Not Quite Done

Paige

Three Months Later…

I swiped sweat off my forehead and stepped out of the blistering August heat into the air conditioning of Raphael’s Angel Haven. Upbeat pop music blared from the stereo under the television in the common room, and a few of the women danced and laughed. Becca, who’d just left an abusive boyfriend, grabbed Asha, a newer member of the group who’d just moved in off the streets, and after a bit of hesitance, Asha joined the dance.

I grinned. Somehow, in just a few months, I’d actually managed to put together the women’s shelter. When we cut the ribbon a couple of months back, I’d finally unveiled the name to Mom and everyone else. Mom cried, of course, and she’d only cried harder when I explained that I wanted these women to have Dad looking over them, just like I always did growing up. I blew a kiss to the picture of him I’d hung on the front wall and started heading back to make sure everything was running smoothly.

Heavy footsteps clomped down the stairs, and I