Survival Instincts by Jen Waite

Author:Jen Waite [Waite, Jen]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781524745837
Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
Published: 2020-07-14T00:00:00+00:00

TWELVE YEARS

BEFORE THE CABIN

ANNE

When Anne woke up in the hospital, the first thing she noticed: Her body was empty. Ethan stood to the side of the hospital bed, gripping her limp hand and wiping a tear from the corner of her eye.

“Baby,” Anne whispered, trying to move her head up from the pillow.

“What, love?” Ethan bowed his head down.

“The baby,” she said, her throat felt raw and the back of her head throbbed.

“She’s fine. Just a little early so they took her to the intensive care wing.” He caressed her cheek with his hand. She felt rage bubbling up from her groin into her head. Did you fuck him? It all came rushing back. Maybe it was the drugs coursing through her veins, giving her strength, but the next words she spoke came out perfectly clear. “If you ever touch me again, if you ever come within a foot of my baby, I will kill you.”

Ethan blinked and when his eyes reopened they were dark and blank. “You’re not remembering clearly, Anne. You tripped on your way down the stairs.”

“Touch me again and I will scream.” She was crying now, desperate. “Leave. Leave now or I will fucking ruin you, Ethan. I’ll go to the police.”

“Do you really think anyone will believe you? You’re a whore, Anne.” He said the words kindly. “And if Joseph were under oath . . . Well, it wouldn’t look good for you, love.”

A nurse came into the room, alerted by the beeping of the monitor. “Ok, ok, calm down, honey,” was the last thing Anne heard before she sank into blackness again. When she woke up, her husband was gone, and Rose was there, holding her hand. Her father sat in a chair at the foot of the hospital bed, his hands placed firmly on his knees. Anne told her parents about the stairs and what Ethan had said about “not remembering clearly.” She didn’t tell them what he had said about Joseph.

“I’m going to kill him,” her father said. “I’m going to—”

“Sam,” Rose cut in. “Please.” Anne watched a look pass from her mother to her father. “Everything will be ok,” Rose continued. “We’ll figure all this out. Right now, you need to rest so you can be strong for . . . Does she have a name?”

Anne thought about the name she and Ethan had picked, Madeleine, for his grandmother.

“Thea.” It had been Anne’s favorite after she’d stumbled upon the name on a baby name website. Ethan had already decided on Madeleine but Anne carried the name and its meaning in the back of her mind. Thea: goddess of light.

“Beautiful.” Rose smiled. “Sleep. Everything will be ok. I promise.”

For the moment, as she plunged back into darkness, Anne believed her.

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