Leaving Sharpstone

by Marion Leavens

  “Can we watch TV?” Kyle wanted to know.

  “Sure can, kiddo.” Jeanie got to her feet. “C’mon let’s see what’s on.”

  Sam was the only boy who didn’t follow her into the living room. He wanted to know how they were going get moved. "Mom, can we get any of our stuff out of the house before we leave?"

  "Oh, honey, I hope so. That’s why Dad wants to get a truck. I guess we’d better make some calls and see who has one that we can rent."

  "I want to help load the truck when it gets here."

  "No. I want you to stay here."

  "C'mon, Mom. I'm not a little kid anymore. I'm old enough to help."

  "No."

  "That’s not fair. This is my life and my family too, you know."

  "You're right, Sam. I guess I can’t argue with that. But let’s get first things first. Before we even think about taking a truck over there, I think we need to know where Eric is. After we figure that out, we can worry about loading the truck."

  Gary spoke up, "Good idea! I'll drive over to your place and see if he's there. Maybe he’s gone somewhere already and we don’t have anything to worry about."

  "How soon before you need to leave for the airport?" Jeanie wanted to know.

  "In about a hour. Maybe the three older boys would like to go with me."

  "I bet they would love that. I think I'm going to call Grace and see if she will come over and watch the boys this afternoon. I want to be available to help, too." As usual, Jeanie was planning.

  Gary shrugged on his coat, stepped into his winter boots and took his car keys from the basket on the counter. “I won’t be very long. I’ll just drive in and see if the car is there.”

  Much to everyone’s surprise he was back sooner than they expected. "He hasn't been home at all. The snowplow went by shortly after you got here last night and your place hasn't been shoveled out since then. The lane itself isn’t too bad. I think we could get through without any problem. The plow filled in quite a drift at the end of the driveway though. I think I'll take Sam back over there with me and we'll shovel the place out before we go to the airport."

  Emily turned to Jeanie, "I’m going to need to go home and pick something up once they get the driveway cleared out and then I need to go to town. Could you drive me, please?"

  "Sure. But Sam, that means that we’ll need you to stay here and watch Danny while Gary goes to the airport unless Grace can come over right away.

  "O.K." He was disappointed to think that he might miss out on going to pick up his grandfather but whatever it took to get them away from his father he was willing to do. He had prayed for something to happen to help them get away and it seemed that at last, his prayers had been answered. To have something go wrong now, when they were so close to escaping would be awful.

  Jeanie noticed the disappointed look on the child’s face. "I'll call Grace right now, maybe she’ll be here in time."

  By 10:30 Gary was on his way to the airport with two very excited boys, Sam was waiting with Danny for Grace, and the two women were pulling up in front of the Thompson house. It was strangely difficult for Emily to go in and she had a hard time understanding why, after being gone only one night, she had such an aversion to the house she had lived in for eight years. She felt as though she had been living all those years in some kind of fog and now suddenly she was able to see her married life with clear vision. She realized with a sense of relief that nothing on this earth could convince her to return to this house and Eric. This knowledge gave her wonderful feeling of power and a sense of control over her life.

  Both women were sitting motionless, staring at the big brick house with the gay wreath hanging on the door, when Emily finally broke the silence. "This should only take a minute." She got out of the car, moving carefully because of the pain that still accompanied every movement, and slowly made her way up the steps and into the house. Dirty dishes were on the kitchen table as well as on the living room floor and out of habit Emily reached to pick them up, then realized how silly that would be and instead left them where they were and climbed the stairs to her bedroom. She went to Eric's dresser to look for his Visa that she had put there a few days earlier after finding it in one of his shirt pockets. That morning as she had been laying in bed worrying about how to get her hands on some money, she had remembered seeing it laying there, and sure enough, there it was. She slipped it into her coat pocket, turned to her dresser and retrieved the money she had hidden under the lining in the lingerie drawer, then got the eye drops from her stand and went back to Jeanie's car.

  "Now what?" asked Jeanie, as she put the car in gear and drove out onto the highway.

  "First let’s go to a travel agent. I'm getting tickets for the younger boys and me to fly home. There won't be room for all of us in the truck."

  Emily used the credit card to buy plane tickets to Toronto and tucked them safely in her purse. "Now that I've got the tickets, I'd better to go to a bank and try to get some cash."

  "Which bank?"

  "I’m not sure. Eric's account is at the Royal so I'd better not go there. They might let him know that I'm trying to get money."

  "Let's try C.I.B.C."

  "Sounds good to me."

  Emily tried unsuccessfully to get a cash advance with the Visa. The teller was very pleasant as she explained, “I’m sorry that your husband is ill but I’m simply not allowed to advance any money to anyone except the person whose name is on the card. Your husband will have to come in himself as soon as he is able.”

  She returned to the car. "No luck. Take me to a jewelry store. I think that I can use it to buy something and then I might be able to sell it or pawn it when I need money.”

  Ten minutes later the two women were looking at diamond rings. They picked out one with a fairly large stone and offered the Visa for payment. Within minutes, the ring had been purchased and was in a ring-box ready to go. They left the store, went down the street to another jeweler and purchased an emerald ring. Two more stores and two more rings were purchased without any problem.

  "Man, I’m glad that Eric has good credit. His ‘Visa gold’ has come in pretty handy. Should we try again?" Emily laughed. She couldn't remember enjoying herself so much in a long, long time.

  "Why not. Let's go."

  The next jewelry store proved to be more of a problem. When the clerk put Eric's card through for the purchase of another diamond and it was declined, he looked suspiciously at the two women and they nearly panicked. If he suspected that the card was stolen and called the police, Eric would be notified for sure. Emily knew that she had to quiet his suspicions quickly. She groped for an explanation. Suddenly an idea popped into her mind and she complained, "Aw, frig, what a cheapskate. This just isn’t fair. He told me that I could buy whatever ring I wanted. He forgot to tell me there was a price limit. I suppose he thinks I'll settle for some costume jewelry."

  The young clerk hesitated, unsure of what his next move should be. Emily noted his hesitation and added, "This is so normal for him. I’m sick of being bought off with a string of beads. He probably thinks that since it worked before, it will work again. But, boy, is he in for a surprise. He promised me a diamond and I'm going to get a diamond. This is one time that his apology is going to cost him. Could you set this aside for me? He gets paid tonight so I can bring cash tomorrow morning and pick up the ring then."

  The possibility that he could still make the sale was the deciding factor. Commissions of this amount were worth taking a chance on, and, anyway, how could he go wrong? She wouldn’t be taking the ring out of the store so he had nothing to lose. It was definitely worthwhile giving her the benefit of the doubt. The card probably wasn't stolen anyway. These two looked honest enough. And by the look of the face on the one with the card, she deserved a diamond for putting up with the jerk who did that to her. He smiled broadly and assured Emily that he would be happy to put the ring aside for her and she should ask for Jason when she came in tomorrow.

  Emily
thanked him and left the store. "See you tomorrow."

  Once in the car, she admitted, "I thought we were done for. Could you imagine if he had called the police?"

  "I know. I was scared to death. You sure came through with the right thing to say though. You convinced him."

  "Thank goodness. Now, how can I find out how much is still available on this thing?"

  "I have no idea?"

  "Me either. I guess we might as well go back to your place. I could use some Tylenol and a rest. I wonder if they are back from the airport yet?"

  "If they aren’t, they’ll probably be there before we get back. I have to stop for some bread and milk on the way home."

  They were halfway to the store when Emily had an idea, "Let me pay for the groceries with the Visa and I'll try to get a little extra money above the amount owed. If it isn’t over the limit, it might work."

  "Say, that's worth a try."

  It was certainly worth it. She bought Tylenol and a drink and paid for the groceries, which totaled $8.38. The store billed Visa $28.38 and Emily had $20.00 in her pocket. There were another five stores on the way to Gary and Jeanie's house and Emily got $20.00 at each one. As well, she was able to buy sliced meat and cheese to make sandwiches for everyone for lunch, and a few groceries which helped her to feel better about having intruded on her friends.

  By now, she had been in and out of the car nearly a dozen times and, despite the Tylenol, her head was pounding and her ribs were unbelievably sore. More than anything she wanted to lie down, even though she knew that was impossible. There was a lot to be done today and it had to be done by the time Eric finished work tonight, if luck was on their side and he went to work tonight. Later, when the truck was loaded, she could rest. She looked at her watch and thought of her father. “Well, it’s noon. I wonder if they are back yet?”

  Sure enough, Gary's car was already there when they returned. Emily would have jumped out, run and thrown herself into her father's arms had she been able. Instead she slowly and painfully got out of the car and started toward the house. Her father met her halfway and was about to grab her in a huge hug, when he noticed her face. His joy at seeing this beloved daughter was tempered by the anger he felt at seeing what had been done to her. At first he was speechless, then incredulous. "Eric did that to you!"

  Emily nodded and Jeanie spoke up, "He also cracked a couple of her ribs. She should probably be lying down right now."

  A heart-wrenching cry came from Pete before tears appeared in the corners of his eyes and began to spill down his face. Instead of the bear hug originally intended, he took his daughter gently in his arms and they stood together and cried. They cried for Emily's battered face and body, for sorrow that Angie was not there to share this moment with them and they cried for the eight years they had lost.

  After lunch Pete and Gary drove to the service station that handled U-haul’s and rented a truck, then stopped for a supply of boxes. Jeanie insisted that Emily lay down and rest while she and Sam cleaned up the breakfast and lunch dishes. By 2:30 the men were back and the adults gathered around the kitchen table to talk. “Wait a minute,” Emily turned to the doorway and called her eldest son. When he arrived in the kitchen, his mother said, "Sam, pull up a chair. You are going to have to work like a man so I guess you might as well hear what is going on."

  He placed a chair beside his grandfather and sat down. Pete laid his large hand on his grandson's shoulder and Sam sat up a little taller.

  Emily looked at her friends through the slits that were all the swelling around her eyes allowed and began, "I sure am grateful for all that you have done for us. I couldn’t have got this far without you and that’s for sure but I'm worried about you folks doing any more because you will still be here when we are long gone and Eric might easily retaliate."

  "I don't care, he doesn't scare me." Gary was quick to spit out.

  Jeanie looked down at the white knuckles of her tightly clasped hands. "I wasn't scared either, until yesterday morning. I saw his eyes close up when he was angry and I’ve got to tell you he is pretty frightening. I'd be just as happy if he didn't know that we were helping. I’m sorry, Em,” she looked into her friends face, “But I might just as well be honest."

  "Don't be sorry. I know better than anyone what you mean about his eyes when he’s angry and I think you’re being pretty smart. I’m hoping that we can get the truck loaded and get away from here while he’s at work so he won’t need to know that you had any part in helping us. I got tickets for myself and the three younger boys to fly home tomorrow morning while Dad and Sam take the truck."

  "Sounds good to me. What do you say, Sam?"

  "I’m ready, Grandpa."

  “O.K. Is there anybody we should call to help?”

  Emily spoke up, “I think we can load it without help since we aren't taking very much furniture, it will be mostly small stuff.”

  “Sounds good to me.” Pete added, “When you want to get started?”

  “I don't want to do anything until we know for sure where Eric is.” Emily would go to great pains to make sure that they didn’t run in to Eric while they were at the house. “He is on the three to eleven shift tonight so I’m pretty sure he’ll be at work any minute now. I know I won’t be able to relax until I’m positive he’s there. It would be awful if he walked in on us. I wonder if we can find out whether or not he showed up for work?"

  "Can’t you just call the plant and ask to speak to him?" Pete suggested.

  "Yes, I guess that’s what I need to do." Emily said reluctantly. "I'll think up some reason to call.”

  "If all goes well, we’ll be packed and on the road tonight,” Pete worried, "But I don’t know about you and the boys, Curley, I don’t think you should stay here tonight. This place is just too close to that man."

  Sam looked relieved, "I think you're right, Grandpa. He'll stop her if he can. I’ve been thinking about that."

  Emily agreed. "Oh, believe me, I know. I’ve been thinking about that, too. The problem I have is that the plane doesn't leave until 10:20 tomorrow morning."

  Pete shook his head, "I sure can’t imagine leaving here with you and the boys next door to him. Once he realizes that you're gone, God knows what he'll do."

  "Actually I had an idea. I’ve decided that I don’t want to just slip quietly away. I want his cronies at the church to know what he's done and what he’s capable of. But I need someone I can trust to not let him know what we are doing until after we’re gone and then who will go to the pastor and tell him what Eric’s done and I think my best bet is Jan Morgan. I'd like to call her and tell her what's been going on and see if we can stay with her tonight. Then tomorrow she can drive us to the airport, if she agrees. I'm positive that she'll tell the pastor and a few others what Eric did. I think that will hurt him worse than anything else I might do."

  "I love it." Jeanie grinned.

  Emily added, "But I don't want to do anything until I know that Eric's not going to walk in on us."

  Chapter 12

  Sam decided that he should be the one to call his father and after a little thought and discussion, the others agreed. He waited until ten minutes after three, and then called the factory where Eric worked and had him paged. It was just a matter of minutes before he heard his father's voice, "Hello."

  "Hello, Dad, its Sam."

  "What are you calling me here for?"

  "I'm invited to go roller skating tonight in Edmonton and Mom said that I can't go unless you say it’s all right."

  "That woman can't do anything on her own. Why in the name of all that’s holy can’t she tell you what to do, just once?"

  "Can I go, please?"

  "I really don't care what you do."

  "Thanks, Dad." The phone went dead. Eric had hung up.

  "He's at work." Sam turned to the others, trying to hide the hurt, which was so apparent in his face. He crossed the room and sat by his mother. "He didn't even say good-bye." The catch in his voice told volume
s of the hurt he felt by the coldness of his father.

  Pete spoke to his grandson, "Let's get this truck next door and get it loaded. Are you ready?"

  Sam perked up, "I sure am."

  "Have you got room in that truck for me?" asked Gary.

  "We can find a spot, eh Sam."

  "You bet."

  The men left and Emily phoned Jan, who said that she would come to the house right away and help with the packing, then drive Emily and the boys back to her house for the night. She was speechless when Emily explained the circumstances surrounding her decision to leave Eric. She thought of the tall, slim man who had been so respected by everyone at the church. She also thought of the four boys who attended with their father, and always sat so quietly during services. Lastly, she thought of Emily, who always seemed to be withdrawn and aloof.

  "Who would have guessed?" she thought, "I suppose we never know what goes on behind closed doors."

  By 3:30, Grace was with the boys and the two women had gone next-door where the packing was in full swing. Emily was having a hard time getting around but was still doing all she could, until Jeanie suddenly walked up to her and took the dish she was wrapping out of her hand. "Enough, we need you to tell us what you want to have packed. We can do the packing. I don't want you playing out on us halfway through this. Now, go sit down and have a rest."

  Jan arrived as Jeanie was talking, took one look at Emily and gasped, "Oh my goodness, you look like you were hit by a truck."

  "Unfortunately, the truck has a name." Emily slowly lowered herself onto a chair.

  "Wow! This is hard to believe. He shouldn’t get away with this. I'm going to phone the pastor. He really should see you for himself. This is going to come as a real shock to him. He tends to think that the sun rises and sets on Mr. Thompson."