Background
Anna is a young mother striving to find a way out of an abusive marriage. She meets a stranger, Troy. Troy fights his own demons. Can they help each other find love, or are their struggles too much?
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Paul pulled in the driveway and parked beside Anna's Chevy Malibu. He glanced at Anna and nodded toward the car. "You can follow me home and park your car in my driveway until we get the insurance squared away."
A police officer and Eric Young, Bobby's attorney, parked in the street. They met Anna and Paul at the front door.
After Paul made the introductions, Mr. Young unlocked and opened the front door. "My client gave me the house key."
The men stared as they viewed the scene. Anna walked in, turned white, and rubbed her hand against the indention in the wall her head had made. Splattered blood stains remained beside it.
Mr. Young shoved his hands in his pants pockets. "I really didn't know."
The living room was at the end of the entryway. Anna grabbed her purse. The contents were scattered across the floor. She bent, gathered them, and shoved them inside the bag.
When she found her house key, she removed it from the ring, and handed it to Bobby's attorney. "I won't need this any longer."
Paul walked toward the kitchen and picked up a shattered medicine bottle. "Antibiotics for Michael's ear infection?"
Anna glanced at the dried pink liquid and blood. "Yes. The hospital gave me another prescription. His ear infections have healed."
The officer picked up a ripped blood-covered blouse and studied it. Mr. Young closed his eyes and swallowed.
Men dressed in jeans and company T-shirts joined them in the kitchen. "Anna, these men will help pack. Let them know what you want from the kitchen." Paul glanced at Bobby's representative. "Is there anything in the kitchen your client wants?"
After he shook his head, the packers set up boxes and wrapped the kitchen supplies.
Anna watched a few moments then said, "Pack half the dishes and silverware. Michael will need his baby dishes. I'll go through the cupboard and set the pots, pans, and cooking utensils on the counter." Her eyes met Paul's. "I don't want him angrier." She put the items she wanted on the counter.
When they finished in the kitchen, Paul glanced toward the washer and dryer. "What about these?"
"They came with the house. I'd better leave them. The apartment complex has a laundromat. Besides, if I save my money, maybe I can buy my own." Anna walked into the living room. "I would like the rocking chair. It was a baby present from my workplace. I've spent hours rocking Michael in it."
A tall slender packer wrapped it with thick packing paper and carried it outside.
Anna released a deep breath and headed down the hallway toward the bedrooms.
Paul touched her arm. "Do you need a break?"
Anna leaned against the wall. "I want to get this over with. I never want to enter this house again." She opened the door to Michael's room.
A large bloodstain on the carpet caught everybody's attention. Paul broke the silence. "I think everything in here goes, right?"
After Anna nodded, moisture filled her eyes.
Paul stood beside her. "We can continue another day."
"I'll be fine. I just need a minute." She stared at the carpet stain.
"Did your husband beat you in Michael's room?" Paul held her hand.
"I often slept on the floor by the crib so Michael wouldn't cry and wake-up Bobby. He raped me while Michael cried." Anna put her hands to her face and wept.
Paul led her into the living room and put his arms around her.
*****
Moments later, Anna stepped back and dried her tears. "I'm sorry."
Mr. Young stood beside her. "You have nothing to apologize for. I'm sorry you have to relive this. My client neglected to tell me everything." He walked into kitchen, stopped, and knelt, running his hand along a scrape in the linoleum. "This is strange. What happened?"
Anna stood by it. "I stood here holding Michael on my right hip. Bobby stood in the hallway and fired a rifle toward us." She pointed to a dent in the washer. "The bullet ricocheted off this." She gulped. "I'm glad he was drunk and missed."
A woman's voice yelled, "Anna, there you go with that vivid imagination again. You know Bobby would never do such a thing." She moved closer.
"Mrs. Rodgers, what are you doing here?" Anna turned toward Paul. "Mr. Sorenson, I would like you to meet Bobby's mother." She glanced down the hall. "His father, Sam Rodgers."
"I thought I better make sure Bobby's interests are protected." She opened the kitchen cabinets. "I see you took the majority of the dishes. What is Bobby supposed to eat from?"
"Anna suggested we divide the kitchen supplies in half and that's what we did." Mr. Young stood beside her. "I have supervised everything, making sure nothing is taken that belongs solely to my client."
"I have been in this house many times and this is maybe an eighth of the dishes." She glared at the attorney. "You're allowing that bitch to fill your head with lies about my son, so you aren't taking care of your client's interest. I arrived just in time."
"We're finished in the baby's room. Where to next?" asked a stocky packer.
Mrs. Rodgers hurried down the hall. "Where's my grandson supposed to sleep? This gold-digger took everything."
"Anna will get sole custody of the minor so she should get his belongings. Your son will have visitation rights determined by the court." Paul walked past her. "Anna, let's start on the next room."
"Bobby will get full custody of his son, if his lawyer does his job. He's a perfect father." She glanced around. "Sam, where are you?"
"Over here, dear." He ran his hands along the dents in the wall. "Did Bobby do this?"
"Of course not. That wife of his did." She glanced down the hall. "We better follow them before she continues to rob Bobby blind. He worked hard for these things."
Author Notes
Thank you google images for the artwork.
I have returned from vacation and am now resting from my vacation. I enjoyed spoiling my grandchildren and letting their parents handle them. I saw all three of my oldest sons and my two daughter-in-laws. I was also able to spend a few days with my parents, who will both be 80 on their next birthdays.
SAFE (stop abuse for everyone)
www.safe4all.org
National Domestic Violence Hotline (800)799-7233
2 in 3 female victims of violence were related to or knew their attacker.
Almost 6 times as many women victimized by intimates (18%) as those victimized by strangers (3%) did not report their violent victimization to police because they feared reprisal from the offender.
Annually, compared to males, females experienced over 10 times as many incidents of violence by an intimate.
On average each year, women experienced 572,032 violent victimizations at the hands of an intimate, compared to 48,983 incidents committed against men.
While women are less likely than men to be victims of violent crimes overall, women are 5 to 8 times more likely than men to be victimized by an intimate partner
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