Page 67 of Lightness In My Dark

What? Fuck! By this asshole? My God, no wonder she’s the way she is with people touching her.

“When did it happen?”

Wren gave me a sideways glance and then met Gabe’s eyes. Her voice crackled like a wood fire. “When I was eighteen.”

“I’ll stitch your inner thigh. There are several cuts on both sides. The scars are similar in length. Can you tell me what caused them?”

“A knife.”

I gulped and turned away.A knife? Are you fucking kidding me?

“He cut me for lubrication. The scars are from when he raped me years ago.”

Bile rose in my throat and a hard swallow forced it down. I took a deep breath through my nose. A nurse knocked on the door. Gabe popped out and came back in.

“The police want to speak with you, but I told them they’ll have to wait until I stitch you.”

Gabe anesthetized and stitched her inner thighs. No one spoke during the procedure. When he finished, he explained the bandage over the stitches, so they won’t keep rubbing together.

“Dress and Finn can inform the police when you’re ready. If you’re not, I’ll send you down for a CT scan now instead of later.” She said she was ready to talk.

I helped her into her sweat outfit. In the chair, Wren climbed on my lap when the police entered. They introduced themselves and kept their distance.

Officer Marin said to Wren, “We’re so sorry about what happened to you. We’d like to ask you some questions about the incident, so he doesn’t do this to anyone else.” She waited and softened her voice. “Are you okay to talk?” Wren nodded.

She smiled at Wren and opened her tablet. “Finn told us about the events, but we’d like to hear it from you. Can you start from the beginning?”

Wren shifted on my lap to face them, her back against my chest, head resting on my shoulder. She went through what happened to her after Amanda spilled beer on her. She cleared her throat and rubbed it. Officer Burke got her some water. We waited until she drank and handed the cup back to him.

She tensed, so I whispered for her to detach herself from the story. Tell it like it’s someone else’s. Wren understood, eyes aimed elsewhere, and told them what happened.

For the first time since the police came in, she met my gaze. “Finn came to help me. Everything afterwards is a blur.”

Officer Marin made notes. “Again, I’m so sorry this happened, and we appreciate you filling us in.” She flashed to her notes and then Wren. “You mention he was mad you left, and that you were his. Did you know him?”

“Yes. We were in a relationship when I was eighteen. His name is Conner McNally.”

From there, Wren told them about how he raped her. I turned my head. It was the first time since my teenage years when I wanted to cry. This fucker was a monster.

After a month of dating, Conner brought a lunch basket and a blanket to a field near a forest. He raped Wren for four hours, in-between eating and drinking until his dick got hard, and then raped her again. In the beginning, she fought him until he beat her so hard he fractured her left cheekbone, left wrist, and broke two ribs. He still assaulted her, even with her injuries.

She went to the hospital, called a friend to pick her up, yet never spoke of it to anyone. Wren explained to her parents she was in a car accident with one of her friends. She didn’t return Conner’s phone calls and tried to avoid him at all costs. Three weeks later, Conner kidnapped her, bound her, and raped her over the course of a weekend. She quit her job and moved to Churchfield, praying he’d never find her. Wren didn’t give her parents her new address until six months later.

Everything, and I mean everything, about Wren made sense. The way her parents treated her. What the motherfucker did to her. She suffered in silence, as I did, except I had Cole. At that moment, I understood why Wren had cried at dinner with her parents. They told Conner where she lived. And to think what a dick I was to her in the beginning.

Once she finished with the police, we found Lindsey and Carter in the waiting area to drive us home. Wren disappeared upstairs to shower, and I sat in the living room with Cole, Lindsey, and Carter, telling them all about it.

Lindsey choked up with tears pouring down her face. “She told me she dated a guy, and it didn’t turn out well. But this—this isn’t anything I would have expected.”

From upstairs, Wren screamed, and I ran to her as they said their goodbyes. Wren was on the shower floor, hugging her legs into her chest. She had a hard time catching her breath from sobbing. I opened the shower door, turned off the water, kneeled with a towel, and wrapped it around her. She stood, tears abating, and tied the towel in front. I sat her on the vanity, slipped a shirt over her so she could remove the towel.

She looked at me, hollowed and blanched. Unable to shed anymore tears, she said, “He broke me.”

I bent to her level, placed my hands on the vanity on each side, and said, “He didn’t break you, Wren.” I pressed my forehead to hers. “You’re a strong woman who’s been through a lot.” When she was looking at me, I continued, “He can’t break you unless you let him, and I know you won’t let him. He’ll never win.” I kissed the tip of her nose. “A wren’s song is full of life. That’s what your voice is, along with who you are.” She tilted her head to the side. I let out a small laugh. “I researched wrens. They’re tiny, yet clever to withstand larger birds. They’re also adaptable.” My hands rested on her shoulders. “That’s you, Wren. You’re a tiny, clever, adaptable woman who will overcome this, and when you do, you’ll be stronger.”

Wren smiled, but it didn’t reach her eyes. I tucked her into bed and dropped into mine. About a half hour later, she had a nightmare, kicking around in her bed, screaming for him to get away. I woke her. When she was alert, Wren clung to me, so we slept in my room, and for the rest of the night, she didn’t have another one.

Chapter 30 - Kick Some Ass

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