Chapter 3 #2
Jill hopped closer, her nose twitching at the scent of food. Beth helped Layla distribute the sandwiches and chips while Jacinth poured cups of lemonade for the children.
Molly took a big bite of her peanut butter and jelly sandwich, then held out a piece toward Jill. "Here bunny, want some?"
"No, sweetie." Jacinth gently caught her daughter's hand. "Jill needs special food. Here..." She selected a plump raspberry from Beth's fruit salad. "You can give her this instead."
Molly beamed as she offered the berry to Jill. The baby jackalope's whiskers quivered as she eagerly accepted the treat, drawing giggles from both children.
"Mama!" Yousuf turned to Layla between bites of his sandwich. "Molly says kindergarten is so much fun! She gets to paint and sing songs and everything!" He bounced in place, scattering potato chip crumbs. "When can I go to kindergarten too?"
Beth saw Layla's face freeze, pain flashing through her eyes before she carefully smoothed her expression. "We'll talk about that later, habibi."
"Okay!" Yousuf stuffed the last bite of sandwich in his mouth and jumped to his feet. "Come on, Molly! Let's go back to the fort!"
Molly scrambled up, nearly tripping over her own feet in her haste to follow. Their excited chatter faded as they raced back to the play structure, leaving their paper plates scattered on the blanket.
An uncomfortable silence fell over the blanket as Beth gathered the scattered paper plates.
Jacinth set down her mimosa, her expression gentle. "You know... the school would put him in Molly's class. They'd be together." She reached out to touch Layla's hand. "He'd make new friends, have other children to play with."
Tears welled in Layla's blue eyes, spilling down her cheeks. She brushed them away with trembling fingers. "I know. I want that for him, so much." Her voice cracked. "When he's with Tamera, or at Sasha's house playing with her children, I'm fine. I know he's safe with them."
Beth's heart ached as Layla drew in a shaky breath, her hands twisting in her lap. "But when I think about leaving him at school..." She pressed a hand to her chest. "The panic hits like a fist. I can't breathe, can't think past the terror of losing him too.
Her shoulders curved inward, as if trying to protect herself from invisible blows.
"I know I have to. He's six now - it's the law.
And I want him to have friends, to learn and grow.
" She wrapped her arms around herself. "But I panic.
Every time I try to even think of it, I am filled with so much terror. "
Watching Layla's pain, Beth felt the familiar ache of recognition. Her own experiences with therapy after escaping the rogues had helped her heal, taught her how to cope with the panic attacks and nightmares.
"Have you... have you thought about talking to someone?" Beth kept her voice soft. "Like a therapist?"
Layla's shoulders tensed, her spine going rigid. "They offered that when we first came here. To all of us from the compound." Her fingers twisted in the blanket's fabric. "I didn't go."
"Can I ask why?" Beth maintained her gentle, non-judgmental tone.
Pain laced through Layla's voice as she responded. "How can talking about it help? Will words erase what happened?" Her voice cracked. "Will they bring back my other sons? Will they make the nightmares stop?" She shook her head firmly. "Talking only brings the pain back to the surface."
Beth's heart ached at the raw hurt in her friend's voice.
She understood that resistance - she'd felt it herself in those early weeks after her rescue from the Sanctuary.
The fear that speaking about the trauma would somehow make it more real, more present.
"The point isn't to make the past disappear.
Trust me, I tried that - pretending it never happened, burying it deep inside.
But it doesn't work. Therapy helped me understand that healing isn't about erasing what happened.
It's about learning to carry it differently. "
She searched for the right words. "I couldn't sleep, or when I did, I woke with terrible nightmares.
I could barely eat, barely function. The memories and pain were like this huge boulder crushing me.
But my therapist taught me ways to cope.
How to process what happened without letting it control my life. "
Layla's eyes flickered to Beth's face, a hint of interest breaking through her resistance.
"The past will always be there," Beth continued softly. "But therapy gives you tools to handle it. Like learning to swim instead of drowning. And most importantly, it helps you find ways to be happy again, to enjoy moments like this with Yousuf without the fear overwhelming everything else."
Her hand found Layla's, squeezing gently. "The pain doesn't disappear. But you learn to breathe around it, to function despite it. And you learn that it's okay to feel joy again, to build a new life."
Jacinth nodded, her mahogany eyes warm with centuries of understanding.
"I've watched countless humans struggle with grief and trauma.
The ones who heal aren't those who forget their pain, who push it down and try to pretend it never happened—they're the ones who learn to make space for both joy and sorrow to exist together. "
"You're right," Layla whispered, squeezing Beth's hand. "I will try. For Yousuf. I want him to have friends his age, to go to school, to be... normal." She drew in a shaky breath. "Can you... would you help me find someone to talk to? Someone who understands about shifters?"
"Of course." Relief flooded through Beth's chest. "Dr. Harrison, my therapist, she is a shifter like us. She's amazing - she helped me work through so much of my own trauma. I can give you her number."
Jacinth's face lit up with sudden inspiration. The Djinn sat forward, her dark hair swaying with the movement.
"Oh! I almost forgot - the kindergarten class always needs parent volunteers." Jacinth's eyes sparkled as she turned to Layla. "You could help out two or three mornings a week. That way you'd be right there in the classroom with him."
Layla's fingers stilled their nervous twisting of the blanket. "I could... stay with him?"
"Absolutely! They love having parents help with art projects and reading time." Jacinth's enthusiasm bubbled through her words. "You'd get to see firsthand how the school handles security, meet the teachers and parents… watch how they interact with the children."
Beth stared at Jacinth in amazement, wondering how she hadn't thought of this perfect solution herself. The idea was brilliant - letting Layla ease into the school environment while staying close to Yousuf. She could experience everything alongside him, building her own comfort level gradually.
"That's genius," Beth breathed, watching hope bloom across Layla's face. "You could be there to see exactly how they keep the children safe."
"And by participating," Jacinth continued, "you'll become more comfortable with the whole routine. Plus, Yousuf will love having you there."
Layla's shoulders relaxed slightly as she considered the possibility.
"I... I think I could do that. Start slowly, like you said.
" Her gaze drifted to where Yousuf and Molly were taking turns on the tire swing, their delighted squeals punctuating the afternoon air.
"He deserves to have this - friends, school, normal things. "
Beth reached for her mimosa, taking a sip before deliberately lightening her tone. "So... speaking of new experiences, we had some interesting visitors at the house the other day."
"Oh?" Jacinth's eyes sparkled with interest.
"Security experts - vampires." Beth felt her cheeks warm at the memory. "Tyr and Tobi. They came to check out the house and property to see what's needed."
"Striking doesn't begin to cover it." Beth fanned herself dramatically, drawing giggles from both women. "Tall, gorgeous, with these incredible blue eyes. And the way they move..." She sighed. "Like dancers or something."
"And there's two of them?" Jacinth's grin turned wicked.
"Identical twins." Beth nodded, her face growing warmer. "Though Tyr seems more serious than his brother. Tobi was cracking jokes the whole time they were measuring windows and checking sight lines."
"Lord Damien's security team is the best," Jacinth said. "Though I suspect you're more interested in their... other qualities."
"Can you blame me?" Beth laughed, tucking her legs beneath her. "You should have seen Tyr in this fitted henley..." She trailed off, remembering how the fabric had stretched across his broad shoulders.
"And?" Layla prompted, clearly enjoying Beth's flustered state.
"And nothing! They're vampires, for heaven's sake. I barely know them." Beth buried her face in her hands, but couldn't stop grinning. "Though Tyr did say they'd be back to install the new security system..."
"Mama! Come push me!" Yousuf called out from the swings. Beside him, Molly bounced excitedly.
"Me too!" Molly shouted, waving both arms at Jacinth.
A genuine smile broke across Layla's face as she stood. "Coming, habibi!" She turned to Beth and Jacinth. "Thank you. For understanding. For showing me there's hope."
Jacinth rose with fluid grace, mischief dancing in her expression. "Come on," she said, extending her hands to both women. "I believe we've been summoned. Those swings won't swing themselves."