Broken

Chapter 25

“A few times,” I said, nodding my head. “I put it on the counter next to me.”

The police officer nodded and continued writing. He was silent for a few moments. Sebastian kept rubbing the back of my hand and I was so grateful to him. It was the only thing that helped me remain calm.

“What happened next?” the police officer asked, looking back up at me.

I took another deep breath and I felt my stomach twist.

“I started feeling sick,” I said quietly. “I told my friends that I needed to go to the bathroom. My friend Tim offered to go with me, but I refused. My memories are blurry from that moment on.”

The police officer nodded. “It’s okay. Just tell me what you remember.”

I gulped and focused on Sebastian’s hand on mine.

“I remember getting to the bathroom and I remember a man entering behind me,” I said quietly and I could feel Sebastian tense up.

“Did you see his face?” the police officer asked.

“No,” I said, shaking my head. “My vision was blurry.”

He nodded and waited for me to continue.

“He started talking to me,” I continued quietly. “I can’t remember what he said, though. I can only remember the alcohol in his breath.”

My stomach turned and I had to stop to take a deep breath.

“He picked me up and started carrying me somewhere,” I said. “At that moment I could hear someone else following us. It was a woman and she said that she wanted to record everything.”

Just thinking about a video like that being out there somewhere…

I forced myself to gulp the bile that started rising.

“That is the last thing I remember,” I added quietly.

The police officer nodded and started writing everything down.

“Did you recognize the woman’s voice?” he asked, keeping his head down.

“No,” I said, shaking my head. “I am not even sure if she was really there. Maybe I made it all up.”

“No, you didn’t,” Sebastian said, looking at the police officer. “She didn’t make it up. Amelia was the one who wanted to film it. I am sure of it. I told you about the…”

“Fake video, yes,” the police officer interrupted him. “We are working on getting a warrant to seize her phone. We should have it soon.”

“You should have had that warrant here yesterday,” my dad spoke angrily. “Amelia should have been behind bars already.”

“Mr. Anderson…,” the police officer spoke, but my dad interrupted him.

“I don’t want to hear it,” he said angrily. “You need to speed up the process. That warrant needs to get here today.”

The police officer closed the file in front of him and nodded.

“We will do our best, Mr. Anderson,” he said as he stood up and looked at me. “Thank you, Aurora. We are done for today.”

I nodded and watched as he picked up the file and walked out of the room. I sighed in relief as soon as he closed the door behind him.

“You did great,” Sebastian said, pulling me to him.

I wrapped my arms around his neck and took a deep breath. He rubbed my back gently and I felt my body relax a little.

“Are you okay?” he asked me quietly and I shook my head a little.

“I want to go home,” I mumbled and I felt my mom’s fingers in my hair.

“Let’s go home, honey,” she said softly. “I will make you your favorite lunch.”

I wasn’t really hungry, but I looked at her and gave her a small smile. She leaned in and kissed my cheek. Sebastian stood up and pulled me behind him. We followed our dad out of the room.

“Aurora!” I heard Rhys’ voice as soon as I stepped out into the hallway.

I looked to my left and saw him rushing toward me. He pulled me into a tight hug and I couldn't help but smile.

“Oh, I am so sorry, princess,” he said, placing a kiss on my temple. “I wanted to be in there with you, but my dad said that I couldn't.”

“It’s okay,” I said, smiling at him. “Sebastian was there.”

Rhys nodded and caressed my cheek.

“Do you want to eat lunch with us, Rhys?” my mom asked, making him look at her.

“Yes, Mrs. A,” he said, nodding and smiling at her. “That would be great.”

Sebastian pulled me back to him as we started leaving the station. I took a deep breath and released it slowly.

I was hoping that I didn’t make a huge mistake by doing this. I was hoping that Bruno and Amelia wouldn't find a way to get back at me for pressing charges against them.