The next morning, Lucky dropped Elizabeth off at school and made plans to pick her up that afternoon. Since he did not have any classes that morning, he was able to do what he had decided he would do the night before. He went to see a friend of the family, Kevin Collins, who was a psychiatrist. Kevin answered the door and looked a little surprised to see Lucky.
"Lucky…"
"Hi, Kevin."
"It's good to see you. How's school going?"
"Not too bad. Do you have a minute to talk?"
"Sure, come on in. Have a seat."
Lucky went into the living room and sat down on the couch. Kevin remained standing, a look of concern on his face. "Everything okay?"
"Oh, with me? Yea, everything's fine. But I have a friend I wanted to talk to you about. I thought maybe you could help me."
"Sure, I'll try. What's going on?"
"I think something pretty traumatic happened to her when she was younger, and I need to know how to help her."
"What makes you think that?"
"Well, just little things really that seem to keep adding up. She keeps telling me that she doesn't understand why I want to be her friend, that there are things in her past that if I knew I wouldn't like her. She's kind of shy and doesn't have a lot of friends, and she doesn't like to be touched.
She kind of flinches every time I try to touch her, even if it's just on her arm. Kevin, I think she might have been abused as a child."
"You mean sexually abused?"
He nodded and stood up. "Yea, I do. Last night I was at her house and her uncle came by. He was just passing through town, but she seemed really freaked out by him and when he tried to put his arm around her I saw this look of fear in her eyes."
"What did you do?"
"I made some excuse about going to a movie to get her out of there. She wouldn't admit anything, and I would never ask her, but that made me start thinking about all the other things and…"
"Lucky, all of those things would be consistent with being sexually abused as a child, especially if she's never told anyone. Those victims tend to think it was their fault and are ashamed to tell anyone for fear that they won't like them."
Lucky ran his hand through his hair. He had been fairly certain that he was right about Elizabeth, but hearing Kevin confirm that it may be true upset him even more. "She's so sad all the time. I mean, she's so beautiful and she's so talented. She's an artist, but she has absolutely no confidence in herself. But Kevin, there are times when I see this light inside her, this thing I can't really define. I want to help her find it, but I don't want to scare her. I don't ever want to force her into telling me something."
Kevin thought for a moment. "You know, without knowing her or talking to her it's impossible to know for sure if she was truly sexually abused, but it seems obvious that something traumatic happened to her. Why don't I give you a couple of books on the subject? They'll help you understand what she may be dealing with and they'll help you to know how to treat her, how best to help her without scaring her away."
"Thanks, that would be great. I want to be able to help her, to let her know that I'm here for her if she needs me."
Kevin went to his bookshelf and took several books from the shelf and handed them to Lucky. "These should help. They're some of the best books written on the subject. These are extras so I don't need them back."
"I really appreciate this."
"No problem. Come by or call me anytime if you have a question or there's something you don't understand. If she ever does open up to you, and I hope she does, I'll be happy to talk to her as a favor to you."
"Thanks, Kevin. I better get going. I have a class at noon." He went to the door and opened it. "See you later."
He started down the steps and Kevin called to him, "Lucky, you know, you don't really need to read those books to learn how to be with her. She's a very lucky girl to have you for a friend. You obviously care very deeply for her."
"Yea, I do."
"I know you, and I know how you are. You're already doing just what she needs you to do. Give her time. I think she'll open up to you once she feels she can trust you."
"Thanks again, Kevin. I owe you."
Lucky stopped by the club to grab some lunch before going to his class. Luke looked up as he walked in. "Well, my wayward son returns. What happened to you last night?"
"I slept on the couch at Elizabeth's. There's been some stuff going on and Mrs. Hardy is out of town, so I didn't want her to be alone."
"I figured you were with her. Lovely girl, Ms. Webber."
"Yes she is."
"Is everything okay with her, Lucky?"
"Yea, there are some things she's dealing with, but I'm going to help her get through them. I went to see Kevin today to see if he could give me some help with it."
"Sounds serious."
"Yea it is. I can't really talk about it, but I wanted to let you know that I won't be home for a few nights. I want to stay with her as long as Mrs. Hardy is gone."
"Sure, I understand. Just take good care of her."
"I intend to do that for a long time, Dad."
Luke nodded, understanding that Lucky may have finally found his soul mate, just as he knew he had all those years ago when he had met Laura. All the signs were there and he was happy for his son. He also knew that if anyone could help Elizabeth with her problems, it was Lucky. He was the most compassionate person he knew, and sometimes he wondered how he could possibly be his flesh and blood. He marveled every day at the miracle that was his son Lucky.
It was nearly 5:00 when Lucky stopped by the classroom to pick up Elizabeth. She was there talking to another student when he arrived. She looked up and saw him and smiled when she saw him but it was several minutes before she came over to him. "Hi. Sorry."
"It's okay. I'm not in any hurry. How about we go get some dinner before the concert? I'm pretty hungry."
"Okay, but can I go home and change first?"
"You look beautiful just the way you are. But, of course, if you want to we can go to your house first."
"Thanks."
When they arrived at her house they found that her grandmother was home. Elizabeth hugged her grandmother and welcomed her home. Her grandmother hugged her back and looked toward Lucky. "Why, hello, Lucky. How are you? I didn't realize you knew my granddaughter."
"We're just getting to know each other, Mrs. Hardy. We're going to the concert in the park tonight."
"Oh, I was so hoping you could stay home this evening, dear." Lucky saw the look of fear in Elizabeth's eyes again as they saw her Uncle Joe come into the room from the kitchen.
"Look who's here, dear. It's your Uncle Joe. He's going to spend the night here with us tonight. Isn't that wonderful? It's been so long since we've seen him."
"Hi Uncle Joe." Elizabeth turned to her grandmother. "Actually we saw each other last night. And Lucky has tickets to the concert and I don't want them to be wasted." She then turned to Lucky. "You know, I've decided that what I have on is okay, so can we just go now?"
"Sure. It was nice to see you Mrs. Hardy." He looked at Elizabeth's uncle, feeling the rage at what he may have done to her boiling inside of him and said, cryptically, "Nice to see you again, too. Come on, Elizabeth, let's get going."
They walked in silence for awhile before coming to Kelly's Diner. "Do you want to get a bite to eat here before we go to the concert?"
"I'm not really hungry, Lucky."
"How about something to drink? We can drink it out here."
She nodded and he said, "Okay, I'll be right back."
He was back in a few minutes with two cups of hot chocolate. The fall air was chilly, but he knew that wasn't all that was making her shiver. He removed his flannel shirt and gently wrapped it around her shoulders. "This and the hot chocolate should help warm you up a little. Is this okay?"
"It's perfect. Thanks."
They sat down at a table across from each other. He looked at her until she caught his gaze. He reached across the table and put his hand over hers, expecting her to pull it away, but she didn't. "If you don't feel like going to the concert now, we don't have to. I'll understand."
"No, I want to go, Lucky. I want to, really."
"Okay. But we can leave anytime you want."
They did go to the concert, but half way through it, Lucky could tell that she was not enjoying it and, truthfully, neither was he. He just wanted to take her somewhere and help her get warm, help her to not be so afraid. He turned to her and saw that her gaze was fixed somewhere far off and that she was not even paying attention to the concert. "What do you say we get out of here? I think my Mom and Dad are away this evening and Lulu will be next door. Why don't we go back there for a bit. I have a feeling you don't want to go home just yet."
Elizabeth nodded and said, "I'm sorry."
"You don't have to be sorry. It's not all that great anyway."
At his house, he told her to sit on the couch and he would start a fire to warm them up. Elizabeth could not believe how Lucky was able to read her mind. He seemed to know that she was upset and unnerved by seeing her Uncle Joe again even though he couldn't possibly know why. She wondered how he would feel about her now if she told him. God, she wanted to tell him. She knew they would never be able to progress in their relationship if she did not tell him. It would always be between them, preventing her from ever being happy. But how could she tell Lucky the terrible things that her Uncle Joe had done to her without him hating her? How could she tell him how ashamed she was of it? She felt the hot tears stinging in her eyes as she thought of losing Lucky now. It had only been a few days, but already he was such an important part of her life..
He saw her tears sat down beside her on the couch and reached over to wipe a tear from her cheek. "Do you want to talk about it?"
She shook her head. "I can't, Lucky. I can't. You would hate me."
"Elizabeth, don't you know there is nothing you could tell me that would make me hate you? Don't you know that by now?"
"You don't understand. It's so awful, Lucky. I just can't tell you."
"Okay, it's okay. But I want you to stay here tonight."
"Lucky, no, I couldn't."
"Of course you can. You can have my room and I'll sleep down here. My parents won't mind, honest. I want you to. I'll call your grandmother and tell her you're not feeling well and my mother insisted you spend the night here. Can I do that?"
She had been dreading going home, knowing that her Uncle Joe would be there and that Lucky wouldn't be there to protect her. She didn't know if her uncle would try to come to her room anymore, but she knew she did not want to take that chance. She nodded and waited while Lucky called her grandmother.
He smiled as he hung up the phone. "She said she hopes you feel better."
"Thanks, Lucky."
At that moment the door burst open and Lulu came running in when she saw Lucky and Elizabeth. She bypassed Lucky completely and ran straight into Elizabeth's arms. "Elizabeth! I didn't know you would be here!"
Lucky looked at Luke and Laura, who had followed her in the door, and said, "I guess I've been replaced." They all laughed and Elizabeth could not help but laugh with them as she hugged Lulu.
Lulu looked to her parents. "Can I stay up for a little while longer, please?"
"You have school tomorrow, Lulu."
Elizabeth looked at her, "You know what? I don't have class tomorrow afternoon, so maybe Lucky and I could take you to a movie. Would you like that?'
"Can we really do that, Lucky?"
"Of course we can. And Elizabeth will be here when you get up in the morning. She's going to sleep in my room."
Lucky looked to his parents for approval and they both nodded. Lulu squealed with delight and Elizabeth offered to take her upstairs and tuck her in.
When they had disappeared upstairs, Luke put his hand on Lucky's shoulder. "What's going on, Son?"
"I just don't want her to be at home tonight. Can we leave it at that?"
Laura spoke then. "Of course we can, Lucky. Elizabeth is always welcome in our house. We don't need any details."
"Thanks, Mom."
Laura turned to Luke. "I don't know about you, but I'm tired and want to go to bed. Are you coming?"
"Right behind you, darlin', I need to talk to Lucky for just a minute."
"Okay, I'll show Elizabeth where your room is."
Laura went upstairs and Luke turned to Lucky. "I just wanted to tell you how proud I am of you."
"Proud? Why?"
"I just am, okay? I just wanted you to know."
"Well, thanks, Dad."
"Sure…now, I'm going to bed."
"Good night, Dad."
A few minutes later, Elizabeth came back downstairs. "Your parents are so nice, Lucky."
"Thanks. I kinda like them."
They looked at each other for a long minute and Elizabeth finally said, "I guess I should go on up to bed….but….do you mind if I stay down here with you for just a little while?"
He held out his hand to her. "Come on over by the fire with me."
She walked over to Lucky and tentatively offered him her hand. He sat down on the couch, and pulled her down beside him so that they were both facing the fire and he wrapped his arms around her as she laid her head against his chest. She did not flinch or pull away. She had never felt such complete peace and safety and she could have stayed in Lucky's arms like this forever. She could not recall ever feeling this close to another person and she wanted it to last. But she knew that wanting it to last and making it last would come at a very high price. She would have to tell Lucky everything. She reveled in the feeling of being in Lucky's arms for as long as she could. She waited until she was sure that everyone else in the house would be asleep before she turned to him in the darkened room, lit only by the fireplace, and said, "Lucky, I owe you so much, I don't know how I can ever thank you. You've made me feel so safe these last few days."
"You don't owe me anything, Elizabeth. I told you before, I want to be with you."
"Well, you're always so patient with me, and you never question me or ask me to tell you what's wrong. But I know that if we're going to remain friends I need to tell you everything."
"And I also told you before that you don't have to tell me anything. You don't owe me any explanations about anything. It won't change how I feel about you."
He saw the tears welling in her eyes again. "It's easy for you to say that now. But even so, it could change how I feel if I don't tell you. It would always be between us." She took his hand in her two, amazed at herself for the calmness she felt and the relief at knowing she was finally going to tell someone. "I have to tell you what happened to me when I was a little girl."