Page 32 of Covert Affair

They think it’s possible he got involved with me as a front. To try and explain some of his financial gains.

One quick look at my finances would prove that it wasn’t my money that was making him rich. Thank God I never got around to combining our money, no matter how hard he pushed.

That didn’t stop him from opening a few accounts in my name and hiding some of his money there.

Yet another surprise I didn’t see coming.

There was still a lot of shit to clean up and more details for the FBI to take a look at but, Agent Hunter assured me that I was no longer a person of interest in their investigation. Sure, they may have more questions but for now they suggested I pursue civil action against Waylon, not just for the abuse charges but for the illegal bank accounts in my name.

It was going to take time, but eventually, it would all be over.

Agent Hunter takes a few minutes to speak with Cody again before everyone clears out.

My lawyer says he’ll go ahead and get the ball rolling on those civil charges and asks me to meet up with him sometime tomorrow for lunch to go over things.

When everyone is finally gone, I excuse myself, yearning for that long overdue shower.

The hot shower in Cody’s hall bathroom feels better than any 5-star hotel after the long night I’ve had and it’s absolutely better than the shower in my tour bus. Each drop of water seems to wash away some of the physical pain left behind from Waylon but it’s not washing away the bruises on my wrists or the one on my face that was still pretty well covered by my stage makeup until I washed all that off.

The weight of everything that’s transpired begins waying down on me as reality crashes in.

He hit me.

Waylon Ellison, a man I thought loved me. He yanked me around like a rag doll, slapped me and lord knows what else may have happened if he hadn’t passed out when I locked myself in the bathroom.

Someone I trusted…someone I thought I could love…betrayed me. Without a second thought.

He used me for his own gain. And tied me up into a web of his lies.

All the adrenaline I’ve been running on seems to swirl down the drain and I can feel all of the emotions I’ve sucked up since Officer Falco cuffed me rushing back, hitting me harder than any blow Waylon’s dealt.

I try to hold back the first sob but the second comes out like a battle cry. My legs seem to give out beneath me and I collapse into a heap on the shower floor. Sobs shake my whole body as I come completely unhinged.

All of the signs seem to flash in my face. Things I chose to ignore. All the God-awful things my Waylon said or did to me. How he treated me like I was nothing. All the things he hid. All the times he brushed me off as some stupid trophy wife whenever an important business conversation came up. He used me. And now I was certain that if it could, he was going to break me. Destroy me into the nothingness he believed I was.

With each tear that falls comes another whail from deep within me.

“Stace.” There’s a knock on the door and I hear Cody’s voice.

My reply is a strangled cry.

“Stacey, I’m coming in.”

“No!” I cry out, hoping that deep down he’ll ignore my words and come in anyway. Part of me doesn’t want him to see me like this, broken and raw. Then again I’d do anything for the slightest comfort. To feel safe again. Because the only place I’ve ever truly felt safe was in Cody’s presence.

As if he can read my mind, I hear the door open. Cody pulls the shower curtain back and climbs in the shower behind me, wrapping his arms around my body while the water keeps beating down on us. “I’ve got you. Let it all out.”

I move just enough to bury my head in his chest while he rocks me and whispers to me between my cries.

“I’ve got you. I’m right here. You’re safe. I’m not going to leave you.”

“I let him hit me,” I hiccup.

“Shh. You didn’t let him do shit. You’re not responsible for his actions.”

“He’s trying to ruin me.”

“Not on my watch,” he says, brushing my wet hair out of my face. “I won’t let that happen.”

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