Page 107 of Full Circle

A hospital room slowly came into view as I first cracked open one eye, then the other. Marla and Nana were both sitting in chairs to my left. Nana had her knitting needles out where it looked like she was creating a fuzzy green tent.

“What happened?” I croaked.

“Oh, baby girl!” Marla wiped a tear from her cheek. She grabbed one of my hands and squeezed. “Let me get the doctor. We’ve been waiting for you to wake up.” She swept from the room.

Nana leaned over. “You gave us a scare. That British guy called us and said we needed to get down here as soon as possible.”

It hurt to swallow, which I realized belatedly stemmed from the way Jeremy choked me. An involuntary shudder ran down my spine at the memory. That’s why I was in the hospital.

The doctor came in, followed by Marla and Cassie Heddings, the only female deputy in the Smithson County Sheriff’s Department. They both asked me to recount the attack, with the doctor pausing to examine my throat, ears, and scalp during the parts of the story where I relayed how he held me down and where he put his hands. Nana and Marla both offered to step out of the room and give me privacy. I declined because I needed their strength. Nothing had actually happened, I assured all of them, but I emphasized how closely Jeremy came to going past that point. He had every intention of sexually assaulting me.

Deputy Heddings promised they were going to issue a warrant for his arrest along with a restraining order. He wouldn’t be able to come within fifty feet of me. Everyone told me how brave I was, Marla and Nana while choking back tears, and finally left the room so that I could get dressed. As always, Marla was one step ahead and brought a change of clothes for me. My outfit from The Comfy Cushion was being admitted into evidence.

When all of my test results confirmed I was safe to leave, the three of us walked out to Marla’s car. I didn’t want to acknowledge my surprise and disappointment that I woke up to Wesley’s absence. Now that he was back in River’s Run, it just seemed natural for him to know when I needed him, just as he always had.

“We need to go get Iris,” I insisted. “She should be in school by now, so unless Desiree is guarding the building, no one can stop me.”

Marla nodded as she slid into the driver’s seat. “I’ll try Wes again on the way.”

“What do you mean?”

Nana scoffed. “D’you really think we weren’t gonna keep him updated after he left? He stopped answering his cell phone a couple hours ago, but maybe by now he’s done with his own emergency.”

“What emergency?” I asked.

“We aren’t sure,” Nana explained. “Said there was somethin’ he had to take care of before he could come get you.”

Maybe this time he’ll actually come back, I thought.

“If we’re getting Iris,” Marla said, “we are telling her the truth about Wesley.” Her tone was firm, brooking no argument.

She wouldn’t get any from me. It was time for Iris to know the truth.

After signing her out of school, my sweet girl flew into my arms, encasing me in a bone-crushing hug while she sobbed into my chest.

“Mama!” Iris cried. “Desiree said I would never see you again! It’s been awful! She said that you stole from her? And that you’ve been lying to me? What is going on, Mama?! I’m so scared!”

I tightened my hold on her, tears streaming down into her dancer’s bun. “Baby girl, none of that is true. Let’s go so that I can explain. You don’t need to be scared.”

It took more than an hour and a few slices of Marla’s famous lemon meringue pie to calm Iris down. We were all settled into a table at Marla’s Sweets, which she had refused to open, saying today was a personal day for us to get everything sorted out. Nana inhaled all the treats Marla set down in front of us, and got Iris to laugh by teaching her the proper way to sneak food into a purse.

“Baby girl, there’s so much I need to tell you and I’m not sure where to begin,” I admitted. “I think we need to start with the man you met at the gym. He’s…well, he’s someone pretty important.”

My daughter nodded solemnly. “You mean my dad? Yeah, I’d say he’s important.”

The rest of us shared the same expression of shock. “You knew?!”

Iris’ eyes widened. “You keep that box of photos in the back of your closet, Mama,” she explained. “I know you always tell me not to go through your stuff, but I needed a baby photo for a school project a couple years ago and I found a bunch of pictures with him in them. There were never any other boys, so I figured he had to be my daddy…you wouldn’t’ve kept his photos otherwise.”

Of course Iris would make that deduction. She noticed things and read people, just like her father always had.

I was still so stunned that she knew. “Honey, why didn’t you say anything?”

Iris shrugged, picking at the corner of the table. “Because I knew you would tell me when you were ready. I didn’t wanna hurt you.”

Her maturity broke my heart. I wanted a time machine, something that could take me back so I could make different choices.

Except wishing things were different wasn’t going to bring change. Actually making different choices would. It was time to make my Mama and Daddy proud.

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