A FLAME FROM THE PAST
"A-Anthony, what are you doing here?", Anna asked, fear gripping her as her hands trembled.
"Wow! I finally found you, my love" the man before her said grinning maliciously.
Anna came out of the shopping mall, and as she approached her car, she noticed a figure walking behind her, she turned to see who it was. Her feet were stuck, her eyes were wide open, and her heart was racing as she struggled to catch her breath, she couldn't believe who was standing in front of her, she never prayed to see him again in his entire life.
"Stop calling me that, I'm not your love, anything that exists between us died a year ago," she said as fear crept all over her body.
After a year of her breakup with her ex-fiancé, Anna, an ambitious and successful dance instructor encountered her ex-fiancé, Anthony outside a mall. She left him 3 months before their marriage after she discovered her husband-to-be wasn’t someone he claimed to be. In the quest to get justice for what he did to her and to get her life back together, she leaves Italy and comes to California as she seeks redemption for herself.
"Come on, don't be harsh, don't you miss me Anna?", Anthony replied, walking towards her.
Anna stepped backward, her heart pounding inside her chest, "God forbid I miss you, you monster! After all you did to me back then, why on earth will I miss you?" she exclaimed in fear.
She ran towards her car trying to escape Anthony, but as she was about to open the door, Anthony grabbed her from behind, slamming her to the car door.
"Let me go, don't touch me!" Anna screamed as she struggled to free herself from his grasp, but he was too strong for her.
Anthony gave a wicked smirk, "Nobody is going come to your aid now, why did you leave? I've searched for you everywhere and here you are hiding in California”, he said, holding her tightly against the car.
Anna's face was pale, tears welled up in her eyes, and her lips trembled, "I'll never spend the rest of my life with a monster like you, you think you'll go scot-free of what you did to me? You ruined my life, I lost everything" she said as tears flowed down her cheeks.
"Where is your evidence? You have none, so your accusations are baseless since you can't prove them", Anthony said.
“And after you know all about my business, you think I can let you go just like that?”
"I agree I don't have evidence right now but I promise you, I'll do everything in my power to get enough evidence, and once I do, you are going to rot in jail", Anna responded.
Anthony pressed her more against the car and whispered to her ears "You think your false threats scare me? Why not give up and succumb to my desires you so much deprived me of back then, after were already engaged and just about to get married".
Anna groaned heavily as she tried to catch her breath, and suddenly a voice was heard behind them.
"Leave the lady alone, or I'll arrest you for assault" the voice echoed authoritatively.
Anna turned to see who it was, behind them was standing a woman in her early sixties, in a high ponytail with a pearl necklace, her outfit was complete with a sleek black top and a matching skirt, and standing beside her were her two bodyguards in black suits. It was Mrs. Vance, one of her sponsors for her dancing studio. She's a reputable woman of fame and honor, they met two years back and she has been of great support to Anna.
Anna sighed in relief, "Thank goodness, Mrs. Vance you're here" as she released herself from Anthony's grasp running in her direction.
"We're not done yet Anna, I'll be back for you, you're mine, and I'll make sure of that", Anthony said as he walked away.
"Are you alright?" Mrs. Vance gestured to Anna who was trying to catch her breath.
Anna's eyes were pale and teary, "I'm fine ma, thanks for saving me from that monster".
"Who is that man? And what business do you have with him? Mrs. Vance asked curiously.
Anna couldn't hold back the tears that filled her eyes, "He's a flame from the past... my ex-fiancé, I left him when he tried to molest me with his friends", she said, tears streaming down her eyes.
"Oh my God!" Mrs. Vance replied, her eyes widened in shock.
"Just calm down, let's find a place to talk, I want to know what happened", Mrs. Vance said, pointing to a restaurant opposite the mall.
"What can I get for you?", Mrs. Vance asked in a soft tone.
"Nothing, I'm okay ma", Anna replied, her voice barely audible.
"Alright, I'm all ears, how does Anthony fit into this whole incident", Mrs. Vance asked leaning forward, eager to listen to her story.
Anna felt reluctant to talk, her breath caught in her throat, she hadn't opened up to anyone before as she kept all to herself.
"You can talk to me Anna, I might be able to help you out", she said holding her hands to relax her mind and make her feel she could trust her.
Anna cleared her throat and gave a deep sigh, wiping off the tears streaming down her cheeks,
“We were supposed to get married 3 years ago. He was helpful to me and my family when we were facing financial crisis. My father’s company wasn’t flourishing but he helped us. He invested into my father’s business and even gave him a huge amount of money to revive the business”.
“Everything changed three months before our marriage, he started receiving strange calls and texts, coming home late, and even developed abusive behaviors, I was worried about what was going on, so I decided to do my research, I couldn’t believe what I found out and it scared the hell out of me" Anna continued.
Mrs. Vance had a bewildered expression on her face, "What did you find out about him?"
Anna fiddled her hands together as she clenched and unclenched her hands.
“Talk to me Anna, what did you find out about Anthony?”
