Chapter 25-3

She bought the cup to her lips again as she pictured the small child smiling at her as the soft breeze blew through her red hair as it splashed across her pale face. She pictured the small child smiling towards her, lifting her teacup and taking a sip like she was doing now. Charlotte closed her eyes and she could imagine Ava waving her hand over as she had a tea party under the old tree. She could see her bright green eyes light up with excitement and her giggles joining the soft breeze. "Charlie, the police are here." Charlotte opened her eyes and looked towards the old tree almost wishing that her daughter was there but she knew that was impossible. Charlotte took a deep breath and looked towards Chase who had his hand held out for her to take. Gently she stood up and Chase took the coffee off her and lead her into the lounge room where to the female officers from before were sitting. "Hello Miss Jones, I'm not sure if you remember us. I'm officer Taylor Jameson and this is my partner Lucy Gram." The officers looked her over with a key eye and she didn't miss the disgust that quickly passed over Officer Gram's face. Charlotte nodded her head and took a seat of the couch next to Chase. "Last time we spoke you didn't want to report anything. We have come to ask some questions and to see if you would like to press charges." Officer Gram smiled softly at her and sat forward so her forearms were resting on the thighs. Charlotte felt her heart pounding a mile per minute, and she thought she would be sick. She felt Chase squeeze her leg in encouragement and she tried to work through the panic that was settling in. "We know this is stressful for you, so let's start with some basic information. What is your name, age and date of birth?" Officer Jameson smiled softly at her and Charlotte took a deep breath. "My name is Charlotte Jones, I'm 27 and my date of birth is 5/01/1993." She watched as the officers wrote her information down with a smile. "Good, now next question what is your address?" Charlotte frowned. She wasn't living with Landon anymore so she couldn't give her old address, but she also was only living here until she recovered. "I don't have an address." She whispered and looked down at her hands as panic really set in about her situation. She was homeless, with nothing but what was on her back. She had no money, no id. She had nothing. She was nothing. "That's okay. Can I call you Charlotte?" Officer Gram asked, and she nodded her head. "Good then please call me Lucy and my partner Taylor. Now, this is where our questions get difficult but remember to breathe and everything will be okay. Do you know who hurt you?" The question was a simple yes, but when she tried to open her mouth, no words came out. Fear overrode her system as her fight-or-flight instinct kicked in and all Charlotte wanted to do was run and hide. "It's okay Charlotte, we can protect you." Charlotte shook her head because she knew no one could protect her from Landon. She would be forever stuck and damaged like this until he finally killed her. She was on borrowed time and was wasting it away because she knew he would come back for her. "I can't do this." She whispered and she could see the disappointment on both the officers' faces. She looked towards Chase who had a sad, angry look. His eyebrows were drawn together, his lips were turned down and she could feel the disappointment in the room. "Charlotte, we understand this is very difficult for you but we can't help you unless you help us. We promise we can protect you from whoever has harmed you." Taylor said and Charlotte shook her head. "I can't, he will kill me. You don't know what he is like. He's not a good person, he will send people after me. I don't want to go back." She whispered the last part, but she knew everyone had heard her. It terrified her to talk to the police about Landon, but Charlotte also knew she didn't want to go back. "Charlotte, we understand you don't want to go back. Nobody would, but you need to tell us so we can make sure he doesn't take you back. You are safe here. We can have an unmarked patrol car stay for a few weeks to keep you safe from him." Charlotte looked at Chase and she could see her fear reflected in his eyes. "You will be safe, Charlie. I promise he will never hurt you again." Charlotte watched as Chase lifted her undamaged hand and gave it a kiss before she turned back to face the police officers. Her hands shook and her forehead became damp with sweat. She tried to imagine she was in a different place as she took a deep breath and spilled her truth. "He was my fiancé. The person who did this to me. His name is Landon Keating." Charlotte drew in a deep petrified breath as her voice shook with every word she spoke. She had said it. She had said his name. She felt sick; she felt relieved, and she felt terrified. "Can you tell us how you met Mr Keating?" Charlotte took a deep breath and began her story of how she met a monster. "I was overseas studying art in London. The year before I met Landon, I had lost a baby. A stillborn. It was the anniversary of her birth a death. I hadn't been coping well. I was always drinking, smoking and my art was dark. I was alone with no one to talk to and no support. On her birthday I lost it, I remember little but I remember wanting to die. I swallowed a heap of pills and I slit my wrist. One minute I was floating away, the next I was waking up in a hospital." She looked towards Chase who was rubbing her left wrist where her thick white line sat on her wrist where she had tried to kill herself. "What happened next, Charlotte?" One officer said, and she took another deep, shaky breath. "They admitted me into psychiatric care and that is where I met Landon. I was sitting outside starring at nothing. The medication they had me on made me feel so numb and at the time I thought it was amazing to feel nothing. I remember Landon coming to sit next to me. He said nothing but just sat there for a while, I didn't even know he was there. It felt nice to be in someone's company who wasn't asking me how I felt." Charlotte closed her eyes as she remembered like it had happened yesterday.