Free Her Kind of Man by Elle Wright

of something passed through Kent’s eyes before he lowered his gaze. “I don’t know what to say to that, except you know that’s not true,” he murmured. “You’re stronger than you give yourself credit for.”
    “You don’t understand. It has been years since I’ve felt this…fear in the pit of my stomach. I don’t know if it’s because of Isaac himself or the fact that his words mirrored things that my aunt told me. Now I keep thinking about my past, that night.”
    It was true. Allina had been transported back in time ten years ago. She remembered it like it was yesterday, because the events of that day had changed her life. Her parents had gone to a charity event. As usual, her aunt had come to sit with her. Allina had been old enough by then to stay home by herself, but her parents had unknowingly encouraged Allina and Laura to stay close.
    It had started out like every other night. Allina would lock herself in her bedroom, like it mattered. And her aunt would unlock the door and come in. This particular time, Laura had brought a camera, told Allina that she wanted to take pictures. Allina had decided enough was enough and fought back. She told her aunt that she would tell her mother. Then, Laura told her that if she did, her father’s career would be over and her mother would be dead. It was the first time she’d threatened violence against Allina’s mother. All this had surprised Allina because her father had always taken care of Laura. She gave in to protect them, but things went horribly wrong when her mother entered the room.
    Things escalated quickly when her mother jumped on her aunt. They fought and Allina scrambled to call her father. Everything had happened so fast. One minute, Aunt Laura was punching her mother, and the next her mother was standing over Laura’s lifeless body. Allina still remembered how bright the blood had been, flowing from her aunt’s head.
    When her father arrived he screamed. It was a piercing, loud wail. She’d never heard her father even raise his voice, because he was so mild mannered and even-keeled. Allina had been rooted to her spot, glancing back and forth between her dead aunt and her mother. Mom was holding a bloody baseball bat, chest heaving, tears streaming down her face. There were no last minute apologies, no struggling to survive; her aunt was just gone. Died instantly.
    Her father made a decision in that moment that would put all of them at risk. Instead of calling the police right then, he took the bat from her mother’s hand and disappeared. A few minutes later, he came back. The bat was gone. He ushered them out of the room and told them to get in the shower. Once they were done, he collected their clothes, gave them money, and told them to leave and not come back for a few days. They did exactly what he said.
    A few days later, they returned home to yellow police tape, news trucks and detectives swarming the house. Her aunt’s death was labeled a random act of violence by an intruder. The reporters speculated that it could have been a criminal that her father had punished exacting revenge. Soon, with no leads, the case was closed. It was over. Her father, the judge, had covered up a murder. They never spoke of it, or her aunt, again. Every trace of her, every picture, was removed. It was as if her father had never even had a sister. It was that act, that sacrifice, that had propelled her to give her life to God. She didn’t want her parents’ sacrifice to be in vain. She owed it to her parents to excel, to never do anything that would disappoint them.
    “What do you want to do?” Kent’s voice pulled her out of that memory.
    She shrugged. “What can I do? Before yesterday, Isaac had never done anything to make me feel so afraid of him. Yes, he was controlling at times, but never abusive. I keep thinking about that woman in the church, flashing to the look in his eyes when he threatened me.”
    “Maybe we can hire a private investigator,”