[[Content warning: reference to child marriage and sexual abuse]]

He was so kind and helpful that Anne felt tears sting. She looked away to try and regain herself. "I don't want to give her false hope. That would hurt her even more. I have to help her, but I don't know if I can do it." And she was even more afraid that Alice would not accept the help, though she could not allow herself to even think of that. She had to believe she was going to save Alice. "But all I can think about is how awfully lonely she must feel. And how she doesn't know this man. And how awful it must be to..." she shook her head. She had to save Alice, and fast. Surely every day Alice spent there was filled with sorrow, and every night with hell. Anne could not help a tear rolling down her cheek. "Nobody else seems to care about what she's suffering," she said in a raw voice.