute Aslan for something he didn’t do, so help me God, I will go to every media outlet and tell them you racially profiled him based on his origins.”
The shorter cop scowled. “You’re threatening us?”
“I’m merely telling you that Aslan did not do this. My parents are incorrect. You were called here for no reason. It’s my body and my life. I didn’t want to tell anyone, but I will. I’ll tell you who truly hurt me if you promise you won’t go after Aslan.”
“Neri,” my mother said quietly. “Aslan still needs to be questioned.”
“No, he doesn’t.”
“But he was hurting you, sweetie. He hurt your father.”
“He was saving me from myself, Mum!” I bared my teeth. “He knew I was struggling to put what happened behind me. He offered to help. That’s what he was doing tonight. He was saving me. He always saves me.” Tears latched around my throat, but I swallowed them down with fresh anger. “And I was the one who hurt Dad. I told you that. I whacked him around the head with that lamp.” I toed the forgotten mermaid light on the floor. “I hit him. Not Aslan. Aslan would never. You know him. You know he’d never hurt us. Trust that. Trust the past six years, for goodness’ sake!”
Mum shook her head, stubbornness and horrified disbelief all over her face. “But...I saw what happened with my own eyes. His shorts were undone. You have...you have teeth marks on your neck, Neri, and your wrists are welted—”
“I undid his shorts, Mum. He tried to tell me to stop. It was my fault you found us in such a compromising position. And the truth is...the truth is we’ve been sleeping together for months.”
“What?” she gasped.
The two policemen shared a look.
“He bit me yes, but I wanted it. And my wrists...” I held up my fresh bruises. “I did that. I hurt myself to try to stop the memories of Ethan tying me to Joel’s bed with his belt. He bound me, and I struggled. I struggled so damn much, I broke the skin and had to cover up the bruises for weeks afterward. I-I hoped by recreating the pain, I could heal my heart this time and not just my skin.” Silent tears I couldn’t stop streamed down my cheeks. “Aslan is the only reason I haven’t completely lost my mind these past few weeks, and I fucking refuse to stand here and let you think less of him! This was my fault. All of this is my fault. So give me the chance to fix it before anything else goes wrong.”
“Ethan?” the tall cop asked from the floor beside my rallying father. “Ethan who?”
