Damaged

8

A few days later, Jessie was up before 5 am. Jumping out of her sleep from yet another nightmare. This time, her husband was standing over her as the sheriff lay bleeding on the floor. She shivered at the thought. She couldn't let that happen. That woman was good people.

Jessie tip toed out of bed and shoved the rest of her belongings back into her bag. She had to get out of here and put some distance between herself and this town. Her breakdown the other day was something that scared her tremendously. She had never reacted in that way before. Been so violent towards another person. She was afraid she was becoming like Malcom, hurting people.

She could barely make eye contact with the sheriff now because of her guilt. She never wanted to become a monster.

Jessie threw her bags out the window, knowing she couldn't dare leave from the front. She would have to walk past the sheriff's room, and the floor boards creaking would give her away before she had a chance to run. She sighed as she climbed out her knees, digging into the grass on impact. She grunted, hauling herself and her stuff up as she bee lined it for her car. Guilt ate in the pit of her stomach as she started down the road. Not driving too fast because she didn't want to draw any attention to herself and get pulled over.

She was mulling over everything , the sheriff had shown her such kindness even when she didn't deserve it. And for that, she would forever be grateful.

They had fallen into a routine the last few days, and cohabitation seemed so easy between them now that the sheriff knew everything. Jessie found herself becoming comfortable, too comfortable.

The sheriff still insisted on offering her help, and each time she declined. She's told her many times that helping her could put her career at risk, and jessie wasn't okay with the woman taking that kind of risk for her. She couldn't claim the woman didn't know her because that was a lie. The sheriff saw a side of Jessie that no one had ever seen. She's seen Jessie at her worst and knew her deepest, darkest secrets. Even her own mother didn't know about the abuse within her marriage.

She was always told crying was a weakness. Yet she found herself crying into Demi's arms at least twice a day when she was staying there. There was just something about the woman's comfort, her arms wrapped tightly around her as she whispered reassurances jnto Jessie's hair that just made her melt. Made her feel safe and protected from the world. She liked it too much she could feel her walls crumbling, which was another reason why she had to leave.

She was broken and damaged. She couldn't start anything with anyone, not while she was still chained by the ankles to that man. It wasn't fair to Demi. She would never have Jessie fully.

As she drove, she didn't have a location in mind. She was just hoping for a way out of this town before the sheriff woke up and noticed she was gone.

Jessie had been driving for hours now. The sun rose over the horizon, and the streets became a little more crowded with traffic. There was nothing for miles but dirt roads and farmland. She wasn't sure where she was, but her tank was almost empty, and she needed to find a gas station soon.

Jessie realized she didn't even have a phone. The temporary one Demi had given her sat on the mattress several hundred miles back. As she approached a gas station, she kept her head low, avoiding the cameras. She brought a few bags of chips and a prepaid phone so she could at least call for help if she really needed it.

The cashier was an older woman. She smiled at Jessie as she rang up her items. "Where you headed to girlie?"

Jessie shrugged , "No where in particular; by any chance, do you sell maps here?"

It would do good to know where she was right now. The woman pointed to a shelf just behind where Jessie was standing. She gestured for her to take a few on the house. Jessie thanked the woman and went on her way. Once in the car, she unraveled the map to see where she wanted to go. Oregon was only a few miles out, and she could get there before nightfall. Knowing she would need a hotel, sleeping in her car was far too dangerous for a single woman. She smiled to herself as she started her engine, tank now full. She hoped Oregon had something to offer her.

~~~

On the other side of town, Demi called her deputy to her home. Her house was in disarray as she searched for any signs indicating where the woman could have gone. She was beyond upset.

She had offered her shelter and a way out, and she ran. What was the point of the last few days? She didn't understand how the woman could just up and vanish like that. There's was not so much as a note left for her to at least reassure her she was okay.

The sheriff guessed she didn't mean that much to the woman. She was just someone who gave her a place to stay during her travels.  Her heart ached at the thought. They were doing good, they had talked and fell into a routine. Why wasn't the sheriff enough for her? Why didn't she trust her after everything. She punched the nearby wall beside her, feeling the blood trickling down her knuckles.

"Damn, what the hell happened to you?"

Demi turned a fiery look in her eye as her deputy held his hands up in mock surrender. He could clearly see his best friend was upset. That didn't explain the bruises covering her body his worry deepened.

"Don't tell me it has something to do with that woman?" The look on Demi's face said it all, and she slumped onto the couch. She rested her head on its arm as she spawled out.

"She left this morning, not sure what time I was sleep." She mumbled exasperation clear in her voice. "I offered her shelter and a way out. She doesn't want it. What does she think is going to happen in the end? He will find her."

He could see the distress on his best friends face and knew she was in deep. Somehow, over the last few days, Demi had taken a liking to this woman. She felt the need to protect her, get to know her, and she thought they were starting to do that when things went south. He lifted her feet so he could sit, placing them in his lap.

"I'm sorry, she shouldn't be far. We can put a bolo out on the car."

"No." Demi shook her head, despite how upset she was. She couldn't seal the woman's fate in that way. "I can't do that to her. Can we just forget this ever happened?"

Her deputy grinned, shoving her feet off his lap as he ran to her kitchen, pulling out a cold bottle of whiskey.

"I'm off today. You are going to be off because you are in no state to work. Let's have some drinks." He poured her a double shot and him one as well.

She looked down at her watch. "It's eleven in the morning. We really shouldn't be doing this." She downed her shot anyway as he poured her another one.

"Cheers to bad decisions!" They clinked their glasses gigging amongst themselves as demi slowly forgot about the ache in her heart that just wouldn't go away.

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Filler chapter really ....this book is basically finished i have all the chapters planned out. So all of my attention is currently on my new story The tether and the flame go check it out.