The Life of Anna, Part 5: Emerged

by Marissa Honeycutt

  “A little taller than Katrina, with dark brown hair and a goatee.”

  Aaron rubbed his face. “He wasn’t very tall?” Devin was definitely tall.

  Stef shook her head. “I mean, he wasn’t short, but it wasn’t like ‘wow, that guy is tall’.”

  Aaron felt the blood rush from his face as a suspicion came to him.

  “Aaron, what’s wrong?” Hugo said softly. “Do you know who she left with?”

  “Fuck!” Jack. Aaron spun around and went back into his room, calling Tom with one hand and pulling his shoes on with the other.

  “Hey, Aaron—” Tom began.

  “Anna’s gone. I think she may have been taken by Jack.”

  “Jack? How is that possible? I didn’t know he was here.”

  “Can you track her phone?”

  “Um, yeah. Give me a few minutes and I’ll call you back.”

  Aaron went back out to the hallway. “When did she leave?” he asked Stef.

  “Before the performance started.”

  “Security cameras!” he exclaimed and then ran down the hallway with Hugo behind him.

  *****

  Anna heard a faint buzzing sound and she jumped. Her body ached and her head throbbed. She opened her eyes and sat up. Where was she? It looked...like a hotel room? But it was a mess, like there had been a fight. She looked down to see herself covered in bruises and cuts and blood.

  Her heart beat rapidly in her chest as she looked around. Jack. She had come here with Jack. But where was he? He wouldn’t have left her alone.

  She heard the buzzing sound again and realized it was her phone. She stood on shaky legs to retrieve her purse from across the room and pulled out her phone.

  She looked at the screen. “Aaron?” she asked weakly, sitting down on the bed.

  “Anna! Where are you?” he sounded out of breath.

  “I-I don't know.” She started crying. She was so afraid.

  “Hon. Take a deep breath and look around. Is Jack there?”

  “I don't know,” she whispered. She looked around. “It’s a hotel.” She looked behind her. The headboard was broken in pieces and the bed was a mess. Glasses were broken on the floor and it looked like there was even a crack in the window. She walked to the table that had been overturned. “Mandarin?” she read, looking at the cover of a binder that had fallen on the floor.

  She heard him repeat it to someone. “What room, hon? Look on the back of the door.”

  She walked across the room and saw a diagram of the hotel floor. “Thirty-oh-six” she read and turned to go back and she saw feet in the bathroom. She stepped inside and saw Jack lying on the floor in a pool of blood. “Oh, God, Aaron! I think Jack’s dead.”

  *****

  “I think Jack’s dead,” came the words over Aaron’s phone. He had been running down the sidewalk and he stopped mid-step. Hugo ran into him from behind.

  “Dead?” Aaron repeated.

  “There’s blood...oh, God, Aaron. What happened?” The panic in Anna’s voice frightened him more than anything else.

  “Anna, are you okay?” He started jogging again

  “I don’t know,” she whispered.

  “Okay. Just...wait, Anna. We’re almost there.”

  “Okay.” Her voice was so tiny he could barely hear her.

  Hugo caught up to him. “Who’s Anna? I thought we were trying to find Katrina?”

  Aaron realized his mistake and looked up apologetically. “I’m sorry, man. I’ll try and explain later. Yes, we’re going to Katrina. She’s at the Mandarin.” He swerved around a group of people.

  “Is she okay?”

  Aaron shook his head. “I don't know. Will you call her? I need to call someone.” He put the phone back up to his mouth when Hugo nodded. “Anna, Hugo’s gonna call you and stay on the line with you until we get there.”

  “Okay.”

  Aaron nodded to Hugo, who called Anna. Aaron hung up and called Tom to let him know he’d gotten a hold of her and her room number.

  *****

  Anna’s phone beeped. It was Hugo.

  “Hugo?” she said in a tiny voice.

  “Katrina? Oh, hon, are you okay?”

  “I don't know.” She stared at Jack’s body, unable to move. Blood seeped from a gash in his head, and scratches and bruises covered his body. His head rested in an unnatural position. “I don't know what happened,” she whispered.

  Hugo didn’t say anything, but by his breathing it sounded like he was walking very fast.

  “I’m sorry,” she whispered. Tonight was supposed to be their night together. She should have fought Jack harder. Then she would be in Hugo’s arms right now instead of naked and bloody in a hotel room with her guardian. She fell to her knees and started sobbing. “I’m so sorry, Hugo,” she sobbed.

  “Katrina, why are you sorry? What happened?”

  Anna felt too ashamed to tell him that she’d had sex with her guardian. Hugo would never see her the same way and their relationship would be over.

  “Katrina?”

  Anna didn’t answer and hung up the phone. Her nerves tingled as she got up and looked for her clothing. They’d fallen to the floor and her dress was wrinkled, but she put it on anyway.

  Her body ached. What had happened to Jack? How did he end up dead? She only remembered him fucking her and getting angry.

  She was zipping up her dress when someone pounded on the door. “Anna!”

  Anna walked slowly to the door and opened it. Immediately, she was in Hugo’s arms. “God, Katrina. Are you okay?” She could sense him looking around. “What happened?” He held her at arm’s length and looked her up and down. “What happened?” he repeated in a softer tone.

  Anna didn’t answer. Instead she looked at Aaron. “He found me,” she whimpered.

  Aaron nodded. “Tom’s on his way. Where is he?”

  Anna tilted her head to the bathroom. Both men looked and jumped. Aaron stepped into the bathroom and looked down at Jack. “Pretty sure he’s dead. But I’m not touching him.”

  “Did someone come in with you two?” Aaron asked.

  “I don’t know. I don’t remember anyone. He....” Anna tried to pull away from Hugo but he held her tight. She looked up at him with tears in her eyes. “You should just let me go now, Hugo.”

  Hugo shook his head. “Who is he?”

  “My guardian.”

  “Your guardian?” he exclaimed.

  “He’s been abusing her since she was twelve, Hugo,” Aaron said. “She didn’t come here voluntarily.”

  “Oh, Katrina,” Hugo said softly, pulling her back into his arms. He kissed the top of her head and petted her hair.

  There were voices in the hall and Tom and Tommy appeared in the doorway seconds later. “Holy shit,” Tommy exclaimed. “What happened?”

  Tom walked over to Jack’s body and put his hand on his neck. “He’s dead.” He looked up at Anna leaning against Hugo with her head on his chest. “Does Devin know?”

  Anna shook her head. “Jack said he...he wanted to have fun with me before he called him.”

  Tom exhaled and stood up. “I’ve never been so thankful for his perversion.” Tom looked at Hugo. “Who are you?”

  “Hugo. Katrina’s...boyfriend.”

  Anna looked up at him with wide eyes. “Really?”

  He stroked her cheek. “After what I had planned for tonight, I certainly hope so.”

  “He’s a dancer and choreographer with the City Ballet,” Aaron added.

  “Oh! Hugo Sintzenich! I know you, though we’ve never officially met. I’m Tom Pendleton.” Tom extended his hand.

  Hugo’s eyebrow raised as he shook Tom’s hand. “You’re Tom Pendleton? You know him?” He looked at Aaron, clearly surprised.

  Aaron shrugged. “It’s a really long story.”

  “One that doesn’t need to be told right now,” Tom said. “I got another room to take her to.” He pulled a card out of his pocket. “Next door.” He handed
the card to Hugo. “Can you stay with her while I look around?”

  “Of course,” Hugo said, taking the card from Tom. He kept his arm around Anna and led her next door. He sat her on the bed and held her close. “Did he rape you, Katrina?”

  Anna didn’t know how to answer that. “I suppose some would qualify it as that.”

  Hugo stiffened. “Did you want to come here with him?”

  “No. I never wanted to see him again. I wanted to see you dance.” Anna clasped her hands in her lap. “You don’t have to stay with me if you don’t want to.”

  “Why wouldn’t I want to, Kittycat?” He lifted her chin to look her in the eye. “I was so worried about you. I still am. Please trust me.”

  Anna bit her lip. “I don’t know what I can tell you. I’ll have to ask Tom.”

  “Is your guardian the relationship that you didn’t want to talk about before?”

  “He’s part of it.”

  “Katrina’s not your real name, is it?”

  Anna shook her head slowly. “They changed it so I couldn’t be found.”

  “It’s Anna, right?”

  She smiled. She liked the sound of her real name on his lips. “Yes.”

  “It suits you. Though I think your other name does too. Whoever picked it out did a good job.”

  The door opened and the others came in. Tommy sat down next to Anna. “Are you okay?” he asked, taking her hand.

  She hadn’t seen or heard from him since the night he’d left her after having sex with her. She pulled her hand away and watched as first hurt, then sorrow filled his eyes.

  Tom leaned on the dresser across from where she was sitting on the bed, arms loosely crossed over his chest. “Tell me what happened,” he said in a gentle voice.

  She glanced at Hugo and then back at Tom and told him what happened, up to the point where she got angry and didn’t remember anymore. “The next thing I knew I was lying on the ground and my phone was buzzing at me.” Tears spilled down her cheeks and Hugo handed her a tissue. He hadn’t moved the whole time she spoke, even when she talked about having sex with Jack.

  “Anna, do you remember getting angry any other time and not remembering what happened after?”

  “Yes,” she said softly.

  “Was it after Devin...er, you lost the baby? A few months ago?”

  She looked up at Tom, thankful he didn’t say what had really happened, and nodded. “Do you know what happened then?”

  He gave her a wry smile. “You were defending yourself. Anna, sweetie, I think you killed Jack.”

  “What?” she exclaimed, looking around wildly. “I couldn’t have done that. He’s so much stronger than me.”

  “There is a part of you that is very strong and is starting to emerge when you need to defend yourself. It took Ian and two other men to subdue you when it happened before.”

  Anna remembered Ian talking about it and the bruise on his cheek. She was saddened at his memory. Another death because of her. She stared at her hands. “What should I do now?”

  “Go home, take a bath and get a good night’s sleep. I’ll take care of things here and come up with a story for Devin. I can honestly say he got attacked in his hotel room.”

  “You’re not going to call the police?” Hugo asked incredulously.

  Tom gave him a sympathetic look. “This is beyond the police, Hugo. Involving them would only endanger Anna...er, Katrina.”

  “I know her real name.”

  “What else do you know?” Tom asked, his face inscrutable.

  “I know that she was raped by her guardian tonight and you don’t seem to care much about how she’s going to deal with it.”

  Tom inhaled deeply and looked at the wall behind them. “I do care that Jack came and got her. Unfortunately what he did to her was rather...well, I’ve seen her go through much worse.” He looked back at Hugo. “I know you’re concerned about her and that's good. She needs that. I am too. There’s just more going on here than I can explain right now and frankly, it would be dangerous for me to tell you anymore.” He straightened. “What I can tell you is, by being here in New York, she is safer than she’s been in her entire life, and there are many people working to make that safety a permanent reality for her.”

  Hugo looked at him for a long moment and then nodded. “Please tell me if there is anything I can do.”

  Tom smiled at Anna and then looked at Hugo. “You’re doing it. Please continue to call her Katrina. If her name gets out, I don’t know how long I’ll be able to protect her.” He crouched down and looked Anna in the eye. “You can tell him what you’re comfortable with about your personal experiences, but keep names out of it, all right?”

  Anna nodded. “He knows a little about Alex.”

  Tom looked surprised and pleased, then took her hand. “You took your wedding ring off,” he commented softly, and looked approvingly at Hugo. “You’re obviously doing many things right, Hugo.” He kissed Anna on the cheek and stood. “Take her home, get her cleaned up and put her to bed. Are you healing again?” he asked Anna.

  “I don’t know. I haven’t been injured in a while.”

  “That’s good.” He chuckled. “A good problem to have. Don’t worry about this, Anna. Devin won’t find out you’re here.”

  “Thank you, Tom,” she said quietly and stood. Hugo finished zipping her dress and put his arm gently around her. She looked down. “My shoes are in the other room.”

  “I’ll get them,” Aaron said, walking quickly out of the room and returning a few minutes later.

  Hugo cleared his throat. “Do I, uh, need to be concerned about...defending myself?”

  Amusement filled Tom’s eyes. “Are you planning on raping her or dragging her back to people who want to hurt her?”

  “Absolutely not!”

  “Then you have nothing to worry about. She’s not the Hulk where she’ll turn into a monster if she gets angry. She’s just finally learned to defend herself against people who want to hurt her.”

  “Are there a lot of people who want to hurt her?” Hugo asked.

  Tom frowned. “Unfortunately, yes. But there are many who want to help her too.” He smiled encouragingly. “Take her home. She’ll be all right.”

  Anna put her shoes on and glanced at Tom. “Thank you, Tom.”

  Tom nodded. “Anytime, Anna. It’s the least I can do.”

  *****

  Hugo and Aaron flanked Anna as they walked down the hallway and in the elevator down to the lobby. The doorman hailed a cab and they went back to Anna and Aaron’s apartment. Hugo kept his arm around her the whole time.

  “What can I do to help, Katrina?” Hugo asked as they walked inside.

  She looked at him, searching his eyes. “Do you still want to be with me?”

  He cradled her cheek. “I’m not going anywhere, Kittycat,” he said softly.

  “You could get killed,” she squeaked, grief hitting her like a ton of bricks.

  Hugo caught her before she could fall to the floor and led her to the couch. He held her in his lap with his long arms wrapped around her body.

  Aaron gave Anna a sad look and then came to kneel next to her on the floor. “Anna...Kat,” he said softly, glancing at Hugo. “Kat, nothing’s gonna happen to Hugo. We’re not in San Francisco anymore, remember? You’re safe. He’s safe.”

  “But Jack—”

  “...got lucky and now he’s gone. Hon, it’s okay to be happy for once. Don’t let your fears ruin it.”

  She blinked back tears as she gazed at Aaron. “I’m sorry,” she whispered, trying to apologize. She knew he was wishing that he was the one making her happy.

  He brushed her hair out of her face. “I’m just the doomed best friend, destined to forever be shoved aside for your boyfriends.” He chuckled. “Maybe I should just become gay, or rather, lean further in that direction.”

  Anna gasped. “Aaron!”

  “What? I’ve gone out with guys before. And no other girls ever interest
ed me.” He shrugged and then laughed. “Then I can see you naked and Hugo won’t get pissed.”

  Hugo narrowed his eyes, partially mocking. “I haven’t even seen her naked.”

  Anna blushed as Aaron laughed. “You really should change that.”

  Hugo shook his head. “I don’t want to know why you would say that.” He laughed. “I was going to try tonight, you know.”

  Anna buried her head in Hugo’s chest, blushing furiously. “I’m sorry, Hugo.”

  “Nothing to apologize for, Kittycat.” He kissed her head. “Do you want to go take a shower and clean up? We can watch a movie or something afterwards.”

  Anna nodded. She felt gross and knew she was sticky from blood and other things. She stood and went to her room.

  Chapter Nine

  “She’s worth it, you know,” Aaron said after Anna disappeared around the corner.

  Hugo nodded. “I know. I just had no idea...she was always reluctant to talk about her past. I guess I understand why now.” He grimaced. “That was really her guardian?”

  Aaron nodded. “He started sexually abusing her after her parents were killed.”

  “God,” Hugo mumbled, shaking his head. “And he came after her for that?”

  Aaron shook his head. “It’s much bigger than just his abuse, Hugo. There’s...someone out there who wants to control her and he wants her back. That’s why she’s here. To keep her from him.”

  “Why?”

  Aaron hesitated. “Because she’s very special. It’s the easiest way to explain it.”

  “Anyone can see that she’s special just by looking at her.”

  Aaron smiled. Hugo was a good guy. He’d watched him as Anna told Tom what happened, looking for any sign of disgust, but all he saw was sadness for Anna. Aaron couldn’t help but approve of the guy as being worthy of Anna. “She is.” He cleared his throat. “The thing is, with what happened tonight…she really will be okay.”

  “I think that’s one of the most disturbing things I’ve heard in a long time. I can’t imagine what she’s gone through to make tonight look like nothing to be concerned about.”