Leave Before He Kills You by Duncan Juliette

Author:Duncan, Juliette
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2018-08-10T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 8

We moved into a small house on the edge of town, all we could afford until Joe found a job, but after living in a tiny caravan, the house seemed like a mansion. Bourke, population two-thousand, half of whom were Indigenous, was not a pleasant town. Hot, flat, and dry, it bore no resemblance to Deloraine at all. Most shops had bars across the windows, and Indigenous youth roamed the town in gangs, especially at night.

I questioned the wisdom of moving away from the community. I doubted Joe was strong enough to withstand the pressure of living in a town that had more pubs than churches, but the Cornerstone staff truly believed it was the right thing to do. There was no choice but to trust their judgment.

They agreed to continue meeting with Joe on a weekly basis and were prepared to help us out in whatever way they could, including financially, until he found employment. They wouldn’t leave us on our own, and for that I was grateful.

Using the Cornerstone connections, Joe soon secured a position with the local radio station doing odd jobs. It was a start, and he seemed to enjoy it. Although intelligent, because of his problem with drink and drugs, he didn’t have any qualifications, and consequently, he could only do odd jobs and labouring.

After living in a community, surrounded by others, I found living in town to be lonely, especially when Joe started work. Robyn and Leonie dropped in when they came to town, and I eagerly awaited their visits. Robyn encouraged me to join a mother’s group run by one of the local churches, which I did, and I also started attending a Bible study group each week.

I made some friends, one of whom became close. Sue’s parents owned the property Cornerstone was on, and her husband, Chris, was a manager at the local radio station. They had six children, and Sue and I connected immediately. She encouraged me to visit whenever I wanted, and so the girls and I spent a lot of time at her house. Joe wasn’t fond of Chris. I’m not sure why, but thankfully, he didn’t mind me spending time with Sue.

Without air-conditioning in our tiny house, I struggled physically in the heat. The girls cooled off in a small, plastic blow-up pool, but since we could only fill it with brown bore water, it looked like they were swimming in mud. It was better than nothing, and I sometimes joined them, although the water was tepid and murky.

Joe and I soon decided to look for another house. With my pregnancy progressing, I needed air-conditioning. We found one that was much larger and moved within days. I started to think that the staff had made the right call. Joe enjoyed his job, we had a decent house, and we were going to a church we were both happy with. I so loved standing beside Joe and hearing him sing worship songs and hymns. It thrilled my heart and soul after all this time.

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