***
No one responded so Leif rang the doorbell several more times.
"They are pretending not to be home. Funny how that works for them on the other side of the door, but they get mad when they do that church shit and people won't answer their own doors. Let's go home," said Lynne.
"No, they need to hear this," said Leif.
He knocked on the door hard, and rang incessantly.
The door flung open so wide, it startled Leif.
"You're back again? Young man, quit pounding on my door like that, or I will call the police, whether you are marrying my daughter or not!" said her father.
Leif felt so many emotions at once, prickly heat with anger running up his neck, thinking about her father not believing his innocent, sweet wife to be, nervousness at coming back to a home where he knew he wasn't welcome, and he was ill at ease trying to hold back the urge to yell at her father, but still wanting to make it plain, she deserved an apology.
That familiar demon had a hold on his tongue.
"Well...I...I...I...I...I,"
"Did you just come up here to stand on my porch and stutter?" asked her father coldly.
Leif was so embarrassed, his stutter acting up when he was supposed to be defending Lynne. But the she started gently caressing the small of his back.
"Don't listen to him. It's okay Leify. Take your time and get your thoughts together...I'm right here listening. I know what you have to say is important to the two of us. Take your time," said Lynne lovingly, rubbing and patting his shoulder.
And she looked into this eyes like he was not stuttering, and he was giving an important speech at the white house.
And just like seeing her when he was on stage, as though she was an anchor, was an incredibly soothing feeling for him. It brought his courage back up, and reminded him that he needed to protect this sweet creature, and her honor, and get that apology she deserved.
Leif took a deep breath and started again.
"Well I knew you were home sir, because we just left, and I wanted to get your attention, said Leif,"
"What did you leave something behind? Because our business is done here. Lynne has clearly demonstrated that she wants nothing to do with her former lifestyle, or her church, or even me, cursing me out like a common dog, screaming at me at the top of her lungs, and it will come as no surprise what the consequences of that will be in the church. Hopefully she'll come to her senses," said her father.
He wouldn't even look at Leif at all, just looked directly at Lynne.
"Lynne doesn't need to come to her senses sir. It appears that you do. I've tried to stay out of this, but all this putting church before family business is not right at all. And it's not normal. And there's not a family you could do talk to outside of this church you attend, and this faith you believe in that would think this behavior is normal. We spent some time with my folks in California, and they cannot believe that this is going on, turning against her, not speaking to her because we lived together a few months before our wedding! Now that I'm marrying Lynney, her well-being is my responsibility, and I am privileged to be able to love and care for her, and part of that well being is looking out for her when she's mistreated. I'm respectfully asking you, as her fiancΓ©e, to apologize to her, for insinuating that she was lying about being raped by her ex boyfriend," said Leif.
"What? I didn't say she lied. I said, maybe she was carrying on with him, the way she apparently carried on with you, and things got out of hand, and you know how young men can be, you know how they are," said her father.
"That's not how it happened Daddy! You didn't even let me finish explaining. It was not getting too carried away, I was crying and begging him to stop. And the only reason I told you was that I didn't appreciate you calling Martin the perfect gentleman, when in actuality he was not a gentleman to me at all, and especially not in that way. He's the total opposite of Leif! I just wanted you to know that, especially when you started with those awful things about Leif," said Lynne softly through her tears.
"You don't have to explain anything else to anyone sweetness. No daughter should have to explain a rape to her father to try to get his understanding and sympathy! I mean, what kind of father...don't you know that your attitude is why so many women are afraid to even be honest when they are tormented like that. No way she's lying. Your daughter is as sweet, and innocent as the day is long, and she was terrified to even hold my hand almost in the beginning! No woman acts like that unless she's been terrorized before! Apologize!" shouted Leif.
"There's nothing for me to apologize for! If Lynne was in a situation where Martin took advantage of her, then that's what happens when you play too close to the fire and don't obey God's commandments. They should never have been alone, doing things they ought not, and it wouldn't have happened. We have church rules for a reason," said her father.
"See Leif, I told you he would act like this. He won't apologize, even though he was wrong, and deep down, he probably knows, that I'm not the liar that he accuses me of being. I didn't know that spending a few hours alone with Martin entitled him to rape me, but he knew that was going on, all along, the whole time we were dating, and never said a word," said Lynne.