Page 128 of All In Good Time

“Is he going to get in trouble?” She couldn’t look up, and instead, stared at the small spots of red splattered over her skin.

Winston leaned back in his chair. “Not likely. In another circumstance, maybe. But I have a trail of unofficial reports for the past three months supporting his side—thanks to you.”

That’s right. How many times had she called him? Dozens of times, she was sure. A part of her wanted to be upset at Winston for waiting until so much damage had been done. She knew he cared, and that the little he could do, he did. But why did the stakes have to become so high?

Becca sighed. She didn’t have enough energy to be mad. She would pick her battles carefully, and this one she chose to lay to rest.

“When can I see them?” She finally looked up.

Winston crossed his arms and shook his head. “Not for a while. They’ll be going straight into CPS custody from here.”

Becca furrowed her brows, and her chest constricted. She wanted to see them. Confirm for herself if Derek was actually okay. But this wasn’t about her. She sighed. “Will they be safe?”

Please keep them safe.

“Safer than they probably ever have been.”

Okay.

Okay.

She took a deep breath and held it in her lungs. Her head, while hurting, had cleared, and she knew that what was most important now was that they got what they needed. Even if her heart longed to be with Derek, it wasn’t the time.

“Thank you, Winston.”

He dismissed her, and Becca left his office.

Her mom sat in the waiting chairs outside the door and jumped to her feet when she saw Becca. She came over and gently laid her hand on Becca’s shoulder. “Is everything okay? How are you feeling? Look at me.” She grabbed Becca’s face, angling it so she could see into her eyes better. She scanned her for the fourth time tonight.

The paramedics had already looked her over and deemed her okay, with no lasting injuries. She’d made it out better than Mark, who would stay in the hospital until he was released to be taken into custody himself.

“I’m fine, Mom,” she said, but let her mother worry about her. “Everything is fine.”

Her eyes scanned the area, hoping to catch a glance of familiar dirty-blond curls or black braids, but she didn’t. She wasn’t sure how long “a while” meant, but she hoped it wasn’t too long.

There was nothing else she could do there, and with the office becoming crowded, the secretary, Florence, rushed them out into the cold early morning as her mother mumbled about how hard she was going to press charges against Mark.

And that was that. The heavy weight on her shoulders since meeting Derek had gone. She breathed in the frigid air and exhaled it out.

Nothing had felt real since she got that call from Mal. Like she was walking through a nightmare, and now she was in a regular dream. A weird, discombobulated dream that didn’t answer all her questions, but left her longing for more.

She slept sixteen straight hours and drifted into the real dreams all day and all night, until the next afternoon. She never knew she could be this exhausted. The emotional exhaustion from not only being worried about what was happening between them, but the longstanding anxiety about Derek’s welfare at all hours had filled her with so much pent-up anxiety, she finally burst.

It wasn’t her mother who woke her. It was the rambling and bickering of her two best friends barging into her bedroom.

Becca blinked groggily and turned over.

Marty and Nicole froze when they saw her stir on the bed, both staring at her with wide eyes.

“I told you to be quiet.” Nicole’s elbow came up and dug into Marty’s stomach, causing him to wince away from her.

“She’s been asleep for sixteen hours. She needs to wake up.” He flicked the light switch on and flooded the room in bright warm light.

Becca flinched and buried her face into the pillow. “Turn it off.”

There was some pattering across the carpet, and then the side of her bed dipped down. Becca peeked to see Nicole sitting there.

In the blurriness, as she adjusted to the light, Nicole’s hand came down and rested gently on her shoulder. “How are you feeling?”

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