"I'm her husband!" Roy shouts as Barton wheels around to face him. I stand on my porch, arms crossed over my chest as I look down at the two men.
"I'm sorry sir, but that doesn't seem likely. Do you have any proof?" Barton questions further, his hands on his hips.
"Of course he doesn't - "
"Doctor, please let me handle this," Barton intejects, holding up his hand to me. I could practically feel the exhaustion pouring off of him, the day's events already wearing him thin.
"I've got our marriage certificate here," Roy argues, shoving a piece of paper into the man's chest. Barton unfolds it and reads the scrawl, glancing between us.
"Sir, this certificate is made out for a woman by the name of Anne Shirley Cuthbert… The woman who lives here doesn't go by that name. Perhaps you're mistaken?"
"She's disguised herself, Officer. She has taken up with this man who she knew from school. I've done the research - I'm certain it's her," Roy snears, forcing himself to remain calm as Barton looks over the paper again. "Look - I've got a photo!"
My heart sinks as Roy tears back towards his carriage. I hadn't - Anne had never mentioned a photo. They were still rare around here, it hadn't seemed likely that one would exist… But then Anne had always been fanciful and would have dreamed of her wedding being captured on film.
"It's our wedding photo. You see? It's her!" Roy thrusts the image into his hand and Barton looks up towards me, his face unreadable. "I demand that this man produce my wife at once."
There's a weighted pause as Barton looks between the two documents carefully, his gaze sliding up towards me as I shake my head almost imperceptibly. His lips form a tight line and he looks back towards Roy, handing him the papers abruptly.
"I'm sorry sir, but we'll need to find another way to resolve this issue. I can't verify these documents today. Perhaps you'll be best to find a place for the night and we can investigate this more clearly in the morning," Barton states evenly and prepares for Roy to explode at his answer.
But he doesn't. A calm fury washes over the man and he steps towards his carriage, climbing into it and forcefully cracking the reins. Without another word he takes off down the laneway towards town and leaves Barton and I standing in shock in my yard.
"You've got a lot to explain, Doctor," Barton growls, motioning towards the house as we head inside. Susan leaps back from the door as we step through, her eyes wide as she looks up at the man.
"Gilbert - Sarah called. Cordelia..." Her voice rises an octave as Barton snaps his gaze towards her.
"Cordelia? Or Anne Shirley? Someone needs to start telling me what the hell is going on," he instructs and stands angrily in the kitchen as I try to help him understand just what sort of tangled web we've weaved. "So they are the same girl? And she came here of her own volition?"
"Yes - to get away from him. She's been hiding here because it's wasn't safe to go back home and she couldn't stay there or he'd kill her. We only went about this to try to legitimize her getting away from him. We hadn't thought - we didn't think there would be anything that would prove his claims."
The truth fills the space around us, the tension palpable as I try to explain our reasoning. Barton listens without expression, his eyes thoughtful as I recount all of the ways that she's shown signs of her abuse since coming to the Glen. I realize as I explain it that when you say it all at once it's much more damaging, the scale of it almost insurmountable.
"I only wanted to keep her safe. Just like I wanted to help Beth." I hammer home the point and watch as the man's steely look shifts into a moment of regret, a hot wave of pain coming over him as he looks away abruptly.
"I believe you, Doc. I do. But I can't do anything if - "
"She doesn't press charges. I know. Can you promise that he'll leave her alone if she exposes herself and does so?" Barton shakes his head and looks away, watching the sun sink lower on the horizon.
"That guy has money. He'll take it to court and he'll win. That's how it always happens. He won't go to jail and she'll be stripped of everything she's built here. Nobody will hire her once they find out what she's done. There's no easy way for a woman to escape this," he admits and glances up towards me. "I'm sorry."
In a fit of frustration I pull at my hair and leave the room, stalking towards my bedroom and slamming the door closed without warning. I yell once, twice, lashing out angrily at the pillows on my bed before returning to the kitchen and looking between Susan and Barton.
"I'm going to go find Anne and then she's spending tonight here, with us. With her family. And then I'm taking her back to Avonlea and we will keep running until that man is jailed for his crimes," I hiss before looking at Susan expectantly. "You're welcome to come with us but if you don't we won't hold it against you."
"Doc, I don't think - " Barton starts.
"I have nothing else. Nothing. If he takes her away - I can't do it again," I shout and look pointedly out the window to hide my fears. I starve for air, my chest aching as I look back towards the man who could do nothing to help us. "I won't let him do what Murphy did." The day's events crowd in and I picture Beth smiling in my office, her lifeless body on the cold wooden floor and the anger of Roy Gardner screaming on my porch. It's too much and my body shakes as I stalk towards the door and yank it open, the phone ringing behind me as I head towards the barn.
I ready the horse quickly and I'm half through the yard when Barton catches up with me, trotting alongside as he looks me over. "That was Elizabeth Collins on the phone. She thinks someone's broken into your office."
We don't need to say what we're thinking as we tear off towards town, my horse being pressed to the limit as we cover the blooming fields as fast as possible. When we reach the edges of town we disembark, sharing a look as we round the corner towards the street nearest the surgery.
"Perhaps you should leave this to me, Doc," Barton suggests, looking up and down the sidewalks carefully. I shake my head and step past him, eyes peeled for Anne.
"She's here. I know she is," I state and come upon the surgery door. The window is smashed and a figure looms in the shadows near the desk, his figure imposing as I join him in the waiting area. "Gardner, you need to leave!" I shout, hands clenched at my sides.
The man turns towards me and smiles, his hair black as night as he looks me over. Thomas Hughes shifts on his feet and shrugs, walking past me on his way out of the surgery. "She wasn't here either," he grumbles as he passes.
I turn to Barton then who watches him pass, his eyes wide and questioning. We follow him out into the street and watch dumbly as a woman stumbles out of the cafe across the road, falling down to the dirt in a heap of skirts and black hair. Hughes laughs, standing off to the side and crossing his arms over his chest.
"Well, look what the cat soused out afterall…" Hughes crows as I take a step towards Anne.
"Wait," Barton instructs and grabs at my shoulder, holding me to this side of the street as Roy Gardner steps onto the sidewalk across the way. My blood boils and I lurch forward, Barton's hand on my arm solid as he keeps me in place. "Gain witnesses!" He hisses and I look at him, appalled as I try to fight free of his grip.
"Roy," Anne's voice cuts through the air and slams into my chest, rearing me back to look at her as she slowly gets to her feet. Faces line the windows of the cafe and nearby shops as her shoulders square towards the man, her expression neutral as she bats the dirt off of her dress.
"My pet, I've finally come to take you home!" He delights in saying, rushing towards her with outstretched arms. She stumbles backwards and somehow manages to slap him away, the crack of her palm on his skin loud in the empty street.
"I'm never coming home with you. This is my home now," she spits. Roy takes the rejection in stride and smiles, sighing.
"You think you belong here? With these country bumpkins who don't know a filet from a porterhouse? You make me laugh," he adds with a chuckle. "No - that simply won't do. Mother is expecting a full reimbursement for the amount she lent you or she'll take the heir you promised her when you left. Either one will suffice."
I lurch towards the man and grunt as Barton once again comes between us, his hands grabbing at my shoulder and pushing me back a step. Roy laughs loudly, jarringly, and it grates against my nerves as I watch Anne shudder at his words. He's shoved a knife between her ribs and now he's twisting it, enjoying the way she starts to come apart.
"I will never give you want you want, Roy," she hisses, inching closer as she draws her shoulders back. She glows with the rage that comes to her surface, her tears drying up and her expression locking in place. A fierce girl stands before us, fire roiling within her. "We are not compatible. We are nothing to each other except punching bags. You've locked me up and stolen years from my life for what? Failed pregnancies that only embarrass you? You think the bruises weren't embarrassing enough?"
"I can do as I please to keep control of my household, or have you forgotten the vows that we said? You promised to be mine and I will not relinquish you. You're coming home with me," he growls and captures her wrist in his hand, jerking her forward.
"I will not," she responds and pulls herself free. The hit comes before we can stop it, Roy's palm lashing through the air and colliding with Anne's cheek in a sound that makes those in the windows gasp. It's not a second later that Barton has tackled the man to the ground, Hughes stepping back as Barton orders brisk commands as he binds the man's hands behind him.
I find myself at Anne's feet in a flash, my hands lifting to her face and fluttering over the reddened skin as it begins to darken into a bruise. "Anne, oh love," I whisper, desperate to soothe her panicked breathing and the way her body shakes. A part of me keeps my distance, afraid she'll be scared off if I get too close. But she doesn't. In a drawn out second she meets my gaze head on and collapses into me, climbing onto my frame and holding herself as closely as she can as I move us to a bench along the sidewalk.
Neither of us let go as Barton drags Roy down the street, his screaming voice trailing off in the distance. Beside us Hughes slinks back into the shadows, his cocky grin having disappeared at the way Barton had taken down his boss. I don't care where they've gone. I only care about the girl in my embrace who's practically crawled into my skin for comfort. She's all I can think about right now.
It's only later, when the street is still and the frayed nerves have softened that Anne pulls back from my chest with a shaking sigh. Her eyes snake up to mine, red from the tears and swollen from battle. I let my thumb ghost over the skin there, watching as she shivers from the touch.
"I had to make him do it," she says, looking abruptly away from me. I turn her back to my gaze and smile gently, urging her to continue. "Nobody ever believed me because they didn't see it. When he came into the cafe I tried to make him leave but he refused. He told everyone everything, Gil. They all know."
"It's okay. We can deal with that," I reply though my voice cracks. I pull her back against me in a tight hug, breathing through the last remnants of adrenaline in my system. "I wanted to kill him, Anne. I thought I was going to put him in the ground if Barton didn't get in my way. I couldn't stand to watch him hurt you again. To laud those things over your head - I couldn't."
"He doesn't have that power over me anymore. I thought he would when I saw him again but he didn't. I just hated him so much," she sighs and gives herself a shake, sitting up abruptly and looking around us. "This town is going to want me to leave. They won't want someone like me here when the word spreads."
"Anne," I urge, clasping her hands tightly in my lap. "They won't turn on you. Sarah is making calls now and if having anyone on your side is important it's having her. And they've all - I mean, they saw what happened. No one can blame you for wanting to get away from that. You're safe here."
With her eyes wide and hesitant, she looks up at me for a moment. "I want to go home, Gil. I want to say goodbye to Marilla."
My heart aches as I pull her into me once more, tucking her head against my chest as the adrenaline fades and she begins to cry softly into my shirt. I hold her to me as though she were prone to float away, her ties to this world so weak that she could disappear in the blink of an eye.
If she wanted to go home then I had to be okay with that. I wouldn't stand in her way, not after everything she'd been through. She was free to do what she wanted to and if Avonlea was where she wanted to settle then I would let her go once more. I could do that for her even if it felt like my world was falling apart to think about it.
"Blythe, oh thank god you've found her!" Michael says as he hustles down the street towards us, breathless. "I was trapped in a meeting and just got Sarah's message so I came out to look - Oh!" He steps back as Anne looks up at him, her black eye growing more prominent with every second. It catches him off guard and he holds a hand to his chest, his eyes wide. "My dear girl - where is he?"
Michael's hands begin rolling up the sleeves of his shirt abruptly, turning on his heel as he looks out at the passersby and tries to find Gardner in the crowd. "He's already gone, Mr Turner. Officer Barton took him," Anne states clearly, watching as the man's face relaxes slightly.
"Good - that's good then. What kind of doctor are you Blythe if you're not treating her yet?" Michael snaps, leaning down to look at her bruising more closely. Anne smiles gently and looks towards me, her hand coming to rest on my chest.
"He's been treating me with love, Mr Turner. It's been more effective than any salve or compress he could offer," she admits lowly before looking back towards the man. "But I won't say no to a little peace and quiet, if that were a possible option. I don't think I'm up to explaining to the people of the Glen what's happened today. Not now at least."
"Home then?" I offer and get to my feet, helping her stand and catching her as she stumbles to the side. Beth flashes in my mind's eye and a panicked sweat tickles at my spine, my hands careful as I guide her to a steady stance.
"Yes, please. Thank you Mr Turner, for your concern. Hopefully we'll see you soon?" Anne adds as she grips my hand tightly in hers.
"Of course, dear girl. Don't worry about a thing here in town. We'll smooth things over!"
We leave Michael to head back towards my horse, climbing onto it in silence. This time Anne doesn't hesitate to lean into me once she's settled on the saddle, her fingers looping in the straps of my suspenders and her face resting fully against my chest. An aching sigh slips from her lips as we get on our way, the ride home much slower than the barreling gait I'd taken into town earlier.
Dusk arrives as we enter the small house, Susan's worried expression greeting us at the door and steering Anne towards her room without hesitation. I mill about in the kitchen as the woman settles her into bed, my mind working overtime as I try not think about the parallels between the two women and the fate that awaits us tomorrow. They were questions too big to answer now and all I needed to do in this moment was watch out for her.
"Why don't you go in and sit with her, Gilbert?" Susan suggests as she returns to my side, taking the kettle off of the stove and resting her hand softly on my elbow. She looks up at me and squeezes my arm, her expression softening. "She was asking for you."
I don't need more prodding than that. Finding my way down the hallway I slip into her room and pull the footstool from the end of her bed up to the side, slumping onto it as she rolls over to face me. Her colouring is all off from the bruise and I have to swallow the lump in my throat.
"Why are you all the way over there?" She mumbles as her hand reaches out for me. I grasp it between mine and smile sadly, lifting her knuckles to my lips.
"You need rest," I reply carefully, attempting to keep my worries in check. She must sense them in me because she frowns and struggles to sit up, her hand coming up to press to her temple with a hiss. "Anne - stop! Just stay still before you hurt yourself more."
"It's fine - what's gotten into you? You're acting strangely." I watch as she leans against the headboard, her brow tight as she evaluates me.
"We can talk about it tomorrow. For now I just want you to relax. You've taken a hard hit and - "
"Gil, I'm fine. This is nothing," she adds and waves her hand about her face. I feel it like a slap, understanding of her history blossoming brightly once more in my chest. If this was nothing… The rage builds in me and I clench my fists, looking out the window for a moment to steady myself. "Please talk to me, Gil."
"It's been a hard day. We should both get some rest."
"I won't get any if I'm worried about you. Tell me what's going through that head of yours, I know it's not just this. I can practically see the gears turning," she adds, reaching for me. I lean forward and let my head hang between my knees, the breath rasping out of my chest.
"Beth Murphy died this afternoon at the train station," I mumble. Her surprised gasp makes me sit up, shame fluttering through me. "She was just like you, Anne. Stuck. Abused. She left behind a son and it's my fault because I told her to go to Charlottetown to see the occulist and gave her train fare for it. But she didn't even get to board the damn train. I didn't realize her head injury was more severe. I missed it and now her son doesn't have a mother." Anne's breathing quickens and when I glance up at her it's with tears in my eyes, my chest aching as she closes her eyes. "I missed it, Anne."
"You didn't. It's not your fault," she soothes, shifting and running her hands through my hair. Leaning towards me she presses her forehead to mine, her palms cupping my chin and holding me still. "What happened to her was horrible and lonely but I know how she felt when you helped her because you helped me too. She wasn't in this by herself, not in the end. You were there to help her and she understood that."
"She still died. By herself on that damn platform, she still died," I growl, anger and hurt rolling through me as Anne crowds in closer.
"It's not your fault. It isn't."
Looking back towards her I exhale shakily and lift my hand to her brow, my thumb ghosting over the bruising as she closes her eyes reflexively. "This isn't fine, Anne," I state numbly, dropping my hand into my lap as she opens her eyes once more. It's too much to focus on tonight. If I didn't escape it I'd surely drown in the agony of it all. "I'll be in to check on you throughout the night, okay?"
She watches me with a stunned expression as I get up and head towards the door, forcing myself out of the room before I crumble under the weight of the day's events. I wasn't going to make the same mistakes in treating Anne as I did with Beth. I was going to pay attention and watch for the signs. I was going to ensure she made it to Avonlea to grow old and live out her life happily, free from everything that had once trapped her. Including me.