LOGINShare
Chapter 9
Latest chapter
Locked Out of My Heart Chapter 10
In the spring, the wisteria bloomed and hung over the cottage wall.I sat in the yard and painted. My new picture book was almost ready for publication. The main character was a rabbit.I could sleep with the door closed now, though I still kept the window cracked open out of habit.The truth was, I understood that safety was never about the locks. It was about knowing that no one on the other side of the door would ever use my fear against me again.Every now and then, I heard things through old colleagues.Vanessa's graduate program had revoked her enrollment. The State Licensing Board ruled that her actions constituted unlicensed psychological intervention, and her name was placed on the industry blacklist.She had moved back to her hometown and was reportedly working the front desk at a beauty salon.Pierce never came looking for me again. After the divorce, he applied for an overseas assignment through his company and was transferred to a remote project office. He stopped s
Locked Out of My Heart Chapter 9
The complaint spread through the counseling community fast.The practice where Vanessa had been interning issued a public statement almost immediately to protect itself and cut all ties with her.Her professor posted on social media to distance himself. "I have never instructed or authorized any student to conduct forced exposure on a patient. I ask the individual in question not to implicate others."She was completely cut off.Out of sympathy for me, Gordon screenshotted things Vanessa had said in private and dropped them into a group chat she shared with their mutual friends.One of them was a transcript of a voice memo. "Ainsley is basically a pet that Pierce and I are training. I can do whatever I want with her, and she still has to thank me for it."The moment those screenshots hit the group, everyone lost it.People who used to think she was just blunt and honest were now digging up everything she had ever said, and all those cruel remarks she had made under the guise o
Locked Out of My Heart Chapter 8
One week later, I was at my easel working on an upcoming project when my phone rang. It was Gordon Slade, Pierce's cousin."Ainsley, there's something I think you need to know."Gordon told me Pierce had not given up after he came back.He had been talking to Curtis, trying to get the family elders involved to pressure me into mediation. His main argument was that I had a mental illness and needed my husband to take care of me, and that the divorce would be to my disadvantage.Vanessa was helping him put together a psychological evaluation report to prove I was not capable of living independently.The day after Gordon called, the texts from Curtis started coming.The first one read: [Ainsley, where are you? Everyone at home is worried about you. You're out there alone, and you're not fully recovered. If something happens to you, who's going to be responsible?]The second came right after. Curtis: [Pierce told me everything. He's willing to change, and he's willing to take you
Locked Out of My Heart Chapter 7
By my second month down south, I thought I had cut everyone from my past life off. But somehow, Curtis got hold of my landlady's number.I was painting in the yard that day when Mrs. Haddon walked over, looking uncertain."Ainsley, a man called. He said he's your brother and asked me to pass along a message."She looked at me. "He said you need to stop this and come home. He said you're not well and that if something happens to you out here, nobody will be around to help.""He also said..." Mrs. Haddon lowered her voice."He said your husband never did anything wrong. They were trying to help you get better, and you threw it back in their faces. He told me to tell you to stop being difficult."I smiled at her. "Mrs. Haddon, if that man calls again, just hang up. He's not part of my life anymore."She nodded and left without another word.I looked back down and kept painting. My hand was steady.In his mind, I had not fled because I was being hurt. I was just being dramatic.F
Locked Out of My Heart Chapter 6
I tore the house apart. In the study, inside the wastepaper basket, I found a crumpled sheet of printer paper.It was a copy of the diagnostic report from Clearview Mental Health Center.I remembered that day. Ainsley had texted me saying she was going in for a follow-up. When she came back and I asked about it, she said it was nothing.I read the report line by line.[Generalized Anxiety Disorder: Severe.][Early-stage panic attack indicators present.][PTSD risk assessment: High.]The last line read: [All forms of forced exposure must cease immediately. If the current rate of deterioration is not halted, the patient will develop irreversible post-traumatic stress disorder within six months.]The report slipped from my hands.The date on it was the same day I had told her to reschedule her appointment so I could drive Vanessa to her internship.She had gone to the hospital alone and brought the results back herself. When I asked her how it went, she said it was nothing.I s
Locked Out of My Heart Chapter 5
In the taxi, I rolled the window halfway down. The night air rushed in, stinging the wound on my hand.I took out my phone and opened the recording app that had been running in the background the whole time.I pressed stop. The recording was five minutes and thirteen seconds.It contained Vanessa's words, her laughter, the sound of the lock, and Pierce's silence. All of it was in there. I was not shaking anymore.The fear felt like it had burned itself out in those five minutes, and everything else had gone with it. The love, the hope, and the reluctance to let go that I held had all burned away.I stared at the screen for two seconds, then closed the app and set the phone on my lap.The driver glanced at me in the rearview mirror. "Miss, your hand is bleeding."I looked down. Blood was dripping through the gaps between my fingers onto my bag."It's fine."I fished out a tissue and pressed it to the wound.Wind poured through the window, and it was cold. I kept breathing st
You May Also Like
The Bride Swap
Perfect Timing31.2K viewsPregnant Without a Man
Sweet Beet56.9K viewsThe One True Love That Never Fades
Paige Ziegler22.7K viewsMy Cheating Girlfriend
Cherry Duck25.4K viewsThe Five-Million Love Nest
Frigid Moonlight21 viewsHe Gave Three Million To My Best Friend
Corn 8820 viewsDogsitting Doesn't Make You His Wife
Bath Breeze27 viewsWhen the Pain Runs Deep, I Let Go
Big Hammer24 views
