The Homecoming: Countdown to Armageddon: Book 5 (11 page)

     “Difficult was finding out that my own mother didn’t care that I’d lost my virginity to a man thirty years my senior, who didn’t love me in the slightest. And who I despised and hated with every fiber of my being.

     “Difficult was knowing that the one person in the world I could count on to protect me… the one who’d always been there for me… had sold me for material things.”

     “What did she say? Did she try to justify her behavior?”

     “She said that maybe I should try to cover up more. To wear baggy sweats instead of dresses and tank tops. That maybe I was just getting him excited by the things I wore. And that maybe I should make more of an effort to avoid him by hanging out in my room or with my friends.”

     “Oh, honey. I’m so sorry.”

     “I looked her in the eyes and told her, ‘Mom, I was counting on you to protect me from things like this.’

     “She turned away, and couldn’t look at me when she said the most chilling thing I’ve ever heard her say.

     “She said, ‘But baby, if we kick him out or send him to prison, we’ll have to sell our nice things and live on our own again.’

     “It was at that moment that I realized… she had stopped being my mother and had become little more than my pimp.”

     Sara abruptly stopped speaking, fixed her gaze on the passing landscape, and let the tears stream unashamedly down her cheeks.

     Scott knew to hold his tongue. He wasn’t sure if she was finished, or was merely taking a break. But whichever was the case, he wouldn’t rush her. He was on her schedule, and would let her decide when and what to tell him.

     For a brief moment, he thought of pulling the car over, so he could hold her until the tears went away.

     Then it occurred to him that instead of finding comfort in his action, she might find fear. Perhaps her step-father’s betrayal had caused her to have unseen scars. And perhaps she would always feel fear when finding herself alone with an older man.

     He searched for the right words which might break the silence.

     “Sara… I can’t change the things that happened, but with God as I witness, I would have stopped it if I’d known.”

     “I know you would have, Scott, and thank you for that. That was the same reason I kept it a secret from Jordan, and from everyone else. Because someone would have intervened. And it would have destroyed my mom’s world completely. It’s funny that as much as I hated her, I still put her best interests over my own.”

     She took a deep breath, wiped her tears, and finished her sad tale.

     “After that it was out in the open. Mom no longer had to pretend she didn’t know, and he grew even more bold. He even asked my mother to sleep in the guest room occasionally so he could… well, I guess you get the picture. After awhile I created my own little world, my fantasy space, where my mind could go when I was with him. It provided me some comfort, some escape. Looking back now, I think that’s the only thing that helped me survive.”

     Scott was out of his element. The father of two sons, he was used to dealing with boy problems. Still, this young girl had come along and won his son’s heart and then his own. He’d do anything he could to try to make things better for her.

     “Well, I have to say, that for someone who has been through so much, you’re amazingly strong. Not only have you survived, you’ve prospered. You’re one of the most amazing young women I know.”

     “Thank you. But I’ve got no one other than Jordan to thank for that. If he hadn’t saved me when the power went out, I’d have been stuck with my parents. And my life wasn’t the only one Jordan saved by bringing me home with him that day.”

     He turned to look at her, puzzled.

     She elaborated.

     “When all the chaos happened, just after the world went black, I’d have killed him. It’s something I used to dream about over and over again in my head. How I’d sneak up on him while he was sleeping and stab him in the heart.”

     She looked at Scott, as though stressing to him she was serious.

     “I mean it, too. When it became obvious that the world was going to hell, I’d have killed him dead. I mean, at that point I’d have nothing left to lose, right?”

     “No, I suppose not. But it’s a moot point now. You are safe with a family that loves you enough to protect you. Even when it’s a hard thing to do.”

     She squeezed his hand.

     “I know that. Thank you for giving me my life back.”

-20-

     Scott left the police radio on, at a low volume, because Sara was fascinated by some of the conversation between dispatch and the SAPD officers.

     He had been doing a pretty good job of tuning out the transmissions, until he heard his own call sign come across the airwaves. In the same manner one can recognize their own name called out in a crowded room filled with a hundred conversations, the sign registered instantly in his ears.

     “Charlie two five, this is Charlie three one. Are you monitoring the radio today?”

     It was Rhett Butler, a good friend and one of the newer members of the San Antonio police team.

     Scott picked up the microphone. Sara watched as he instantly transformed from her friend and father-in-law to a no-nonsense law enforcement officer.

     Expecting the worst, Scott was all business.

     “Charlie two five. Go ahead three one.”

     “Charlie two five, please switch to Tac Two.”

     Scott reached over to the radio console and flipped a switch to change over to a private channel.

     He said, “Go ahead, Rhett. Is everything okay?”

     “Oh, yeah, all’s okay here, Scott. It’s just that Scarlett found out about your mission today and wanted to meet your daughter in law. She twisted my arm and told me to make sure you came by Baker Street for lunch before you headed back today.”

     “Lunch? Since when does Scarlett know how to cook?”

     Scott winked at Sara. She smiled for the first time since she’d started the conversation about her abusive past.

     “Scott, I’m going to save you a severe beating by not telling Scarlett you said that. But she’s got help from the other women on the block. They had me slaughter one of the pigs last night and they’re preparing a pork roast with mashed potatoes and gravy and all the trimmings. She threatened me with bodily harm if I didn’t promise to get you there. Now, then. I saved you from a beating. You have to return the favor.”

     Scott wouldn’t make such a commitment without Sara’s okay.

     He turned to her and asked, “Would you like to meet some of my friends?”

     “Sure.”

     “Okay, Rhett. Get word to Scarlett we’ll be there around noon, give or take an hour.”

     “Okay, my friend. See you then.”

     Off the radio, Scott told Sara, “Yes, their names really are Rhett and Scarlett Butler. Pretty cool coincidence, huh?”

     She took on a puzzled look.

     “Rhett and Scarlett Butler? I don’t get it. A coincidence how, exactly?”

     “From the movie
Gone with the Wind
.”

     “Gone with the what?”

     “Sara, are you serious? It’s a classic. You’ve never heard of
Gone with the Wind?
”

     “No. Is that one of those old timey black and white movies?”

     “No, actually, it’s in color. And nobody should be able to call themselves refined and grown up until they’ve seen
Gone with the Wind.
When we visit with Scarlett and Rhett, we’ll borrow one of their DVDs to take back with us. They told me they’ve saved several copies for their future children. And when we get back to the compound, we’re going to watch it over popcorn. You’ll like it. It chronicles life in the south during the civil war.”

     “I’m sorry, Scott. I don’t like war movies.”

     “Well, it’s not just a war movie. It’s also a love story. And it gives a pretty accurate picture of what life was like back then. Not just for the soldiers, but for the civilians as well.”

     “I’m still not sure I’d like it.”

     “Did you like
Pearl Harbor
?”

     “Yeah, well, sure. I mean, it was mostly a love story with shooting and action woven around it.”

     “Exactly!
Gone with the
Wind
is a lot like that.”

     “Well, I still don’t know…”

     “I’ll make a deal with you. If you’ll watch the movie with me, I’ll change Christopher’s diapers for a week.”

     “Really? All of them?”

     “Sure. I’ll change all of them during the day, and we’ll put his playpen into the bedroom with Becky and I so I can change him if he wakes up wet during the night too.”

     “And Becky wouldn’t mind?”

     “Not at all. She’s like Florence Nightingale.”

     “Who?”

     “Oh, never mind. You’re really making me feel old, you know that?”

     “I’m sorry. And you’d really change all of the baby’s diapers for a week if I’ll watch the movie with you?”

     “Yep.”

     “Okay. It’s a deal. Just you and me and a big bowl of popcorn, watching Rhett and Scarlett and Tara.”

     “And you can invite Jordan too, as long as he doesn’t eat more than his share of the popcorn.”

     Scott went back to watching the road disappear under the front of the squad car for about twenty seconds.

     “Wait a minute. You said ‘Rhett and Scarlett and Tara.’ Tara was the name of the plantation where they lived. How did you know that?”

     “Didn’t you mention it?”

     “No. I certainly did not.”

     “Oops.”

     Scott gave Sara a sideways glance and noticed the evil grin lifting up the left side of her mouth.

     He knew then that he’d been had.

     “You
have
seen it, haven’t you?”

     “Are you kidding? Only about a hundred times. It’s a classic. I couldn’t consider myself refined and mature without having seen
Gone with the Wind
. I was just teasing you.”

     “Well, the deal’s still on if you’re interested.”

     “After knowing I got over on you, you’d still change Christopher’s diapers for a week just to watch the movie with me and Jordan?”

     “Sure. Why not?”

     “Here’s a better question. You can watch movies with me and Jordan any time. Why would you be willing to change a week’s worth of diapers you don’t have to change?”

     “Because you’re a special girl. Jordan saw it a long time ago. Now we can all see it. And special people like you need to be reminded occasionally that despite what you’ve had to endure in the past, that there are still people who will love you unconditionally. And who will be willing to show you how much they love you.”

     Sara reached for Scott’s hand and through moistened eyes and a knotted throat, said merely, “thank you.”

-21-

     As the pair entered Sara’s old neighborhood and drew close to Moon Valley Drive, Sara grew more sullen.

     “Scott, you haven’t asked me why it’s so important for me to come back here, even after I know they’re dead.”

     “I’ve wondered about that, sweetie. It wasn’t my place to ask, but I’d love to hear it if you want to share it with me.”

     “Until you confirmed their deaths, I was hoping they’d survived. I wanted them to be alive not because I cared for them or anything. I just wanted to walk in and smear it in their faces that I was strong enough to survive without them. Half of me wanted to taunt them. To tell them I didn’t need them. To show them I found people who loved me for me, instead of what I could do for them. Or to them.

     “Then, other times, I wanted them to be alive so I could thrust a long knife through that bastard’s heart. And then take my mother away, to come back with me. I wanted to demand that she explain why. Why she abandoned her duty to protect me, and just let that animal have his way with me. Why she thought a nice house and money were more important than the welfare of her own daughter.