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“I think Tolstoy might have been right,” Eddie mused, swirling the blood red liquid in her wineglass as she spoke. Her head rested comfortably against Jamie’s shoulder. A worn blanket, purchased for Eddie by her grandmother before she left for college, was tucked around them. Dinner had been eaten and picked up; a bowl of popcorn had been prepared and now sat, largely untouched, on the table in front of them. A movie droned on in the background, ignored by both of them.
Jamie’s brow furrowed in confusion. He tilted his head to stare down at her. “About what?”
“Every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way,” she quoted, flashing a bitter smile. “It’s true, isn’t it?”
Her husband exhaled deeply, resting his cheek against the top of her head. “I think it might be, yeah.”
Eddie shook her head, blinking back the angry tears that were threatening. “What is it about family that makes people – all of us – idiots?”
“We’re made to see the best in the people we love,” Jamie answered simply. “When that’s threatened, people don’t always react the way we think they should.”
She nodded once. “I read the report. He’d been beating them for years. She stayed because she didn’t want to destroy the family.” Eddie scoffed humorlessly. “I want to be angry at her, but I can’t. I’ve seen too many people stay for the exact same reason. Before she filed that complaint, she really did think she was doing what was best for her children.”
“She was scared,” Jamie pointed out gently. “The most dangerous time for a victim of domestic violence is…”
“When they leave, or when they report,” Eddie nodded. “I know. I just hope the ADA will be able to get the charges to stick.”
“From what I read, they’ve got plenty of evidence.”
“That’s good.” She tilted her head back to stare up at him. “What about you? How’s Deon doing?”
“Still hates me.” Jamie smiled bitterly. “Can’t say I blame him.”
“You did the right thing, Jamie,” Eddie assured him, not for the first time.
“I promised to look out for him, and then I arrested his brother.”
“In this situation, I think arresting his brother was looking out for him. C’mon, the guy said Deon was as good as dead to him the second he saw your face. He beat the kid to a bloody pulp. That isn’t the kind of family anyone needs, Jamie.”
“I know.” His arm tightened around her shoulders. “I know.”
“I’m not saying Deon’s ever going to thank you for it, Jamie, but you made his world safer today. That’s the whole point, isn’t it? To help where we can?”
“It is,” Jamie nodded, more confident.
“You helped Deon. You’ve helped other kids in the program. You’re going to help more. You’re doing a lot of people a lot of good, Jamie.”
“I know. Most days, I know.”
She smiled. “On the ones you don’t, I’ll be here to remind you.”