by Kit Tunstall
Knowing it was unlikely, he still opened the door to the chicken coop, hoping to see her. At first glance, no one was there, but when he looked deeper in the room, he frowned at the mess. The nesting boxes were tilted against the wall, and food had scattered everywhere. The water dish in the middle was tipped over, leaving the frantic chickens pecking at the moist hay covering the concrete floor.
As he stepped inside, Coop’s heart sank when he saw a familiar figure lying against a straw bale. “Mina?” He hurried toward her, his heart breaking when she began thrashing, putting up her hands to protect her battered face. “Hang on, Mina. It’s me. Cooper.” To his surprise, she stilled immediately, not protesting when he bent to lift her into his arms.
Looking down, he discovered she was naked below the waist. His stomach churned with anger, and his chest burned when he tried to drag in a deep breath. He didn’t know whether to cry or scream, torn between empathy and rage. Knowing she needed him to hold it together kept his voice calm, his tone measured. “I’m going to set you down for a second, honey.” When she whimpered and clung tighter to his neck, he patted her back the best he could in the current position. “Just for a sec. You’re bare, and I don’t think you want everyone to see you like that.”
Her lips wobbled, but she shook her head in response, releasing her death grip so he could put her down. Coop looked around for options, but found none. After a second, he stripped off his own shirt, pretending he didn’t notice the way she recoiled from him. Ruthlessly, he ripped it down one side to give her more length, and then helped her fashion it like a sarong around her waist.
As soon as she was semi-covered, he lifted her again, and she snuggled against him, her body shaking violently. His rage was building, but he kept it in check as he carried her from the coop, calling out for help. Within minutes, several people surrounded him as he carried her onto the porch.
Her father was there, arms extended, but Coop walked on past him. “Where’s her room?” he asked Emme, who ran ahead to show him. He could hear people whispering and hoped she didn’t. He could only imagine what they were saying as they speculated why she looked the way she did, and he wanted to shield her from that, even though he doubted anyone was being malicious.
Her room was a little juvenile, with yellow paint and purple accessories. He laid her on the purple bedspread and stepped back so her mother and sisters could close rank around her. No one asked him to leave, so Coop took a spot against the wall, waiting to hear the identity of the person who had raped Mina. His Mina. He clenched his hands into fists so hard his knuckles hurt.
“What happened?” asked her father, his tone as gentle as a summer breeze. It was strange, since he usually sounded on the gruff side.
“A man…in the chicken coop. He hurt me,” she whispered.
“Who was it?” asked Janie.
Mina shook her head.
“You don’t know?” asked Kelly, who seemed in shock.
“I couldn’t say,” she whispered. “Please, I need water.”
“You need more than that,” whispered Emme as she stood up. Walking by him, he heard her saying, “Pennyroyal and ginger.”
“Let’s get you cleaned up,” suggested Lia.
Mina scowled at her sister. “I don’t want you here.” She didn’t seem to care that Lia looked devastated. “I just want Momma.” Clasping her mother’s hand, she said, “Please make them leave, Momma.”
Coop didn’t wait to be asked or told. He stood up and slipped from the room, having learned what he needed to know. Rage was really bubbling inside him by the time he strode out to the porch, where her family and his friends waited.
“What happened?” asked Chelle.
Not even aware he was going to do it until he did, Coop slammed his hand into the post on the porch, barely feeling the sting. “Some fucking animal laid in wait and attacked her.”
“You mean like a mountain lion?” asked Ben, the naïve private.
“No, you idiot,” said Shane, looking upset. “Some human animal. That means this place isn’t safe, if some piece of trash can just stroll onto the land and rape our women.”
Coop didn’t like the way he phrased that, as though the women were objects, but he couldn’t argue with the conclusion. “Security has to be a new priority. We all know having a good harvest is important, but if we don’t protect it, what good will it do us? If we can’t protect the people living here, we’re all fucked.”
“Right, so let’s do something about it,” said Hector. His Latin blood was clearly boiling. “Gun turrets, tanks, the works.”
Shane scoffed. “Man, how are we going to get those things? Remember what a shit storm it was when we liberated the Humvees and the weapons cache from that National Guard unit? Firepower is important, but so are fences. It’s feasible to get supplies to build a walled enclosure, at least around the house. That way, people can regroup inside if needed.”
“And be caught there in a siege to starve to death,” said Dana.
Shane nodded. “That’s why we’ll have some backup plans too, like a secret escape tunnel, but fortification should be our first line of defense.”
They hashed it out, but Coop wasn’t much of a participant. His mind was too preoccupied with the sight of Mina Marsden lying on that full-size bed, surrounded by vestiges of her teen years, looking so broken. It pained him that he hadn’t been able to protect her from a random predator. “We should look for him,” he said abruptly.
“What’s that?” asked Shane.
“I said we should look for that piece of shit. He’s probably still around somewhere.”
After a second, Shane nodded. “Couldn’t hurt. If we find him, we can keep him from hurting anyone else.” With the natural air of leadership he’d possessed since Coop had been assigned to his platoon, he said, “I propose we split into two groups. A few of you go hunting for that dirt bag, and the rest of us will go scope out possibilities for fortification and defense.”
Coop didn’t wait to be assigned. Technically, he was no longer a soldier, and Shane wasn’t his commanding officer, even if old habits died hard. “I’ll head up the team looking for the rapist.”
Shane nodded. “Sounds good. I know you’ll deal with him if you find him.”
It should have been abhorrent to be planning to summarily execute the offender, but his conscience didn’t twinge. In that instance, and for that occurrence, he was glad they were freed from the old system, where the rapist would have gone through a lengthy trial that would have further traumatized Mina, likely to end up either with probation or a ridiculously short sentence. In this new world, he would get what he deserved, and it would only take a few minutes and the cost of a bullet.
*****
Mina’s mom helped her clean up, and she didn’t protest Emme’s presence when her sister came back a bit later with a mug of tea. “No, thanks,” she whispered, her voice hoarse, though she hadn’t been able to shout or scream as Shane had beaten her. Maybe all the internal screaming she’d done had rendered her throat raw. The tea might be soothing, but she felt too nauseated to keep it down.
Emme smiled. “You really need to drink it, sweetie.” She knelt on the floor by Mina’s bed, pushing hair off her face. “It has some herbs in it that will help prevent pregnancy.”
Mina’s eyes widened, and she couldn’t help remembering the dark glee in Shane’s voice when he’d mentioned getting her pregnant. The thought of ever having his child made her want to curl up and die. Her hands shook, and Emme helped steady the cup while she drank it as quickly as she could. It wasn’t too unpleasant, though she could definitely taste the bitterness inadequately masked by the honey.
“Good girl. You’ll need to have a cup each day until your next cycle, to make sure nothing implants. Okay?” Mina nodded, and her sister said, “I made a big batch. It’s in that old pig cookie jar downstairs. One level scoop, steeped as long as you can and as strong as you can drink it.”
“Do you want to tell us
what happened?” asked Janie, sitting beside Mina and holding her hand.
Mina shook her head. She couldn’t tell them. The idea of trying to share all those details, or even just a few, made her queasier than ever. It hurt even more to know she couldn’t tell them who had attacked her. Part of her thought maybe he was still a bully, just trying to intimidate her, but she couldn’t be sure. If he was being honest, and he had seemed chillingly sincere, she couldn’t risk her family’s lives by telling them the truth. That thought also made her want to curl up and die.
“You get some rest, sweetie.” Janie was stroking her brow. “I’ll be right here with you.”
She felt safe, for the moment, and closed her eyes. Her body ached from head to toe, especially her swollen wrist. She opened her eyes again when she felt Emme probing it. “Is it broken?” she rasped.
Emme nodded. “Yeah, I think so. All I can do is wrap it securely, and you’ll have to keep it immobilized the best you can for at least two to four weeks.”
Janie frowned. “You’re sure you know how to do that, Emme?”
Her sister sighed loudly, obviously irritated by another reminder of her parents’ lack of confidence in her chosen career path. “Mom, I’m a trained naturopath. I took biology and anatomy courses, same as doctors of western medicine.”
“No offense, but I wish you were an anesthesiologist right now,” said Mina. “You could knock me out and take away the pain.” The physical pain, anyway. She knew the emotional fallout would be haunting her long after the bruises had faded.
*****
Mina woke screaming, and the hands on her shoulders did nothing to soothe her fear. It wasn’t until she recognized Kelly’s voice that she was able to relax enough to stop screaming. The tension slowly left her, and she dropped heavily against the pillows. She greedily gulped the water her sister offered, but shook her head at the suggestion that she eat something.
“My poor baby sister.” Kelly’s blue eyes, so similar to Mina’s, welled with tears as she grasped her hand. “I can’t believe this is happening. I mean, I expected violence, rape, and looting, but not on our farm.”
Mina didn’t know whether to comfort her sister or just close her eyes and feign sleep. Kelly was intelligent, but sometimes clueless, and wouldn’t realize now was a time to soothe her sister, not express her own fears and sorrows.
“I was so scared going to the barn to tend the horses tonight, even though Sergeant Platt—Owen—walked me there and back. It’s just terrifying to know we aren’t safe here.”
Mina closed her eyes so she wouldn’t roll them. “Did someone feed the chickens tonight?”
“Yeah, that cute Cooper guy volunteered to take care of them.”
She managed a small smile, which made her split lip sting. “That was sweet.”
Kelly returned to prattling about how scared everyone was now, and how she was thinking everyone should never go anywhere alone. Mina closed her eyes and managed to fall asleep again.
*****
She spent four days in bed, until the persistent aches and pains had mostly disappeared. The bruises on her body had faded to yellow and brown splotches, and she no longer hurt between her legs when she had to use the chamber pot. Mina saw herself for the first time in the mirror and gasped in horror. It wasn’t a vanity thing. She just hadn’t realized a person could endure so much punishment. Her face still looked puffy, and her nose was swollen, though Emme hadn’t thought it was broken. Shane must have pulled some of his punches, because he had only given her the one broken bone. Of course he didn’t want her dead, just too frightened to tell anyone. That, and he’d been enraged that she had tried to stab him.
She stripped off her nightgown, eyeing her back and the other spots she couldn’t see with a normal inspection. Having seen most of her body in flashes the past few days didn’t prepare her for the awful sight of all the marks presented at once. It was overwhelming. Bruises covered her back and ribs, left by his fists and feet. His hand marks on her thighs were a vivid reminder of the way he’d pried her legs apart and raped her a second time after the beating. She could still feel him on her.
It was too much, and she turned away from the mirror, keeping her gaze averted whenever she came close to seeing her reflection as she took a pan bath and dressed in outside clothes. The idea of facing everyone almost made her climb back into her bed and pull the covers over her head, but she knew she couldn’t do that. Every hand was necessary to make sure they had enough food for winter, so she had to get back to her everyday tasks. Besides, lying in bed, obsessing over what he had done, and remembering every detail of the assault wasn’t helping her get over the attack.
Feeling nauseated from nerves, she went downstairs, glad to have caught a lull between meals. She brewed the tea her sister had made for her, determined not to miss a single cup. There would be no baby with Shane if she had to claw it out of her stomach herself.
After drinking the tea, she found her mom, who was inventorying their cache of canned goods in the pantry. Janie seemed surprised to see her, but gave her a quick hug before returning to counting the mason jars of tomatoes. “I didn’t expect you up and about yet, sweetie.”
“I know, but just lying there…well, it’s making it all worse.”
“Why don’t you sit down?”
Mina shook her head. “Nah, I need to move around a bit.”
“You want to make pies? We’ll need at least two for dinner, and I thought we’d made a big pot pie with the leftover chicken from last night. That should fill up everyone.”
“Sure.” Mina went back to the kitchen, starting the familiar task of making piecrusts. Hers wasn’t anywhere as good as her mother’s, but she didn’t think anyone would turn it down. She was in the process of kneading the dough and rolling it out when the door opened. Without thought, Mina lifted the rolling pin like a club as someone entered the kitchen. Relief made her sag against the counter when she saw Coop. “Hi,” she said softly.
“Hey.”
He came to stand nearby, but not touching. Just his presence was soothing in a way no one else’s had been, and she had to resist the urge to step closer and lean against him. It would be too strange and awkward if she acted on the impulse.
“I wanted to check on you. I’ve been trying to every day for the last four, but your mom and sisters are like tenacious little Yorkshire terriers, nipping at my heels and driving me away.”
She gave him a pale smile at the imagery. “I asked for no visitors.”
“Oh, I didn’t know.” Without asking, he reached out to snatch an apple from the bowl farther down the counter.
“Hey, that’s for the pies,” she protested.
He took a big bite, giving her a grin. “You won’t tell, will you?”
The words were too close to some of the things Shane had said, and she closed her eyes, swaying as her breathing accelerated. Mina struggled for control, but couldn’t seem to escape the grip of the memories flooding through her.
“Mina, are you okay?”
She heard his voice, but wasn’t able to regain control until he touched her shoulder. With a deep, shuddering breath, she opened her eyes. Her pulse returned to normal gradually. “Okay,” she said softly. “Bad moment.”
He nodded, looking sympathetic. “I’m so sorry. If I hadn’t taken the time to get water, I would have been there to stop that animal.”
“Don’t think that way.” Mina put down the rolling pin, realizing she’d been gripping it until her knuckles turned white. “You can’t change what happened.”
“No, but we can keep it from happening again. Do you feel up to taking a walk?”
Slowly, she nodded, taking a moment to wipe her hands on the dishtowel. “I’ll have to hurry though, so these will be done for dinner.”
Mina followed him outside, surprised to find the beginning support structures in place for a sturdy fence. One of the soldiers whose name she didn’t know was busy laying bricks, while the others strung wire in a di
fferent section.
“It won’t be pretty,” said Coop. “We couldn’t find enough supplies to make just one type, so it’s a mishmash of styles. Still, it should do the job and keep out the bad people.”
She nodded, but inside, her stomach churned, especially when she glanced at Shane, who was toiling away like the rest of them. Mina looked way quickly, but couldn’t force down the surge of fear. To her, the fence wasn’t going to keep the bad people out. It was just another way of keeping her trapped inside with the scariest person she had ever met.
Chapter Four
Sometime during the past few days, the group had expanded the seating in the kitchen, swapping out the old round table for a rectangular one that seated everyone. There were a variety of chairs, most of which didn’t match, but it gave the kitchen a homey feel. It would have been like a large family gathering for a holiday, except she had the great misfortune of being seated across from Shane. At least Coop was on her right side, which provided some support.
“This is delicious, Mrs. Marsden,” said Shane, after he’d taken a big bite of the homemade chicken pot pie.
“Thank you, Shane, but the credit goes to Mina. She made most of the meal.”
He gave her a wink. “Delicious.”
She was probably the only one aware of the sexual undertone. Mina gave him a tight nod and tried to swallow the bite in her mouth. It tasted good, though not like Mom’s, but it just didn’t want to go down. Continuing to struggle, she sat quietly as the soldiers and her family discussed their immediate and long-term plans for keeping the farm safe. She tried to pretend that she wasn’t aware of the covert glances directed toward her, along with the pitying looks. Mina appreciated them feeling bad for her, but it didn’t change anything, and it just made her feel more like a victim.
Halfway through the meal, she was surprised to feel Coop’s hand on her thigh. She looked down at it and then up at him as he gave her a small squeeze.
“Try to eat something, Mina,” he said softly. “You need to rebuild your strength.”