AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Her guest stopped a step inside the apartment, looked around, and snorted her opinion of that last statement. “It doesn’t matter. I’m getting married in just a few days.”
“I know.” Though she couldn’t imagine that either her fiancé or Roman would be too thrilled to see her in this part of town. Where were they, anyway? Shouldn’t one or the other be rushing to her rescue? A girl like her—she was the sort men clamored to protect. Wasn’t that what Roman kept going on about? How he needed to get her away from this world, keep her safe?
Some knight he was turning out to be.
Well. Sally put on a cheeky smile and urged Sabina into the light. When the guys failed—which they did plenty—the dames would just have to step up. “Hm, I don’t think we’ll be able to fix the dress while you’re wearing it. I have a kimono in the bathroom. Why don’t you go on in and change? I’ll get you a nice cup of tea ready, and you can get yourself calmed down while I stitch that up.”
Sabina nodded and even took a step toward the bathroom. Then she stopped and spun back around. Actually looked her in the eye, no judgment in her own. Just…gratitude. “What did they say your name was?”
It took Sally a moment to get her throat working. In the face of that look, she very nearly answered honestly. Caught herself just in time. “Sally.”
“Well, thanks, Sally. I don’t know why you’re helping me, but…I thank God you are.”
Sally shifted from one foot to the other. “It was nothing. Worse, it was probably selfish. Roman offered to pay off my debts so I can get out of this life, but he wouldn’t if I’d let anything happen to you.”
Sabina smiled as if she knew that thought hadn’t entered Sally’s mind until that very moment. “Sure. Well, thanks all the same.”
Grateful when she closed herself into the small bathroom, Sally headed for the kitchen to make some tea. She wasn’t exactly sure how she was going to get Sabina Mancari out of the Levee without getting herself into trouble with Al, but she’d think of something. She was nothing if not resourceful—even Dad had always had to grant her that.
Sabina’s hands shook so badly she could barely grip her dress to pull it over her head. Every time she blinked, those two ugly faces raced to fill her mind’s eye, and she could still feel their hands tugging at her. She shuddered. A few more minutes, and things would have ended differently. She could have screamed at the top of her lungs, and no one on that street would have cared.
Except Sally. Sabina selected a clean washcloth from the neat pile of them on the shelf, wet it, and pressed it to her face. Her thoughts were a muddled mess. She didn’t know what to think of the woman in the other room, with her pretty young face and old, cynical eyes. A year ago, a month ago—heck, maybe even a day ago—she would have labeled Sally for exactly what she was and washed her hands of her. But she still had Ava’s necklace around her neck, the memory of her sorrowful eyes in her mind. People were never just what they did, or just where they found themselves. People were never just their sins.
She held the warm cloth against her face for a long moment and breathed in the clean, fresh scent of laundry soap—a reminder that even in the filth of the Levee, there could be something good. A single prayer made all the difference, even when it was more cry than words. God had seen her. God had heard her. God had sent her the unlikeliest of saviors.
Shrugging into the borrowed kimono, Sabina stepped back out, torn dress in hand. Sally stood in a corner of the small apartment outfitted as a kitchen, pouring steaming water into a heavy mug. If one discounted the cheap, revealing dress and glaring red lipstick, she would have looked like any other young beauty with the world at her feet. It just went to show how deceiving were appearances and the stigmas that came with them. Sally hadn’t acted the part of a mercenary out there—she’d acted the part of a friend.
“Here we go.” The blond sashayed over with a bright smile and held out the fragrant tea. “This should chase away the shakes.”
“Thanks.” Sabina traded her dress for the cup. “Mind if I sit? My knees are still a little wobbly.”
“Go right ahead.” Sally waved her toward a chair as she studied the rip. “This isn’t too bad, right along the seam. I’ll only be a minute on it.”
Sabina sank down into the old chair and set her cup on the small table beside it. She heard Sally move into the bathroom, humming some little ragtime ditty. Exhaustion weighed her down. The shadows surged again. She leaned her elbow onto the arm of the chair and rested her head on it, tempted to close her eyes.
Then a book on the table caught her eye, its binding facing her so that the gold-etched letters caught the light from the bathroom. Holy Bible. She reached for it, surprised and not sure why. She’d just seen Ava in her own church, after all. Why should she be surprised that Sally kept a Bible on her table? Those the world said deserved Him least…well, weren’t they the ones who needed Him most?
The pages fell open to where a few dollar bills were stuck in. The heading on the left page said Zephaniah, but Haggai began on the right. Two books Sabina couldn’t ever remember reading. She let her gaze glide lazily over the text until a few words caught her eye on the Zephaniah side of the book, at the fifteenth verse of the third and final chapter.
The Lord hath taken away thy judgments, he hath cast out thine enemy: the king of Israel, even the Lord, is in the midst of thee: thou shalt not see evil any more.
A silent cry wracked her, forced her head down. If only that were true. If only her past, her family’s past, had been blotted out and her future lay pure and white ahead of her. If only there weren’t always the threat of more evil. If only all her enemies were vanquished and the Lord stood beside her. If only…
She jerked up her head. The Lord was beside her. Hadn’t He proven that already? He was there—here. No matter who her family was, He was her Father. No matter how dark the world they created, He was the light.
She couldn’t control what others did. She couldn’t make them change. But she could do what Mama did. What Ava did. What Fran and Aunt Luccia and Nonna did.
She could pray. She crossed herself and closed her eyes. She bowed her head and breathed an Our Father. Lord, I don’t know how to fight this darkness. I don’t know how to keep the men I love away from it. But I know you who made all the heavens and all the earth are bigger than any underworld they can create. You can work here, even here. You can light up this darkness. You can make a way through this night.
“Sabina? Are you all right?”
She drew in a long breath before she opened her eyes, letting the silent prayer linger on her lips. Sally stood in front of her, concern etched onto her face and mended dress in hand. Sabina smiled. “I’ve never been better.”
Sally didn’t ask why. She just glanced down at the Bible and made a sound that was half laugh and half grunt. “Well, glad it’s doing someone some good. Here.” She held out the dress. “All better.”
“Thanks. Again. I owe you big time, Sally.”
Golden hair swayed as Sally shook her head. “No, you don’t. Really.”
