Page 19 of Saving Trinity
Jimmie snorted. Byron clapped Jimmie’s shoulder. “One phone call, bro, and we’ll all be here.”
Jimmie nodded. “I know. Good luck with him.”
Byron snorted and disappeared out the front door, quietly shutting it behind him. And right then, my phone went off. I walked over to the coffee table and picked it up, my hand trembling when I saw Officer Wilcox’s name on the screen.
Jimmie wound his arms around me from behind as I swiped my thumb across the screen to answer it.
“Hello?” I asked, hating how fragile I sounded.
“Miss Lennon?” Officer Wilcox asked. When I made a small noise of confirmation, he sighed. And I knew. “He was released on bond until his next court date of January ninth.”
“January?” I croaked. “That’s so far away. Why is it so far away?” I demanded, already feeling myself spiraling.
“It’s the date that was given, Miss Lennon,” he said gently. “A restraining order was approved though, and you should be receiving it in the mail at the address you gave me when filing your police report.”
Would a restraining order really keep him away though? Somehow, I didn’t feel like it would. Because the Zac I’d always known would never have done this to me. So who was to say a restraining order would actually keep him away from me?
“Th-thank you,” I managed before I hung up the phone. And then, I fell apart, my knees giving out beneath me.
Jimmie sank to the floor with me, and he held me close as I sobbed into his chest. “He’s out,” I cried. “He got released and he’s out for over half a year. I can’t do this until January, Jimmie!”
He clutched me to him, his arms like steel bands around my shaking body. “He’ll never touch you or our son, baby,” Jimmie swore as he began to rock me. I sobbed, my hands balling into fists against his chest. “Never. I’ll fucking kill him first, you hear me? I will do time to keep you safe.”
I curled my fingers into his shirt and wailed, my shoulders shaking.
January.
I couldn’t live like this until fucking January. My mental health was already in the shitter. What would it be like by the time January ninth rolled around?
Zac had already raped my body, and now, without even being around, he was raping my fucking sanity just as brutally.
Chapter Sixteen
Trinity
After Officer Wilcox’s call, I spent the day zoning out and dissociating. I cried for a good hour on the living room floor wrapped in Jimmie’s arms, and once I was out of tears, we moved to the bed, and I wasn’t sure I spoke more than five words the rest of the day.
I knew Jimmie was worried about me, but he let me be. He just stayed by my side, and we watched random shows and movies that didn’t require much brain power. And while I knew he wanted me to eat, he didn’t push me to do so. At some point, I ate half a pop tart when my hunger got too bad to ignore, but that had gone down about as well as I imagined swallowing battery acid would.
I fell asleep a little after nine the night before wrapped around Jimmie. I’d spent most of the day practically on top of him, but I knew he didn’t mind. He would just clutch me close and run his fingers up and down my back and my arm while his chin rested on top of my head.
While I fell apart, he kept all my pieces in his hands so he could piece me back together at a later date. When that day came, I knew he would have super glue ready and a road map of my soul and heart to make sure all my pieces were put back together properly.
Slowly, I peeled my eyes open, staring at the wall across from me. The room was dark, which meant it was still dark outside. Jimmie didn’t keep blackout drapes over his windows since he enjoyed the daylight, and he was usually up before daybreak anyway to get a head start on his day.
“You good, baby?” Jimmie rasped, his voice husky with sleep. He combed his fingers through my hair. “You were sleeping peacefully.”
“I don’t know what woke me,” I muttered, snuggling back into his chest. He pulled the blankets up higher, then wound his arm back around me. His lips pressed to the top of my head.
“Go back to sleep,” he whispered. “I won’t leave. I promise.”
Pursing my lips, I kissed his bare chest, then wound my arm over his torso, shutting my eyes. I was almost dozing back off, his steady heartbeat and slow, deep breathing lulling me back to sleep when my phone vibrated. Frowning, I sat up and reached over Jimmie to grab it.
I had a voicemail from an unknown number. Jimmie leaned up on his elbow and rubbed his eyes with his other hand, yawning as he did so. “What is it?” he asked.
“I don’t know,” I muttered. My phone hadn’t yet transcribed the message, so I typed in my voicemail password and pressed play on the latest message.
Zac’s voice filled the quiet room, chilling the blood in my veins.
