Chapter Five
Josie made rabbit stewthat evening following a receipt Myrtle had shared with her.She realized she should have read what needed to happen before leaving that morning because the stew needed to cook for half the day, and she’d been gone until well after lunch.
She said a quick prayer that Jack wouldn’t be angry that supper wasn’t ready when he walked into the house.She’d seen her stepfather deliberately burn her mother’s arm for not having supper ready on time.
When Jack walked in, he hung up his coat.“How long until supper?”he asked.
Josie was shaking as she said, “An hour or two.”
“All right,” Jack said calmly.“I’m going to have some hardtack, but don’t worry, I’ll be hungry when it’s ready.”
Josie blinked.“You’re not angry?”
“Why would I be angry?It’s just food.”He gave her a perplexed look.
“But...there’s dessert if you want some.And bread.”
“I’ll have them with my meal.”He washed his hands.“How was your day?”
“It was good.I spent most of it with Myrtle.”
“Good!I think you spend too much time in the cabin alone.With as dark as it is, it might start to make you melancholic, so spend time with her and your other friends.”
Josie was having trouble understanding how pleasant he was being about supper.“How about some coffee to go with your hardtack?”
“I’d love that if you have some made.If not, I’ll have water.”
She got down a cup and poured from the pot of coffee she’d made a short time earlier.Placing the cup in front of him, she picked up her knitting.“Thank you for understanding.”
“I’m not going to get angry over something so small.”
“What would make you angry?”she asked.
He tilted his head to one side, thinking about it.“If you kissed another man.If you burned down the house, though that would be more fearful than angry.Umm..I’m not sure.I don’t get angry easily.”
She took a deep breath.“When I was six, my mother didn’t have supper ready when my stepfather got home from work.My little brother had spent all day crying, and she’d been tending to him and lost track of time.He took the spoon out of the soup pot and held it against her arm.It was metal, and it left a horrible scar.She still has it.”
Jack closed his eyes, thinking of how fearful she would have been to see something like that.“I’m so sorry that happened.You must have been horribly frightened.”
She nodded.“I was.I’ll never forget my mother’s scream.”
“Please understand that your stepfather is a horrible person.No man should ever hurt a woman or child.”
Josie felt tears swimming in her eyes, but she refused to acknowledge them.
“Is your mother still married to your stepfather?”he asked softly.
She nodded.“That’s why I moved out as soon as I could.I had to sneak away in the middle of the night, but I couldn’t bear to watch him hurt my mother every day.”
“He burned her every day?”Jack asked, wishing he could throttle her mother’s husband.
“No.He only burned her three times I can remember.Mostly, he used his fists or threw her across the room.One time he beat her bare back with a riding crop.”
“That’s terrible!You should have told someone.”
Josie shrugged.“I tried once.I told a policeman.He told me if my mother was obedient my stepfather wouldn’t have to beat her.”She shook her head.“After that, I didn’t tell anyone, but I would take over her chores if she was hurting too much to do them.All but cooking.She always did the cooking because I didn’t know how, and she didn’t dare teach me.”
He narrowed his eyes.“Why didn’t she dare teach you?”
