Chapter 11
Sean's blunt question took Anaya by surprise. She stared at him blankly, confused and slightly petrified at what was happening.
He held her shoulders roughly and shook her, his scathing gaze piercing her as he asked her again. "How many times did you cheat on me?"
A rush of fear flooded Anaya's mind. "What? Sean? Let me go! I didn't do anything!" She trembled as she tried to wriggle out of his grip.
"You refuse to let me kiss you once, but you go around spreading your legs for the whole town. Do you think I'm an idiot?" He went on mercilessly.
Anaya stared back in shock at his words before her expression changed to that of anger. She had enough.
"Let me go Sean, now!" She said, gritting her teeth.
On seeing her angry, Sean's temper shot up further. Anaya felt a sharp blow on her cheek and her head felt like it was struck by a hammer. She fell on the ground from the impact of Sean's slap.
Before she could recover Sean kicked her hard in the stomach. Anaya curled up in pain, writhing in shock as he continued kicking her. At the third kick, she heard a crack. An intense pain coursed through her, knocking the air out of her lungs. She looked around frantically, wondering how she could escape this horror. Her hand reached for a stone nearby and she grabbed it and swung it at Sean's head.
The blow took Sean by surprise and blood leaked from his forehead and he gripped the spot where she hit him. "Fucking whore!" He looked at her murderously.
Anaya's jaw trembled and her whole body shook in fear. Adrenaline surged through her veins and she shot up to her feet and ran from Sean. She didn't know how long she ran, or where she was running until she saw that she reached the town's library.
It was dark and Mrs. Hatch was just going to close the library. When she saw a disheveled Anaya gasping for breath, she hurried to hold the poor girl. Anaya managed to hold Mrs. Hatch for three seconds before she collapsed into her hands and everything went black.
*****
George rubbed his haggard face as he tried to shake the image from the library out of his mind. The heavy atmosphere in the room was suffocating him. He dug his nails into his hands out of helplessness.
The hatred he felt for Sean Perkins could not be put into words. After Anaya's attack, George was the first to reach her in the library. He remembered the deep red finger prints on her cheek. The cut on her lip dried up to a violent red from the cold wind. Spots of blood smeared on her dress over her stomach. When he took her back home that night, Mrs. Willow had passed out from the sight of her daughter. Meghan and Ariel cleaned Anaya up, while George waited downstairs with Mr. Willow.
Thomas looked heartbroken as he watched his unconscious wife. He gently pat her head as he looked at George. "We'll never be able to get Anaya married if we talk about what happened." He said somberly.
George opened his mouth to protest before he bit his tongue. Mr. Willow was right. The society was more cruel to the victim that the attacker.
"I'll talk to the Perkins family tomorrow. I want you and Meghan to watch over Anaya from now on. Don't let Sean come close to her. Always stay by her side." He continued robotically.
George couldn't bring himself to look at the man as he nodded to everything he said. Guilt racked him as he realized that he should've protected Ana, preventing her from seeing Sean in the first place. He fell for Sean's flawless façade like everybody else in this town. He pulled at his hair in frustration and an involuntary growl escaped him.
He felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up to see Meghan.
"How is she?" He heard Mrs. Willow's weak voice.
"We need you Annalise." Meghan said. "Looks like she broke two of her ribs."
Annalise broke in sobs as she heard Meghan. "Why?! My miracle baby? Why would he do this to her?"
Mr. Willow rushed to her side, holding his agonized wife. "She needs you." He reminded her as he helped her get up. He walked her up the stairs, to Anaya's room.
"It's bad isn't it?" George's voice broke, going hoarse as he asked Meghan.
Meghan burst into tears, unable to say a word. Silent tears rolled down from George's eyes as he held her.
*****
"Ana.." Meghan held her hand as Anaya came to sit on the bed next to her. She collected herself in the bathroom, so she wouldn't cry in front of her friends.
She looked at George and Meghan as she stepped out of the bathroom, no one had anything to say.
Anaya broke the silence. "I'm okay, you guys." She smiled, ignoring how she felt. "Really, I'm okay."
"I'm sorry I left you alone, Ana." George said.
"That's… George, you can't be with me all the time." Ana heaved a soft sigh. "I just have to be more alert. I need to learn to watch out for myself." Even as she was saying it, Anaya knew she had no chance at fighting off Sean.
Wahren's were born with enhanced physical abilities. Everything from their strength to their vision and hearing was far superior to that of a healer. While they were born with the strength of an average human, their abilities enhanced as they grew. Wahren's started showing abilities at the age of fourteen and they reached peak strength at twenty three, when the finished training at Arcane. Healers on the other hand had the same strength as humans, but with a strong mana affinity.
Watching George and Ana like this, Meghan felt unbearably stifled. She racked her brains for a solution. If she had the strength, she'd rip Sean Perkins' head off with her bare hands. With a dejected sigh, she fell back on the bed.
Anaya needed protection and the monster needed to die. Meghan was determined to solve this predicament, if it was the last thing she ever did.
A few hours passed before all three of them fell asleep in the same room. George slept on the floor, not wanting to leave the girls alone.
The next morning, when they woke up, Anaya seemed to feel somewhat better. She didn't want the likes of Sean Perkins ruining her experience at Arcane. She'd find a way to deal with him, she resolved.
George finally got up to leave the room after watching Anaya like a hawk for a good two hours. He would go find out which room Sean Perkins was in and figure out how to drive him out of Arcane. Maybe he would discreetly frame him for a serious offense? He needed to think about this some more.
As he was walking out the door, he spotted the flyer to a party Meghan mentioned. He held it up to the girls. "Are we still going to this tonight?" He asked.
Meghan wanted to refuse, but Ana spoke before her, surprising both her and George. "We absolutely are." She knew that George and Meghan wouldn't leave her alone and head to the party. Her friends didn't have to miss out on the rest of their lives hiding from Sean with her.
"Yeah! Let's do it!" Meghan said grinning at her brave friend. George smiled at the girls and exchanged a knowing look with Meghan. Maybe they could push Sean into the bonfire and watch him burn. Who knew?