Free Counting on Cayne (Hallow River Book 1) by Ada Rome

wave of truth. I held tight to her hand and told my story for
the first time.
    “I met Granton Langley
seven years ago. I had been happy until then. I was struggling, of course.
Dancing jobs were few and far between. I guess I had a touch of big fish
syndrome when I left Hallow River. I thought I was a star. When I got to New
York, I discovered that my talent was not so special and that I was only one of
thousands. But still, I was happy. I earned enough money waitressing to afford
rent in an apartment that I shared with three other girls. We lived on ramen
noodles. We saw each other through auditions, celebrated our victories, and
drank away our losses. I certainly wasn’t living my dreams yet, but I hoped
that I soon would be.”
    I hesitated, gathering
strength. Aunt Lu nodded, encouraging me to continue.
    “Granton found me waitressing
at a cocktail party. He’s a big shot in the world of finance. He’s handsome and
charming and rich. He pursued me, wined and dined me, and told me that he
adored me. He seemed like everything a girl could ever want. He made me feel
like I was the most beautiful woman in the world. I moved into his penthouse.
It was a palace. He bought me expensive gowns and jewelry and took me to exciting
places. When I look back now, I realize that I was just a prop. He dressed me
up like a doll and paraded me around like a prize.”
    “After a few months, his
behavior toward me started to change. I hadn’t given up on my dancing career
yet. I still went to auditions, but rejections left me discouraged. Whenever I
failed to land a part, he told me that it was because I was too fat and that I
had no talent anyway. He laughed as he pinched my hips and thighs. He told me
that I would never make it as a dancer, not in this body. He said that I was
lucky to have him because I would never survive on my own. I believed him. I doubted
myself in a way that I never had before. Anxiety creeped into every audition. I
expected failure and knew that I would have to face Granton’s laughter and
insults afterwards. That’s when I stopped dancing completely.”
    I paused and nervously
scratched my nails along the scuff marks on the tabletop. Looking back now, I
wondered how those relatively small attacks could have torn down my confidence
so quickly and caused me to give up so readily on my dream. But when someone
chips relentlessly away at your sense of self, it takes an unmistakable toll. Besides,
those were just the opening shots of Granton’s war on my psyche. Much worse was
to come. I pressed my fidgeting hand flat on the table and continued.
    “He became obsessive
about my movements. He interrogated me about everything I did, every place I
went, and every person I saw. He hired a photographer to follow me. He threw a
batch of pictures in my face, claiming that I was cheating on him when I had
coffee with a friend or chatted with a stranger on the street. I threatened to
leave. He begged me to stay. He said that he was only jealous because he loved
me and that I was the one hurting him . I stayed even though I
knew that it was wrong. I stopped talking to people. I looked over my shoulder
whenever I left the house. Granton became the center of my world even as his
moods became increasingly erratic and unpredictable. I never knew whether he
was going to be nasty or kind, vicious or loving. I was kept off balance. The
first time he hit me---”
    I stopped. My breath
caught in my throat. Aunt Lu’s lips pursed and her eyes burned with anger. She
squeezed my hand reassuringly. I took a sip of coffee to settle my nerves.
    “We’d gone to a party.
On the ride home, he berated me for making him look foolish with something I’d
said. I had no idea what he was talking about. I told him that he was being
ridiculous. When I stepped through the front door, a blinding flash of pain
pounded through the side of my face. I was on the floor before I even realized
what had happened. Granton was standing over me and