Jimmy helped me scrub the blood off of my body. I needed his help getting back onto my feet after. I looked down at the bathwater to see it was a mixture of blood and dirt. Jimmy wrapped a towel around me. He gave me a kiss before walking into the bedroom.

I brushed my hair and braided it. I went into the bedroom to see Jimmy looking through a drawer. He pulled out a dress for me to wear. I pulled the dress on. Jimmy wrapped his arms around me and kissed the top of my head.

"I love you so much," he said.

"I love you more," I said.

"That's not possible," he said. "I am so proud of you."

I smiled and rested my head against Jimmy's chest. It had been months since he had said anything so nice to me. I was the one who screwed up and cooked Tommy the rest of the meat, but now I got them a whole new body. They already dragged another body into the basement, but I got the girl. She would have run away if it was not for me.

"We should go downstairs," he told me.

"Okay," I said.

He laced his fingers through mine and we walked down into the kitchen. Charles was leaning over the sink washing his hands. He was scrubbing his hands with a bar of white soap that was turning a light pink.

"Tommy is finishing up downstairs," he said. He looked over his shoulder at us. "Help him finish up, Jimmy. My knee is bothering me again."

"I will," Jimmy said.

He snaked his arm around my back and helped me sit down on the kitchen chair. Jimmy had not been this cautious with me since he first found out that I was pregnant. He gave me a quick kiss before going down to the basement.

I rubbed my stomach as I watched Charles continue to wash his hands. A large pool of blood stained the floor. I was expecting Charles to turn around and start ordering me to clean the blood. Instead, he turned around drying his hands on the dish towel.

He stepped over the pool of blood and pulled out one of the chairs. He sat across from me and cracked his knuckles.

"My, my, my, Juliet," he said. "When I brought you into this house, I never expected you to be killing someone. Don't get me wrong, you were quite a fighter when I found you in that perverted club."

"I'm sorry," I said, lowering my gaze to my belly.

"You should be," Charles said. "Juliet, you put yourself in so much danger. Not only you but your baby too. Women have a specific role in this family, and men have a certain job to do. They are in charge of hunting. The women don't do that. It's like Jimmy doing all of the cooking, cleaning, and carrying the baby. It's not right. Do you understand?"

"Yes, I do," I said quietly. "I'll never do it again."

"Good," he said.

I glanced up to see that Charles had his fingers tented in front of his face. I swallowed hard and tried to keep my head up. I was anticipating that he was going to make Jimmy punish me or he would even do it himself.

"Don't worry, Juliet. You won't be punished," he said. My eyes widened and my jaw dropped. Charles chuckled to himself. "Marilyn used to get the same look. I would talk to her and she would panic that she would be punished."

"I'm sorry," I said.

"Don't be," he said. "I like having you here, Juliet. You remind me a lot of her. It's only a few months after you give birth that I go get Tommy his wife. How do you feel about that?"

I shuddered at the thought of Tommy getting a girl. I remembered the way he grabbed me, and I would not want a girl to have to deal with that for the rest of her life. It would probably distract him from me though. He would stop staring at me with that stupid smirk. It would be nice to split up the chores too.

"I guess it would be nice to have some company," I said.

"Jimmy doesn't keep you company?" Charles raised an eyebrow.

"He does. It would just be nice to have someone else inside while you are all outside. Like another girl to talk to. That's why I like talking to Emme and Lindsay."

"Well, Emme will be down in a few days and you'll have someone to talk to."

"That'll be nice."

"And then you'll have plenty of company when Tommy's girl gets here. She'll be scared at first, but you have to help us show her that this is where she belongs."

I nodded and smiled.

That poor girl.

--

It was nice to have meat on the table again. The rich smell of roast would fill the house and the boys would come into the house with a smile. Jimmy had stopped finding excuses to punish me and was treating me with care again.

Taylor and Emme were coming over tomorrow. Charles told me to have the house spotless for their arrival. I was on my hands and knees scrubbing the living room floor. My back was aching and the summer heat was becoming unbearable. The sweat on my skin had caused the loose strands of my hair to stick to my forehead. Luckily, I had scrubbed clean the mess of blood in the kitchen a few days ago.

The kitchen door opened. The boys went outside a couple of hours ago after breakfast. I assumed it was Charles with his bad knee again.

"Julie," Jimmy gasped.

I looked over my shoulder to see him running toward me. I dropped the rag in the bucket of warm water. Jimmy put his hands under my arms and pulled me onto my feet.

"You shouldn't be on the floor like this," he said.

"I have to clean before Taylor comes," I said.

Jimmy lowered his head and nestled his face into my neck.

"The house is clean enough," he said. "I'll talk to Dad if he says anything. He may be my father, but I have my own family that I am responsible for now."

He rubbed his hands over my belly and the heat rushed up to my cheeks. Jimmy has protected me so much. This is the safest place that I have ever been to, and I knew that Jimmy was going to take good care of our sons. He would teach them to protect girls as he has protected me.

--

Jimmy and I woke early in the morning to the sound of his alarm clock. I yawned and rubbed my eyes as I rolled onto my back. Jimmy propped himself on his elbow and was staring down at me.

His hair was slipping out from behind his ear. He was always careful to make sure that it did not get too long since the night Tommy and Charles teased him. I was surprised that he let it get this long. He grabbed my hand and pressed his lips against my fingers.

"Taylor will be here in a couple of hours," he said.

"That's early," I said.

He has always been a night owl," he said. "He's the only one in the family that is like that. We used to joke that he never slept. They left hours ago."

He kissed me before rolling out of bed. He searched through the dresser drawers and pulled a T-shirt over his head and a pair of jeans on. He tossed a dress on the foot of the bed.

"You look really cute when you wear this," he said. "Especially with the bump."

I shuffled to the end of the bed and held it up. It was an awful burgundy dress covered in sunflowers that Jimmy made me wear often. He said his mother used to wear it all the time when she was pregnant.

Jimmy watched me as I got changed. I stepped into the bathroom to brush my teeth, and Jimmy followed me. I usually had my hair tied back in a bun because of the heat. Jimmy pulled the elastic out of my hair with his fingers.

"Keep your hair down for today," he said.

I nodded as he kissed the top of my head. I had not cut my hair since I became part of the family. After a year, it was down to my waist. I brushed through the knots in my dark hair.

When I went back into the bedroom, I could not see Jimmy. I went down the stairs to see Jimmy and Tommy sitting around the dining room table. I pulled out a frying pan and grabbed some eggs from the fridge.

I could barely hear Jimmy and Tommy talking over the eggs frying in the pan. By the time I was almost finished, Charles came down the stairs and sat in his usual spot. I toasted a couple of pieces of bread and filled their plates before bringing them over. They scarfed down the food before Tommy pulled out a deck of cards.

I cleaned the dishes as they played cards. The sweat was building up on my skin, and I kept wiping my forehead with my arm.

When I finally finished, I sat down next to Jimmy. He put his hand on my knee, and he rubbed it back and forth as he played. I never asked to join in.

Hours passed and they continued to play without getting bored. They joked back and forth, and it was a nice atmosphere to have in the house. I was so lonely during the day, so it was nice to listen to them laugh.

The sounds of stones crunching came from the driveway. Tommy set down his cards and hurried over to the window.

"They're here," he said.

There was the sound of a truck door slamming shut. Jimmy and Tommy went out the front door, and Charles was soon behind them. I got out of my seat. They left the door open, so I stood in the doorway. I did not know if I was allowed to leave.

Taylor, Jimmy, and Tommy all embraced each other. Emme was standing beside the truck. Her dark curls were pinned back and it looked like she had one of Taylor's shirts on. I have only ever seen her pregnant, so it was weird to see clothes hanging loose on her. Emme's smile dropped when she saw me cradling my belly.

"Boys, break it up," Charles said.

They pulled away from each other. Jimmy ran his fingers through his hair. Taylor reached out and shook Charles' hand before turning his attention to me. His eyes grew large as he walked toward me.

"Whoa, look at you, Julie," he said. "Last time I saw you it looked like Jimmy hardly fed you, and now it looks like you are going to have a baby any day now."

"Thank you," I said.

Jimmy walked over beside me, and he slipped his arm around my waist. He pressed his lips against the side of my temple.

"Yeah, she'll have our boy in a couple of weeks," Jimmy said.

"We'll see about that," Taylor said.

My stomach twisted itself into a knot. Taylor thought that he was having a baby boy too, but he ended up having to kill his daughter.

Emme walked to us looking even more somber. I would hate myself if I were her.

"How about you and Emme go inside to talk, Julie?" Jimmy said.

I could tell Taylor's comment made him just as uncomfortable as I was.

"Okay," I said.

Emme's lips lifted into a faint smile before completely disappearing. Taylor did not say anything, but his eyes were locked on her as she walked into the house. I walked in behind her. Jimmy closed the door and I listened as the lock clicked shut.

Emme then broke into tears.