Annie got a look of puzzlement on her face and allowed herself the tiniest of smiles. “You didn’t.”
“He broke my fucking arm, you stupid bitch!” my uncle screamed, “Are you happy now? My fucking arm’s broken!”
“Oh no,” I said, choking him a bit tighter, “You don’t get to call her a stupid bitch, fucknut. The stupidest thing she ever did was marrying you. The smartest was when she divorced your ass. So what’s it gonna be, Annie? We let him go, or you make a phone call.”
“Don’t call the cops,” my uncle said desperately, “don’t call ’em, Annie, please, I’m sorry. I only…I just wanted to fuck you, I missed you. I’m drunk…I’m sorry.” Annie looked at Frank, shaking her head. Then she looked at me and smiled, and went over to the phone and dialed three numbers.
“Noooo!” Frank wailed. I choked him harder, saying “Shut the fuck up – can’t you see she’s on the phone?” I looked over at Annie and smiled. She smiled back, then turned her attention to the phone again.
“Hello, my ex-husband just tried to rape me.” she said into the phone in a shaky voice. “Yes, he’s still in the house..no, I’m okay.” She looked up at me again smiling, fresh tears forming in her eyes. “My neph…my friend…my friend is holding him. Can you send an ambulance too? Somehow, my ex broke his arm.”
The cops were there within minutes, but it took them a few hours to finish their investigation and take our statements. Annie wasn’t hurt, thankfully, and she refused treatment. Finally everybody left, and Annie and I were alone in the house. Annie couldn’t sit still, though. She was flitting around, changing her clothes, asking me if I wanted her to make lunch, making iced tea, trying to do a thousand things at once – despite my pleas for her to sit down. I went over to her, taking her by the shoulders and looking into her eyes. “Annie, stop. It’s okay, you’re going to be okay.” She looked up at me and started trembling. Then the tears came again, and she melted into my arms, weeping. I held her tightly, rocking back and forth, comforting her. After a few minutes, I helped her to the couch and she sat down. “Now, what do you want, Annie? Do you want something to eat or drink or anything?”
“I hope you don’t think badly of me, considering…but I could use a brandy. Would that bother you, Paul?”
“Not at all. I know you’re not like him. Don’t worry about it.” I went into the kitchen, poured her drink and brought it back to her. She took it from me with shaky hands, and took a sip.
“Mmmm…thank you. Paul, could you, would you mind staying with me for awhile? If you don’t have anything else to do?”
I smiled and sat down next to her without a word. She smiled and snuggled in with me, her head against my chest and her arms around me. I kissed her forehead, put my arm around her, and stroked her hair to comfort her. She calmed down and we talked for awhile about a lot of things – then she dropped a bomb. A little bomb, but still a bomb.
“Paul? Can I ask you something?”
“Sure.”
“Remember that day you came over right after he left? And you told me that you liked me?”