I’m home now. It’s so weird to be back. When I left, I was a little girl. Now I’m a woman.
I feel like a stranger. I don’t belong here. Maybe I can talk Daddy into sending me to boarding school. I wish I were already in college.
I need to go shopping. I think I’ll go to Nordstrom today. I have lots of presents for my sister & my dad doesn’t honestly care, but I still need something for V. Although part of me doesn’t feel like doing it. She’s such a fraud. She always acts all high & mighty, but now I know the truth.
SHAW RESIDENCE
January 17
Standing outside the tub, Cassidy reached in and turned the shower back on. Let whoever had broken into her apartment think she was pre-occupied and vulnerable. Two could play this game. The sounds of falling water would also provide her with some camouflage.
Gently easing open the cupboard door under the sink, she grabbed the bottle of tile cleaner. Experimentally, she pressed the trigger. With a hiss, the spray shot out three feet. It was something. But was it enough?
Cassidy looked around the room again. What could she turn into a weapon? Her hair straightener would take too long to heat up. If she broke her wine glass, she would probably just cut herself and still not end up with a piece big enough to hurt anyone else. Then her gaze settled on the top of the toilet tank. Heavy porcelain. She hefted it experimentally, then tucked it under her arm, grabbed the spray bottle again, and stationed herself on the far side of the door.
A man’s hand appeared, slowly pushing open the door. Should she try to slam it closed, break his fingers? But before she could decide, the hand was followed by an arm and shoulder.
Screaming like a banshee, Cassidy jumped out from behind the door, pressing the trigger on the tile cleaner over and over. The man reeled back-ward, cursing. She dropped the bottle and lifted the toilet tank over her left shoulder, ready to swing it like a bat.
But instead she let it slip from her fingers to the floor, where it thumped on the bath mat.
Because the man scrabbling at his eyes, pulling off his glasses and running to the sink, was Rick.
A relieved laugh spurted from her.
Rick. It was Rick.
Cassidy didn’t know how he had gotten in, but it didn’t matter. Because she was safe.
Then Rick, his face red and wet, whirled and grabbed her wrists. He slammed her back against the wall.
“What in the hell do you think you’re doing?” he roared.
And the next thing Cassidy knew, she was staring down the barrel of his gun.
SHAW RESIDENCE
January 19
What are you guys doing here?” Cassidy’s smile didn’t reach her eyes. She was dressed in a well-worn gray sweatshirt and sweatpants.
Behind her, Allison could see a nearly empty glass of wine on the table in the entryway. She would bet anything that the glass wasn’t left over from the night before, but had only just left Cassidy’s hand.
“Are you alone?” Allison asked.
Cassidy nodded. Her eyes looked wary.
“We’re here to do an intervention,” Nicole said.
“That’s ridiculous,” Cassidy said. Her eyes went to her glass.
“Not for drinking,” Allison said. “To make you see the truth about Rick.”
“What are you talking about? You guys are crazy.”
Nicole reached out for Cassidy’s wrist, catching it even when she tried to hide it behind her back, like a little kid.
“Crazy? Then why do you have these bruises?” She pushed up the sleeve so they could all see the clear ovals where a thumb and finger had left their mark. “Something about the way you’ve looked lately has been bugging me. And after we saw you at Tommy’s, I realized what it was—you’ve been putting makeup on your wrists.”
“We were just playing around, the way two consenting adults can.” Cassidy lifted her chin. “Maybe I like it a little rough.”
“Oh, Cassidy,” Allison breathed. She had to blink back tears.
At the sight of Allison’s emotion, something inside Cassidy broke. Her own eyes grew red. “But Rick loves me. He only acts the way he does sometimes because he loves me so much.”
“Ha! He can call it whatever he wants to, but it’s abuse,” Nicole said. “He’s trying to control you.”
“He just wants me to be happy.”
“No, he doesn’t. He just wants you to obey him,” Allison said. “That’s why we want you to go with us to Safe Harbor. Some of the women there have agreed to tell you their stories. Not as a reporter, but as a human being. They’ve been down the same road, Cass. They know exactly what could happen if you don’t get free of Rick.”
“This is ridiculous,” Cassidy said, but there was no force behind her words.
“Just come with us and listen. If you don’t believe them, you can walk away. But just promise you’ll listen for a little while.”
Cassidy sighed. “Okay. But I tell you, Rick’s not like those other guys. And I’m not like those women.”