Page 45 of In Hiding

William set the wrench down and went to Jake, standing chest to chest and eye to eye. “But you could, if they threatened Mama.”

“Why would anyone do that?”

The way Jake’s eyes narrowed at him dashed his courage and he tried to step away, but Jake set a hand on his shoulder to keep him in place.

“Will?”

“It’s just...” he glanced up at the house, half expecting to see her watching them from the windows. She wasn’t there. “My dad. He’s in jail.”

“What did he do?”

“He hurt her.”

With a nod, Jake squeezed his shoulder. “That’s who you meant, the day she fell. When you said he almost killed her?”

William nodded, the scar on his temple throbbing. As if reading his mind, Jake stared straight at it.

“Did he do that to you?”

“I was just a kid. He shook me off like I was nothing. I couldn’t stop him.” The hunting knife flashed through his memory, making him shiver. “I couldn’t stop him, Jake. If my uncle hadn’t come...”

He felt a hot tear roll down his cheek and wiped at it angrily. Talking to Kate, the psychologist, about all of this had made him think of it more and more. So much, he could almost imagine his father storming up the driveway and kicking in the door. She told him it was a natural fear to have but he didn’t know what to do with it. He wasn’t strong enough to take on a man and he didn’t know how to fight.

“Will, listen. Your mum is safe here and so are you.”

“But you could stop him if he came, right?”

Jake smiled. “I could. I would. You can count on me. Thank you for trusting me enough to tell me.”

“You can’t tell her I told you. She said to never tell anyone.”

“Your secret is safe with me. Tell me, has it helped talking to the counselor?”

William smiled, thinking of Kate. “She’s great.” And she was easy to talk to. “Do you think she’s told Mama about me?”

“Maybe some things, but she is bound by rules about what she can and can’t say. There are some things she would have to tell your mum, like if you were thinking of hurting yourself.”

Startled, William jumped. “No way, man. No way.”

Jake patted him on the shoulder. “Good. That’s good. Would you promise me something, kid?”

“Sure.”

“Talk to your mum, tell her how you’re feeling.”

William shook his head. “I can’t. I don’t want her to feel bad about what happened.”

Jake frowned. “Mate, she just wants you to be happy.”

“I am. No, really,” he insisted when he saw Jake ‘s mouth twist. “I am. I love Mama and I love this place, but the memories won’t go away.”

“They will in time.”

He didn’t believe it and it scared him. Sitting on the bottom stone step, William shook his head and stared out across the valley below. “I keep seeing her, covered in blood.”

Sitting beside him, Jake bumped him with his shoulder. “It wasn’t your fault.”

“I remember her crawling across the floor toward me. I don’t know how many times he stabbed her, but it was a lot. I was only ten, then, but even now, I don’t know how she survived, Jake.”

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