*****
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 different 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.
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A note about the series: This idea started with a futuristic romance written under my Kit Tunstall pen name. I decided to publish this under T.K. Reilley, with a slightly different series name, because this is more action and postapocalyptic than romantic—plus it’s set a century sooner, which could be confusing.
If you’re curious about the “other side” of this series, set more than a century after this series, please see “Reluctant Companion”—and be aware it has more romance and a much steamier heat level.
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