ログイン•ASHLEY•When we came back from visiting Donald, I decided to go out for dinner and celebrate my newfound freedom. Marissa had wanted to come, but she had a night shift. The others were busy too. So I went alone.Which, for the first time in a long time, didn’t feel lonely.I was wearing a simple black dress and left my hair down. I even put on lipstick, but not for anyone. But because I wanted to feel cute. I ordered pasta and waited patiently for my food while scrolling on my phone. Giselle had checked on me earlier, and I told her I'd be home in two hours. But when I lifted my eyes to look at the view near the window, I noticed him. Not because he was staring at me, but because he was glaring at the woman sitting across from him as if he was bored. She was talking loudly. Her hands moved dramatically as she listed what sounded like a detailed summary of her ex-boyfriend’s failures and their silly fights. The man across from her looked like someone being held hostage by polite
•ASHLEY•For the past two weeks before Donald’s final sentencing, I searched through all social media platforms to find Donald’s victims. When I found them, I explained that I didn't mean to open old wounds, but I wanted them to get closure and know that they didn't need to hide their pain away anymore. I knew that wherever they were, their lives were ruined and they couldn't be happy without feeling as if Donald would return and ruin everything again. He probably threatened and tortured them daily as he did with me.The first woman who replied was named Marissa. Her message came in at 2:14 a.m.“I watched the sentencing,” she wrote. “I thought I was crazy for years. He did the same thing to me.”After Marissa, there was Talia. She almost hung up when I called her. She said she didn't trust me, and thought I was working with Donald to trick her. “I don’t want my name in anything,” she told me almost immediately when we started talking.“It won’t be,” I told her. “I just want you t
•GISELLE•"Mommy!" The kids called from the hallway while Noah’s lips were entangled with mine. My heart raced as I pulled away from him and cleared my throat. I didn't even look at him as I rushed to the twins. They were probably exhausted and needed to sleep. "Come on, my little minions," I giggled as I took their hands and led them to their bedroom. I read them a little story before they fell asleep. My heart was at peace knowing that the twins were under my roof and sleeping on their beds. I stood against the doorframe and watched their chest rising and falling peacefully. It was only at that moment that I realized Adrian looked oddly identical to Noah’s great-great-grandfather. The resemblance was uncanny and it almost baffled me because I had never noticed it before. I always thought his looks leaned more toward Noah's than mine.Noah waited for me in the hallway, and when I finally stepped out and closed the bedroom door gently behind me, our eyes met in the dim light.“T
•NOAH•"Daddy, is Mommy okay?" Aurora asked when I returned with them from kindergarten. They hadn't seen their mother for two days and I understood their confusion, but I didn't want to risk anything anymore. I didn't want to lose the kids as well after losing my mother and brother in a single month. They were both arrested, which made me feel as if I were utterly alone in the world. "Your mother is fine, Aurora," I answered as I strapped them in their car seats. "But she needs time to say goodbye to Uncle Connor." "I miss her," Adrian chimed in, sighing. "Is she mad at me for jumping into the pool? She said I shouldn't." I stopped moving and sighed. I hated that it seemed as if I were keeping them from their mother, when all I wanted was to keep them safe. “No, buddy,” I replied. “Mommy isn’t mad at you. She loves you more than anything in the whole world.”"She should've called then," he pouted."Well, what do you say we bring Mommy lunch?" “Yes!” Aurora squealed. “Can we br
•GISELLE•I sat on the couch in the living room long after Noah had left with the kids and sighed. I leaned my head back on the couch and felt guilt tearing me apart from the inside. I didn't even know how I would face Adrian again. A part of me felt as if it was better that Noah took them, because if he hadn't come, Adrian would've died while I was distracted in my own misery. "Hey," Ashley said as she sat across from me, and I scorned myself that I didn't even hear her when she came in. "Hey, Ash." "I'm sorry about Connor," she muttered, her voice breaking. "I can't imagine the pain you're feeling, and I want you to know that I'm here for you. I can never be thankful enough for being there for me as well yesterday when Donald was being sentenced." I looked at her and realized that I hadn't been fully there for her. Noah and I did our part during the trial, but I never had a moment with her. I didn't even know how she was feeling and how she was dealing with everything. When w
•GISELLE•"Where are you, Giselle? Do you know how worried and out of my mind I am? I am losing myself in each passing second, and I can't rest without knowing where you are and how you are. Please free me from this misery and come home." I was sitting on the backyard porch, listening to Connor’s voicemail messages. The twins were playing around the swimming pool while I was losing my mind over the fact that I might never see Connor again or hear his voice. I didn't even know what to do anymore. I felt as if I had lost all sense of reasoning. “Mommy, watch this!” Aurora called out, but somehow, her voice drifted off my mind as quickly as it came. I replayed the voicemail again and again. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't stop myself from listening to them. We were supposed to start our lives afresh in New York, get married, and live our lives together until we were old and weary. I also couldn't stop thinking about what his parents said to me. Perhaps they were right, and







