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Since their dinner at her house, she hadn’t broached her past
again, and he didn’t bring it up. He knew she was still working
things out in her mind: how much she’d told him already and
how much there still was to tell, whether or not she could trust
him, how much it mattered that she was still married, and what
would happen if Kevin somehow found her here. When he sensed
she was brooding over such things, he would remind her gently
that no matter what happened, her secret would always be safe
with him. He would never tell anyone.
Watching her, he would sometimes be overcome with an
overwhelming rage at Kevin Tierney. Such men’s instincts to
victimize and torture were as foreign to him as the ability to
breathe underwater or fly; more than anything, he wanted
revenge. He wanted justice. He wanted Kevin to experience
Katie’s anguish and terror, the unending bouts of brutal physical
pain. During his time in the army, he’d killed one man, a soldier
strung out on methamphetamines who was threatening a hostage
with a gun. The man was dangerous and out of control and when
the opportunity arose, Alex had pulled the trigger without
hesitation. The death had given his job a sobering new meaning,
but in his heart he knew that there were moments in life when
violence was necessary to save lives. He knew that if Kevin ever
showed up, Alex would protect Katie, no matter what. In the
army, he’d slowly come to the realization that there were people
who added goodness to the world and people who lived to
destroy it. In his mind, the decision to protect an innocent woman
like Katie from a psychopath like Kevin was as clear as black and
white—a simple choice.
On most days, the specter of Katie’s past life didn’t intrude, and
they spent each day together in a state of relaxed and growing
intimacy. The afternoons with the kids were particularly special
for him. Katie was a natural with children—whether helping
Kristen feed the ducks at the pond or playing catch with Josh, she
always seemed to fall effortlessly into rhythm with them, by turns
playful, comforting, rowdy, or quiet. In this way she was much