A few hours later, I was in the gym, working out with one of my clients and trying not to think of what happened earlier.

“Come on, Teri.” I held the sparring mitts up. “One, two, one, elbow, knee, roundhouse.”

She took a moment to catch her breath, then swung forward. The combination was repetitious, ten each side, her hits hitting in tandem with the blood pulsing through me.

My mind wandered back to this morning. I’d stayed on the bathroom floor of the church for a few minutes before sneaking out and back home. Mom was asleep, and I rushed upstairs, still confused as to what came over me....