Abby

CHAPTER FIFTY-ONE

"Hi." She said, her voice... different. Jennie couldn't place why, and Aaron, just so grateful to hear her voice, didn't notice. As their time to talk ran down, Abby requested to talk to their mother alone.

"When you and dad come this week to see me, don't let Aaron come." Her mother was silent. She wasn't sure what that meant.

"Why not?" Abby gently felt her swollen face, the stitches.

"Just please don't let him come." Her mother didn't want to argue. She felt Abby knew what she was doing. And lockup was not going well for her. She was shrinking into herself. Becoming timid.

"Okay." She said quietly.

...

As soon as she saw Abby, she knew why she hadn't wanted Aaron to come. The entire left side of her face was bruised and swollen. She could barely open her eyes. Her husband saw it too. Neither one of them said anything. They checked in, showed their ID, walked through the metal detector. Then they were brought to the table Abby sat at, waiting. She wasn't gaining weight but continuing to lose it. It was clear that she still wasn't eating. Every time she detoxed and rehabbed, she gained back the weight the drugs took from her. But not in here.

"Abby." He mother said with compassion and concern. Abby gently touched her cheek.

"It's okay, mom." She said. She wasn't very convincing.

"No, Abby, it isn't." Her father said. "Who did this to you?" No matter how much he hated her right now, she was his baby girl, and someone had hurt her.

"Dad, let it go. I can't say. It will just make things worse." He put his head in his hands.

"We got you out of jail to avoid things like this." No one spoke.

"Abby, please tell me what happened. I can't do anything to help you while you're in here. So please, just tell me. I don't get to see you every day, and it helps me to at least hear about what happens to you. The good and the bad." Abby could tell her what happened. Just not the who, lest they go tell. But they might actually be proud of her.

"Some of the other girls found out who I was. They realized I might have some drug connections. That I might be able to help them get drugs in here." This was straight out of a movie. They had a hard time with that.

"You're in here to get you away from drugs." Her mother said. She looked to her dad who looked away.

"No, mom. I'm in here to pay my debt to society because I'm a criminal." Her dad had said as much. Her mother didn't argue. "Anyway, I said no. I told them I wouldn't help them. They threatened me, and I still said no. Two days later two girls held me down while another one beat me up. They haven't bothered me since." The story was too much for her mother. And she knew she wasn't supposed to have physical contact, they weren't supposed to cross the table. Jennie stood and walked around to give her daughter a hug.

"Ma'am! Please sit back down. Stay on your side of the table." One of the guards saw Jennie get up.

"I'm giving my teenage daughter a hug." She snarled at the guard.

"That's not allowed. The rules are posted, and you will not be allowed to come if you do not follow them."

"The rules?!" Her mother snarled. "Where are the rules that prohibit assault, huh? Or prevent assault? Aren't you supposed to follow the rules that say you'll protect my daughter?!" Everyone was staring at them. The guard looked slightly apologetic. Jason pulled Jennie back and sat her down. The guard backed off, and everyone went back to their visits.

"It's okay mom. I'll let you hug me for ten hours straight when I get out of here." Those words had never sounded so sweet. Jennie smiled through tears. The same tears that flowed from Abby's eyes. "I am so sorry I got us to this place. I lay awake most nights searching myself, trying to figure out where it all went wrong. How I could have stopped it. I hate myself for not stopping it." Abby tried to minimize the crying.

"Don't do that to yourself, Abby." Her father said. "We can't go back in time. All you can do is focus on getting better. Being better." She nodded.

"I think about how much I miss you both, and Aaron of course. But then I think of Gram..." She had to stop. She bit her lip to control herself. "I think of Gram, and I can't even imagine how you feel." The mention of his mother shut him down. He knew Abby meant well with the reference. But it was still too raw.

"I'll be in the car." He said. And he got up and left. Abby and her mother sat in silence for a few moments.

"Aaron starts football soon." Abby smiled. Aaron was always safe to talk about. They hadn't told Abby that they had moved. They didn't want it to worry her. But football started mid-summer, and they had to be settled for Aaron. Even her mail still went to the house and then was forwarded to them.