Deviation (bwwm) *Mature* Completed

Twelve

"Thanks." Tania sent Mabel a small smile as she took the rag from her hand. Blood stained the front of her shirt and her face throbbed from the assault.

Once the others had wrestled Trey away from her, she could take time to process what'd happened. She couldn't understand why he'd hit her, but didn't negate that some men had such a superiority complex that they enjoyed beating women.

"You took that like a champ, though. I sure as hell would have been done for." Mabel laughed lightly as she sat next to her on the bench. She wore a pair of navy blue pants, a white camisole, and brown boots.

"Thanks," Tania laughed as she began to wipe the blood from her face, "I grew up around a bunch of men so they toughened me up."

Tania didn't have siblings but it didn't stop her cousins and family friends from treating her like one. She was the first girl after three generations of men so they made sure she knew how to care for herself and was protected.

"I see that." Mabel shook her head, her smile wide. Looking up, she used her hand to shield her eyes from the sun as she looked out onto the land. "There he is."

Tania looked up to see a group of people headed towards the stable. She could already make out Flint's large form amongst them. A nervousness sat in her belly at the realization she'd have to tell him yet another piece of bad news. It seemed as if bad luck followed them.

"I'll stall him. Hurry up and get that blood off your face before he kills us all." Mabel took a shaky breath before heading out to meet the group halfway. Tania worked to hurriedly clean herself up, subconsciously hoping to sweep it under the rug if he hadn't been told already.

Slyly, she stuck her arms in the shirt and turned it around as to hide the large trail of blood down the front. She could hear Mabel's excited greeting but Flint simply walked around the woman- his eyes set on Tania. With one final swipe of her nose, she stood from the bench and met him at the opening of the stable.

"Hey." She greeted him softly. His eyes scanned her body for a moment, his eyes focusing on her collar before her face.

"Who was it?" The sliver of hope she had slipped between her fingers and her mind desperately tried to conjure up a lie.

"What?" She stupidly asked. Flint stepped closer before tilting her face up to his. His other hand came up to softly rub along the bridge of her nose. Tania had to curl her toes in order to expel some of the pain that shot across her face at the touch.

"I can see even that light touch was painful." The calmness in his voice freaked her out more than if he'd have been yelling.

"It's no-"

"Your nose and half of your cheeks are getting red. There's blood caked in your nostrils and I bet if we turned this shirt around there'd be blood on it." He cut her off before she could even provide a half assed excuse.

"Can we talk about it somewhere private?" Looking past him she noticed everyone staring at them- anticipating Flints next move.

"Sure, darlin." Wrapping his arm around her shoulder, he pulled her closer and began walking them back towards the house. By the time they'd arrived Tania still hadn't figure out how she was going to explain what happened.

"I'll get you some ice. Sit on the couch." As he disappeared into the kitchen, Tania plopped onto the couch and kicked her shoes off. She loosened her bun and scratched her scalp- a reminder that she hadn't taken proper care of her hair since the police incident.

There was only 4 days between her and the day she'd be signing off her fathers property. If her trip to Arkansas taught her anything, it was that she would never return.