Page 115 of Margot
“Of course. Please. I-I wanted to see if you’d be interested in pressing charges. My husband is calling the police. ”
“I want to shoot him between the motherfucking eyes but pressing charges will have to do. I’ll call you when we’re done. Tell the cops they can meet us at the hospital.” They rushed out of the bookstore and I wrapped my arms around myself. I felt another pair of arms around me and I knew who it was. I turned to face him and bawled my eyes out.
Lennox had to shield me from view and walk me out of the store before people started being nosey. It wouldn’t have been a good time for that shit. I’d grown so much since learning who I was but I would still bite someone’s head off in a split second. That’s when Sutton came in handy. She was the calm, classy part of me. Or maybe I was the fiery temperamental part of her.
“Let’s go somewhere, get a drink, and sort this shit out after we’re done with the police,” Lennox said. We stood in front of the bookstore watching for them to arrive.
It took five minutes.
I couldn’t talk to them. I was too overwhelmed and that never happened but seeing a little girl going through exactly what I went through choked me up. Lennox told the officers where Monica and her daughter were and gave them details about the entire meet-up. It wasn’t until the squad cars rolled away that I realized I was holding in a pent up breath.
“Hey, are you okay?” He asked.
“I’ll be okay. Let’s go sit down somewhere.” I felt lightheaded like the world was spinning too fast. We went back to the car and Lennox found somewhere for us to sit and have drinks. It was still morning time but I needed alcohol. It was the only thing that would take the edge off.
I sat beside Lennox in a booth just to feel his proximity. Once I had a glass of cognac in my system, he said, “Can I ask you a question, Margot?”
“Shoot.” I ran my finger around the rim of my glass and waited for his question.
“Why DuBois?” Those two words confused me for a moment. My face warped into a question mark. Lennox could see the quizzical look on my face and rephrased the question. “Why are you Margot DuBois? There are a million other last names you could have picked but you picked his. Of all people. I just…want to understand.” It was a legitimate question I had to answer. He deserved that much.
“I spent so long convincing myself that I liked what he did to me. I held on to every memory and it was my entire fucking identity. I felt like he was a part of me. I latched on to the idea and tried to empower myself with his last name in some weird, fucked up kind of way.” It sounded stupid coming out of my mouth but it was the truth and sometimes, the truth was stranger than fiction.
“I know Dr. Adler said that some alters can latch on to their abuser, so I always wondered if that’s why you chose your name.”
“Essentially. I mean, now I know that I didn’t like what he did to me, I just didn’t know how to stop it. My parents were supposed to be my safety net. They were supposed to protect me and they let me fall. They failed me miserably. My entire existence is being a coping mechanism yet I still couldn’t fully cope.” I stared at the bottom of my glass and wished I could lick the corners and grab the last drops of cognac.
“You did the best you could considering the fucking circumstances, Margot.” I smiled at him through a haze of alcohol then touched his soft beard.
“I love you, Lennox English. You’re the best type of human being. Don’t ever lose that.” My heart twisted thinking about my plan. I had to push through with it though. The events of today only solidified it.
Lennox tilted his head to the side and eyed me curiously. He opened his mouth to speak but our server brought us another round of drinks. I was seven sips in when my phone buzzed, skittering across the shiny table.
It was Monica.
“Hello?” I answered quickly trying to sober up. I was only tipsy but still…
“Hi, Margot?”
“Yes, Monica. Hi. How is Cordelia?”
“They’re giving her a sexual assault examination right now. I had to step out to speak to the police. I’m filing a report as soon as Cori is done. I just thought you’d want to know that they’re on the way to arrest him now. I figured since I can’t be there to see the piece of shit in cuffs that you should be.”
Static filled my head.
Loud, messy, all over the place.
I felt Sutton trying to break through and it was so intense I had to shut my eyes.
“Thank you, Monica. Text me the address. I’m on my way.” I knocked back the rest of my drink and stood up. Lennox stood with me.
“What’s up?” He asked.
“The cops are going to arrest DuBois now.” Lennox fumbled around for his wallet, pulled out a hundred dollar bill, and tossed it on the table before ushering me out with his hand on the small of my back.
I felt a headache coming on and I pressed my fingers to my temples as we walked to the car. “Sutton, please. Let me handle this,” I begged quietly once I had my seatbelt on.
“Everything okay?” Lennox asked.
