“One more cloud and one twinkle star and it’ll be done.” He grinned.
When Travis smiled, Hannah’s heart threw in an extra beat. It had always been that way, even back when they were kids. Talking to him made things better, because he listened and then she got a clear picture of how to fix things.
And what about that woman that stole his heart all those years ago, she wondered. Was it right after he left Crossing to go on the construction road with his dad? A little streak of jealousy shot down her spine. Why hadn’t he confided in her about this woman? And would he ever get over that first love?
You didn’t tell him the whole story about Marty. All he knew was that the man was mentally abusive, the voice in her head said very bluntly. So don’t expect him to tell you about the woman who still holds his heart.
“Okay, then, back to the noisy sewing machine.” She blinked her way back to the present.
“We’ll get it all done by Wednesday”—there was that grin again—“and when Cal gets here with his truckload of stuff, I’ll be ready to start helping him lay out his new designing place. We’ve been talking on the phone a lot. I kind of know what he’s got in mind.”
She didn’t want to leave, yet she really did need to get back to the sewing business, so she whipped around and went back to the dining room.
She’d finished another valance when Liz called to apologize for not showing up to help. Wyatt had come home unexpectedly. She’d be able to help after he left on Wednesday morning. His route would take him north, so he’d be gone a week this time.
“Are you okay? You sound like you are losing your voice,” Hannah said.
“I’m fine. Wyatt is watching a movie, and he doesn’t like me to talk very loud. Got to go. He’s motioning for me to refill his tea glass. See you Wednesday,” Liz said.
Hannah’s hands were shaking when she hit the “End” button on her phone. For a long minute, she wished that it wasn’t against the law to shoot an abusive man. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if they made it legal just one day out of the year?
They could even issue hunting licenses and make some money for the state, like they did with those tags that hunters hung on deer when they shot one. Only this time it would be something to hang on the abuser’s toe. Then whoever got to the station first to check in their dead husband would get a big, gold-plated trophy.
To take her mind off what was going on right down the street at Liz’s house, she stretched out another length of white fabric on the dining room table and cut it into the right lengths for the living room window valances. She was working on the last cut when the doorbell rang. Figuring it was Sophie, sent by Aunt Birdie, to tell them to come on to dinner, she didn’t answer it. Sophie liked to play visitor, but Hannah was busy.
It rang again, and she hurried from the dining room across to the foyer. Expecting to see Sophie with a big grin on her face, she slung it open, but it wasn’t her daughter on the other side of the screen door. Gina was standing there with a strange woman beside her.
“I tried to call, but you must have not heard your phone. Can we please get inside?”
“Yes, of course.” Hannah threw open the door.
The petite lady that followed Gina into the house was smaller than Hannah by at least fifteen pounds and looked like she’d been dragged through a hedge backward.
“I’m sorry. This sewing machine sounds like a threshing machine.” Hannah motioned them inside.
Gina nodded toward the lady. “This is Elaine, and she’s twenty-one. She walked into the shelter this morning. You have been approved, and the paperwork is in the mail. Patchwork House is completely full. I don’t even have a sofa to put her on. I’ll let her tell you her story, if it’s all right if I leave her with you.”
“Of course it’s all right.” Hannah held out a hand, and the younger woman bypassed it and hugged her tightly.
“Thank you so much. I walked ten miles to get to that shelter, hiding in the weeds every time a car came by,” Elaine whispered. “I can’t go back. He’ll kill me.”
Travis poked his head out of the dining room. “Aunt Birdie called. Dinner is ready. Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t . . .”
Elaine jumped back two feet, hit the door with her bony shoulders, and slapped her hands over her eyes. Her slim body quivered all over.
Hannah rushed to her side and laid a hand on her shoulder, which only made the situation worse until Elaine uncovered her eyes. “It’s okay. Travis is one of the good guys. He won’t hurt you. Travis, this is Elaine, and she’s going to stay here a few days.”
“I’m so sorry I scared you,” Travis said. “I was coming out to tell Hannah that it was time for dinner. You are both welcome to join us, Gina.”
“Thank you, but I have to get back.” Gina smiled. “And it’s best if Elaine stays inside. You did read that handbook I left for you, right?”
“Every word—twice.” Hannah nodded seriously and then turned to Travis. “Tell Aunt Birdie I won’t be there. I’ll just make a couple of sandwiches here.”
“How about I bring some food for you and Elaine?” Travis said.
“That would be great, and Gina, Elaine can stay here as long as she needs to,” Hannah said.
“I appreciate your generosity,” Gina said.
Hannah heard the kitchen door open and close and hugged Travis in her mind for being so kind. She laced her fingers in Elaine’s and led her to the kitchen, where she pulled out a chair for her at the table.
“Hungry?” Hannah asked.
“I ate breakfast yesterday. He said I didn’t deserve dinner or supper since I hadn’t ironed his shirts right. When he caught me sneaking a few cookies out of the jar, well . . .” She stopped.
Words weren’t necessary. The bruises on her arms and her legs were definitely belt marks, and the black eye said he’d used his fists as well.
“Travis is my friend, and he’s helping me do some painting. He’ll be back soon with dinner and we’ll eat. Then you can take a good, warm bath and a long nap,” Hannah said.
Elaine looked like she needed it. Her cheekbones were hollow. Her blonde hair hung in oily strings around her gaunt face, and her eyes darted around the room as if she was afraid it would disappear.
“He’ll be out huntin’ for me. I’ll work. You just tell me what to do and I’ll do it. I can clean and iron, and I’m good with kids. Gina said you got a little girl.”
“Yes, I do. Her name is Sophie, and she’s going to love having company,” Hannah said.
Elaine jumped and shivered when someone knocked on the kitchen door. Hannah laid a hand on her shoulder as she passed. “It’s okay. I imagine it’s Travis bringing us some food, but I’ll make sure before I open it.”
“I’m sorry,” Elaine whispered.
“It’s okay.” Hannah gently patted her before she pulled back the curtain over the window.
She opened the door and stood back for Travis to bring in a cardboard box with covered dishes inside.
“Aunt Birdie said that she and Sophie are going to read some books and take a long nap and then she’ll bring Sophie home. This is baked potato soup, hot bread, and peach cobbler for dessert. Do you still want me to come over and help get Sophie’s room put to rights?”
“Yes, please.” Hannah nodded. “And tell Aunt Birdie thank you for everything.”
Travis set the box on the table and smiled at Elaine. “I’m the resident handyman for Crossing. Welcome to the Lullaby Sky.”
“What?” Hannah asked.
“Sophie just now informed me that was the new name of this house. So you two are the first to know the formal name.”
Elaine’s mouth turned up slightly. “I like it. It’s calm in this place—like looking at the sky on a dark night. The stars give us hope.”
“Okay, then, I’m going back across the street to eat a couple of bowls of my favorite soup. You ladies have a good dinner and visit.” He left the same way he came in, easing the door shut so softly that it didn’t mak
e a sound.
Hannah uncovered the bowls and shoved the first one across the table toward Elaine so she could get a whiff of the delicious aroma. Then she pushed back her chair, stood up, and went to the cabinet for silverware and the butter. When she turned around, Elaine had her head bowed and her lips moved silently. She raised her head after a few seconds and blushed.
“Amen,” Hannah said.
“I didn’t know if you was a prayin’ woman, and I didn’t want to offend. Can’t eat this good food in a house this nice without thanking God for getting me here safely,” Elaine said.
“We do say grace, and I am a prayin’ woman.” Hannah laid out the cutlery beside Elaine’s bowl and handed her a paper towel to use as a napkin. “Eat slowly. If you go too fast, it might make you sick.”
Hannah wanted to hear more of her story, help her heal, until a little voice inside her head told her to be patient and let Elaine tell what she wanted when she wanted. So they ate in silence, Elaine finishing only a third of her soup before she ate three or four bites of the peach cobbler.
“Don’t throw any of it away. I’ll eat it for supper,” Elaine said.
“Or maybe some of the cobbler after your nap? You must have walked all night.”
Elaine shook her head. “Only about half of it was in the dark. The rest was daylight. I got to the shelter about ten, and that nice lady brought me here. You reckon I could have that bath now?”
Hannah wanted to weep for this poor woman. “Of course you can. There are towels and washcloths on the chair beside the tub. Bubble bath and salts are there, along with shampoo and conditioner. Help yourself to any of it. And I will leave clean underwear and a nightshirt beside the door. If you’ll put your clothes on the top step, I’ll pitch them in the washer and dryer for you. When you wake, they should be clean. Follow me, and you can pick out which of the bedrooms you want to claim while you are here.”
“You choose for me,” Elaine said.
Hannah threw open the doors for all three bedrooms as they passed by them on the way to the bathroom. Elaine didn’t react to the first three, but the last one brought half a smile to her face.
“When you finish your bath, use this one. You’re looking toward the river, and on the other side of it is Oklahoma,” Hannah said. “You can have the run of the house, though if someone knocks on the door, you should hurry up here and hide. Gina says as little exposure as possible is necessary. I have four friends plus two neighbors, Aunt Birdie and Miss Rosie, that you don’t need to worry about.”
“Thank you, Hannah. You are an angel.” Elaine swiped at tears and disappeared into the bathroom.
Hannah had set aside a few sets of clothes, and she fished through them for a nightshirt and a pair of underpants. She laid them beside the bathroom door, through which she could hear the sound of water running in the deep, old claw-foot tub as she crossed the landing into the room where Elaine would stay a few days. She pulled the chain to turn on the ceiling fan and quickly changed the bedsheets so they’d smell fresh.
That finished, and with nothing else she could do to make Elaine more comfortable and feel safer, she headed down the stairs. She found Miss Rosie and Travis sitting at the kitchen table, each with a glass of sweet tea in front of them.
“Her name is Elaine, and she is having a bath. Since she walked all night and half the morning, the next thing she wants is a nap,” Hannah said.
“Clothing?” Miss Rosie asked.
“I would guess what she has on her back. I didn’t even see a purse.”
“I’ll go down to our church clothes closet and fix her up with some things. What size would you think?”
“Have no idea about size, but I think she’s about my height and maybe fifteen or twenty pounds lighter.”
Miss Rosie nodded. “This is going to be a joint effort, Hannah. I talked to Gina after she got back to the shelter, and she’s in agreement.”
“You know Gina?”
Miss Rosie sipped her tea. “Oh, yes. I’m the one who got her the job and helps her write the grant requests from the government. She called me after she talked to you about offering to be a safe house.”
Travis laid a hand on Hannah’s. “She is really nervous, so I’ll stay out of the way as much as possible.”
“Poor thing. That’s probably a good idea. Why don’t you take the downstairs bedroom and I’ll sleep upstairs while she is here? If it was me in her shoes, that would make me more comfortable,” Hannah said.
“That sounds like a good idea,” Miss Rosie said quickly. “I’m thinking this one is going to need a fresh start. I’ll start putting out feelers and get with Gina about new papers.”
“You can do that?” Travis asked.
“Oh, yes, we can. We’ll find a place far away and give her a whole new name and identity so that bastard can’t find her ever again. But it can’t be done overnight, and we’ll need to bring in the therapist to talk to her a couple of times to be sure that when she gets to her new location, she doesn’t get crazy and call him.”
Hannah’s dark brows became a solid line and deep wrinkle furrowed across her forehead. “I didn’t know that you . . .”
Miss Rosie smiled. “I’ve been trying to ferret out who was the snitch for years when it came to your situation. If I could have figured out who was telling Marty every single time you drove out of town, I would have fixed things for you. Had no idea that it wasn’t a person at all, just technology. But things work out for the best, Hannah, and now you are right where you need to be to help others.”
Hannah glanced over at Travis. “Did you know that she was involved with helping abused women?”
He shrugged.
“He knew. He even volunteers when Gina needs someone to talk to the older boys. My grandson makes a pretty good therapist,” Miss Rosie said with pride.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” Hannah asked Travis.
“I guess I’m telling you now, or rather, Miss Rosie is.” Travis grinned as he slid his hand from Hannah’s and drank the sweet tea. For the first time since the divorce, she hadn’t flinched when he put his hand on hers, but she did feel empty when he removed it. Did that mean that she was healing? She’d expected it to take months, maybe even years before she stopped jumping when someone touched her.
“Let’s get Sophie’s room ready,” Travis suggested. “She’s itching to come home and see it.”
Hannah’s soft giggle filled the room. “That’s my Sophie.”
Travis pushed up out of the chair and held out a hand. “That’s our girl, all right.”
Hannah put hers in it, and together they walked to Sophie’s room. He didn’t let go until they were inside the room where clouds and the twinkle star greeted them. And somehow it wasn’t uncomfortable or weird. It felt just right.
CHAPTER NINE
There wasn’t even a faint little wispy cloud in the sky on Wednesday morning when Liz showed up wearing faded jeans, an oversize T-shirt, and flip-flops. She came through the door fanning herself with the back of her hand.
“It’s going to be a hot one,” she said. “Oh. My. Goodness—this doesn’t look like the same place. It’s so airy and beautiful and I love it. And I had looked forward to helping, but”—she paused—“you know how it goes. Wyatt was home a lot longer than I expected.”
Yes, Hannah knew exactly how it went. She didn’t need a map to know what Liz was going through. But was Liz reaching out to her with that last statement? If so, Hannah should do something to encourage her to open up. Where did she start?
“You are here now, and that’s all that matters.” Hannah said the first thing that came to her mind and hoped that God would give her the right words to say next. “Why don’t we paint your house while Wyatt is gone? It would be a surprise for him when he comes home.” Holy hell! That wasn’t the right thing to say at all. Had those words really come out of Hannah’s mouth?
“Oh, no!” Liz waved both her hands. “That’s his house, remember. It belonged to his gra
ndmother, and the place has to remain a shrine to her. I’m sure the world would come to an abrupt end if I even moved a picture on the wall.”
Hannah pushed ahead. “Then let’s just do your bedroom.” If God wanted her to talk about redoing a room, then he must have a purpose.
Liz shook her head. “That was his bedroom as a child. I’d love to have a king-size bed, but even mentioning it makes him angry. That full-size one that we are sleeping on is lumpy, and Wyatt takes up three-fourths of it.”
A picture of the sign at the Patchwork House flashed in Hannah’s mind. God, if you’re trying to tell me something, I sure wish you’d spit it out a lot plainer, she thought. Patchwork. House. Quilts. Do you want us to make a quilt, or should I hog-tie Liz and take her to the shelter against her will?
“If we can’t redo your house, then let’s make a quilt. The sewing machine is set up and we’ve got some scraps from the valances, and I know Aunt Birdie has lots of leftovers from her quilting days out in her storage shed. That can be our project for the rest of the summer,” Hannah said.
“We could even borrow her quilting frame after we piece it together.” Liz sounded really excited.
Maybe Hannah had finally found her way through the maze that God had thrown her into. The peaceful rhythm of working together might help Liz share some of her thoughts.
Liz poured two glasses of tea and handed one to Hannah. “I’ve never quilted anything by hand, but it sounds like fun. Let’s go over there and see what she’s got. I bet she can even help us pick out a pattern.”
Hannah shook her head slowly from side to side. “I know you. You’ll pick out something so difficult it’ll take us a year to piece together. So before we go, let’s decide to start out with an easy pattern.”
“What’s the fun in that?” Liz’s grin reached her eyes for the first time in months.
“Aunt Liz!” Sophie squealed as she pulled Elaine into the room by the hand. “I have a new friend. Her name is Laney.”
Hannah watched Liz’s smile fade and her eyes mist as she took in the bruises on Elaine’s face, arms, and legs. Time froze. Hannah saw herself in the past, and from the pained look on Liz’s face, she was looking at herself in the present and possibly even the future.
The Lullaby Sky Page 10