My stomach twisted. Robert had been clear: “Stay out of the basement.” He said it with a look that dared me to defy him.

I knelt down. “Ben, you know your dad said we can’t go down there. It’s off-limits.”

Ben’s face darkened. “Dad’s not here. Just come. Please.”

His urgency shook me. “Alright, but we have to be quick.”

We tiptoed to the basement door. My heart pounded as I turned the knob. It was dark and cold down there, and I could smell something musty.

Ben flipped on the light. “Hurry.”

I followed him, and what I saw made my blood run cold. The walls were plastered with photos of Linda. Hundreds of them. Linda at the grocery store, Linda reading a book, Linda asleep.

“What the…?” I whispered.

Ben tugged my sleeve. “I told you it was important.”

I grabbed my phone and dialed Linda. She picked up on the third ring. “Linda, you need to come home. Now.”

Her voice wavered. “What’s wrong, Kate?”

“Just come. It’s about Robert.”

Linda arrived twenty minutes later, her face pale and drawn. She stepped into the basement and gasped, one hand flying to her mouth.

“Oh my God…” she whispered, tears filling her eyes. “He’s been… watching me?”

I nodded. “We need to get out of here. This isn’t safe.”

Linda’s hands shook as she looked around. “How could he do this? How could I not see?”

I put a hand on her shoulder. “We’ll figure it out. But first, we need to leave.”

She nodded, still in shock. “Yes, we need to go. Ben, pack a bag. We’re leaving.”

Ben didn’t argue. He ran upstairs, and I helped Linda gather a few essentials. My mind raced, trying to make sense of what we had seen.

As we left the house, I couldn’t shake the feeling that Robert’s obsession ran deeper than we knew. But for now, getting Linda and Ben to the safety of her family was all that mattered.

Linda called me the next day, her voice quivering with determination. “Kate, I need your help. We have to document this.”

“Of course,” I replied. “What’s the plan?”

“We need proof of his behavior. I want to confront him, but we need to be smart about it.”

The next few days were a blur of covert operations. Linda followed Robert, documenting his every move. She was methodical, capturing every interaction and movement without his knowledge.

One evening, I sat with Linda, reviewing the footage. “He’s obsessive,” I said, shaking my head. “But why? What’s driving this?”

Linda sighed. “I don’t know. But we need to find out.”

“Be careful,” I warned. “We don’t know how far he’ll go.”

Linda nodded. “I know. But I can’t live like this anymore.”

That night, we hatched a plan to replace the photos in the basement with new ones, photos of Robert, taken without his knowledge. It was risky, but it felt like the only way to make him understand the gravity of his actions.

We worked in silence, the tension palpable. As we plastered the walls with the new photos, I couldn’t help but feel a growing sense of unease. What if this pushed him over the edge?

The next week was tense. Linda was determined to document everything. She followed Robert’s every move, camera in hand, capturing his routines without him knowing.

“Are you sure about this?” I asked one night.

Linda’s eyes were hard. “Yes. He needs to understand what he’s done.”

We spent hours in that basement, replacing the photos. Each new one of Robert added to the eerie shrine we were building. It was unsettling, but it felt necessary.

***

The day Robert discovered the new photos was unforgettable. He stormed into the kitchen, face flushed with anger and confusion.

“Kate! What the hell is this?” he yelled, holding one of the photos. “Do you know anything about this?”

Linda stood firm, her voice steady. “It’s what you’ve been doing to Linda. How does it feel it feel to be on the other side of the camera now?”

Robert’s eyes darted around, trying to make sense of it all. “This isn’t… You’re out of your mind!”

I called Linda then and put her on speaker. Linda took a deep breath. “Robert. I’m done being your prisoner. Ben and I are leaving.”

His face crumpled in rage. “You can’t just leave!”

Linda’s voice was cold. “Watch me. I have already left you, in case you didn’t even notice. I’m staying with my brother until the divorce is final. You’ll hear from my lawyer in due course.”

With my help, Linda and Ben packed their things the next day. The relief on Ben’s face was heartbreaking. He deserved better. They both did.

As they drove away, I felt hopeful. They had escaped, but Robert wasn’t one to let go easily. I just hoped we had done enough.

Weeks later, I got a call from Ben. He sounded scared. “Kate, there’s more.”

“What do you mean?”

He whispered, “Another box. In his office at home. I should have told you before, but I was scared.”

I felt a chill. “I’m coming over.”

Linda and I snuck back into the house and found the hidden box. More photos, but these were worse. They showed Linda with other men, as if Robert had been tracking every perceived threat to his control.

“We have to do something,” Linda said, her voice trembling. “These are merely colleagues, but what if he tries to blackmail me with these pictures? Or try to use them against me in the divorce.”

“We will do something,” I promised. “He won’t get away with this.”

We took the evidence to the police. Robert was restrained and sent for psychiatric evaluation. Linda and Ben started their new life, finally free.

For me, this whole experience changed everything. I decided to help others like Linda. No one should live in fear like that. It was time to make a difference.

Linda and Ben moved into a small apartment downtown. It wasn’t fancy, but it was theirs. I helped them settle in, unpacking boxes and arranging furniture.

“How are you feeling?” I asked Linda one afternoon.

She smiled, a genuine smile for the first time in weeks. “Better. Safer.”

Ben ran into the room, waving a drawing. “Look, Kate! I made this for you.”

I took the drawing, my heart swelling. It was a picture of the three of us, smiling and happy. “Thank you, Ben. It’s beautiful.”

Linda looked at me, tears in her eyes. “We couldn’t have done this without you.”

I squeezed her hand. “You’re stronger than you know, Linda. You both are.”

The following days were peaceful. Linda started seeing a therapist, and Ben was enrolled in a new school. They were rebuilding their lives, one step at a time.

One evening, as we sat on the balcony, Linda turned to me. “Kate, I’ve been thinking…”

“About what?”

“About helping others. Like you helped us.”

I nodded. “It’s a great idea.”

“I want to start a support group,” she said, determination in her voice. “For women in similar situations. They need to know they’re not alone.”

I smiled. “Count me in.”

Linda and I spent hours planning. We reached out to local shelters and community centers, spreading the word about the support group. The response was overwhelming. Women from all walks of life came, sharing their stories, finding solace in each other’s experiences.