Page 120 of My Vows Are Sealed

God, I wanted to tell them the truth. It was right on the tip of my tongue. But I knew what would happen if I said anything more in front of my father. It would only be worse for me when he got me alone again. He’d kill me, or at the very least, kill my baby.

“I told you, that fucking animal they arrested did this to her!” my father screamed as a vein popped up on the side of his neck.

“Sir, if you don’t let your daughter speak freely, I’ll have to have you removed from this room,” Dr. Leonardo warned.

“I didn’t fucking do anything!” my father ranted. “Why are you acting like I’m the criminal here when that lowlife violated my little girl?! She’s traumatized and terrified! I’ll be answering the questions!”

She picked up the call light and pushed it, and not even thirty seconds later, a disembodied voice spoke over the intercom.

“Can I help you?” a man asked.

“This is Dr. Leonardo. I have a code gray in the emergency room,” she said calmly. “Please send everyone.”

“Okay, I’ll send someone in.”

I heard a click that told me the intercom disconnected, and my father stood up and stalked over to the doctor, standing to his full height so he was towering above her.

“Why the fuck are you treating me like I’m the criminal?!” he screamed. “She’s a minor, and I’m her fucking father!”

“Sir, all I’m asking you to do is let your daughter, who seems to be more than capable, speak for herself,” Dr. Leonardo said quietly, her voice trembling a little.

“She’s been held hostage against her will!”

“Then lethertell me that,” she insisted.

“She doesn’t fucking know what’s happening! She has the mind of a child! She’s in no position to have a child of her own, and I’m fuckingorderingyou to terminate this pregnancynow!”

Dr. Leonardo’s eyes betrayed her fear, although the rest of her expression remained calm. Now I could tell that she didn’t believe a word my father was saying, but she also had to protect herself and keep this situation under control so my father didn’t get violent. Honestly, I was surprised he hadn’t already tried to hit her. Maybe he knew if he did that, it would invalidate everything he was saying about trying to protect me.

“Sir, unless she’s been declared mentally incompetent, I have to ask you to letheranswer my questions,” she repeated.

Two security guards and a police officer walked into the room, and while my father was otherwise occupied, I took a chance.

Help me,I mouthed to them.

“Sir, I’m going to have to ask you to come with us,” one of the guards said.

“No! I! Am! Not! Fucking! Leaving! My! Daughter!” my father roared. His eyes were beyond dark and cold now; they were just completely crazy. And I could practicallyseethe steam coming out of his ears.

“Sir, we can do this the easy way or the hard way, but I am going to have to ask you to leave this room,” the police officer said firmly.

“I’m not fucking going anywhere! My daughter was kidnapped and raped, and you’re treating me likeI’mthe fucking criminal!”

Tears pooled in my eyes and spilled over my cheeks. Every time he said that, it felt like I was being punched in the gut all over again. Brendan had never done anything to hurt me in his entire life. He loved me more than anyone else in the world, and he was one of the few people who made me feel completely safe. And now the person whohadbeen hurting me was making sure I never saw him again by accusing him of kidnapping and rape to anyone who would listen. And what was worse was, they were actually believing him. If they could just get him away from me, maybe I could finally tell someone the truth and the police could arrest the right person.

“Detectives are on the way to get her full statement,” the officer told him. “And you can either come with me to another room willingly so we can get your injuries looked at, or I can place you under arrest. The choice is yours.”

“I’m not fucking going anywhere!”

The officer took a pair of handcuffs off of his duty belt. “In that case, sir, you’re under arrest for disorderly conduct. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be held against you in a court of law. You have the right to have an attorney present during questioning. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed to you. Do you understand these rights as I’ve read them to you?”

“I’m not fucking leaving!” my father screamed, turning around and punching the officer in the face. “I’m not letting my daughter be alone with you people!”

The security guards each grabbed one of my father’s arms and pulled them behind his back while the police officer, who now had a bloody lip, put him in handcuffs.

“You’ve just added assaulting a police officer and resisting arrest to the charges against you,” the police officer spat. “Do. You. Understand. The. Rights. I. Just. Read. To. You?”

“Yes, and I want a fucking lawyer! I’m going to sue you and the city for everything you’re worth!”

---