Page 44 of Levi

“He hit me,” Kinley answered bluntly.

“Son of a bitch,” Levi growled in anger. “Often?”

Kinley let out a heavy sigh. “It only happened once, but that was more than enough for me. Our relationship used to be good, and I truly believed he was the love of my life. He never laid a hand on me when we dated.”

“Typical,” Levi muttered, but motioned for her to go on.

“We had been married for eight months, and looking back, I should have seen the signs. But as they say, love is blind. He became increasingly angry and would throw things or hit things in fits of rage. One night, during an argument over nothing, he walked away from me, and I suggested he get counseling before he seriously hurt someone in a moment of anger. That set him off even more. He suddenly turned around andbackhanded me. I was shocked; I never thought he would actually hit me.”

“I wish I had him in front of me right now.”

“I made it clear to him when we first started dating that if he ever laid a hand on me, no matter how long we were together, I would leave him. After he hit me, he couldn’t apologize enough and promised it would never happen again. But I knew it would. I played along with his apology, because I knew if I told him I was leaving, there was no telling what he would have done to me, so the next morning, while he was at work, I packed my things and left. I stayed with Addison until I could find my own place. She told me I could stay as long as I needed, but I didn’t want to impose on her.”

“What happened to him?”

“He did everything he could to try and get me back, but there was no way I was going to go back to him. When he realized our marriage was over, his true colors came out and the threats started. I thought about filing a restraining order, but I knew a piece of paper wouldn’t stop him from trying to scare me. He terrified me.”

“I can understand that. But I’m glad you were able to get away from him. It wouldn’t have stopped at just once, and each time it would have gotten worse.”

“I know, but it’s a hard decision to make. You try to justify their actions by thinking they didn’t mean to hurt you and they won’t do it again, but they do. I can see why women have a hard time leaving their abusers; it’s scary and you feel trapped.”

“Did you report the abuse at all?”

“No, I was too scared. I thought it would only make him angrier. But I did threaten to call Sam if he didn’t leave me alone. And the day he was served with divorce papers, he called me and threatened to make my life miserable.”

“Did he?”

“I just told him he had already done that and to leave me alone or else I would go to the sheriff.”

“So, where is he now?” Levi picked up his coffee cup and took a sip.

“Honestly, I have no idea. I heard he left Clifton about a year ago.”

“Do you think he’ll come back?”

Kinley looked at him and shrugged. “I wouldn’t put anything past him, but if he does and bothers me, I will go to Sam.”

“I hate men like him,” Levi muttered, as he clenched his fists.

“You sound like someone who has experienced this firsthand.”

He knew all too well the horrors of a man who used violence against women, and the immense difficulty for the victim to escape such abuse. He felt a sense of relief that Kinley had managed to break free from that despicable person. Some women, he knew, were paralyzed with fear and unable to even attempt to leave their abuser.

Kinley reached out and placed her hand on his, causing him to jerk and take a deep breath.

“I didn’t mean to bring up painful memories,” she said softly.

“It’s alright,” he replied with a huff.

“I’m sorry.”

“Why are you apologizing? You didn’t do anything wrong.”

“I’m sorry if you’ve experienced something similar in your life.”

He stole a glance at her before looking away. “Me and my mother.”

“Tell me where your father is.”

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