A Beautiful New Life

by Irene, Susan

  Chapter Two

  “Daddy, when is Mommy coming home?” Kenny curled up with Arlin on the couch. It was late Sunday evening and Louise should have been home hours earlier.

  “I don’t know kiddo. Soon, I hope.” He got up from the couch and paced. “Hey let’s get your baths and get you guys to bed.” He shepherd the boys toward the bathroom and ran their baths. The quietness of their bath time confirmed for Arlin that they sensed something was wrong. He got them all dried off and tucked into bed.

  “Hey Charlie I think you’re just about old enough now to have your own room.” He tucked the blankets around him. “What do you think about that?” Charlie’s hair was slowly starting to turn a dirty blond from the golden blond that he had had for years and with each day he started looking more and more like his mother.

  “Sure but after mom gets home.” He put his arms around Arlin’s neck as he leaned in to kiss him goodnight.

  “Of course. Night buddy.” He tucked the other two boys in, turned off the light and closed the door. The weekend had gone by too fast. Arlin went to the bathroom and pulled out his bottle of valium from the medicine cabinet. He would never sleep was the reason as he popped the pill in his mouth and swallowed.

  He woke to the sound of his alarm and his head pounding. The valium had done nothing for him so he had followed it by a bottle of cheap whiskey he found in the pantry. He now wished he had skipped that step. He rolled over and found Louise’s side of the bed empty. His first thought was she possibly could have been up already, but it was apparent that her side of the bed had not been slept in. He crawled out of bed and went to the kitchen to brew some much-needed coffee. While it brewed, he showered and dressed. He heard the kids and went to them as they rushed out of their room.

  “Mommy!” They yelled in unison. They ran from the bedroom to the kitchen. “Mommy!” They yelled again.

  “Hey kiddo’s, mommy isn’t home yet.” The boys stood looking not sure how to react. Despite their age difference, most would have thought they were triplets. Three blonde headed little boys all with bright blue eyes like their dad stood side by side wanting to understand what their father just said to them. Kenny, the youngest, started to cry.

  “Hey now, no crying. I think I must have got the day wrong. Maybe she wasn’t coming home until today.”

  “No Dad. Mom definitely said Sunday.” Charlie said. Not only did he look like her, he was too much like his mother, always remembering everything. Charlie was ten and the oldest of the three; Arlin needed him to be a little more understanding and help instead of stirring up trouble.

  “Charlie, you’re not helping any. Take your brothers in and get them dressed while I make breakfast.”

  “Mom always makes breakfast first, than we get dressed.” Drake said.

  “Well Mom isn’t here.” Arlin slammed the box of cereal on the counter. He did not need defiance this morning. He took a deep breath. “Just go do what I said please.”

  Charlie pulled the boys down the hallway and helped them get dressed. They returned to the kitchen where bowls of cold cereal were waiting on the counter for them. Kenny started to say something but Charlie hushed him before he could.

  “Hurry up now, we have to get going.” Arlin was tapping his fingers on the counter.

  “Dad you can’t drop us off at school this early. It’s not open yet.” Charlie hesitantly told him.

  “What? I thought you all went to daycare.” He slammed his fist on the counter. “Damn it!”

  He grabbed the phone and dialed. ”Penny, this is Arlin Gilab, Kenny’s dad. Louise isn’t home yet from her weekend trip and I have to get to work. Can I drop all three boys off to you this morning?” He paused. “Yes, of course. I understand I’ll have to pay extra. Thank you. Everything should be back to normal tomorrow.” He hung up the phone and turned to the boys.

  “There problem solved. Sorry I got angry.” He hurried the boys out to the truck.

  The day felt like it crawled by and Arlin had to constrain himself from dipping into his valium stash. He sat at his desk when Shelley popped her head in the room.

  “Mr. Gilab, it’s your daycare on line 1. They want to know when they can expect you to pick up the boys.”

  “What?”

  “The boys, sir. They need picked up from daycare. Louise usually got them by five.”

  “What time is it?” He looked at the clock and saw the answer to his question. “Is it really six o’clock?”

  “Do you want me to pick them up for you?”

  “No, no. I’ll go.” Louise would never have allowed someone she did not know or trust to pick up her kids, especially Shelley, with her long wavy blonde hair and beach ready body. Louise was jealous from the moment he had hired her, as she should have been. Arlin was not proud but he had a sexual attraction to her and on more than one occasion, working late at night, took advantage of her naivety. Besides, he did not need anyone asking questions as to why he could not pick them up. He turned off his computer, grabbed his keys, wished Shelley a goodnight and left. He made it to the daycare in record time and rushed in to collect the kids.

  “Penny, I’m so sorry. The day got away from me and, well quite frankly, I expected Louise to be home by now.”

  “I understand Arlin, but I need the kids picked up on time tomorrow. “Have you heard from Louise?”

  “No, there’s been nothing. You know I thought that I had mistaken when she was supposed to be home but I’m really worried now. I’m calling the police if she isn’t at the house when I get home with the kids tonight.”

  “Can you call the place she went? You know to make sure she left.”

  “I don’t have the number. In fact, now that I think about it she never called saying she made it.” He staggered and leaned against the wall for support. “Oh my god, do you think something may have happened on her drive up?” He choked up. “What would I tell the kids?”

  Penny reached out to him, rubbing his arm. “Go home Arlin. See if she is there. If not, then call the police. Do you have someone who can help you with the kids if you need it?”

  “Yes, my parents. Thanks Penny.” He stood at the door with his head hanging low while Penny helped the kids collect their things.

  “You have some great kids you know. When Charlie realized they hadn’t been picked up at five, he got Drake and they both sat down and did their homework. You should be proud.”

  “Thanks, I am.” He shuffled the boys out the door. He was proud of them but the credit he did not deserve; he had taken no part in the development of their character. That credit went to Louise. He headed home, stopped at the local fast food place, and picked the boys up something for dinner. They arrived home to a dark, empty house. The boys did not ask about their mom, afraid they would be yelled at again. They instead sat down and picked at their burger and fries before tossing them in the trash. Charlie got Drake and Kenny ready and tucked into bed and after turning out the light, he got in his bed. Arlin was grateful to Louise for the care she had taken in raising the boys. However, despite that care he knew he would never be able to take care of the kids and work without her here. As his anxiety came back, he fought hard before finally succumbing to his mixture of pills and alcohol to put him out to what he hoped was a dreamless sleep.

  Chapter Three

  Where was she? It was cold. She tried to pull up her blankets only to find they must have slipped off the bed. She did not have enough energy to move to pick them up, though she was freezing. She tried to open her eyes but they were so heavy. Her throat was so dry. It hurt to swallow. Her head was pounding or was that someone pounding? It hurt her ears. Where was she? She tried to open her eyes again. She could not. She gave into the darkness.

  She woke again still confused. She felt doped up as you would feel after surgery. She had once, when she had her second child. She remembered coming to in the recovery room. She had tried to sit up and it hurt to do so. The pain reminded her of what she was doing there but the drugs woul
d not let her comprehend it. Even though she could not open her eyes fully she still knew where she was. This was different; she did not know where she was or what was going on. She remembered some weird dreams about deserted and abandoned secret passageways.

  She opened her eyes, lying still trying to remember where she was. Something did not feel right. She closed her eyes and visualized where she thought she should be. She was home in bed. No, that was not right; she was in her room at the resort. She took a deep breath and tried to remember the room. She remembers jumping like a child on the king sized bed. She was not on a king sized bed; in fact, she was not on a bed at all. She stretched out her hand and could only feel a cold floor. Had she passed out in her room? No, the floor in her room had carpet. She opened her eyes again and looked around. She was in a small dimly lit concrete room that was no more than four feet wide and maybe eight feet long. She had been lying on the cold bare floor and there were not any blankets that she now vaguely remembers reaching for. She sat up to have a better look around, her head pounding. The gray sweat pants and t-shirt were tight and uncomfortable.

  “What the hell is going on?” She asked herself. A sickening feeling settled deep within. She wished her head would explode already to take the pressure off that was pushing on her skull. She reached up to hold her pulsating head. With each brush of her hand, she wished her hair to be there. Her heart was beating faster. Why had they shaved her head? She tried to understand what was going on.

  “It’s a bad dream that’s all.” She said aloud hoping to wake herself up from this nightmare. When that did not work, she shouted. “Wake up, wake up!” As the words came out she knew she was awake. She turned around looking at the room trying to figure out where she was. Her pounding head would not let her move too quickly. She forced herself to stand and make her way over to the only door in the room. She tried it only to find but it locked.

  “Hello!” She yelled and pounded on the door.

  “Hey, is someone out there?” She yelled and pounded again. She only stopped when blood was running down her arms from having beaten her fist so hard on the concrete door.

  “That was stupid.” She rested her head against the door. “I seriously doubt anyone heard me. Now I’ve hurt myself and am in a worse situation than before.” She started to laugh. “Worse situation, how much worse could it really get.” She continued to laugh until she started crying as what little hope she had, drained from her. She slid down the door to the floor, pulling her knees to her chest and cried. After she stopped crying, she tried to rationalize what was going on. Had there been an accident and someone found her, some psycho?

  “Don’t be crazy,” she said aloud, “you need to focus and remember what happened last.” She got up and paced around the room. “Okay I remember leaving home and I almost turned around at the state line rather than going to the resort, but I didn’t and I continued on. I stopped at a pull off to take in the view.”

  She remembered now how the memorial pulled to her, made her hike through the deep snow to have a look. If it had been a warning, she had not heeded it and had continued on to the resort. She remembers having a fabulous time with all the much-deserved attention and the evening wrapping up with dinner. She stopped pacing; her head pounding she lay back down on the floor and tried to remember.

  “Dinner what happened after dinner?” She could not remember. She was sure of one thing though if she did not return from her trip Arlin would be looking for her. He would not have the patience to be with the kids much longer than the weekend. Panicked by the thought of her kids, she stood up much quicker than she should have and passed out, hitting her head on the cold, hard floor.

  She jolted awake. Someone was at the door. She sat up as the door opened and a man walked in. She was surprised; her first panicked thought of some psycho having found her, she half expected him to be hunched over and missing an eye. He stood tall and both eyes seemed in tack but he was slow, unsure perhaps, in his movements. The dark pants and t-shirt he wore seemed familiar and she got up and ran towards him.

  “Help me. Where am I?”

  “I-I want to help b-but I can’t right n-now. They’re close b-behind me. Just d-do what they w-want.” He turned and rushed out the door, closing it behind him.

  She sat staring at the closed door. She had to get out of here. She walked around the room examining the walls. They were all made of concrete with cracks spidering the walls. She must be in an old building and her mind wandered back to the conversation she had with Scott at Genesee.

  “Scott had been wearing dark blue pants and a t-shirt.” She said to herself now realizing why the man’s clothes seemed familiar to her. “What was it he told me about the place? Yes, that it was an old prison camp, with hidden tunnels and passageways.” She stopped walking. “Was I kidnapped from the resort? Is that why he said he wanted to help me? Is he from the resort?” Before she could reflect anymore, the door opened again.

  It walked in. He surely could not be human. The dark clothing he wore only enhanced the redness of his skin. His shirt looked like it would explode off him if he made the wrong move. He had a look of rage that seemed to be permanently etched into his face. He did not say a word and walked straight for her. His heart struggling to pump fast enough to carry his enlarged body was apparent by the heavy breathing that was audible from across the room. She knew this was not someone she should fight, one hit from him she feared would kill her, but she was not going to go down without a fight.

  “Please don’t hurt me, I just want to go home,” Louise stood ready to defend herself.

  “Home? This is your home now”. He stepped closer to her.

  “No! This is not my home!” She shouted at him. “I need to go home to my kids, they need me.” She stood firm trying to anticipate his move. He lifted his arm toward her and she flinched pulling her arms together to block her face. He did not hit her and she relaxed, lowering her arms. She noticed the door open behind him and made a run for it.

  “No, I don’t think so, Megan. He grabbed the back of her shirt as she tried to get past him. “You’re not going anywhere.”

  Gasping for air, she managed to get out. “My name is not Megan.”

  He tossed her aside and left the room; closing the door behind him. She lay on the floor catching her breath. Her tears falling without effort, she sat up, pulled her knees to her chest, and rocked back and forth. After some time, when her tears had dried, she lies on the floor and falls asleep.

  She woke at the sound of the door. She sat up and saw it was the first man that walked in earlier. She got up and ran to him.

  “Please help me. Get me out of here. Are you from the resort?” She grabbed his arm.

  “I-I can’t right now. H-Here, I brought y-you something to eat.” She noticed the brown paper bag he had brought in. “I-It’s not m-much but it’s better than n-nothing.” He handed her the bag and when she did not take it, he put it on the floor and turned to leave.

  “No, please don’t leave. At least tell me where I am.” She tried reaching for him but he pulled his arm out of her grasp and walked out the door.

  She went and looked in the bag; it was a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. She wanted to toss it aside but her stomach encouraged her to eat it. She did not realize how hungry she was until she took the first bite. When she went for what she thought was her second bite, the sandwich was gone. She ate it to quick and now her stomach churned. She lay down on the floor and curled up in a ball. Just as she was ready to doze off a fire alarm went off. She jumped up. Her stomach did not agree with the sudden moment and she threw up the sandwich she just ate. After he stomach settled, she made her way to the door and waited. When no one came, she pounded on the door despite knowing, from her earlier attempt, that surely no one could hear her. She beat the door again until her hands bled and when she stopped, the alarm stopped ringing too.

  “Why are you doing this to me?” She yelled to the unseen forces. She was hungry and tired; but most o
f all she was lonely. She missed her boys and wondered what they were thinking when she did not return home.

  Chapter Four

  The constant ringing of the phones rattled Arlin’s nerves as he stood at the counter filling out the missing person’s report. He did not know why he was so nervous. He finished up and handed the paper back to the clerk behind the bulletproof glass separating the civil servants from possibly angry, and in their mind, wrongfully accused citizens.

  “Take a seat sir and I’ll have a detective come talk to you.” The speaker box she spoke through distorted her voice making her sound like a cartoon. He turned around, found a seat, and waited. The longer he waited, the more anxious he got. His phone rang and he hit ignore. He did not think he could talk to anyone right now. He took a deep breath. He had not anticipated having to talk to a detective so soon. He thought it took days to process missing person reports. He thought back to yesterday’s conversation with Penny and he relaxed. She had offered to keep the boys as late as necessary today if he needed her to.

  Maybe I’m over reacting. He thought as the detective came out of the door off to the side of the waiting area and called his name. Arlin took a deep breath, got up from the chair, and walked across the room to the big burly detective. He had a presence about him and Arlin could sense he was a seasoned detective.

  “Arlin Gilab?”