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“I don’t think you understand. I know Jess. She didn’t like me when we were teenagers, and I can guarantee she doesn’t like me now.”

“That’s ridiculous. Jess comes off as unfriendly, but she’s fiercely loyal.”

“That’s what I’m afraid of. Remember her dad? My dad? I left her brother? Ringing a bell?”

Hadley waved a hand in the air. “But you didn’t do any of that. Well, except for the leaving Brett part. Why’d you do that anyway?”

“It’s complicated.”

“So I heard. I thought your family was dangerous. Why the mercy for your mom?”

“Mom isn’t like the rest of them. She married my dad when she was young, and she loved him. My dad wasn’t a good man, and he didn’t grow up with a good sense of right and wrong. My uncles are the same. They don’t have a bit of kindness in them.”

“I’m sorry.”

“I don’t think Mom knew what she was getting into when she married Dad, but once she was in, it was like a life sentence. They couldn’t get away from the family, and she basically spent her time trying to keep her kids out of danger.”

“That’s rough.”

“I feel bad for her.” It was the most Thea had voiced aloud about her mom’s fate.

Her mom was a good woman, but for all her best efforts, she was going to lose what was left of her life without the hope of redemption. If Thea never got a chance to see her mom again, she would die without knowing what Thea had learned about God.

Pushing up onto her good foot, Thea reached for her crutches. “I need to get up. I can’t take much more of this sitting.”

Hadley was on her feet seconds later. “Sounds good. Let me show you to your new room.”

The afternoon rushed by in a blur as Thea hobbled around the bedroom putting her things here and there. Hadley talked the entire time, and Thea only needed to respond every so often. Who needed a television when Hadley was full-time entertainment? She told stories about the kids at the ranch and the wild things that had happened since she moved to Blackwater five months ago.

When she’d been on her feet long enough that her ankle swelled in the brace, Thea eased onto the bed in her temporary room. She lay weightless with her eyes closed for ten seconds before her stomach rumbled.

“Ready for dinner?” Hadley asked.

“Starving.”

“We have stuff to make sandwiches, or I could heat up a frozen pizza.”

Thea grimaced as she rolled onto her side. “I need to give you some cash for groceries. I’ll pay half of your rent while I’m here too.”

“We’ll talk about that later. We could go to the dining hall if you want. My meals are free, and I’m sure you can work something out with Mr. Chambers and Ava for meals. Especially if you’ll be helping out around here.”

Hadley’s phone rang, and she pulled it out of her back pocket. “Hello.”

Thea let her head rest back onto the bed, allowing Hadley to have some privacy.

“I’ll ask her,” Hadley said before pulling the phone away from her ear. “Brett wants to know if you’re coming to supper at the dining hall.”

“Do you want to go?” Thea asked Hadley.

Hadley nodded.

“Then let’s go.”

Hadley pressed the phone back to her ear. “We’ll be there in a jiffy.”

When she hung up the phone, she tossed it onto the bed and reached both hands out to Thea. Gently pulling her up from where she’d been lying on the bed, Hadley sang, “Up, up, upsy daisy.”

Thea grunted through every movement. The pain in her chest wasn’t easing.