"He made me go to work; he made me leave my baby when it was not safe to do so. My dreams were a warning; I shared most of them with him but he didn't want to hear about them anymore. They pissed him off!" I was sobbing now; she had managed to wrench my guts out with her questions. "Tell me about the shame you felt." "I felt shame that any blood relative of mine could have left bruises on an innocent baby girl's bottom," I cried, wiping my tears with the back of my hand. Karla handed me a tissue from the box that sat on top of her desk. I took it from her wiping my cheeks. "Now tell me what you feel guilty about?" My throat was closing up; I couldn't breathe in her office. Why was she badgering me like this? I would never hurt my baby. I could never be the person that Maggie had been. She was still waiting for me to answer her question. "Because," I finally sobbed loudly, "Maybe if I had been a better person; stronger and braver back then, Maggie would have never had the opportunity to touch my baby!" "Back when Tylar?" "Back when she used to beat me!" I screamed.
