Chapter 4 - THE GIRL WHO REMEMBERED EVERYTHING
For fifteen years, I had believed Daniel Mercer died that night.
My father told everyone he'd disappeared after stealing money from several clients.
The police never found a body.
And I was told to forget what I'd seen.
But I never forgot.
I remembered the blood.
The gun.
My father's expression.
And the way he'd grabbed my arm when I tried to run.
“You didn't see anything,” he'd whispered.
I was twelve.
Terrified.
And completely dependent on him.
When I cried, he slapped me.
When I tried to tell my mother, he threatened to send me away.
After my mother died, the punishments became worse.
The scars on my body were reminders of what happened whenever I questioned him.
Nico listened without interrupting.
When I finished, he looked away.
His hands were clenched.
Then he spoke.
“Nora.”
I looked at him.
“You should never have been treated that way.”
My eyes filled.
For years, I'd been told I deserved everything that happened to me.
May you like
Now a man I'd been forced to marry was telling me otherwise.
I didn't know what to do with that kindness.
