The Safe Place

By Patty Dilbeck

The Safe Place Short Summary

Steve Ralls hasnt found the woman of his dreams yet but his oldest brother Michael knows that God has a plan for him. When Steve finds a young woman outside his office that has been severely beaten he makes a decision that changes his life forever.
She doesnt know who she is but she realizes that Steves touch and voice are the only things that she can trust. As her health improves she tries to keep a distance between them but is pulled into his life. Before long he and his family are her whole world her security, her family, her support system, her happiness, and most of all he is the lover she has waited for all of her life. He is her safe place.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Jun 26, 2012
• ISBN: 9781477124734

Patty Dilbeck

Author’s Biography Patty Dilbeck was born in Phoenix, Arizona. She now lives in Lubbock, Texas with her husband Ray.

Book preview

Chapter 1

S teve Ralls and his brothers were looking forward to the coming few days together. They had a lease to use this section of the canyon to hunt whitetail deer. They had gotten their permits and had three days to get the deer of their choice. They had already arrived at the hunting lodge and met their guide who would help them. The bush was very dense in places, and it was already getting warm though it was only 8:00 a.m. Steve, George, and Michael had rifles; and Nick and Randy had bows and arrows. They had had a lot of fun practicing their shooting at the rifle range and their archery at Nick’s ranch where they had set up targets in the pastures.

Two months later, Steve and Michael were both exhausted as they left the racquetball club. Michael had won two of the three games as usual. Steve knew that Michael must have some kind of trick because he always seemed to be able to get the upper hand even though Steve was several years younger. They decided to meet at the restaurant that was close to Michael’s house for breakfast.

After they had given their orders to the waitress and she had brought their coffee, Michael said, I had lunch with Mom the other day. She is still worried about you.

Oh, that’s great, Steve said with a groan. I guess she is still adamant about grandkids.

Yow, that was most of our conversation. That and the fact that you need someone special in your life, Michael volunteered.

Just tell her that when I find the right lady, I will marry her and give Mom some more grandkids to spoil rotten.

She said that you need some help in finding the right lady, Michael said with a grin.

"Well, I am sorry to hear that, but so far, I have not found someone that interests me enough to think about having them around for the rest of my life. I hate to be so pessimistic, but I have come to realize that very few people in this world are as honest as I am in requiring of a life partner. After all, if you do not have trust in your relationship, then you don’t have much of anything. You know, even if you are at a party or just having an innocent conversation with someone, they always seem to lie. Like you ask them if they have kids, and they say no. Then later in the evening, they mention something that their son or daughter did or said. And when you ask them about the statement of no kids, they simply shrug their shoulders and say something like the kid lives with the other parent. Or you ask them if they are married and they say no and then you find out that they say that because they are separated from their spouse. You cannot imagine the number of people who come to me for help and then lie to their spouse or loved ones about the issues that they are having. It just blows my mind the length some people will go to cover up their lies. When I find someone, I want to be able to trust her as much as possible. I know everyone lies every once in a while, but some people do not even know what the word truthful means," Steve said with a shake of his head.

Well, I just told Mom that the Lord had someone special in mind for you and that when the right time comes He will bring you two together in His way, Michael said with a conspiratorial smile.

Steve laughed and said, Well, I will stop worrying about it then, seeing as you have it all wrapped up.

Chapter 2

S he had been raised in an orphanage. Someone had left her outside the front door on the porch when she was approximately four months old. She had no name, so they named her Twila.

There was no DNA testing at that time, so the authorities did not pursue her biological parents very thoroughly. All they actually did was ask if anyone had seen who had laid the baby girl on the step.

As she grew older, everyone said that she was beautiful; but for some reason, no one offered to adopt her. She had thought that was strange because other children were being adopted, but for some reason no one wanted her. She thought that she must be a very bad little girl. After all, that is what Mr. Jones had told her time and time again when he had punished her. He had told her not to tell anyone either; after all, she was nobody. She could as easily have been thrown out with the trash as put on their doorstep, and no one would have even noticed. No one would believe her lies anyway; he would make sure of that.

Her face was heart shaped and very delicate, and she had full lips that were an unusual color of cherries. Her eyes were bright blue and alert. They held a serious look most of the time. Her hair was a beautiful red gold that was shoulder length. It was very thick and had a lot of natural body.

She had a gentle personality and made friends carefully. She always called people by their name if possible because she knew from personal experience that your name may be the only thing in the world that belongs to you. She was courteous and helpful with the other children and never tried to be the boss. She always tried to tell the truth, even if it was painful, because she hated it when other people lied to her. Her temper was probably her worst feature because she could hold a grudge like nobody’s business. She was softhearted, and people tended to take advantage of that fact.

As she grew up, she enjoyed feeding the ducks at the pond that was close to the orphanage. She also enjoyed working in the flower beds and the gardens. She loved to read books and to draw pictures; she was artistic, and some said that she had a photographic memory. She loved tennis, golf, and swimming. She had an athletic body and enjoyed learning the yoga and Pilates that were taught there. She loved the sunshine and getting a tan when she was able. Her knockout figure drew attention to her often, but Mr. Jones had kept a close eye on her and had only let himself be intimate with her.

She enjoyed thunderstorms, especially the thunder-and-lightning displays. Somehow they seemed to soothe her pain.

Cooking was not her thing though, and washing dishes was really a downer. She knew that working in a restaurant was probably not for her. She disliked hockey, wrestling, and boxing. She had no musical talent, and singing was way out of her league. She could not carry a tune in a bucket.

She had to leave when she turned eighteen so that they could have her bed for someone new. They helped her pick out a last name, and the paperwork at the courthouse that she needed for a driver’s license and social security card. She was given a copy of a record of birth showing she was female and Caucasian. It also gave her birthday as sometime in April more than likely. Since no one knew her birthday, they never bothered giving her a birthday party or present. After all, Mrs. Jones had explained, that was for the kids that were important enough to have been named at birth. Not someone like her that had been thrown away. Mrs. Jones had warned her to keep her mouth shut about what had gone on at the orphanage or the other children would suffer the consequences, and she herself would hunt her down and make her pay.

After leaving the orphanage, she managed to put herself through night school. She had obtained a degree in marketing and one in accounting.

She was a very responsible young lady and handled her money well.

Her boss, Mr. Collins, was impressed with her work ethic at the factory where she worked in the office. She was efficient and followed directions without question but had a mind of her own and came up with several new ideas that helped the bottom line. She had worked for him for two years now and had just gotten a promotion and raise. She and her girlfriends from the factory had gone out for a nice supper at a restaurant and then to a movie to celebrate her good fortune. Then they stopped and bought scratch offs and lottery tickets. She took pity on the clerk and bought a lottery ticket that he had printed out by mistake for another customer who refused the ticket. It was a quick pick that was ten draws and the twenty-five-year payout.

One month later, Mr. Collins had a heart attack and died before they could get him stabilized at the hospital. The factory was sold. The new owners fired all employees and brought in new personnel.

Twila’s girlfriends moved back home to be with their families, and she was sad to see them go. Now she was all by herself again.

She had sent out her résumé to several businesses across the country and had received a phone call asking her to come to Austin for a job interview. So she packed a bag and used the Internet on her cell phone to make reservations for a flight from Phoenix, Arizona, to Austin, Texas, and a motel room for a couple of nights.

Chapter 3

A s if fighting her way through a dense fog, she became conscious of the approaching voices. Male voices! She knew she had to get away and be quick about it. But her body would not respond, even though in her head she was screaming, Run, run, run fast! As the voices came closer, she wanted to scream for help, but her jaw would not work. She wanted to tell them to go away and not to torture her anymore. All she could do was wiggle in the leaves on the ground as she tried to pull herself along with her forearms trying to disappear into the bushes that scraped her body.

In just seconds, they were right next to her aching body, and she could do nothing more to protect herself.

Six months after his conversation with Michael, Steve was walking out of the meeting room in his office building where he had his successful clinical psychology practice, and he was thinking about the day ahead. His first appointment wasn’t until this afternoon, so he had plenty of time to get back to his house with the tax papers he had left on his desk here at the office.

As he entered the break room, he noticed Jack Summers and Bill Guter smoking cigarettes out on the patio. I bet its cold out there, he thought to himself. January in Austin wasn’t as bad as January in other parts of the nation, but it definitely was not hot out there.

Then he realized they were also looking at something intently on the ground. Curiously, he stepped out to see what had their attention, and then he saw it. But what was it exactly? Both men were speaking to it. Steve looked harder at the object and saw the blood and bruising along with the dirt and leaves. He then realized it was a human form. It was trying to escape through the bushes. He realized it was a woman, and she looked like she had been run over by a semi truck. A couple of other assistants had come out to the patio to see what was going on outside. Steve approached the crowd that was gathering and spoke. Everyone stepped back respectfully to give him room. Her blouse were torn and in tatters and didn’t cover much of her body. She had no slacks or pants on, so Steve removed his jacket and covered her up.

Call 9-1-1, he said to someone behind him as he agilely folded his six-foot-three-inch frame down to the damp ground beside her body.

I am, sir, replied Shelly, his assistant, approaching him from behind with her cell phone in hand.

Don’t be scared. Everything is going to be okay, he said to the injured woman.

Even though she lay on her stomach, he could see the swelling in her body as if there were multiple broken bones. He saw her jaw was lying at an odd angle, and her eyes were swollen shut. Her cheeks and nose were crushed in and purple. The back of her skull and her red gold hair were matted with dried blood, but now it was oozing fresh blood. The scratches and blood were from her head to her toes.

What indeed had happened to this poor lady?

All he could say was Don’t be scared. It’s okay. You’re going to be okay. There’s an ambulance on the way. They are going to take you to the hospital and take good care of you. I promise it’s going to be okay. Please just relax and try not to move.

Shelly returned to his side and handed him a wet cloth to remove some of the dirt and grime on her face and mouth. He continued to speak softly to her, and she started to relax. Then the ambulance and police arrived, and the panic and fear started again.

The police took witness statements and questioned people. Even though there had been a rain shower that morning, they were able to follow the blood and dirt trail down the street and into the alley that she had dragged her body along.

When she had heard that voice which had been so calm, so sincere, so tender, she knew she was safe at last. His voice was so soothing and his touch so gentle to her body that was in so much pain.

Then the medics took over, and she felt more like a doll to be practiced on because their touch was so cold and rough. Then she heard that wonderful voice again and that gentle touch. She tried to cling to it, to beg him not to go, not to leave her to be beaten anymore. But she was loaded onto the gurney and felt pricks as the needles were inserted for IVs.

As she desperately struggled to maintain a hold on the hand with her good forearm, she heard him say, its okay, honey, it’s okay. Relax easy now; they are taking you to the hospital to treat your injuries. They will take good care of you, I promise. But she had to keep a hold of him no matter what, and as he was trying to disengage his hand from the pressure her forearm was creating, she panicked and