Threats disguised as advice.
Times Paul told me I was too sensitive when Diane crossed boundaries.
I had spent years explaining away things I should have recognized.
The morning after I arrived at the hospital, an attorney named Rachel arrived with a folder.
She had been contacted through a hospital support program after staff became concerned about my injuries.
She sat beside my bed.
“Clara, I need you to understand something,” she said.
“The most important thing right now is preserving evidence and keeping you safe.”
I nodded.
Then she placed the folder down.
“There is something you should see.”
Inside were reports.
Notes.
A timeline.
And one document from the night everything happened.
The police report.
Mrs.Young had called emergency services.
When responders arrived, they noticed details at my home that didn’t match the story Paul later gave them.
Paul claimed there had been an accident.
But the scene told another story.
