I spent the night clinging to Jimmy. If he rolled over in his sleep, I would wake and nudge my way over so that I was pressed against his back. I fell into pockets of sleep, but it never lasted long. The faces of those three people stayed in my mind. I wondered if their bodies were in the basement or if they disposed of them somewhere else.
I had to remind myself that he did it to protect me.
When Jimmy's alarm went off, I rolled over and turned it off. Jimmy gave me a quizzical look. I brushed his hair off of his face and ran my finger along the scar.
"Good morning," I said.
"Morning," he said.
He took my hand, which had the ring, and kissed the back of it. He groaned before he rolled out of bed and I followed. Jimmy pulled clothes out of the dresser and handed them to me. I changed into a green sweater and a pair of jeans. I tugged on the neckline to ensure that Tommy's bite mark was hidden.
I brushed the knots out of my hair. Jimmy pulled his shirt over his head, which hid the key. I yawned and stretched my arms up over my head.
"Didn't sleep well?" Jimmy asked.
"No," I told him. "I couldn't stay asleep."
"You know why?"
I shrugged my shoulders and tied my hair up into a bun. Jimmy sat down on the foot of the bed.
"Come here, Julie," he said.
I walked over to him. He grabbed my waist and pulled me down onto his lap. He tightened his arms around me and kissed my cheek.
"I know what happened last night was scary," he said. "But that happens a lot here. We have to do it to keep you safe."
"Okay," I said.
"Now, tell me," he said. "Tell me that you know that you're safe here."
"I'm safe here."
"Good girl."
'He leaned down and he kissed me. I slipped my arms around his neck as I kissed him back. It felt good and I did not want to stop, but there was a knock on the door. Jimmy pulled away and rolled his eyes.
"We're coming!" he shouted at the door. He gave me another kiss and patted my thigh. "We need to go."
I leaned in for another kiss before getting up. He laced his fingers through mine and we walked down to the kitchen. Charles and Tommy were already at the table.
The swelling in Tommy's nose had gone down and his bruises had started to fade. Charles pushed his bowl away from him as we sat down. We all looked up at him.
"Jimmy, I want you to come out and help me this morning," he said. "Tommy, you stay inside and finish up. You can come outside once you are done."
"Dad, that can't happen," Jimmy said.
His large eyes managed to grow even larger, and I knew he was scared. I was too. I did not want to be left alone in this house with Tommy.
"I don't want Tommy alone with her," Jimmy said.
"I never touched her," Tommy said.
"Yes, you did! Stop lying about it!"
"I can't believe that you believe her over your own brother!"
"Boys!" Charles shouted.
Charles had stood from his chair. He was leaning forward and his hands were on the table. Jimmy and Tommy both sunk in their seats.
"Stop your arguing!" he said. "Tommy knows not to touch Juliet again, right?"
"I never touched her," Tommy said.
"You will not touch Juliet," he repeated. "Because if you do there will be severe consequences."
Tommy let out a deep breath. "I won't touch her."
"Can't Julie come outside with us?" Jimmy asked.
"No, she can't," Charles said. "Women don't belong working outside, and you know that. She needs to stay here."
"How about I stay in and finish up?" Jimmy asked. "I can do that and Tommy can help you outside."
Charles let out a huff of breath and pushed his empty bowl away from him.
"I want it to be done right," he said. "Get outside."
Charles stormed over to the door, threw on his jacket, and went out into the backyard. I had lost all of my appetite and pushed my bowl away from me. Jimmy dropped his spoon into the bowl and there was a loud clang. Tommy let out a deep breath and cracked his knuckles.
"You better not touch her," Jimmy said.
"Why would I touch her, Jim?" he asked. "It's not like I think she's pretty."
"That's not what you said in the basement," I said.
I did not realize that the words left my mouth until it was too late.
"You should stop lying, Jules," Tommy said. "It's a bad habit. Jimmy, you should fix that."
Tommy got out of his seat and headed toward the basement. Jimmy opened his mouth to argue, but I put my hand on his arm to stop him. He closed his mouth and turned to face me. I lifted my lips into a smile.
"It's okay," I said.
It was weird being the one to reassure Jimmy, instead of the other way around. I did not want a fight to break out like last night. Charles was not here to stop it, and I did not want Jimmy to get hurt.
Jimmy got out of his chair and stood in front of me. He grabbed my hands and pulled me onto my feet. The basement door slammed shut, and some of the tension left my body. Jimmy cupped the side of my face with one hand and slid the other arm around my waist.
"Listen to me," he said. "I want you to clean up breakfast as fast as you can. I want you to stay upstairs in our room and stay away from Tommy. Do you understand?"
"Yes," I said. "I understand."
"Be good," he said before kissing me.
I watched as Jimmy left to go outside. I collected all of the bowls and washed them as fast as I could. I ran up the stairs and closed the door. I looked around the room, unsure of what to do. I laid down on the bed and curled up into a ball on my side.
My heart was pounding as I listened for a sound. Hours passed before the basement door slammed shut. I got up off the bed and ran over to the door. I pressed my ear against it and listened to Tommy moving around downstairs. The stairs creaked as he walked up the steps. I held onto my breath as I listened to him walk down the hall.
I looked around the room for a place to hide. Tommy would surely tear the room apart to look for me. I turned my head and saw the bathroom.
My precious lock.
I ran into the bathroom and locked the door. I got on my knees in front of the door and clasped my hands in front of my face. I could not stop myself from shaking. The bedroom door opened and I squeezed my eyes shut.
"Jules," he called out. "We both know that you're in here so you might as well come out."
My nose and eyes burned as the tears threatened to erupt. I covered my mouth so that I would not let out a sob.
"Come on, Jules," he said tauntingly.
I listened to him as he moved around the bedroom. My heart pounded when the doorknob jiggled. I scurried away from the door until my back was up against the bathtub. Tommy pounded his fist on the door.
"Jules, open this door," he said. "I know that you're in there."
"Tommy, leave me alone," I said. My voice was wavering.
"Jules, I'm not done with you yet," he said.
"I'm married to Jimmy."
"So? He's not here to protect you right now."
I trembled as I wrapped my arms around myself. I prayed that Jimmy would come into the house and stop this. I did not know how far Tommy was willing to go, but I could see him breaking the door down.
"You're just delaying what we both know is going to happen," Tommy said. "I'm not some pervert in the club you used to dance at. I promise you'll enjoy it."
I squeezed my eyes shut and a tear rolled down my cheek. I had tried to block that club from my mind, but Tommy was no different than those patrons. He just wanted me for my body. Jimmy was the only one who was going to love me for who I am.
Tommy banged his fist against the door again.
"Are you going to open this door?" he asked.
"No," I sobbed.
"You're going to regret this."
I listened as Tommy walked away from the door. I let out a deep breath and some of the tension left my muscles.
I sat on the floor for the rest of the day. I kept myself locked in the bathroom. I was terrified that Tommy would barge into the house and begin to assault me. I stayed curled up in a ball and stared at the locked door.
When another set of steps walked toward the door, my heart pounded in my chest. This could be either good or bad.
There was a light knock on the door. "Julie, are you in there?"
I uncurled myself and ran to the door. I opened the door to see Jimmy standing there in his dirty work clothes. I wrapped my arms around his neck and buried my face in his chest. He rubbed my back as I cried.
"Sweetheart, what's wrong?" he asked.
"Tommy..." was all I could say between my sobs.
Jimmy's body froze.
"He didn't touch you, did he?" he asked.
"No," I said. "I locked myself in the bathroom. He wanted me to come out so that he could hurt me."
"Hey." Jimmy pushed me away from his chest. He cupped my face and leaned down. "I am going to keep you safe. Tommy is never going to touch you. I'm proud of you for staying in the bathroom."
I sucked in a deep breath and hastily wiped the tears off of my face. Jimmy kissed my forehead before grabbing my hand. We walked down the stairs and went into the kitchen. Charles and Tommy were sitting at the table. Tommy was cleaning his pocket knife with the end of his shirt and Charles was drumming his fingers on top of the table. He scowled as we walked into the kitchen.
"Juliet, you better have a good reason why dinner is not made," he said.
"She had to hide in the bathroom," Jimmy said. "Because somebody was threatening to hurt her."
Tommy scoffed and rolled his eyes.
"You are really going to believe that?" he asked. "First, she was lying about the basement and now she is lying about this. I didn't even have enough time to go up to your room, Jim. I finished up downstairs and went outside."
"Then why is she so upset?" Jimmy asked.
"I don't know," he said. "Girls cry a lot."
Charles let out a huff of breath. He cracked his knuckles before looking between his two sons.
"I am tired of this fighting," he said. "Thomas, stay away from Juliet."
"But I-" Tommy started to say.
Charles held out his hand to silence Tommy. He flicked in the blade of his knife and shoved it into his pocket. Jimmy put his hand on my waist and guided me over to the counter. I opened up the fridge and pulled out the ingredients for dinner.
"I don't want to hear it," Charles said to Tommy. "If I hear about one more incident there will be severe consequences. You would not like it if in a couple of years Jimmy was touching your wife."
"My wife won't be a liar."
I bit down on the inside of my cheeks to stop myself from retaliating. I picked up the knife and cut the carrots in front of me. Jimmy stayed close by and was leaning against the counter.
"Now," Charles said. "It's time to decide what your punishment is going to be."
I spun around. My eyes were wide and my jaw was hanging open.
"My punishment?" I asked.
"You should have had dinner ready on the table for when we came in," Charles said.
"She had to hide in the bathroom," Jimmy said. "She's making dinner now."
"No excuses," he said. "We work hard, and it is the least she can do to show us that she appreciates our hard work."
"I'm not going to punish her because Tommy was trying to assault her."
"James, it's either you punish her or I am going to do it."
"She did nothing wrong."
Charles cleared his throat. I looked over at Jimmy to see that his arms were crossed over his chest and his eyes were cold as he stared at his brother. Tommy was smirking.
"Juliet, come here," Charles said.
"No," I said.
He raised an eyebrow.
"Are you going to make this worse for yourself?" he asked.
I stepped forward, and Jimmy grabbed my shoulder. I looked over at him. He was shaking his head.
"I'll do it," Jimmy said.
"That's no longer an option," Charles said. "Now, get over here, Juliet."
I put my hand on Jimmy's and removed it from my shoulder. I gave him a faint smile, and I could see the worry all over his face. I walked over to Charles. Tommy had his hand over his mouth to hide him snickering.
"Get on your knees," Charles said.
I lowered myself down onto my knees. I took another quick look behind me to see Jimmy watching us.
"Let me see your arms," Charles said.
I unzipped my sweater and pulled it off. I held my arms out to face him. There were a few red scabbing lines across my arms from Jimmy's punishments. Charles clicked his tongue against the roof of his mouth.
"These are barely anything," he said. "James, you're supposed to be punishing the girl when she misbehaves."
"I have," Jimmy said. "I cut her when I needed to."
"Look at how shallow these are. How is she ever supposed to learn?"
I swallowed past the lump forming in my throat. Charles grabbed my arm and pulled his knife out of his pocket. He twisted my hand at an odd angle, and he pressed the blade beside my thumb.
"Juliet, you know that the palm of your hand is one of the most sensitive parts of the body," Charles said. "I used to do this to Marilyn and it always fixed her attitude."
My heart was pounding in my chest. I shook my head. I tried to pull my hand away, but Charles was too strong.
"Please, please," I begged. "Please, don't do this."
"If I don't do this then how will you ever learn?" Charles asked.
"I promise I'm sorry," I said. "I'll make dinner now. It will be ready in less than half an hour."
"Too late."
Charles pushed the blade into my flesh. I screamed out in pain as fire ran across my palm. Blood rushed out from beneath the blade and was dripping down my arm. The tears were streaming down my cheeks. I was releasing a sound that was a mixture of screams and sobs. Charles curved the slash so that it followed the crease in my hand.
Charles let go of my arm and I cradled my arm to my chest. The blood from my palm was soaking through my shirt. Charles wiped the bloody blade off on his dirty jeans.
"Get yourself cleaned up," Charles told me.
I struggled to get up onto my feet. My palm was burning in pain. I raced up the stairs and into the bathroom. I grabbed one of the towels and pressed it against my palm. I gritted my teeth as the pain intensified.
I jumped when a hand touched my waist. Jimmy was standing behind me.
"I'm so sorry," he said. "Let me clean you up. Sit on the edge of the tub."
I sat down and he kneeled in front of me. He pulled the towel off of my hand. I gagged as I saw how deep the wound was. Jimmy covered it back up with the towel.
"I can stitch it back together," he said.
"Does it need stitches?" I asked.
"I think so."
Jimmy searched through the cupboard for supplies. I cried out in pain as Jimmy fixed my hand.