“That’s sad that he doesn’t feel safe to stay with her. I’d hate that if Malia wouldn’t stay with me.”
“He’s traumatised from living with her before he came to me. When she first gave birth to him, we tried to make it work. It was good for the first year and then she got into a bad crowd.” I take a deep breath. I hate talking about this shit, but with her it feels good to explain. “She left me, took my kid and ran. I didn’t see either of them for a year. When I found her, she was living in a run-down house with her so-called friends coming and going whenever they pleased. Ziggy was pale from never going outside. She didn’t feed him properly, so he was too thin.” I shake my head. The memory of the first time I saw Ziggy after I found them breaks my heart. “I don’t know what happened to him in the year he was with her, but he was a nervous wreck. I applied for custody and she didn’t fight it. I’ve had him ever since.”
Anna gives me a sympathetic smile. “That’s so brave of you. Not many men would stand up and do that. He’s doing so well now, you wouldn’t know any of that happened by looking at him,” she says.
“I can’t take all the credit. My mom, Frankie,” I point to where she’s sitting, “and my sister, Leia, help me a lot. I’m lucky to live here with the Kings because we’re one big family and we all take care of each other’s kids. It’s a free for all in there,” I smirk. “Ziggy loves it.”
“Sounds amazing.” That sad look passes over her face again. “I don’t see my family all that much.”
“No?”
She shakes her head. “I grew up in care, so hearing Ziggy’s story touches me. I wish I’d had a dad like you to save me.”
“You don’t know your parents?” I ask.
“I know my mom. I went into care when I was three, but I still saw my mom for visits every few months. I was allowed to go back to her when I turned fifteen, but by then I was on a slippery slope to nowhere good.”
“All teenagers go off the rails,” I reason, and she gives a snort. “So, you got in with a wrong crowd?”
“I guess. My mom wasn’t one for rules, so I was free to come and go as I pleased. By seventeen, I was out drinking and hanging out in bars. That’s how I met Reggie.”
“You were seventeen?” I ask. Reggie must have three or so years on me, which makes him at least six or seven years older than Anna.
She nods. “Almost eighteen. He was twenty-four. I was pregnant and married within months. I didn’t have time to think it through.”
We fall silent and I process what she’s told me. Reggie would have moulded her into exactly what he wanted. I’m conscious of the fact he could still hold some power over her. “Do you know the judge only gave you a short-term injunction? Reggie can have full visiting rights from next month on.”
Anna chews on her lower lip. She almost looks vulnerable. “Yeah. It’s all Reggie would agree to. I took whatever I could get.”
“What was the point?” I ask.
“It gave me enough time to get away from him. We’ve separated a lot over the years. Usually, I find a place and he allows that space for a while, but then he makes me go home. It’s like he humours me— he calls it my tantrums. But this time, because of how serious it was when he hurt me, I decided to push for the injunction to give me time. A new female cop had joined the force and she wanted to do things by the book. She stood up for me all the way. She was amazing. She suggested I come here, where he couldn’t get to me so easily.”
“So, you came here, got the space you needed, but now what?”
Anna begins to chew on her thumb nail. “I don’t know. I’m done running. I guess it’s something I’ve always done. I know he knows where I am. I know he can come anytime he wants, but we seem to play this game of cat and mouse. I feel like I should do things differently this time so that he knows I’m serious.”
“And moving over the tracks was your solution?”
“I know he can still get to me. He can use other people. But so far, he’s left me alone. I know it won’t continue, but the peace has been nice. It’s only been a short time, but I feel like it’s different this time. He can’t just turn up here and drag me home like he’s done before.” She smiles sadly and I want to be the one who makes her smile again. “I think he agreed to the three-month banning order to give me thinking time. I think that he thinks I love him and I’ll go back to him.”
“Do you love him?” I hold my breath waiting for her answer.
“No. I did, but I don’t anymore.” She uncurls her legs from under her and straightens them out. I brush my finger over her foot and her skin breaks out in bumps.
“He didn’t deserve your love,” I say quietly. I gently slide her foot out of her sandal and place it in my lap, then reach for the other and do the same. “You deserve a man who can treat you like a queen,” I add, rubbing her foot between my thumb and fingers. She groans and closes her eyes, leaning back on her hands. I admire the way her cheeks turn pink and the flush spreads down her neck. I desperately want to see all of her, to see how far that blush goes.
Eva and Cree come over and hand out shot glasses. They take a seat on the blanket
