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Safe Haven(13)

By:Nicholas Sparks


Katie could feel the  pressure of tears behind her eyes and though she tried again to stop  them, she felt them sliding down her cheek. Jo was motionless across the  table, watching her without moving.

"And she loved him! In the  beginning, he was so sweet to her. He made her feel safe. On the night  they met, she'd been working, and after she finished her shift, two men  were following her. When she went around the corner, one of them grabbed  her and clamped his hand over her mouth, and even though she tried to  get away, the men were so much stronger and she didn't know what would  have happened except that her future husband came around the corner and  hit one of them hard on the back of the neck and he fell to the ground.  And then he grabbed the other one and threw him into the wall, and it  was over. Just like that. He helped her up and walked her home and the  next day he took her out for coffee. He was kind and he treated her like  a princess, right up until she was on her honeymoon."

Katie knew  she shouldn't be telling Jo any of this, but she couldn't stop. "My  friend tried to get away twice. One time, she came back on her own  because she had nowhere else to go. And the second time she ran away,  she thought she was finally free. But he hunted her down and dragged her  back to the house. At home, he beat her and put a gun to her head and  told her that if she ever ran away again, he'd kill her. He'd kill any  man she cared for. And she believed him, because by then, she knew he  was crazy. But she was trapped. He never gave her any money, he never  allowed her to leave the house. He used to drive by the house when he  was supposed to be working, just to make sure she was there. He  monitored the phone records and called all the time, and he wouldn't let  her get a driver's license. One time, when she woke up in the middle of  the night, she found him standing over the bed, just staring at her.  He'd been drinking and holding the gun again and she was too scared to  say anything other than to ask him to come to bed. But that was when she  knew that if she stayed, the husband would eventually kill her."

Katie  swiped at her eyes, her fingers slick with salty tears. She could  barely breathe but the words kept coming. "She started to steal money  from his wallet. Never more than a dollar or two, because otherwise he  would notice. Normally, he locked his wallet up at night, but sometimes,  he would forget. It took so long to get enough money for her to escape.  Because that's what she had to do. Escape. She had to go someplace  where he would never find her, because she knew he wouldn't stop  searching for her. And she couldn't tell anyone anything, because her  family was gone and she knew the police wouldn't do anything. If he so  much as suspected anything, he would kill her. So she stole and saved  and found coins in the sofa cushions and in the washing machine. She hid  the money in a plastic bag that she put beneath a flowerpot, and every  time he went outside she was sure he would find it. It took so long to  get the money she needed because she had to have enough to get far away  so that he'd never find her. So that she could start over again."


Katie  wasn't aware of when it had happened, but she realized that Jo had  taken her hand and she was no longer watching herself from across the  room. She could taste salt on her lips and imagined that her soul was  leaking out. She wanted desperately to sleep.

In the silence Jo continued to hold her gaze. "Your friend has a lot of courage," she said quietly.

"No," Katie said. "My friend is scared all the time."

"That's  what courage is. If she weren't scared, she wouldn't need courage in  the first place. I admire what she did." Jo gave her hand a squeeze. "I  think I'd like your friend. I'm glad you told me about her."

Katie glanced away, feeling utterly drained. "I probably shouldn't have told you all that."

Jo  shrugged. "I wouldn't worry too much. One thing you'll learn about me  is that I'm good with secrets. Especially when it comes to people I  don't know, right?"         

     



 

Katie nodded. "Right."


Jo stayed  with Katie for another hour, but steered the conversation toward easier  ground. Katie talked about working at Ivan's and some of the customers  she was getting to know. Jo asked about the best way to get the paint  out from under her fingernails. With the wine gone, Katie's dizziness  began to fade, leaving in its wake a sense of exhaustion. Jo, too, began  to yawn, and they finally rose from the table. Jo helped Katie clean  up, though there wasn't much to do aside from washing a couple of  dishes, and Katie walked her to the door.

As Jo stepped onto the porch, she paused. "I think we had a visitor," she said.

"What are you talking about?"

"There's a bicycle leaning against your tree."

Katie  followed her outside. Beyond the yellow glow of the porch light, the  world was dark and the outlines of the distant pine trees reminded Katie  of the ragged edge of a black hole. Fireflies mimicked the stars,  twinkling and blinking, and Katie squinted, realizing that Jo was right.

"Whose bicycle is that?" Katie asked.

"I don't know."

"Did you hear anyone come up?"

"No. But I think someone left it for you. See?" She pointed. "Isn't that a bow on the handlebars?"

Katie  squinted, spotting the bow. A woman's bike, it had wire baskets on each  side of the rear wheel, as well as another wire basket on the front. A  chain was wrapped loosely around the seat, with the key still in the  lock. "Who would bring me a bicycle?"

"Why do you keep asking me these questions? I don't know what's going on any more than you do."

Katie  and Jo stepped off the porch. Though the puddles had largely vanished,  sinking into the sandy loam, the grass held on to the rain and dampened  the tips of her shoes as Katie moved through it. She touched the  bicycle, then the bow, rubbing the ribbon between her fingers like a rug  merchant. A card was tucked beneath it, and Katie reached for it.

"It's from Alex," she said, sounding baffled.

"Alex the store guy Alex, or another Alex?"

"The store guy."

"What does it say?"

Katie shook her head, trying to make sense of it before holding it out. I thought you might enjoy this.

Jo tapped the note. "I guess that means he's as interested in you as you are in him."

"I'm not interested in him!"

"Of course not." Jo winked. "Why would you be?"





8






Alex  was sweeping the floor near the coolers when Katie entered the store.  He had guessed that she would show up to talk to him about the bicycle  first thing in the morning. After leaning the broom handle against the  glass, he retucked his shirt and ran a quick hand through his hair.  Kristen had been waiting for her all morning and she'd already popped up  before the door had even closed.

"Hey, Miss Katie!" Kristen said. "Did you get the bicycle?"

"I did. Thank you," Katie answered. "That's why I'm here."

"We worked really hard on it."

"You did a great job," she said. "Is your dad around?"

"Uh-huh. He's right over there." She pointed. "He's coming."

Alex watched as Katie turned toward him.

"Hey, Katie," he said.

When he was close, she crossed her arms. "Can I talk to you outside for a minute?"

He could hear the coolness in her voice and knew she was doing her best not to show her anger in front of Kristen.

"Of  course," he said, reaching for the door. Pushing it open, he followed  her outside and found himself admiring her figure as she headed toward  the bicycle.

Stopping near the bike, she turned to face him. In  the front basket was the umbrella she'd borrowed the day before. She  patted the seat, her face serious. "Can I ask what this is about?"

"Do you like it?"

"Why did you buy it for me?"

"I didn't buy it for you," he said.

She blinked. "But your note … "

He  shrugged. "It's been in the shed collecting dust for the last couple of  years. Believe me, the last thing I'd do is buy you a bicycle."

Her  eyes flashed. "That's not the point! You keep giving me things and  you've got to stop. I don't want anything from you. I don't need an  umbrella or vegetables or wine. And I don't need a bike!"

"Then give it away." He shrugged. "Because I don't want it, either."

She  fell silent and he watched as confusion gave way to frustration, then  finally futility. In the end, she shook her head and turned to leave.  Before she could take a step, he cleared his throat. "Before you go,  though, would you at least do me the favor of listening to my  explanation?"         

     



 

She glared at him over her shoulder. "It doesn't matter."

"It might not matter to you, but it matters to me."