bit hard to get to know for the first month. She finally confided in me that she was amazed at how many women returned to their abusers even after making it as far as I did. Tears spring up in my eyes as I think about that conversation, and how I swore and promised I’d never do that. I’d never willingly go back to Einar!
Oh, how innocent I was. I told Maria more than I ever told a therapist, and she shared her own horror stories with me. It was truly cathartic, and it helped me forgive myself for not leaving him sooner. Fat lot of good it did, though.
It was only two days after that when Einar showed up in the middle of the night and dragged me out of her home by my hair. After five months in confinement, the first three chained in our room outside of the time I had to come out and show the police I was fine and happy, he felt like he’d “rehabilitated” me so I wouldn’t run again.
And he did for years. I played the perfect, docile wife after he threatened to kill my father. Every Sunday, he’d take me to visit him in the home he’d moved him into while I was in hiding. He was planning on luring me out with coming to visit him, but I didn’t take the bait. Unfortunately, I did contact the home where he was staying and updated them with my current contact information. That’s how he found me. One night when he was feeling chatty, he told me all about it and bragged about how clever he was.
Needless to say, I’m now very, very cautious. I can’t take any chances. I finally managed to get away from him, using some of his money to move my father into a private care facility that Ragnar set up for me. Ragnar actually moved him out and into a good friend’s personal care home before he loaned me the vehicle I used for my escape.
As I step into the clearing around the cabin, holding the rabbit, I see the sun peeking out for the first time today, lighting up the surrounding area. I follow the trail around the clearing and back into the woods on the other side, going to the creek that runs about five hundred feet behind it.
The stream of water is just a few feet wide, barely a trickle, but it’s perfect for skinning my rabbit, carrying away most of the scent so I don’t attract any unwanted wildlife. Making short work of the project, I try not to feel too bad about killing this cute little creature. After all the violence I’ve seen, I don’t ever want to have the same effect on anyone or anything else.
Gathering everything up, I head back to the house to get this rabbit on the fire. It’s late afternoon, and I’m interested in eating when it’s the freshest, regardless of the time. As I get closer, I notice my conditioner bottle sitting on one of the steps.
That’s strange. I didn’t notice that this morning. Could I have dropped it on the way in yesterday?
As soon as the thought crosses my mind, another more sinister thought pops into my head. Spinning around, my eyes quickly scan the dark canopy surrounding me. Sure enough, there’s a flicker to my left, a strange shimmer alerting me to what’s already becoming a familiar face. An instant later, he turns and disappears.
I spring, sprinting into the house, petrified. How did he find me?
Well, that’s probably a stupid question. The cabin isn’t that far from the hot springs I was at last night. It wouldn’t take a proper tracker long to find.
Tossing the rabbit in the sink, I go back to my bag, pulling out everything. Shampoo, soap, clothes from yesterday … It only takes a moment for me to realize that my underwear is missing.
Fuck!
I’m not sure what’s worse, not knowing if he’s been sent to find me by my husband? Or finding out he’s just an ordinary stalker who steals panties …
CHAPTER SIX
- Jaxtyn
THREE DAYS LATER
From my perch high above the clearing, I watch the female hang her clean clothing out on a line of rope she’s strung between two trees. This is one of the rare moments when the sun is just starting to peek out. In general, this area of the mountains seems to get more rain than not.
The last three days have been enlightening. I’ve seen her