Chapter 1
Holland Springs, December . . .
Nellie Katherine Hale watched the blood flow from her arm and into the vial. “There. All done,” the nurse said to her as she shook the vial and placed it in a metal box to be picked up by the lab. “We’ll call you with the results later this week.”
“Thank you,” Nellie told the nurse. Maybe, if she were lucky, she’d get out of the office without seeing her sister’s brother-in-law, Dr. Griffith Faust. Nellie’s sister, Sue Ellen, was married to Griffith’s brother, Ingram.
Nellie didn’t like either of them, but when you were in a small town with only one medical office, you didn’t have much choice.
Luckily, the physician’s assistant Nellie saw for her yearly physical was lovely.
“Nellie Katherine, what a nice surprise this morning.”
Nellie heard the condescending voice say from behind her. She’d almost made it to the lobby but Griffith just had to be by the nurse’s station. Probably looking for wife number three.
“Hey, Griff.”
“It’s Griffith. After eight years of knowing each other, I thought you were smart enough to learn a simple name. I guess I was wrong.”
Asshole.
“Well, I need to get going. Christmas shopping won’t do it itself. Happy Holidays, Griffith. I’m sure I’ll see you at Sue Ellen’s Christmas party.” It took monumental effort for Nellie to be nice to anyone in the Faust family.
“You mean Ingram’s party. After all, he’s the one paying for it.”
Nellie gritted her teeth to stop from snarling.
Sue Ellen had been on track to become a teacher when she married Ingram.
She had been one class short of her degree.
Ingram had forced her to give up on that dream because Judge Ingram Faust wanted a trophy wife at his side for all events and he believed his wife’s job should be taking care of her husband.
Nellie had begged Sue Ellen not to date Ingram, but he’d been charming and romantic until he got her tied to him by marriage.
“Of course,” Nellie said with a fake smile. “Because it’s not work raising two kids, keeping the house spotless, organizing fundraising events, putting on family parties, and taking care of your sick mother.”
“Exactly. I’m glad we’re on the same page. Maybe you can make sure Sue Ellen serves a better wine selection this year. See you soon, Nellie Katherine.”
Nellie wanted to do so much violence, but she’d keep the peace for Sue Ellen’s sake.
Something had happened over the past eight years.
Sue Ellen never said, but she’d drawn away from Nellie.
Especially after Griffith made a pass at Nellie and she shot him down hard.
Nellie and Sue Ellen would get together weekly, but then it slowly dwindled to monthly, and sometimes not even then.
Sue Ellen was her older sister and Nellie would do anything for her, even put up with the Faust family.
And in the small town of Holland Springs, South Carolina, that was hard to do.
Ingram was the town judge, Griffith was the doctor, and their father was the mayor.
Even the sheriff was a Faust, a cousin. Their mother had been the queen of society until she’d gotten ill last year.
Now Sue Ellen was also a part-time nurse to the meanest Faust of them all.
The Fausts were the darlings of Holland Springs, but behind closed doors, they were the devils of Holland Springs.
Mean to the bone and with a strong dose of narcissism to add some spice to it.
Nellie’s phone rang as she headed to her favorite boutique to do some shopping. Sue Ellen’s name flashed up and Nellie instantly answered it on speaker. “Sis! How are you doing?”
Nellie heard a sniffle before her sister spoke. “Hey!” she replied with faux happiness. “I got tied up planning the Faust Family Party. Can you pick up the kids and drop them off at the Rothmans’? They’re having a Christmas party today for the children. Isn’t that cute?”
“Of course. I can be there in five minutes.”
Nellie pulled a U-turn and headed toward Main Street.
There were the typical buildings on Main Street that flowed into large houses for the elite of Holland Springs.
Nellie pulled up to Sue Ellen’s large house and the front door opened.
Sue Ellen didn’t even look at her. She was on the phone and just waved as the kids ran out to Nellie.
Nellie hopped out right as the front door closed, her sister never looking at her. Nellie opened the back door to her sedan, which housed two car seats since she tried to regularly see her niece and nephew, even if she couldn’t see Sue Ellen.
“Aunt Nell!” three-year-old Tallulah, or Tally, called out with a big smile. She ran as fast as her little legs could carry her before she flung herself into Nellie’s legs and hugged her tight.
Nellie patted her back but James Avery, who was now six, had her worried. Her nephew had been the happiest child from infancy on until the past year. Now he rarely smiled. His eyes were on the ground as he slowly walked toward her and climbed into the car himself. “Hi Aunt Nell.”
Nellie had learned that car rides were the best time to learn what was going on, so she didn’t push James Avery. She smiled at him and ruffled his hair as she helped him strap in before strapping Tally into her car seat.
Nellie cranked the tunes and they all sang as they headed down Main Street toward the Rothmans’ more modest house in a subdivision.
Nellie turned down the music after a couple of songs and glanced in the rearview mirror at the kids.
“You know the aunt rules, right?” Both nodded. “And what are they?”
“You’ll always get us the toys Mom and Dad won’t,” Tally said with a big grin.
“That we can tell you anything, because you’re our aunt and it’s your job to always be here for us,” James Avery answered, not looking up.
Nellie opened the voice record on her phone and started it.
She taped all her sessions as a school psychologist. It was done for liability and for her to go over all her notes to make a better treatment plan.
No one ever heard those recordings except in the case of a lawsuit.
“Is there anything you want to tell me, James Avery?”
A tear fell down his cheek and he swiped it away. Then it was a cascade of them. “Daddy hurts Mommy,” he cried between sobs.
“James! We’re not supposed to tell anyone, even Aunt Nell,” Tally hissed at her brother.
The hardest thing Nellie ever did was to keep driving.
Only years as a school psychologist trained her not to react as she wanted to on the inside.
This wasn’t the first time she’d heard that phrase from one of her kids.
Domestic violence didn’t care about income or education level or what your job was.
“This is exactly the type of thing you tell me, Tally. I know it’s hard to break that promise not to tell, but now I can help. ”
“How?” James Avery asked, sounding so defeated for a six-year-old.
“First, you tell me everything you were sworn to keep secret. Then you’re going to have fun at this party.
I’ll pick you up and we’ll have an Aunt Nell sleepover.
And now, I can help your mommy. Don’t worry, your daddy will never know you told me.
” She needed to get them away from the house and especially Ingram. “What did Daddy do to Mommy?”
“He hit her face,” James Avery said softly.
“She has a boo-boo on her lip,” Tally added, her happiness now gone.
“Has he hit Mommy before?”
Both kids nodded instantly and hear heart sunk. This was why Sue Ellen would cancel brunch or plans at the last minute. She’d been hiding bruises.
“Has Daddy hit either of you?” Nellie asked, keeping her voice calm and neutral.
“I tried to stop Daddy this morning,” James Avery told her. “He yanked my arm so hard it made me cry and then he locked me in the basement. I heard him hitting Mommy again and breaking things. The door slammed and I heard Mommy crying.”
“Was that the first time he touched you like that?” Nellie asked.
“No. I won’t let him hurt Mommy. He’s hit me in the face before, just like he does Mommy. Or he’ll hurt my arm. Uncle Griffith had to put a cast on my arm once after I tried to stop Daddy from hitting Mommy.”
Anger filled Nellie to the point that her heart was pounding out of her chest. If she had a gun, she’d go shoot Ingram in the balls and never feel bad for it. They’d told her James Avery had fallen out of a tree he’d been climbing. “What about you, Tally? Has Daddy ever hurt you?”
Tears fell down her little cheeks, but she shook her head. “No. When Daddy starts yelling at Mommy I run and hide under my bed.”
“Good idea, Tally. You both are very smart and brave. Now, don’t you feel better knowing you both and Mommy aren’t alone anymore with this secret? Because Aunt Nell will always protect you all.”
Nellie pulled up to the driveway and stopped the car. She took a deep breath and turned to the kids. “It’s very important that you know you did the right thing by telling me. You two have done nothing wrong. You were very brave to tell me and I hope you know you can always tell me things.”
Both kids nodded and began to unbuckle their seatbelts.
“Do you want me to take you to my house instead of to the party?” Nellie asked them right as the front door opened and several of their friends stood screaming that they were here.
Their faces lit up and chased away the pain their father had caused.
“No. Thanks for the ride, Aunt Nell!” James Avery said, already opening the door and running to the house as Nellie unbuckled Tally and helped her out of the car.
Nellie did all the things she was supposed to. She talked to the mom who was hosting the party. She waved to the kids and planned pickup. But the entire time her mind was on getting to Sue Ellen and getting her away from Ingram. Every fiber of her being was yelling at her to protect her sister.