by Nicole Fox
“So, how do you like school?” he asked.
“Good.”
“Yeah? What’s your favorite subject?” He tossed the ball to her.
“I guess reading. I like to read.” She threw the ball back.
“Nice throw. Do you have many friends?”
“Not really. Not yet, but I’m trying to make friends. My mommy said friends are important.”
“They are. So, you haven’t lived here very long, have you?”
“No. Just a few weeks now.”
“How do you like your new apartment? Is it bigger than where you used to live?”
“No.” She shook her head and threw the ball back the farthest she had yet. “It’s much smaller. I used to live in a really big house.”
“Oh, I see.” He had to ask these questions carefully. If he asked the wrong way, he might alert her that he was trying to get information. But he had to keep her talking, too. “What was your room like?”
“It was all purple. That’s my favorite color. And it had a purple rug and a big kitty cat painted on one wall, and it said ‘Opal’ on the other wall and my bed had a curtain that was sparkly, and I had all my stuffed animals in a hammock that hung from the ceiling. I even had my own desk for doing homework.”
He didn’t miss that she’d slipped up and used her real name. “You don’t have any of that now?”
“No.” She looked sad for a moment as she caught the ball.
“Especially not ‘Opal’ painted on your wall.”
She looked at him with wide eyes. The ball slipped from her hands and she looked over at Vanessa with a fearful expression.
When Vanessa saw it, she jumped to her feet. “Katrin, come on! We need to get going.”
Opal ran to her, and they hurried inside. Vanessa stopped to wave at Hunter, then disappeared inside the building. He walked over to where Opal had been and picked up her ball.
He considered as he returned to his car. Opal had suddenly become very afraid when he used her real name. Vanessa had seen one glimpse of fear in her daughter and took off fast. Could this mean Jeremy was telling the truth after all? Was Opal afraid of what her mother would do to her if she found out Opal had slipped up and used the wrong name?
Or could it be that Vanessa had placed so much importance on their fake names to keep them safe and hidden from Jeremy that Opal was reacting to that fear? It could easily go either way.
Hunter reached his car, which he now always parked close to the restaurant supply company he claimed to work for. He tossed the ball in the backseat and drove back toward his hotel.
He still didn’t have enough information to know for sure. What he was sure of was that Vanessa was not the obvious monster Jeremy had made her out to be, though that didn’t mean she wasn’t still abusing Opal. She had chosen to run instead of calling the authorities to have Jeremy taken away. That made her look guilty. She was the one who filed for divorce, and he knew that many times when women were being abused, they rarely left. Had Vanessa just gotten the courage that most women couldn’t, or was she running and had demanded a divorce because Jeremy threatened to turn her in and take Opal away from her?
He needed to spend more time with them, needed to get to know them more. He thought things had gone well with Opal. She shared a little with him and hadn’t seemed too hesitant about it. Vanessa, though, was something like a closed book he’d need to carefully peel open. Hopefully she drank when they went out, and he could get her buzzed and talking. A simple trick, but it always worked. She certainly didn’t seem to be coke-snorting junkie Jeremy claimed she was.
He’d just have to convince Jeremy that this was all part of the process. Because there was no way he was going through with the hit until he knew for sure. And if Vanessa was anything short of the monster Jeremy claimed, he’d flip sides in a second and protect her and Opal from a horrible ex who was trying to have Vanessa killed for who knew what real reasons.
He turned onto the street where his hotel was, and as he approached, he noticed a black van that seemed out of place. The license plate was out of state, the back windows were all blacked out, and it sat right in front of the hotel entrance. It looked an awful lot like a surveillance vehicle, though not a very good one if he picked it out so easily.
Maybe the distrust of his employee went both ways. Jeremy might be having him trailed. He might be suspicious that Hunter was having doubts. And that made Jeremy seem highly guilty.
Chapter Six
Vanessa
Vanessa ran to her window when she got Opal inside, but it seemed he had already gone. She didn’t know what she expected to see him do, but it felt important that she watch him for some reason. When she felt sure he had gone, she turned to Opal.
“What happened?” she asked.
Opal lifted one shoulder and wouldn’t look at Vanessa.
“Did Hunter say something to you?”
“He just asked me about school and stuff. And our old house.”
“Okay.” Vanessa sat down, trying to understand what had happened to make her daughter look so afraid of him. “What sort of things did he ask?”
“What my favorite subject is and how I like our new apartment.”
“He asked about our new apartment? How did he know it was new?”
“Umm.” Opal looked at her mother, the fear still in her eyes. “I don’t know. He asked if I had a lot of friends and when I said no, he asked if we lived here long and I said no.”
“Okay…” Well, that was the truth and there wasn’t denying that. Anyone at the school would know they were new to the area. “What else?”
“I think I said…” She mumbled something that Vanessa couldn’t make out, and she started crying, which made it even harder to understand her.
“Calm down, sweetie.” She held her close and stroked her hair. “What did you say?”
“My name,” she finally mumbled.
“Which name?”
“Opal.”
Vanessa tried not to react, but her heart tightened. Of all people, Hunter and his mysterious nature was the last person she wanted Opal to slip up to. Someone at school might have blown it off or let it go. But Hunter might have been actually trying to get information from Opal. And that made everything worse.
“It’s okay,” Vanessa said. “It’s done now and there’s nothing we can do about it. If it comes up again, just tell him it’s your pretend name.”
“Are they going to take me away now?” She choked out a sob and squeezed her arms tighter around her mother.
“No, baby. I won’t ever let that happen.”
“But you said—”
“I know, but it’ll be okay. I promise. We just have to make sure we keep using our fake names from now on.”
“I will, I promise. I’m sorry.”
Vanessa smoothed down her hair and wiped her eyes. “It’ll be okay.”
But all that day, Vanessa was plagued by thoughts of Hunter. He kept showing up out of nowhere, and it was starting to bother her. But it was also exciting her. The two ideas tore at her heart. Her need to keep Opal safe and hidden versus her need to feel wanted and desired. They took turns winning. When she saw Hunter, it was hard to want him gone, but something always left her thinking that maybe it wasn’t such a good idea to spend much time with him. Something just felt off about it all.
When they headed out of the house the next morning to get to school, Vanessa saw a black van sitting alongside the road in front of her apartment. It shouldn’t have alerted her. It was just a plain van sitting there. But it felt ominous. It gave her the feeling that someone was watching, someone was tracking them. She hurried Opal into the car, looking back frequently to see if anyone got out or if anyone approached her car.
She drove them to school, constantly looking in her mirror to see if the van or someone else was following. She thought they got there okay, but the feeling of eyes on her kept up as they entered the building. By the time she dropped Opal off and got into her o
ffice, she was glad to shut the door and with it, the chance that anyone could see her without her knowing it.
Was she losing her mind? First, Hunter and now this van. Her paranoia was on overdrive. What would she do if Jeremy found them? Where would she run? How would she get Opal out of there and keep them safe? Too many unanswered questions. All morning, she was on edge. A student came to her office, knocked on her door, and she nearly jumped out of her skin.
When it was time for her lunch break, she had to get up and do something. On occasion, she walked by Opal’s classroom if she had a few minutes. She liked to peak in on her and see her at work. But this time when she walked by the classroom, it was empty. She stood in the doorway for a moment, trying to think if they were at lunch or some special class.
“Hi Joanna,” Opal’s teacher, Mari Snyder, walked toward her. “Everything okay?”
“Oh, sure, I was just on break and thought I’d peak in on Opal.”
Mari smiled. “They’re at recess, then straight to lunch. This is my break time.”
“Ahh, I see.”
Vanessa turned to walk away, but Mari put a hand on her arm.
“Joanna, is everything okay?”
Vanessa turned back to her. How badly she wanted to spill everything, to tell someone, anyone, what she was going through. She was in desperate need of a confidant. But she just didn’t know Mari enough yet.
“Yeah, I’m okay.” She forced a smile.
“Because Katrin seemed a bit… anxious today.”
“She did?”
Mari nodded. “I’m headed to the break room for coffee. Want to join me?”
Vanessa’s need to talk with someone made her immediately turn and follow Mari. When they entered, two other teachers were there, finishing their lunches. As Mari poured them coffee, the teachers left and they were alone.
“So, what’s going on?” Mari asked. “Is Katrin adjusting okay to the move and being in a new school?”
“I think so. You might know better than me how she’s adjusting to school.”
Mari took a sip of her coffee and nodded. “She seems to be doing okay. She keeps to herself, though. I try to get them all involved and working with each other, but she doesn’t always seem too interested in making friends.”
Vanessa mulled that over. Was she afraid of messing up and using the wrong name? Or did she think they’d have to move again if something happened?
“I guess she’s been a bit stressed out,” Vanessa said.
“You think it’s just the move?”
“Well…” Vanessa looked around, making sure she didn’t somehow miss someone coming in. “No, to be honest, I don’t think it’s just that. We came from a really bad situation.”
Mari nodded. “I wondered.”
“You did?”
She nodded again. “There are signs. Things to look for. And especially for someone who’s been through it, it’s easy to spot.”
Vanessa pulled her eyebrows together. “Been through it?”
Mari leaned in closer. “Katrin’s dad, your ex-husband? Was he… abusive?”
“Yes,” Vanessa gasped. “How could you tell?”
“Just through observing Katrin. The way she shies away from touch, how she takes a long time to trust anyone. Things like that.”
“We ran from him. He tried to take her, so we took off. It’s been so horrible having no one to talk to, but we can’t even use our real names. If he finds us, he’ll take Katrin, and I don’t know what he’ll do to me.”
“Do you have a safe place to take her if something happens?”
“Not really. We just have our apartment. I don’t really know anyone here well enough.”
“You do now,” Mari said. “You can always bring her to my house. I’ll look after her as long as I need to, and I’ll keep her safe. I had an abusive father, and I learned how to fight back when I was a teen.”
Vanessa pressed her lips together, unsure. She wanted the option of having a place to take Opal if she needed to, but she didn’t know this woman well.
“I know it’s hard to trust someone new,” Mari said. “But the only way to have anyone there to help you is to trust someone. Katrin knows me, and she’s getting more comfortable with me. I know what she’s gone through.”
“You’re right.” Vanessa took a long sip of her coffee. “I haven’t felt like I could trust anyone in a long time. And I do need help. I need someone.”
“I know how you feel. My mother had no one to help her. She was completely isolated. She had nowhere to go to get away from it.”
“Thank you. I really appreciate it.”
“No problem. Even if you need some time to yourself or have things to take care of, I’d be glad to watch her for you. Anytime.”
“Thanks.” Vanessa thought of Hunter and the date that she’d never exactly turned down. She leaned in conspiratorially. “There is kind of… possibly… a date?”
Mari raised her eyebrows and grinned. “Just let me know which night.”
“Can I tell you one other thing? I feel like someone should know the truth, just in case.”
“Anything.”
Vanessa leaned close enough to whisper. “Our real names. I’m Vanessa Powers and Katrin is Opal Powers. If you do watch her, it would be nice to have someone use her real name for a while.”
“I understand.” Mari put her hand on Vanessa’s arm. “Anytime you need to talk, just let me know. I get a break every day.”
Vanessa gave her a quick hug and hurried back to her office.
# # #
Hunter stood outside the apartment building, waiting. He knew from watching them that they should have been home from school by now. They were late today. This was risky, waiting here like this. But he had a good excuse. “Katrin” forgot her ball and he was returning it.
When their car appeared at the edge of the block, he watched for them to get out and for Vanessa to see him. When she did, her face went slack. She recovered quickly and put on a forced smile, but she was definitely uncomfortable. She opened the backdoor to let Opal out, then leaned in to bring out a grocery bag. So that was why they were late.
“Hiya,” he called, walking closer. “Just wanted to bring this back.” He tossed the ball in the air and caught it.
“My ball!” Opal ran to catch the ball as he tossed it at her.
“Thanks,” Vanessa said. She smiled again and tried to rush right past him.
He quickly kneeled down to Opal. “How was school today?”
“Good,” she said.
“What subjects did you have?”
“Umm.” Opal tapped her lip. “The usual stuff and art.”
“That sounds fun,” Hunter said. “What did you make in art?”
“I drew a bunny.”
“Awesome,” he said. He stood and grabbed the two remaining grocery bags from the car.
When he turned to take them toward the apartment, Vanessa looked surprised, but walked on, letting him follow.
“What color was your bunny?” Hunter asked as they walked up the stairs to their apartment.
“Blue. He’s a sad bunny.”
Vanessa opened the door and let them in. “Katrin, honey, why don’t you go play for a little while before dinner? Then we can do your homework and get a bath before bed.”
“Okay.” Opal hopped off toward her room.
Hunter followed Vanessa into the kitchen and started taking things out of the grocery bags.
“Oh, you really don’t have to do that,” she said. “Thanks for bringing them in for me.”
“My pleasure.” He continued to help until the bags were empty. Then he even folded the bags and set them on the counter. Might as well lay it on as thick as possible.
He turned to face her, leaning casually against the counter.
“Thanks again,” she said. She held herself upright, too straight and stiff. She was nervous around him.
“So,” he said with a crooked grin, “about our date…”
“Oh, umm…” Vanessa tucked a piece of hair behind her ear and looked away before meeting his eyes.
When their gazes met, they shared an intense stare. He felt drawn to her. He wanted to taste her lips so badly. Too soon for that. Much too soon, but he itched to reached out and grab her, to pull her close and feel her body pressed against him.
After a long minute, she looked away, cheeks turning a slight pink. “I just need to make sure Katrin will be okay with it. I haven’t dated anyone since…”
