Forever Blessed (Women of Prayer)

  Praise for Forever Blessed

  Darlene is a gifted writer who accurately portrays the life of an abused woman. Darlene tackles the difficult issues in life and how abused victims can find hope and courage through Christ. A must read!

  -Deb Knitter, Survivor

  Forever Blessed by author, Darlene Shortridge, is one of those books that will not be forgotten once the last page has been turned. The information and truth within this work of fiction is a subject that most authors step away from even though it is relevant for life today. Forgiveness with strength rings out as one of the truths presented. I appreciated that Christians were not portrayed as weak even in the act of great forgiveness. The characters were loveable and believable. Some of them were frightening. I hope that this book will help others to not be ashamed of their scars and to know they are not alone.

  -Elaine Littau, Author of Christian Fiction

  The second installment of Darlene Shortridge's Women of Prayer series, Forever Blessed is a winner, through and through. You will be blessed.

  -Amanda Stephan, best-selling author

  For fiction, Darlene Shortridge writes real stories for real people… In Forever Blessed, Ms. Shortridge carves a gripping and heartfelt tale about spousal abuse with stark conflicts and turbulent emotions, while entwining the tale with the Lord's eye-opening truth! Forever Blessed is about faith, triumph over trauma, a veil lifted from an unspeakable subject, and learning to rely on God’s sustaining strength. I look forward to book three of The Women of Prayer series!

  -Kathy Goodhew, author of A Vision Beyond Abuse and The Hidden Ones fantasy series

  Forever Blessed is a story of one woman’s journey through an abusive marriage, but it is more than that. It is the story of how following the leading of the Holy Spirit can mean different paths for different people, as other characters do follow different paths with different results. Where many people believe that there is only one right choice for women in violent marriages, the author doesn’t try to simplify this complicated issue.

  In a book that I couldn’t put down to eat, I found both a great story and a great learning tool. If only every church could withhold judgment and accept the leading of the Holy Spirit the way the church in the story does we could really be the Church. It’s more than a fantasy, it’s a goal.

  Thank you for writing this book, Darlene, I hope it reaches enough people to have an impact in the world. I know it had an impact on me and I’ll be ordering copies for our church and the local shelter that tried to help me.

  -Bonnie Rice

  Author of Love Has Its Ups and Downs: With a Bipolar Spouse

  Forever Blessed

  Women of Prayer Series

  Book Two

  By

  Darlene Shortridge

  Books by

  Darlene Shortridge

  The Women of Prayer Series:

  Until Forever

  Forever Blessed

  Forever Blessed

  Copyright © 2012 by Darlene Shortridge. All rights reserved.

  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any way by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the author except as provided by USA copyright law.

  This novel is a work of fiction. Names, descriptions, entities, and incidents included in the story are products of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, events, and entities is entirely coincidental.

  Scripture quotations are from the NIV 1984 version of the Bible.

  Published by DJDM Enterprises

  Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73119

  Cover design by Jonna Feavel

  Author photo by Photography by Jonna

  Published in the United States of America

  Dedication

  For my grandmother,

  Ella Louise Lafferty

  1932-1997

  And my daughter,

  Jonna Michelle Feavel

  Acknowledgments

  To the women who shared their stories, you helped open my mind to see domestic violence from every possible angle. You are the ones who had the most impact on making this fictional story entirely believable. Thank you. You have my utmost respect and gratitude.

  A special thanks goes to Deb, Bonnie, Amanda, Shaundra, Elaine, Kathy, Mary and Jonna. You have provided editing, encouragement, words of wisdom, and/or personal information to help make this book what it is. Danny and Jonna, without your computer skills, I would be lost.

  And to my family, thank you for sharing me, once again, with the world. Danny, Jonna and Jeremiah, thank you for everything you do and for everything you sacrifice in allowing me to follow God’s leading in this crazy world of being an author. You guys rock!

  Every word I write is to glorify God. He loves me and has called me according to His purpose and plan. I am thankful and honored to be used in such a way to bring Him all the glory!

  Dear Reader,

  Welcome to Forever Blessed, Book Two in the Women of Prayer Series.

  The following pages may strike a dissonant chord in your heart. I apologize. Writing about domestic abuse is never an easy task. My heart broke when I read the statistics.

  1 in 4 women will be abused in her lifetime. Most cases of domestic violence never get reported. 1/3 of all intimate partner homicides are a result of domestic violence. This breaks my heart. Every one of us knows someone who has been or will be abused in her lifetime. It may even be you.

  The idea for this novel is based on the life of my grandmother, Ella Louise Lafferty. While she was a victim of spousal abuse, this is not her story. She was the mother of eight children, the wife to one husband. She had more lines etched around her kind eyes than a woman of 62 years should carry. She lived a hard life.

  What broke my heart the most was after her passing she left a stack of Harlequin Romance books in the common room of her apartment building. Her marriage was built on fear and trepidation, not love and certainly not romance. She read hundreds of books, living a life of romance through each page she turned. Her self-imposed guilt kept her from sharing her quest with her family.

  I rejoice in the fact that she entered heaven’s gates and looked upon the ultimate face of love, that of Christ Jesus. She never knew the romantic love of a man while on this earth. She saved herself for the best.

  If you are, or someone you know is a victim of domestic violence, please do not wait any longer, get help today. There are people who will help you. Please call.

  The National Domestic Abuse Hotline: 1-800-799-7233

  The National Sexual Assault Hotline: 1-800-656-4673

  The National Teen Dating Abuse Hotline: 1-866-331-9474

  In His love,

  Darlene Shortridge

  51

  Prologue

  There were days when he moved silently, almost as if he were invisible, watching every move she made. This was one of those days.

  The children sat at the table, eating their breakfast, and she was standing at the kitchen counter, making his lunch. She spread the last bit of mayonnaise on his sandwich when he grabbed a fistful of her hair, weaving her long, dark tresses through his fingers.

  Making her listen, he forcefully whispered in her ear. “Did I tell you to put mayonnaise on my sandwich?”

  The pain tore through her skull and she fought the threatening tears. She shook her head no. Even though he’d had mayonnaise on his sandwiches for the past seven years of marriage, no, he did not tell her to make it that way today. She managed a slight whisper. “I’m sorry, it won’t happen again.”

  He used her hair to propel her face forward into
the open-faced sandwich. “Let this be a reminder to you. You do nothing without asking me first. Do you understand?”

  She nodded, trying to breathe as both her mouth and nose pressed into the bread, the sticky white condiment quickly filling the open spaces.

  He yanked her head up, turning her to face the children, who watched with open curiosity, “Look at your mother, kids; doesn’t she look ugly with mayonnaise on her face?”

  The youngest, being two and finding humor with most anything, pointed and began to giggle. The five-year-old followed suit. Only the eight-year-old remained quiet. She stared at her mother for a moment, then grabbed her school bag and headed for the door. The five-year-old ran to catch up.

  When everyone had left for the day and the two-year-old was busy playing with toys, the woman sank to the floor and cried tears that flowed from the depths of her soul.

  Chapter One

  After putting Melanie in her car seat, Laney quietly used her hip to securely shut the door. The still night air did nothing to muffle the sound. She stood, waiting for him to come running out of the house to stop her. She said her last silent goodbye to the house that was supposed to be her dream house. She had dubbed it the house of horrors shortly after moving in. Goodbyes had never been easy for her. This time it was what she wanted most in the world.

  She still had to get out of the driveway. She whispered to her oldest daughter, Joy, that it was time to do her job. Laney put the van in neutral and started pushing. Joy had her hands on the steering wheel and her foot ready to push the brakes. They made it to the street. Laney continued pushing until they were two houses down. She motioned for Joy to apply the brakes. Joy scooted over to the passenger seat. Laney jumped in the van and started it. She was two hours west of town when the lights in the big two-story brick house came on. She couldn’t possibly hear the shouting and cursing, yet her insides were knotted and her stomach churned. If he caught her, he would kill her. Of that she was certain.

  Laney drove all night, only stopping to get gas. She paid with the cash she had safely squirreled away. She purposely drove hours out of her way. She had learned her lesson the last time she’d tried this. He had her followed. She hadn’t been able to walk without pain for days. She tried not to act differently or out of character. She tried not give any hint whatsoever of her plans, but she had to be sure she wasn’t being followed. Not again.

  She didn’t drink anything for fear she would have to go the bathroom. The kids slept. They only had the pajamas they wore to bed and one change of clothes she had stashed the week before when she was doing laundry. She had managed to get their social security cards and birth certificates as well. If she had packed anything else, he would have noticed. She was wearing the sweats she normally slept in. She had nothing else. When she started planning her escape, she realized she would be giving up many things that held sentimental meaning to her. It didn’t matter. Nothing mattered as long as she and her children were safe and away from the man she called her husband.

  Laney watched her life disappear in the rear view mirror. If only the memories could disappear as well.

  The sun was rising when she noticed her eldest daughter wrestling in the seat next to her. She knew the other two would be stirring soon as well, wanting something to eat. They still had several hours before they would arrive at their first resting spot.

  Laney glanced at her daughter. With one eye on the road, she looked at Joy, wanting to see approval on her daughter’s face.

  Joy smiled at her mom. “I love you, mom. You did the right thing.”

  Laney teared up, hearing such grown-up words coming from her still-young daughter. “I love you too. You mean everything to me.”

  Melanie started to whimper and Laney knew it was time to stop. She pulled into a truck stop. While she was cautious, she knew Paul had no idea where she was headed. She purposefully did not go to the obvious places, like her parents’ or her sister’s house. She didn’t let them know she was leaving. She thought it would be safer to wait and inform them later. That way, when he contacted them, which she knew he would, they wouldn’t have to lie to protect her.

  Laney wiped away the threatening tears and concentrated on her children. Melanie was in a mood. She didn’t get a good night's rest and was sure to be cranky for the rest of the trip. Hopefully some breakfast would help. She looked at the face of her still-sleeping son, Matt. Such a sweet boy. Thank God he was such a hard sleeper. The night before, Joy had quietly led him outside and into the car where he continued to sleep. He would have many questions when he was fully awake. Only Joy had known ahead of time that they were leaving. Even then, it was only out of necessity that she had told her. She needed help to get the other two children quietly to the car in the middle of the night. Joy had saved her.

  She gently shook Matt awake. “Matt, honey, wake up.” He was not going to be compliant. “Matt, come on, wake up. Do you want some pancakes?”

  Melanie started to get excited. Pancakes were her favorite. “I want pancakes. Me too!”

  Laney shook her son. “Come on, buddy, it’s time to get up.” She pulled him to a sitting position and began putting his shoes on him.

  Matt rebelled. “Ah mom, I’m still sleepy. I’m not hungry.”

  Laney corralled Matt into the truck stop while Joy held on to Melanie’s hand. At two, she wanted her independence and loved to walk. Joy, the eldest, was used to helping her mom. Laney got them settled into a booth, ordered a cup of coffee, and tried to relax. Driving all night was taking its toll. She was tired and still had to drive for several more hours. Coffee would do her good. Her adrenaline was beginning to subside. The farther away she got, the more relaxed she had become. Rest would come. Just a little while longer.

  After breakfast all four of them went into the family restroom and dressed. That was when Matt realized they weren’t at home and dad wasn’t with them.

  “Mom, where are we? And where is dad? He’s going to be mad.”

  Laney wasn’t ready to answer his questions, at least not fully. “We are going to see a friend of mine. Kind of like a vacation. It’s going to be fun.”

  “Why isn’t dad coming?” Matt loved his dad. Matt always forgave. It was his nature. He loved unconditionally.

  “Well, your dad has to work. He couldn’t come with us this time.”

  Joy smiled at her mom, encouraging her.

  Laney continued, “We need to get going. Finish getting dressed. We’ll be at my friend’s house by lunchtime. She is really nice. You will like her.”

  Once they were on the road again, it seemed more like a true family vacation. Joy and Matt played "I Spy" while Melanie played with her doll. Only Laney remained quiet, wondering what their life was going to be like. What was she doing? How was she going to provide for her children? How was she going to keep them safe? The questions continued to run through her mind as exhaustion set in.

  It was eleven-thirty when she pulled into the driveway of a white two-story Victorian house. Sheila, her roommate from college, came out the front door and greeted her with a hug. “I’ve missed you so much,” she whispered in her ear. “You’ve done the right thing. You will be safe here.”

  Laney took Sheila’s hand and allowed herself to be led up the porch steps and into the house. Joy, Melanie and Matt quietly followed their mother, taking in their surroundings as they went.

  Once inside, Laney sat on the couch and managed to introduce her children to Sheila. “Sheila is one of my very best friends. She and I went to school together. We have known each other for a very long time.”

  Laney was having a hard time keeping her eyes open. She smiled apologetically toward her dear friend.

  Sheila came to the rescue. “It’s nice to meet you! I’ve heard a lot about you. Are you hungry? I have lunch ready. Why don’t we let your mom lie down while we eat? She looks really tired.” Sheila looked at Laney. “Your room is upstairs to your right…third door on the left. I’m sure you will find it just fine wh
ile I get these three fed.”

  Once upstairs, Laney headed straight for the bed, crawled into the crisp sheets and laid her head down. With her children safely in the hands of her capable friend, she instantly fell asleep.

  Chapter Two

  Paul picked up Laney’s credit cards and checkbook and threw them across the kitchen. She's gone. She left and took the kids with her. I'll teach her a lesson as soon as I find her. Now, to figure out where she went. He sat down at the computer and started looking up names and numbers. He glanced at the clock. 6:34 am. He picked up the phone and dialed his in-laws' number. He’d interrupt their sleep. Serves them right for having such an obstinate daughter.

  His mother-in-law answered on the first ring. “Hello, the Andersons.”

  Paul rolled his eyes. “Yeah, Barbara, this is Paul. Let me talk to Laney.”

  “She’s not here, Paul. Isn’t she at home?”

  “Do you think I’d be calling and asking for her if she were here? Now let me talk to her. I know she’s there.”