Page 1 of Jael

Chapter 1

Jael secureda band-aid on the woman’s forehead, running her thumb along the edges to make sure they stuck.

“Sorry about the cartoon frogs,” she said. “It was all I could find.” Her fingers lingered, hoping the positive touch would counteract what Becca had experienced earlier in the day.

“I don’t mind,” Becca said, gently prodding her puffy nose and the black bruise below her eye. “Too bad there’s no band-aid to fix this.” She huffed a laugh, but Jael recognized it for what it was—a cover for the fear, obvious to Jael who was all too familiar with the emotion. She’d witnessed more than one man’s terror as he stared death in the face and lost. It didn’t matter that she hadn’t been the one inflicting it. Her senses were still so attuned to such vulgar acts that her stomach turned even as she tried to make up for her past by restoring other’s lives.

“Only time will do that,” Jael said, collecting the pieces of band-aid wrapping and stuffing them in her pocket. She smiled almost apologetically as she lowered her voice so the two kids in the room couldn’t hear. “I still think you should go to the hospital. I can only fix the cuts on the outside. You said he hit you pretty hard in the stomach.”

“It’s not the first time he’s done it, and I always recover.”

“You’ve been lucky.”

Becca shook her head. “They’ll ask too many questions. You know I’m not ready to talk about it yet. If it wasn’t for you—” Her eyes shimmered with tears that she didn’t bother to blink away. “Thank you, Jael. I don’t know how many times I can say it, but you’re a godsend.” Her voice croaked, and she coughed a little before rubbing at her neck where light bruising was visible.

“Then I guess mentioning the police again is pointless.” Jael sat back and looked at the kids. The older of the two, Jack, had his baseball cap on sideways and his legs draped over the arm of the chair while he played a game on his phone. The younger one, ten-year-old Kaitlin, was reading a thick fantasy book.

“One thing Icangive you,” Jael continued, “is some time to process your thoughts. But we can’t wait too long.”

“I know.” Becca rubbed her hands down her thighs. “I know there are timelines I’ll need to follow. Martin has made it clear to me more than once that I can’t disappear with the kids, or he’ll send the police.” Her voice wavered, and she cleared it. “I’ll be more prepared to face everything in the morning.”

“I hope so. A restraining order would help.”

“Would it?” Becca’s question was sharp and accusing, coating her fragility in a quiet fury out of necessity. Her eyes flicked to the kids, then to the ground. “Sorry.”

Jael rested her hand on top of Becca’s. “Right now, you feel like you’ve lost everything. But you haven’t. This is the beginning of getting your life back.”

“I wish I could see things the way you do.”

“That’s why I’m here. So I can help you.”

“Can’t you do it for me?” Becca laughed a light, sad sound.

“You know I would if I could. But you need to be ready for what’s ahead. You have to be sure that this is what you want. There’s no point staying if you’re going to go back to him again.”

“No. No, I won’t. Not this time.” Becca looked at her kids. “It’s different this time.”

Kaitlin, sensing the directness of her mother’s gaze, looked up. Her tired eyes drifted across to Jael with a depth of understanding a kid shouldn’t have.

Jael’s heart skipped a beat, and she almost called out what she saw, but instead, she said, “We’ll find someone the kids can talk to as well. It will be good for them to tell their side of what’s happened.”

Becca chewed on her lip, already raw and close to bleeding. “Okay.”

“At least you’ll be safe here tonight. Hannah will contact you about the next steps?—”

“Hannah?” Becca asked warily.

“She’s the one you spoke to on the phone. She’s a very good friend of mine who works closely with the foundation. She knows a lot about women in your situation and can talk you through the process.”

“But you’ll come back?”

With all the uncertainty Becca and her kids were facing, what they needed was a small amount of stability and a sense of home.

“How about I bring you your groceries on Saturday, and I’ll include the ingredients to make chocolate chip cookies.” The kids looked up, and Jael winked. “I have a few appointments during the day, but I can come by at dinner, and we can bake together.”

She looked at Jack, who was nodding eagerly. Even the video game couldn’t compete with freshly baked cookies. It made Jael wonder if they’d had much in the way of home-baked anything. It was the one thing her mom had taken the time to do with her when she was a girl.

“Thank you,” Becca said. “For everything. I don’t know how I could ever repay you.”

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