Free Found Wanting by Joyce Lamb

turkey club, she felt Emma watching, assessing. She sensed the woman's disapproval but refused to worry about it. She'd endured worse, and she and Jonah would be on their way soon enough.
    "You haven't told me your name," Emma said.
    "Anna," Alaina said, feeling an unexpected twinge at the lie. "Anna King."
    "Anna King," Emma repeated, as if testing the name for authenticity. "Anna, I happen to have a job opening."
    Alaina lowered her sandwich, shocked.
    "It doesn't pay much," Emma went on. "But if it works out --"
    "I'll take it." Alaina didn't care how desperate she sounded. She was desperate. She'd do anything to avoid going back to her family, defeated.
    Emma smiled. "Well, then. Finish your lunch, and we'll start getting you trained."
    And so began the first truly nurturing relationship Alaina had ever had. Emma was a Godsend in every way. She seemed to sense that Alaina had no interest in discussing where she and Jonah had come from, and she didn't ask.
    After the first month, she persuaded Alaina to move into the extra bedroom in her apartment above the bookstore. Alaina didn't hesitate. She had come to adore Emma, and so had Jonah. The feelings were mutual. Emma doted on them both as if Alaina were her daughter and Jonah her grandson. The three of them lived in Emma's tiny apartment for a year before Emma talked Alaina into applying to the university whose campus was practically next door to the store.
    With the aid of scholarships, student loans and supplemental help from Emma, Alaina entered the University of Wisconsin as a freshman the same day that Jonah started preschool.
    Alaina began to marvel at her good fortune. She finally felt safe. She finally felt secure, sure that a college education would guarantee her ability to provide her son a good life. What was more, she finally knew unconditional love.
    That was when she started having the nightmare. It was always the same: Layton attacked her while Jonah lay nearby, bleeding. She knew her son was slowly dying, but no matter how hard she fought, she couldn't get away from Layton to help Jonah. Each time, she woke up screaming and sobbing.
    Emma didn't pry. She simply, very gently, persuaded Alaina to see a counselor. Alaina surprised herself by agreeing. She surprised herself further by telling the counselor what Layton had done to her, though she edited out any details that might have given away his, or her, identity.
    The diagnosis: post-traumatic stress. "You've begun to let your guard down," the counselor said, "and that's when it's most likely to sneak up on you."
    By the time Alaina concluded her junior year of college and her third year of therapy, she felt healthier mentally and physically than she ever had. Life was damn good.
    She should have known that that would be when it was most likely to fall apart.
     
     
     
     
    Chapter 9
     
    Alaina's hands shook as she dug in the flower bed outside her apartment door. Last fall, after Jonah lost his key and was locked out, she had buried a spare in a fake rock. But the maintenance crew had since planted new flowers, adding mulch and fresh soil. If the rock had been found, it might have been tossed out. She was already working in her head how to get in if she couldn't find the key.
    The sliding door on the deck didn't have the most reliable lock, but she didn't think she was strong enough to force it. The windows were securely locked -- she made sure every night before turning in, no matter how unlikely it was that one had been opened without her knowledge.
    Sitting back on her heels, keyless, she studied the front door. Kicking it or otherwise forcing it was not option. She wasn't strong enough, and besides, the force it would take would probably drive her to her knees. Maintenance was no longer on the clock by now, so it would take too long for someone to come open it for her.
    Frustration welled up inside her until she had to concentrate to keep from screaming. She didn't have time for this. Jonah needed