“How do you tell someone that the woman they love has been raped? Or worse, wasn’t raped but slept with another man?”
Those are two big questions. “Do you know it was rape?” I ignore the second question as my skin begins to itch.
He shrugs. “I don’t know.”
“Then I suggest you ask her what happened before deciding anything.”
Max’s head turns at my sharp tone. “I don’t know if it was rape or coercion, but it wasn’t consensual.”
“Both of those are rape with different terminology. You talk to her, not him. She needs to be the one to share it, not you.”
“What if she won’t? He deserves to know that the woman he loves was raped.” Max turns his pain-filled eyes to me.
In this moment, I know why they named him Rage. His rage doesn’t touch mine. “Then you wait. What you need to realize is this happened to ‘her’. They assaulted ‘her’. They took something from her that she can never get back. Whatever he might feel is valid, but nothing compared to what she’s going through. And forcing her to acknowledge it or relive it before she’s ready—” I take a deep steadying breath. “—isn’t the way to help anyone.”
“I’m not looking to help. I need to make sure she’s safe.”
A tremble runs through my body. “Do you—Do you think the person will assault her again?” The urge to shower starts building inside of me.
“Yes.”
“You need to convince her to talk to the police.”
“The police don’t protect my family.” There’s violence in Max’s voice that’s barely controlled.
“Max.” I reach out to set a hand on his arm.
He shrugs it away like my fingers are a branding iron. “Don’t touch me for the first time like this. Not now.” Max jumps up and storms away.
What was that about?
You Tell Him
Max
I eat up the ground as I walk home. Could I have handled that any worse?
Why did I let my emotions get the better of me? Fiona was being kind.
Or trying to at least.
And now she’s going to think I rejected her.
Because you did, you fool.
I shouldn’t have come near her when I felt like this.
Everett! It’s all the kid’s fault. I came here to get him.
To bring my brother home.
That’s a weird thought.
How is Dad going to handle having another man’s son in his house?
How would I handle it if Fiona had been forced to have a child? Someone would be seeing the other side of my personality right before they died.
Whatever just happened with Fiona can be fixed. And if Dad can’t handle having Everett living at home, he can stay in one of the penthouses I own around Urbium. My brother isn’t living here like the other orphaned children. I reach for my phone to peek into Maddox’s security camera and find Everett when he walks up the street.
