Page 20 of These Jagged Edges

I push at Maddox's chest. "S-stop."

Maddox slowly withdraws his hand and cautiously sets me on my feet. I take a few steps away from him, turning to right myself. Reminding myself that I’m stronger than this, reminding myself the voice in my head holds no power.

He no longer has any control over me! This is my life and my body! Damn it! Why the hell can’t my head get the memo?

Grabbing my purse, I dash for the door, the walls are closing in on me, and I need to get out of here. "Evie, wait." I pull the door open when a giant hand slams it shut above my head. "Goddamn Evie! Just hang on a second."

A small metal cling registers in my ears. I drop to the floor, drawing my head onto my knees and raising my hands to protect myself as best I can from what I know is about to come. "No! Not the belt, please!" I sob. “Please not the belt! I’ll stay I promise!”

I beg because he likes it when I beg him not to hurt me, and I need to please him.

"Evie."I hear a muffled voice break through the haze. "Good job. Just keep breathing. You’re safe. The boys are safe. It's okay to come back." Opening my eyes, I find Sophie sitting beside me. Where the hell had she come from?

Sophie brings a hand up, "Breathe in," and lowers her hand, "Breathe out." Sophie repeats the motion until I can feel the vise grip on my lungs finally loosen. Tears stream down my face, and I try and apologize. "Don't Evie. You don't owe anyone anything."

Humiliation fills every molecule of my being as I realize where I still am. "How long have I been like this?" I ask stretching out my stiff legs.

"Last twenty minutes or so. I was dropping off something for Mercy and heard you screaming," Sophie says rubbing a soothing hand up and down my back. I look around for Maddox, trying to think of how to get out of here without having to face him.

"Maddox isn't here."

I give her a slight nod and kiss her cheek. "Thank you, Soph."

Sophie gets a far-off look on her face. "I know all too well how our demons can threaten to drown us."

Where Lou is vivacious and outspoken, Sophie is withdrawn, never going anywhere she doesn’t need to, leaving Lou to handle more social aspects of the bakery. The crazy thing about damaged people is we can spot one another a mile away.

The first time I met Sophie, I knew there was something about her, whole but fractured, like a bone that hadn't set back right after it's been broken. Something that left us forever changed, causing us to shrink away from the world in our own ways. My demons recognized Sophie’s right away. Almost delighted as if seeing old friends.

A person can endure so much cruelty that, eventually, it changes the very essence of who you are, snuffing out your inner light. The hands that promise to cherish you most become the same hands that inflict the most pain. A lesson I'm all too familiar with.

"Evie," I hear Maddox say, and I can't help the flinch from hearing his voice, guess he hadn’t left after all.

Shame and embarrassment flood my senses, and I bolt. All I want is to go home and cuddle my boys, forgetting that today ever happened. I should’ve known I had a fat chance of that happening.

I hadone hour to lick my wounds at home with my boys before someone knocked on my door. I was honestly expecting Lou or Mercy, not the sheriff, but here he stands with my purse on his arm, looking slightly off-kilter.

"Evening, Evie."

"Henry."

"I, uh, stopped by the gym, found this, and figured I'd bring this by." He keeps his distance but reaches a long arm out, holding my purse out. Sure, he just "stopped" by, but I’m not going to call him out for his lie.

"Thank you."

The large man looks at the sky and takes a deep breath. "Lou never told you who the person was who came up with your new social and birth certificate, did she?"

I feel all the color drain from my face. It was Henry this whole time? I should’ve known. Who else in town had a reach like that? Who else was crazy enough in love to do whatever a certain blonde needed whenever she needed it? I should be skeptical, but all I feel is gratitude. I close the distance between us and hug the grizzly man. "Thank you isn't enough."

Lou knew everybody and knew their dirty secrets even better.She told me it paid to tend bar because once people had a few drinks, their lips became as loose as their legs. So, she knew everyone in town, even the shadier people in Thunder Ridge who lived in the somewhat gray area of right and wrong.

The benefit of that for me, I thought, was when she showed up one night on my doorstep yelling "Surprise!" with a new social security number and birth certificate with the name I'd decided to use.

The name I picked was so random I knew Trent, cop or not, would have hell trying to find me. My new name had no association with anything from my old life, not a color, or even a passion of mine. Not that I had any and I didn't consider being slapped around a fun way to pass the time. Evie Taylor was born in the same shady motel where I found out I was pregnant. Following bad gas station food and watching a rerun of some mummy movie.

In fact, when Lou gave me those papers that read Evie Taylor, I think it was the best present I’ve ever received. I hugged her and cried so hard she was worried my water would break. Just thinking about that night puts a smile on my face.

"No thanks necessary." He wraps one arm around me and gives me a firm squeeze. I end the hug by stepping back and asking the one question that plagues me every day.

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