Truth's Kiss: Securities International Book 10 by E.M. Shue

Author:E.M. Shue [Shue, E.M.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Mountain Rose Press
Published: 2023-08-21T16:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER TWELVE

ONE YEAR, FOUR MONTHS, THREE WEEKS GONE

PIPER

I look across the circle of chairs to the girl in the wheelchair and take her in for a moment. She reminds me of myself the first time I came to group session. Of course, I wasn’t in a wheelchair, but it’s the way she looks around at us. How she tries to keep herself guarded by closing in on herself. She’s not willing to share, like I wasn’t. But like me, she will.

I only come for the group sessions every couple of weeks. When I come for my hourly session, I sit in on the group afterward. I like hearing I’m not the only one feeling the way I do. I share a lot more now, but I still must keep a part of myself from them all. Because I’m still in hiding.

The girl pulls her long hair down to cover her face, trying to hide the scars. One of her arms is in a cast and so is her hip and leg. I look at the other women around the circle who I’ve become close to and then back to the new girl. They’ve all survived traumatic events worse than my car accident that led to the death of my baby. Most of these women had been beaten and abused.

"Okay, let's go around and introduce ourselves for Giselle." Eliza’s voice breaks me from my thoughts. She motions her hand for the woman next to me to start. She says her name and why she’s here. She talks about horrific things that happened to her and then it’s my turn.

“Hello, I’m Piper. I’ve been coming here for just over a year now. I left the people who protected and loved me after a disagreement and was involved in a car accident when my car was forced from the roadway by men hired to kill me. I lost my baby. I hadn’t even gotten a chance to tell the man I loved. He and I got into a fight. That was why I ran away.” I stop there because I could say so much more, and I don’t want to give away too much or share too much. I can’t even let these women in the group, who help me deal with my pain, know who I really am or what I’ve gone through.

I look down and fidget with my hands as the others tell their stories. When it gets to Giselle, she tells us how she’s survived two near-death experiences at the hands of her ex-boyfriend. The dark sunglasses on her face are to hide the fact that she can barely see due to a traumatic brain injury. As she’s sharing, something she says stops me and I listen more carefully. She’s just like I was. Wanting to die. Wanting the pain to end. Even though it was different catalysts, it’s the same outcome.

We both wanted to die.

"You have things to live for. They died and wouldn't want you to.” I give her a warm smile as I tell her the wisdom I’ve learned so far.

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