No Safe Secret (21 page)

Dear Readers,

 

I cannot know this for certain, but I think all of you out there know someone or have heard of someone who has been sexually abused. I know I have. Way too many, actually. The truth is, one person is one too many.

 

On the off chance any of you do know someone who has been abused, I ask you to, if you can, tell them about a wonderful organization called RAINN and to ask for help. As Molly learned in
No Safe Secret
, RAINN stands for Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network. This is a wonderful organization dedicated to helping women and children who have been abused.

 

RAINN has a National Sexual Assault Online Hotline. It is open 24/7 for crisis support. It provides one-on-one confidential, support. Staff members are highly trained and are there to help you. The Online Hotline—the nation's first online crisis hotline—provides free, anonymous, confidential support services 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. It has been operational since 1994 and has supported over 2 million people online and over the phone, serving victims and survivors from all over the country. Two million is such a staggering number. I urge you, all my readers, to reach out to anyone you think might need this service.

 

Victims can call 1-800-656-HOPE (4673). They will be connected to a trained staff member who will put them in touch with a local center near where they live. They can also e-mail [email protected].

 

All I ask is that you keep all of the above in mind and if you see someone who needs help, follow through. Don't turn away because it's an ugly thing you don't want to deal with. You or I could make all the difference in the world to someone's very survival by encouraging victims to seek the help that is available with a phone call or the tap of a computer key.

 

My last thought that I want to share with all of you is this: “WE'RE WOMEN!” We can do whatever we set our minds to doing and come out on top. YES-WE-CAN!

 

Thank you for taking the time to read this.

 

Fern

FERN MICHAELS is the
USA Today
and
New York
Times
bestselling author of the Sisterhood, Men of the Sisterhood and Godmothers series and dozens of other novels and novellas. There are over seventy five million copies of her books in print. Fern Michaels has built and funded several large day-care centers in her hometown, and is a passionate animal lover who has outfitted police dogs across the country with special bulletproof vests. She shares her home in South Carolina with her four dogs and a resident ghost named Mary Margaret. Visit her website at fernmichaels.com.

KENSINGTON BOOKS are published by

 

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Copyright © 2016 by Fern Michaels.
Fern Michaels is a registered trademark of KAP 5, Inc.

 

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without the prior written consent of the Publisher, excepting brief quotes used in reviews.

 

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons living or dead is entirely coincidental.

 

Kensington and the K logo Reg. U.S. Pat. & TM Off.

ISBN: 978-1-6177-3460-1

First Kensington Trade Edition: April 2016

 

eISBN-13: 978-1-61773-461-8
eISBN-10: 1-61773-461-6
First Kensington Electronic Edition: April 2016