“You’ve got to be kidding me. You know this would never have happened if she hadn’t hooked up with Neal. I’m starting to think that man is evil incarnate.”
“I’m glad you’re starting to think that. You need to know it and believe it. That’s the only way you are going to truly sever all ties.”
“I will. I’m waiting for things to level out. I’ve already left. Now all I need to do is file for divorce and it will be over.”
Wendy pursed her lips and shook her head regretfully. “Judging from what you have told me about Neal and what I’ve seen firsthand, it may take more than filing for divorce to get rid of a man like him. I understand your hesitation. Someone like Neal can be very frightening and intimidating. You’re afraid to go and you’re afraid to stay. But, believe me, you need to decide that it’s over not only so it’s clear to him, but also so that it’s clear to you. Until you do that, you will not be in a position intellectually or emotionally to do all that you need to do to get him out of your life for once and for all. There’s something I’ve considered showing you several times, but I chickened out. After getting to know you better, I realize it’s something you must see.”
Wendy pulled down the shades, before pulling up her shirt. Straight down the middle of her chest was a terrible scar.
“Oh my God, Wendy, what happened?”
“Alex is what happened. He was fun and exciting from the moment I met him. He was like a drug for me at first. Then, he started to get possessive and out of control. By the time he started hitting me and I realized he was completely insane, he was following me, confronting my friends, both male and female; and showing up at my job. I got an order of protection and for about six months it seemed like it had worked and he was finally gone, until one day I was coming back from the movies with a date. Alex stabbed us both multiple times. I was a lot luckier than my friend, Lucas. He didn’t make it. I, on the other hand was stabbed in the heart.
“For years I wondered if the gesture was meant to be poetic or if it was merely where the blade happened to land. A portion of my lung had to be removed and my left ventricle and left atrium had to be repaired. I’m still not sure what took longer to repair, my mind or my body. As if to add insult to injury, Alex’s parents hired him a hot-shot lawyer, who used a defense called settled insanity, which basically means if you’ve been using drugs for a really long time, you can plead temporary insanity, if you hurt or kill someone. According to Alex’s attorney, Alex was not only a long-term drug user, but he had personality defects that predisposed him to psychosis. Therefore, according to his defense, Alex’s psychosis on the night he attacked Lucas and I was triggered by chronic substance abuse. He was found not guilty by reason of insanity, based on the contention that temporary psychosis not caused by an episode of intoxication constitutes settled insanity and qualifies as a complete defense.
“As soon as I found out he would not be going to prison, I made preparations to leave California and move someplace where he would never find me. That’s how I ended up here. I was forced to uproot my entire life and move to a new city in order to stay alive. Even though I’m here and he’s there, there is not a day that goes by that I don’t think about what will happen when he’s released from the hospital.”
Damita looked at Wendy with a questioning gaze. “Wendy, can I ask you one question; if you had it to do all over again, would you make the same decision? Would you still leave it all behind; your family, your friends?”
Wendy responded strongly and without reservation. “I absolutely would. That’s what we do, isn’t it; whatever we have to in order to stay alive?”
Damita’s face and even her body seemed as though she had been deflated. She slumped in the chair, feeling lost.
Damita was on the verge of crying. “Wendy, I just don’t know if I could ever have enough strength to leave it all behind; my family, my friends, my career. It’s my entire identity.”
“Only you know how dire the situation is. Is there no other way? Could the police be of any help? These are all questions you need to ask yourself. You also need to ask yourself whether or not it’s indeed dire enough to consider leaving, then what is your identity worth? Is it worth your life? After all, you can’t enjoy that identity if you’re not alive.”
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Damita’s cell phone rang sometime around five a.m. She already knew who it was. Neal had been calling every day, sometimes several times a day. When he figured out that he couldn’t get through to her at work, he started calling Carmella’s home phone number. He would almost always call her cell phone immediately after every call. Carmella didn’t think she should speak to him, but Damita realized that she couldn’t avoid him forever.