Walker straightened, leaning against his desk. “When was the last instance of abuse?”
Tessa thought for a moment. “It’s been over two years now.”
Walker’s jaw hardened. “Has he made threats in that time?”
Tessa shook her head. “I don’t know. I threw away my phone and haven’t checked my email since the day I left. I’ve had no contact with anyone from my old life. I had an anonymous threat recently, but nothing actually tied to him.”
Walker ground his back molars together, and I didn’t get a good feeling. “To file a restraining order, there must be an instance of abuse or threat made in the last six months.”
“That’s bullshit.” I couldn’t hold the words in. Tessa flinched at my tone, and I tugged her tighter to me, kissing her hair. “Sorry, baby,” I whispered. She burrowed deeper against me.
Walker clasped his hands in front of him. “In circumstances like this one, I completely agree. The good news is the statute of limitations on domestic violence is longer. Three years to the most recent incident.” He met Tessa’s gaze. “If you file charges against him and he makes any sort of threat or attempts to harass you, we can file the restraining order then. But, hopefully, his ass will be in jail.”
Tessa straightened in my lap. “I want to file charges, then.”
Walker nodded. “Good.”
With a shaky hand, Tessa extended the envelope. “I don’t have any witnesses, but I do have photos. Will that help?”
Walker took the envelope from Tessa’s hand. “They will. Did you take these yourself?”
She shook her head. “No, my friend Gena did.”
Walker held the packet gently in his hands. “That’s helpful. She’s also someone who can corroborate the timeline even if she didn’t witness any of the incidents themselves. You okay with me looking at these?”
I could feel a slight tremor run through Tessa’s body, but she nodded. “Go ahead.”
I held my breath and continued running a hand up and down Tessa’s spine as Walker opened the envelope. He sucked in an audible inhale, rage flaring to life in his eyes. When he finished with the first Polaroid, he placed it on the desk, moving to the next in the stack.
I froze. Someone might as well have jammed a hot poker through my chest. There, in slightly faded color, was my Tessa. In the photo, she faced away from the camera, wearing nothing but a simple bra and underwear. Her back and thighs were riddled with long lines of dark purple bruises. I looked more closely and saw gashes running through the center of each injury.
My brain short-circuited.Who could do this to another human being?“Baby, no.” The words were guttural, torn from somewhere deep inside. I hugged Tessa tighter to me as if I could erase what had happened to her.
Walker snapped to attention. “Has he not seen these?”
His voice sounded far away as I continued staring at the image, unable to tear my gaze away from the carnage.
I could feel Tessa’s head shake. “No.”
Walker snapped up the picture on his desk. “I’m sorry.”
Tessa turned in my lap, framing my face with her hands. “I’m okay. I’m all right now. I’m right here, and I’m fine.”
I buried my face in her neck. There was wetness there. I belatedly realized it was from my own eyes. My beautiful girl, someone had broken her body. The despair morphed into rage on a dime, thick and swirling in my gut. I brought my head up and met Walker’s gaze. “You get this fucker. You get him, or I will.”
Tessa fisted my shirt. “No! You stay the hell away from Garrett.” She shook her fists, keeping hold of my button-down. “I will kick you out of this room and finish this interview alone if I have to. I didn’t want to keep anything from you, but I need to know you won’t go off half-cocked and do something crazy.”
Tessa’s fire brought me back to myself, her strength and her fierce protectiveness. “Half-cocked?” A small smile tipped my lips at a time when I would have thought it would be impossible.
Her shoulders sagged in relief, and then she blushed. “You know what I mean.”
I took her face in my hands, kissing her lips and then her temple. I spoke quietly. “This isn’t easy for me to hear. But I’ll do my best to keep it reined in.”
Uncertainty filled Tessa’s gaze. “You don’t have to stay, you can wait outside if you want.”
Fuck, I was the world’s biggest bastard. Tessa had lived through this nightmare, the least I could do was support her when she told her story. “I’m with you. Always.”
* * *
