Chapter 62: I refused to give you up

Her eyes and forehead were shadowed with bruising from the swelling around her face, and it seemed she had difficulty keeping her eyes open.

"Lenora," she said again, in her husky voice.

Although determined to keep the visit as amiable as possible, the name was one weight I couldn't handle. "I go by Lena."

"Right," she sighed. "You never did like that name. Honestly, I can't blame you. It's a shitty name. Only thing I had from my mother, too."

She'd never really spoken about her mother before, no more than to say she'd never been around.

"I'm surprised you're here," she said.

Well, you did practically show up on my doorstep. "I'm surprised you came looking for me, again."

"That man who was with you before, he's your boyfriend? Or... are you married by now?"

I scuffed my toes against the tile floor, feeling the slight resistance as they squeaked. "How much do you know already?"

She lifted her head, then flinched before gently laying her head back. "What do you mean?"

Was she h