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“I was raped by my own father from the time I was a toddler until I was sixteen. Gabriel terrorized me and took everything from me,” I say. “Sadie is all I have left, and I don’t even know if I deserve her friendship after how much I’ve blown her off. I have nothing left to lose here.”

“Alright,” Keith says. “Kimberly can attend court without you. I’ll give you the week to get your affairs in order, but you need to be at the facility by Friday morning.”

“Yes, sir,” I say.

“I can check on your apartment,” Sadie says. “It’s all on autopay under your trust, so you should be fine.”

“Thank you,” I say.

“Don’t break your promise,” Keith says. “This is your chance to turn things around for yourself. Don’t waste it.”

“I won’t,” I say.

“I will release a statement saying that charges were dismissed and she is seeking inpatient care for complex PTSD,” Kimberly says. “Max, I would appreciate it if you could be there and help give her a better name than you have been.”

“I will,” Max says. “Nora, I’m sorry for villainizing you.”

“It’s your job,” I say. “No hard feelings.”

“Can she take this monitor off?” Ricky asks.

“Yes,” Keith says, looking at me. “I trust she will follow through.”

“I will. I promise,” I say.

My whole life has been one nightmare after another. Alex and Liam were the light in the darkest parts of my world, but I will live for them. For me. For all of the victims Gabriel took from this world. I will live in peace knowing his death is what set me on my path of the unbecoming.

PART 2

Chapter Nineteen

Nora

One Year Later

Today is the day I will finally be released. I am mostly excited, but I’m also nervous. Ricky and Sadie are the ones picking me up. Even though I’ve been here, they came to visit me every single weekend. It will be nice to see them away from here, though.

The last year has been a whirlwind of events. From the moment I got here, I was determined to do more than just survive. I took my treatment seriously and took advantage of the time to better myself.

Alongside my master's in criminal psychology, I graduated with a bachelor's in business administration. I spent the last year turning that into another master's degree. I knew that going back into their field just wasn’t logical for me right now. Maybe in the future I can work with victims, but right now I am still healing.

It took me months to realize that healing isn't something you finish. It's something you choose every day. I can never erase the things that have happened to me, but I have now been given the tools so I can navigate my trauma.

I was a little reluctant to admit that I was having such violent thoughts for so many years. When I finally did, it was in group therapy. Almost everyone could relate on some level, and that made me realize that the biggest difference between Gabriel and me is that I didn’t enjoy those intrusive thoughts, and he did. He thrived in them while I fought them every single day.

It took a lot of convincing to get the facility to let me keep my necklace and the shirt, but they did end up saying I could, and they had to stay in my room so other patients weren’t at risk of using them against me or on themselves.

I get to meet my outpatient therapist today, and he will be signing my discharge papers after our first official session. I have my room packed up, and I am ready to go. The others went on a field trip of sorts, but I stayed behind for discharge. I’m not very good at goodbyes, but I wrote them all a note and left it with staff this morning to wish them well.

For the first time in years, I don’t wonder whether I’ll make it to tomorrow. Now I just have to figure out what to do with all of those tomorrows.

Armed with all my bags, I walk out of my room and make my way to the front office. I press the buzzer that patients use to get the staff’s attention and wait.

When the door opens, I am greeted by a man I’ve never met before. “Nora,” he says with a kind smile.

“You must be Dr. Carter,” I say as he takes my bags and allows me to step into the office. Patients are rarely allowed in here simply because it’s a huge safety concern. He points for me to sit at the table in the center of the room, and I’m a little surprised.

“Call me Owen,” he says. “You look shocked. Why?”