Chapter 4 - Awakening in Terror
Before I could leave for Massachusetts, my phone buzzed. It was the hospital.
Mara was awake.
I drove like a madwoman, ignoring three red lights. When I rushed into her room, the heart monitor was beeping steadily. Mara looked small, frail, and terrified, swallowed by the massive hospital bed.
But my eyes immediately fell to the clear, plastic bassinet beside her.
Inside was a tiny, perfect baby girl. Born a month early, but fighting, breathing, living.
Tears spilled down my face as I walked over and took Mara’s hand.
“She’s beautiful, Mara. You did it.”
Mara squeezed my hand weakly. “Is he… is he here?”
“No. There are two uniformed officers outside your door. He cannot get near you. I promise.”
Mara closed her eyes, a shudder running through her broken body. “He told me… he told me if I ever told you, he would take the baby. He said he has the best lawyers. He said a judge would look at my anxiety records and deem me an unfit mother.”
“He lied to you,” I said fiercely, leaning in close so she could feel the absolute certainty in my voice. “Abusers lie, Mara. It's their greatest weapon. They isolate you, and they make you believe they are the only reality.”
“I’m so scared, Lena. Celeste… Celeste was there. She watched him grab me. She just turned around and walked out of the room.”
My blood ran cold. Celeste wasn't just turning a blind eye; she was an active participant in her son's reign of terror.
“I put the camera up,” Mara whispered, a tear slipping down her bruised cheek. “Did you find it?”
“We found it,” I assured her. “But Evan is trying to get it thrown out of court. I need you to be strong, Mara. I need you to testify. Can you do that?”
She looked at the bassinet. She looked at her daughter’s tiny, rising chest.
May you like
A new light sparked in her eyes. The fear was still there, but beneath it, the fierce, unyielding fire of a mother protecting her child had ignited.
“Whatever it takes,” Mara said.
