Chapter 10
The party was my idea.
A year to the day since I’d walked out of that courtroom a free woman.
I wanted to celebrate.
Not just the end of Ethan, but the beginning of me.
We decorated the whole house.
Lila came over the day before and helped me hang streamers and balloons all over the living room.
Mrs. Greene baked three of her famous apple pies.
Daniel grilled burgers and hot dogs out in the backyard.
My parents showed up early, my mom carrying a huge bowl of potato salad, my dad toting a cooler full of soda and beer.
Mara came, with her wife and their two little girls, who immediately ran out to the garden to pick tomatoes with Mrs. Greene.
Janet, the DA, came with her husband.
Lisa flew in again, bringing her new fiancée, a sweet woman who made me laugh so hard I snort-laughed.
Mia came, with her little girl, Lily, who ran straight to Daniel and climbed into his lap like he was her favorite uncle.
All the women from my support group came, too.
Some brought their kids.
Some brought their new partners.
Some came alone, heads held high, smiling like they owned the world.
The house was full of noise and laughter and the smell of good food.
For a while, I just stood in the middle of the living room, watching everyone.
I thought about that night a year and a half ago.
Lying on that kitchen floor.
Alone.
Scared.
Convinced my life was over.
And now look at me.
Surrounded by people who loved me.
People who’d chosen me.
People who’d fought for me.
Daniel came over and wrapped his arm around my waist, kissing the top of my head.
“Penny for your thoughts?” he said.
“I was just thinking how lucky I am,” I said, leaning into him.
He squeezed me tighter.
“Lucky? You earned every bit of this, Elena. You fought for it. You’re the strongest person I know.”
Before I could answer, Lila banged a fork against a glass to get everyone’s attention.
“Hey! Can I have everyone’s attention, please?”
The room went quiet.
All eyes turned to me.
I felt my face get hot.
Lila smiled at me.
“Most of you know what my sister went through,” she said, her voice steady. “Two years ago, she was trapped in a house with people who hurt her, who stole from her, who tried to break her. They thought they could get away with it. They thought she was too small, too scared, too nice to fight back. But they were wrong. My sister is the bravest person I know. She didn’t just save herself. She’s spent every day since saving other people. She’s my hero. And I know I’m not the only one who feels that way. So if you all could raise your glasses— to Elena. To freedom. To second chances. And to never, ever letting anyone make you feel small again.”
Everyone cheered.
Glasses clinked.
Mia whooped so loud Lily started laughing.
I wiped the tears off my cheeks, laughing through them.
“Speech! Speech!” everyone started chanting.
I shook my head, but I walked over to where Lila was standing, taking the glass from her hand.
“I’m not very good at speeches,” I said, and everyone laughed.
“But I do want to say something. A year and a half ago, I was lying on a kitchen floor, convinced no one was ever going to help me. I thought I was going to die there. And then one woman opened her door. One woman held my hand. One woman told me I didn’t have to be alone. And that made all the difference.”
I looked right at Mrs. Greene.
She was crying, dabbing at her eyes with a napkin.
“Mrs. Greene, you didn’t just open your door that night. You opened your heart. You gave me a home. You gave me my voice back. I will never, ever be able to thank you enough for that. You’re my family. You’re my mom in every way that matters.”
The room erupted in applause.
Mrs. Greene blew me a kiss.
“I also want to thank my family,” I said, looking at my mom and dad and Lila. “For loving me even when I pushed you away. For never giving up on me. For being here now. I love you guys more than anything.”
I looked at Mara, at Janet, at Lisa.
“Thank you for fighting for me when I was too scared to fight for myself. For believing me when no one else would. For showing me that the system can actually work for people like us.”
I looked at Mia, at all the women from the support group.
“And to all of you. You guys are the reason I get up in the morning. You remind me every single day that no matter how dark it gets, the sun always comes up. That we are stronger together. That we don’t have to be victims. We can be survivors. We can be warriors.”
Finally, I looked at Daniel.
He was smiling at me, his eyes shiny.
“And last but definitely not least— Daniel. Thank you for loving me slowly. For loving me gently. For loving all the broken parts of me until they didn’t feel broken anymore. I don’t know what I did to deserve you, but I’m so glad I did.”
I raised my glass.
“So here’s to all of us. To the ones who left. To the ones who are still fighting. To the ones who are healing. May we all know love that doesn’t hurt. May we all feel safe in our own homes. And may we never, ever let anyone dim our light. Cheers.”
“Cheers!” everyone yelled.
The party went on long after the sun went down.
We lit tiki torches in the backyard.
We turned up the music and danced.
Lily fell asleep on the couch, her head in Mia’s lap.
Mrs. Greene went to bed early, her knees bothering her, but not before she made me promise to save her a slice of pie for breakfast.
Slowly, people started to leave.
Hugs were exchanged.
Promises made to do this again soon.
By eleven, it was just me and Daniel, sitting on the back porch swing, watching the fireflies dance over the garden.
He had his arm around me, my head resting on his shoulder.
The house was quiet.
The air was warm and sweet, smelling like roses and cut grass.
“Did you have a good night?” Daniel asked, kissing my forehead.
“The best,” I said.
I thought about Ethan, in his prison cell a hundred miles away.
I thought about his mom, in county jail.
I thought about all the pain, all the fear, all the lies.
And then I looked at the house.
My house.
Bright and warm and full of love.
I looked at the garden Mrs. Greene had planted.
I thought about Mia and Lily, safe and happy.
I thought about my sister, going to school to help other people.
I thought about Daniel, holding me like I was the most precious thing in the world.
The past was gone.
It couldn’t hurt me anymore.
The future was wide open.
Full of possibility.
Full of joy.
Full of love.
I snuggled closer to Daniel, closing my eyes.
For the first time in my life, I felt completely safe.
Completely loved.
May you like
Completely, unapologetically myself.
And I knew, with every fiber of my being, that the best was yet to come.
