by Dori Lavelle
I gazed out the window at the guards, wishing desperately for an escape.
I was trapped in a jail of luxury with no escape. So, this is what modern day slavery felt like?
I heard his muted cough and I straightened up. As I bent down to sweep away the shards of glass, I could almost hear my bones crack with exhaustion. I held up one that was so sharp and perfect it resembled a mini sword. Not for the first time the thought of suicide crossed my mind, but I killed it.
Once the floor was clean and I had checked to make sure the whole house was as he liked it, I walked with difficulty up the stairs to our bedroom and into the bathroom. I wished I could lock the door behind me, to enjoy being alone for just a few minutes, but it was against the rules. He liked to come and go as he pleased. To check on me in person, even though he had installed cameras that helped him do just that. As I stripped off my dress, I gazed up at one of the cameras in one of the corners. My face grew hot as I felt his eyes on me. The urge to show him the finger raged through me, but I swallowed it.
I turned on the shower and waited the few seconds it took for the water to heat up. Stepping under the warm jet was like walking into the arms of heaven. I sighed with pleasure as the water cascaded down my body, soothing the aches for a moment. I closed my eyes and raised my faced toward the shower rain, wishing I could stay forever. But I never stayed in the shower more than five minutes anymore. Watching me shower aroused Jude and he could just decide to come up for mid-afternoon fuck. Just thinking of him inside me made me feel sick to my stomach. His hands on my body left goose bumps of disgust, his tongue in my throat made me gag. His penis in my mouth made me want to bite it off, to show him what pain felt like.
I walked out of the shower and dried myself off quickly. It took me ten minutes to get dressed. Just as I walked out of my walk in closet, Jude entered the room. He studied me for a second, his gaze sweeping me from head to toe and then he shook his head.
“Don’t like it,” he said. “Wear the black dress I bought you yesterday. The man I’m meeting today is someone I’ve been trying to get into business with for a while. I want us both to make a great impression.”
I returned to the closet and stepped out of my jeans and white top.
The dress he bought me was pretty flattering to my curves, tight at the bust and flowing from my waist to my knees. And the way the material slipped between my fingers, he had to have spent a fortune on it. But the days I got excited about wearing beautiful clothes or having my hair done were dead and gone. I didn’t even feel beautiful anymore. I’d lost lots of weight and my eyes were hollow and devoid of light. As far as I was concerned, all I was dressing was a skeleton. The dress was actually fitting to the occasion. It would have been perfect for a funeral. And I was mourning myself, the man I thought I loved, and my life.
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
I didn’t see the guest arrive because I was in the kitchen making tea and warming scones for them. I would see him later because Jude always showed me off to his business partners. But only when my bruises were well hidden.
I heard voices in the hall, but they eventually died as Jude and his partner headed to his office. If only that guest knew the kind of monster his business partner was, that he was a killer and wife basher. He would come out of this house running.
With the tray filled with everything Jude had wanted, I sat on one of the cream leather stools at the island and switched on the TV that hung from one wall. Finding nothing but advertisements, I flicked through the channels in search for news. News always reported terrible stories of people suffering. That was good for me. Hearing about other people suffering enough to end up as a news story made me feel better about my situation, reminded me that it could be worse. I was alive.
As Jude had said earlier, “you have it better than most.”
I had no choice but to stay put and wait. To wait for something to happen. Anything.
My mind went on alert when I switched on to a local station. I watched as several men pulled a burlap sack from a lake. Breaking news updates scrolled across the bottom of the screen.
The scene at the lake disappeared and a red-headed news reporter’s face filled the screen.
The woman whose decapitated body had been discovered three days ago floating in Lake Monona has been identified by her sister, who had reported her missing two days ago, when she came to visit her and her two sons. The young children had been home alone and the sister was nowhere to be found.
Although the murder victim’s head, hands, feet, and teeth have not yet been located, the sister was able to identify her through her clothing and a unique scar on her body.
The dead woman has been identified to be Diana Maliano, a single mother who worked at the Gloss Hair Salon. This morning, Antonio Benavente, her on-and-off boyfriend was arrested in connection with Miss Maliano’s murder.
My chest tightened, my body shaking as I stared up at the screen, watched another story replace the one that rocked me.
Diana was dead? Brutally murdered. He couldn’t have done it. Surely Jude couldn’t have robbed two small boys of their mother.
Hot tears rolling down my cheeks, I hopped off the stool and went to the door. In that moment, I heard Jude’s voice calling me from his office.
I couldn’t do it, couldn’t look into his eyes and think of what he’d done. Although Diana had been doing his dirty work, she had been a mother, a vulnerable and desperate mother. He had taken advantage of her weakness and used her. Not wanting her anymore, he had gotten rid of her. Her decapitated body. The words rang through my head and I couldn’t breathe anymore.
Clutching my throat with my hand, I raced through the house and didn’t stop until I was in the basement. Like in the living room, there were no cameras there. I needed to be alone to digest what I had just seen.
I sank onto a box and dropped my head into my hands as my world spun. After my head stopped swimming and I forced my mind to clear, I knew I had to try again. I had to try and leave him. I had to do it now. Like a zombie, I stood up and stumbled to the stairs but before I could climb the first step, I noticed something shiny on the floor. I bent down to pick it up and my chest tightened.
He had done it. He had killed Diana. The silver necklace in the palm of my hand, of a half moon, had once belonged to Diana. She’d worn it the last time I saw her. God only knew what else he was hiding around the house. Her body parts, maybe?
Forcing myself to breathe, I rushed up the stairs and hurried to the front door. It was locked and there was no key in the lock as usual. I wouldn’t let it stop me. I had to find another way to get out while he was distracted. Even if his guards attacked me, I’d die trying to escape.
Stifling my screams, I yanked at the door again in frustration. To my surprise it opened and I fell backwards on my butt. It was a heavy door and I probably hadn’t pulled hard enough the first time. Why was it open? For one week, he hadn’t left it unlocked. And he carried the key around with him.
This time, occupied with his business partner, he must have forgotten. Or he now trusted I wouldn’t try to leave again. Fear would stop me. He was right. Fear did stop me. Until now. I didn’t want to end up decapitated and floating in a lake somewhere. Whatever happened from this moment, there would be no going back. If he found me again, he would most definitely kill me. Cut off my head and toss it to the dogs. Then he would put up photos of me on one of the walls in the shrine room that he would use to frighten his next victim with. No, I wouldn’t stay long enough for him to finish me off. Let him kill me while I was running.
My breath came in bursts and my heart pounded so hard, my chest hurt. I heard his voice again, but I slipped through the door and closed it as softly as I could behind me.
One of the guards had his back turned to me as he urinated in the bushes near the front gate. The other was nowhere to be seen. Maybe he was off today. I had only one shot and I had to take it before I lost it. There was no way I could go through the gate. And the walls
were too high for me to climb. Even if I managed to, the electric wires would fry me. I had to think of something else and fast.
Jude would come to the kitchen any minute to see why I wasn’t heeding his calls.
As my eyes roamed the grounds, I prayed that God would show me a way out. Then a thought dropped into my mind when I spotted the guest’s car. I saw my chance.
I ducked down so the guard wouldn’t see me when he turned back around.
Jude had a lot of cars, but the black Mercedes was not one of them. Please be open, I prayed. I reached for the handle and pulled. I heard a click. The visitor had clearly felt his car was safe on the grounds, given that there was a security guard.
Grasping my chance, I slipped into the backseat and closed the door softly. Making myself small, I wedged myself in the legroom area. Thank God he had the kind of car that provided a lot of legroom, offering me enough space to hide. I lifted my head and noticed a suit jacket hanging from behind the driver’s seat. I reached for it and covered myself with it.
Now I just prayed the owner of the car wouldn’t find me and expose me. I was completely at his mercy. He was my only way out of this horror. I would do my best so he wouldn’t see me. Once we were off the property and in the city, I would wait for him to stop at a traffic light, throw myself out of the car, run for my life.
As I waited to be either rescued or to be caught, my mind drifted back to the news I saw earlier. My heart cracked and shattered as I thought of Diana. Though she had been manipulated by Jude, she hadn’t been a bad person. And for a short time, she had made me feel liked. Because of me, she was dead.
Curling myself into a tight ball with my arms around my knees, I cried silently as not to be heard in case someone walked by.
I had no idea how long I’d been waiting in the car, but finally the crying subsided and all I felt was empty. Empty, lost and terrified. If my plan didn’t work out, if I wasn’t driven out of these gates, today could end up being my last day on Earth. There was no way Jude would let me live after this.
I had just started to wonder how much longer I would have to wait, when I heard pounding footsteps outside, getting nearer to the car and then stop. I held my breath and closed my eyes. What if the person was looking in through the window?
I heard the sound again, the footsteps moving away from the car until they faded into the distance.
Had Jude noticed that I was not inside the house and asked the guard to sweep the grounds? Or was he too engrossed in his important meeting that he decided to serve his own tea and deal with me later? I could only hope for the best. By the time his rage exploded, I would hopefully be on the run. Obvious obstacles loomed ahead, and they made my skin prickle. There was still a chance the business partner would discover me before I escaped and return me to Jude. After all, Jude did say he owned this town. But my desire to escape trumped any fears I had. The thought of staying with him, sleeping next to him, having him touch me, made my skin crawl. If I managed to escape, I’d have to move to some crowded town and change my name. Haley Macknight would have to die in order for me to survive.
Voices filtered through the window this time. I balled myself up even tighter. They were coming. Since I was trembling so hard, if someone decided to take a peek through the window, it would be easy to spot me. I forced my body to be still, to save itself, but my movements were involuntary.
Please God, save me from him.
The driver’s door opened and I swallowed the rock inside my throat. I heard a movement inside the car and the door slammed shut again. Jude’s guest was inside. I could feel him, smell him. I held my breath and prayed for him to drive. I prayed that Jude wouldn’t accompany him for some reason.
He gunned the engine.
“Wait,” Jude called and the engine was killed again.
I almost passed out with fear.
“You forgot this.” Jude’s voice was close to the car, too close.
Through the ringing in my ears, I listened to a window slide open, the ruffle of papers, and a mumbled thanks.
“Come and have dinner tomorrow with me and my wife. I’m sorry you couldn’t meet her today. She hasn’t been feeling well.”
The other man didn’t answer. Maybe he responded with a nod. A man of few words.
For his sake, I hoped their plans failed. I wouldn’t want anyone entering into any partnership with Jude.
The window slid shut and the engine roared back to life.
I released a silent breath as I heard the crunch of gravel under the wheels. The car was moving, taking me to safety.
Jude was probably back in the house slamming doors and calling for me. Would he suspect I had left with his partner? Probably not. He’d assume I was hiding somewhere in the huge house. He’d search forever. I felt sorry for the guard, who I suspected would get the heat for not being attentive enough.
I heard the gates of Jude’s mansion yawn open and then shut. We were out.
For a while I didn’t hear anything more apart from the sounds of cars outside. I remained still. I’d drive with him as far as possible before slipping out. I had to be sure I was a safe distance away from Jude.
“Call Jason,” the man said, and then I heard a click and the sound of a number being dialed.
A very deep male voice filled the car. Jason I assumed.
“Is it done?” Jason asked. “Are you in business with the bull dog?”
“I don’t do business with people like him. It’s not my style to walk over people to make money. He’s a pompous ass.” He sighed. “No, I wanted to meet him for other reasons.”
Air rushed out of my lungs, and I found it hard to replace it.
“I see. So, were you successful?” Jason said.
“No.” The man’s voice was low and I almost cried listening to it. In fact I was now weeping uncontrollably.
“Jason, hang on a minute. No, I’ll call you back.”
The car slowed down and then stopped. He had heard me. I heard shuffling as he probably turned to look into the back of the car.
“Hello?” he said.
Still weeping, I lifted his suit jacket and looked up at him.
His eyes widened. “Haley?”
“Dustin.” My throat was dry and sore. I wanted to smile because of the joy and relief brought on by the sight of him, but I was just too weak and exhausted to do anything but blink.
Dustin flung his door open and a few seconds later, he yanked mine open as well. He gently pulled me out, and I winced at the pins and needles in my legs.
“What happened?” He studied my face for a long while, his expression strained. “Come here.” He pulled me close and hugged me so hard it hurt. But I didn’t want him to ever let me go. So I wrapped my arms around him and buried my face into his neck.
“Haley, sweetheart, you’re shaking. Are you okay?” He pulled me away from him but only to gaze into my face again.
I shook my head and he pulled me to him again, pressing his lips to my ear, smoothing my hair. “Jesus, what has he done to you?”
I didn’t respond. I could do nothing but break apart. He held me until I was all cried out, until I was completely empty. Then he gathered me up into his arms and settled me into the passenger’s seat. I sat there still trembling, my hands pressed between my knees. So many emotions swept through me—joy, pain, and shame that he was seeing me this way.
Dustin got back behind the wheel, but his hands were so tight around it that his knuckles whitened.
He reached a hand toward me and I flinched. My common sense had returned with a bang. I had known Dustin years ago; he had been my first love. But I had no idea exactly what kind of man he was now. What if, in spite of what he’d told that man Jason, he was also one of Jude’s puppets? What if he decided to return me back there? Could I really trust him? Could I trust anyone?
Fear coursed through my veins as I reached for the door handle. I couldn’t stay long enough to find out.
He reached out and held my arm. �
�Where are you going?”
I gave him a bittersweet smile. “I can’t go back to him. I need to go, Dustin.”
His jaw tensed and he let go of my arm. “After seeing you like this, so devastated, you really think I’ll let you go back there. You think I would take you back to him?” He removed his hands from the wheel and turned to face me. “You have to have been so frightened of him to hide inside a stranger’s car.”
I wiped my eyes with the back of my hand. “I didn’t see any other way. He’s … Jude is a monster.”
“I’m just happy it was my car you crawled into.” He turned his gaze ahead again and gunned the engine. “You’re not going anywhere. You’re staying with me. I’ll make sure he never comes near you again. You’re safe.”
I recalled Jude saying something similar to me, back when I thought he was my knight in shining armor. But this was Dustin, the man I used to love, the man I felt safe with. I had to trust someone. To be honest, I needed someone. I wouldn’t be able to do it on my own.
“Whatever that man did to break your heart will never happen again.” His words were edged with steel.
“He will stop at nothing to find me.” No use hiding from the truth when it stared me straight in the face. “It’s only a matter of time, but he will find me and he will—”
“I won’t let that happen. You hear me, Haley? You have to trust me on that.”
I leaned my head against the headrest and closed my sore eyes. After a day of cleaning and so much emotion, all I wanted to do was sleep. Just for a bit.
Dustin touched my cheek lightly, but I didn’t open my eyes. I wanted to hold on to that little piece of comfort.
“Dial Jason,” Dustin said again and the car filled with the sound of ringing.
“Dustin.”
“Change of plans, Jason. Cancel all my meeting for the rest of the week. I won’t be coming to Serendipity for a few days. I’m going away for a while.”
