Page 15 of Protection for Asher (Safeguarded By The SEAL #4)

Squat could tell Asher was having issues.

She jumped at every sound, and she sat with her arms wrapped around her body like she was protecting herself from something or someone.

He focused on moving slowly and speaking softly.

The last thing he wanted to do was upset her and have her suffer a flashback or something else bad that would set her progress back.

The TV show he picked out was a comedy he knew was mild. The subject matter wasn't serious, and the show didn't focus on a sexual relationship. Overall, it seemed like Asher enjoyed the evening. Close to nine, he said goodnight and headed to his bed.

A noise woke him, and he sat up, listening for more sounds. He heard someone moving around the kitchen. His first instinct was to grab his gun, but then he remembered Asher was staying with him.

Squat slowly crept from his bed and cracked open the door. Sure enough, Asher was in the kitchen making a cup of coffee. Squat closed his door and checked the time, seeing it was only twenty minutes before his alarm would go off.

There wasn't enough time to get back to sleep. After a quick shower, he stepped from his room, and Asher's head jerked up, her eyes wide.

“Oh goodness, did I wake you? I’m so sorry.”

He tried for a reassuring smile. “No worries. It was about time for me to get up anyway.”

“I don’t know what happened to my apartment or my stuff.”

“About that. My buddy, Thario, arranged to have your apartment packed up. Your stuff is in storage. We can have it shipped out here if you want to stay. It may take a few weeks, but your stuff is safe.”

“How?”

Squat poured himself a mug of coffee and then turned to face her. “He thinks of everything. When he learned about you, he asked if I thought that would be a good idea, so we did it.”

She shook her head. “I still don’t get how you even knew.”

“Bill called me. I guess I should send him the thousand dollars he wanted for information about you.”

Asher gasped. “What?”

“He said he had information about your whereabouts and wanted me to pay him a thousand dollars for it. Honestly, I would have paid a lot more to get you to safety.”

Her eyes narrowed, and she shook her head. “Hell no, don’t give him a penny. He was in on it.”

Squat jerked back. “How do you know he was in on it?”

“Before they took me away, he was there. They tried to drug me, so I guess I wouldn't have seen him, but I wouldn't finish the drink. Then they put me in a basement, and he came by. He knew I was there. I saw Bill, and he saw me.”

“Dammit. So my Uncle Bill was in on the abduction?”

She nodded. “Yeah, Bill was in the basement where they were holding me. He said something about making extra money.”

“Well fuck.”

“I’m guessing the extra money was something he planned to get from you.”

Disgust flashed through him. “Yeah. He never expected me to find you.”

“But you did find me.”

He nodded. “I did. You can't ever go back there—to our hometown.”

A shiver worked its way through her. “No, I can't, and I don't want to.”

“You’re safe here. I haven’t informed Bill that I found you. He won’t have any idea as long as you don’t contact anyone back home.”

She nodded. “There’s nothing for me back there.”

He moved to her and pulled her into a loose hug.

She stepped into the circle of his arms and put her head on his chest. Her shoulders rose with a sigh, then fell.

If he'd known she was coming here to San Diego, he would have taken a few days off.

At least she was safe. No one knew where she was, and the area was relatively safe for her.

A knock sounded at his door, and he pulled out his phone to check the application for his doorbell camera. It was Rowan. She waved and flashed a smile.

“Rowan is here. I didn’t know she was coming over this morning, but she’s good. She is the psychologist who was abducted by a patient.”

Asher nodded as she chewed on her thumbnail. “Oh, yeah.”

He moved to the door and pulled it open. Rowan flashed a big smile then stepped in, giving him a brief hug before moving into the den.

Asher wasn’t sure what to do, but having this woman here made her feel a little better. At least she wouldn’t be alone while Squat was at work.

“Hello, Asher, I’m Rowan.”

She smiled, feeling unsure of herself as she moved closer to shake the woman’s hand. “Hi.”

Squat squeezed her shoulder. “I’m going to head into work. I’ll be back at three.”

Panic rose, but she pushed it down. She was safe here. “I’m good. I’ll be fine, and I won’t contact anyone back home.”

“I’m free all day,” Rowan said. “We can hang out and watch TV or read or whatever you need.”

Squat said goodbye and locked the door after he headed out. She was safe here. That was a hard concept to get hold of. Everything had been pain and fear for so long, but here with Squat she was okay.

Asher knew she needed to get used to being alone, though she was happy Rowan was here. “Thank you for coming over. I didn't know what I was going to do today. Being held captive screwed me up.”

Rowan nodded. “I get that. I don't know what Squat told you about my situation, but after getting free, it was hard to navigate life. I got spooked at a coffee shop and ran out. I feared the man who had taken me was following me. It was irrational, but in my mind, running made the most sense.”

Asher nodded. “I can see that. I just don’t know what to do with myself.”

“Have you eaten breakfast?”

Asher shook her head. “No. I wasn’t hungry earlier.”

“The guy who held me didn't provide food. He would leave, and I had nothing to eat.”

Asher nodded. “They controlled us by withholding food.”

Rowan moved to the kitchen and opened the refrigerator. “How about I make some breakfast? Eggs and it looks like he has some peppers and onion.”

“That sounds good.”

“Awesome. We can eat and talk, or we can turn on the TV and chill or read.”

Asher already felt better having Rowan there with her. “I really appreciate you coming by. I know you probably had something else planned for today.”

Rowan shrugged. “I know how difficult it is. No one really understood my fear. I had the training, but still, I had to stop everything and take time at a retreat to get my healing on track.”

Asher shook her head. “I don’t know how I would afford something like that.”

“Most of the places have grants. But you also have a lot of people here who are willing to help.”

“Thank you.”

“Sure.” Rowan chopped some vegetables and cracked the eggs into a bowl before turning on the stove.

Asher moved to the pantry. “He probably has bread somewhere. I could do some toast.”

“That would be great.”

Asher focused on making the toast while Rowan prepared the eggs. As the first two slices of bread were browning, she closed her eyes and drew in a slow breath. She was free. No one would keep food from her just to get her to obey. It was refreshing to be free.

“The eggs are almost done.”

She opened her eyes and saw that the toast looked good. The toaster popped up, and she jumped and then laughed. “I forgot how loud that is.”

Rowan chuckled. “You get used to everyday things, but it takes some time. I think it was about two months before I could use a toaster without jumping.”

“I feel so out of sorts. Like I'm wrong for making decisions. Should I be looking for someone else to make my decision?”

“Decisions were hard.” Rowan plated the eggs, and they moved to the table. “But they become easier as time passes.”

She nodded as she took a bite. Maybe she could recover without having to go somewhere special.

She didn't have the money and saw no way of getting any.

She'd been working in a grocery store before she'd been abducted, and she had no real savings to speak of. Her life hadn’t been spectacular, but it had been hers.

They finished eating and cleaned off the table before they headed into the den. Rowan found a movie on the TV that kept her entertained for a few hours. After the movie ended, she yawned and stretched. Exhaustion seemed to be winning.

Rowan smiled. “You can nap. I’ll be out here. I have articles I can read and emails I can catch up on.”

Asher nodded, relieved Rowan had suggested the nap. The exhaustion seemed ever present. Getting a few hours sleep helped. Rowan was still there, and the house smelled great.

“What is that scent?”

“I made brownies. I didn’t know if you liked chocolate, but I figured it was a safe bet.”

Asher took the plate with a brownie on it and sniffed deeply. “It smells great. And yes, I love chocolate.” She took a bite, savoring the great taste. “These are great. I didn’t think I would ever be allowed to eat chocolate again.”

“I’m glad you like them.”

She held out her arm, looking at how thin she was. “Before all this happened, I never ate too many sweets. I guess I’ve never had to pay too much attention to my weight either way, but they really starved me and now I’m skinny. It has been almost two weeks and I still haven’t put on weight.”

“Getting a handle on food was hard for me. I didn’t want to overeat, but I didn’t want to under eat either. I did hide food at first. Mainly prepackaged stuff. A little of that is okay, but when you’re stuffing pieces of chicken into your pockets, that’s where you need to worry.”

Asher wrinkled her nose. “I don’t know that I would ever do that.”

Rowan shrugged. “It’s something food insecure people do. I totally understand the thinking behind it. Not having enough food is frightening, but chicken can go bad. If you need to hide food, make sure it’s something sealed like a protein bar or something.

Asher nodded. “How do I keep from getting to that point?”

“I’d suggest a therapist.”

“I don’t think I can afford one.”

“I can help you find someone who will work with alternative means of payment. There are grants and charities that can help. I would rather be your friend than your therapist. I mean, I can help with small stuff. I can be a friend you can contact and someone to hang out with, but you need someone you can say anything to who will help you heal.”

Asher thought about what Rowan had said. “Yeah, I’d rather have you as a friend. I think that would be better.”

“The other women in our group want to meet you. I texted them while you were sleeping. They don't want to overwhelm you, but they do want to get to know you. Tomorrow is Friday, and Danika is free. She can come over and check in with you. That way, you won't be spending all day alone.”

Eventually, she would have to be able to deal with being alone, but she was glad there were people who wanted to help her acclimate to being free.

“I really appreciate you all helping me. I would be totally lost if I hadn’t come out here.”

Rowan squeezed her arm. “We’re glad we can help. Recovery is tough. But you can do it.”

She wasn’t sure she could. The things she saw when she closed her eyes haunted her. Maybe she would eventually heal, but it seemed like it would take a long time.