Rafe wanted to say they were doing their job, but he couldn’t form the words.
“How bad was it at Aunt Betsy’s?”
“There were the lonely times. Those I could take. Then, there were the hard times. Betsy would steal any money I didn’t hide. If I didn’t have money, she’d sell my things. She sold my paints.”
“Did anyone ever hurt you?”
He wasn’t sure he could take her answer. If she said yes, he’d head for Texas, find this Betsy and...and what? Slam her against the wall? Yell? No, he’d been raised better than that. He’d never in his life hurt a woman, not even one resisting arrest with her teeth and fingernails. And what would yelling get him? Just a sore throat.
And if Janie said yes, then he’d have to acknowledge that he was part of a system that didn’t always work, didn’t always do what it was supposed to do: serve and protect.
“No, I was very lucky. I knew when to disappear and how. Plus, I was only there a year on my own. Before that, Katie was with me, and she’d call the police the minute Betsy started to turn ugly.”
“And the police came. So, they were helpful.”
“Just for Katie.”
“Did you ever call them when you were by yourself with Betsy?”
“Once.”
“What happened?”
“Two cops showed up, the same two cops who’d driven me from Katie’s the first time. When he recognized me, one of them rolled his eyes and checked his watch.”
Rafe made a mental note to never roll his eyes while she was looking. “And you never called the police again.”
“Katie gave me a cell phone the minute she had extra money, and I called her when I got scared. She’d come and get me, and I’d stay with her until the next day.”
“You’re a strong woman. You survived.”
“I didn’t feel strong, still don’t,” she admitted. “When Katie left Betsy’s, I started failing school. No one was around to make sure I did my homework. Some teachers noticed a difference and pulled me aside. Others didn’t care. One, though, Mrs. Freshia, she cared.”
“So teachers are a bit like cops. Some are better than others. And,” he puffed up, exaggerating, “some are great.”
That earned him a low chuckle from her. “I never thought about it like that.” She continued, “I stopped sleeping at night. I’d just get this sick, knotty feeling in my stomach. Anxiety. That’s when I really started drawing. I couldn’t stop.”
“And you drew animals.”
“I must have remembered animals being around when times were better.”
“Then you should be pretty happy right now.” He turned his SUV into the driveway of Katie’s house.
“Why? What do you mean?”
A pack of wolves sounded in the distance. The scream of a peacock echoed in the wind. He’d not even parked or switched off the engine before Katie had the front door open and was hurrying down the front steps. Her husband was right behind her.