Free 3 Can You Picture This? by Jerilyn Dufresne Page A

not going to leave you alone, even walking the few steps to their house.” He gave me a kiss on the forehead. “Take your nap, and then you are moving back to my house again after your card game.”
    “No,” I begged, “please can we stay here? You can get some things while the kids are here with me. But no need to tell them what happened.”
    “Too late,” Adam said, standing in my doorway.
    “George called me before he called you, Mom,” Sarah added. Then, turning to George, she said, “We’ll watch her while you go home and get some things.”
    Reluctantly George agreed, warning me one last time, “Stay put. Don’t even leave your bedroom.”
    I didn’t have to agree. My kids did it for me. Sarah lay down by me when George got up, and Clancy stayed on her own side. Adam said he’d be in the living room, with the door to my bedroom open. I felt very safe and very loved.
    During my short nap, I dreamed in color of blue hoodies everywhere. Ballet dancers wore them, people riding unicycles wore them, police, firemen, priests, everyone. Everyone had on a blue hoodie. They didn’t scare me. Blue hoodies weren’t threatening. But that all changed when I looked down and saw that I wore one too. My scream echoed in my head, but no one heard me.
    It wasn’t long before George returned, waking me as he walked into my room. I felt my pulse start to slow and hoped that my fearful heavy breathing didn’t cause him concern.
    “What time do you play cards?” George put a duffel bag on the floor, and looked pleased that all was well.
    I looked at the clock and yelped, “Now.” Then sweeping aside my covers I said, “Move on out everyone, I need to get dressed.”
    “Sorry. I said you weren’t to be left alone. Sarah, will you stay with your mom while she gets dressed?”
    Sarah nodded without speaking.
    I loved that George was sensitive enough to not flaunt the fact that he’d seen me undressed before. Sarah sat on my bed and talked to me while I put on a clean, and non-wrinkled, shirt. I used the same jeans I’d discarded to the floor prior to my nap.
    I heard George and Adam raise their voices in the living room, but didn’t think much of it. Maybe there was a baseball game on or something.
    While Sarah and I were still alone, she took advantage of the momentary privacy.
    “I’m going to work tonight. No one is going to stop me.”
    And I knew that was true. Short of hogtying her, George wasn’t going to keep her from work any longer.
    I didn’t say anything, but knew George was in for a battle.
    She repeated her statement to him.
    “Now, Sarah,” George said. And that was all he got to say before she launched into a tirade worthy of her mother.
    “Well, we need to have someone go to work with you. A cop,” He said when she was finished. She rolled her eyes, but George wasn’t intimidated. He continued, “Maybe your brother…‌I’ll need to check. In the meantime,” he looked at all of us one by one, “…‌don’t go anywhere.”
    He went into the kitchen and made a call, keeping his voice low so we couldn’t hear what he was saying. Sarah, Adam, Clancy, and I didn’t say anything. I guess we all wanted to hear what he said. At least I did. It looked like he ended the call and made another one. By the way his head was moving, he got the result he wanted, then he made one more call. Another positive response. By now I was confused, wondering why he had to make three calls. He soon un-confused me.
    “Okay, here’s the deal. I’m staying with you, Sam, for obvious reasons.” He smiled at his little joke, which was welcome at this point, but his demeanor changed immediately.
    “While you were getting ready,” George looked at me then glared at Adam, “Adam informed me that he was going out with friends. I said, ‘It’s Tuesday. Why would you go out on a Tuesday night?’ He looked at me like I was nuts and reminded me he was young and they go out any night they want to.”
    I joined in