Hell, Fire & Freedom (Fighting for Freedom) (3 page)

“You’re lucky I’m already running late for work,” he threatens. I nod and turn to clear the breakfast dishes, desperately trying to calm my breathing. I hear Carl set the alarm before closing the front door and locking it behind him.

I watch out the kitchen window, pretending to do the dishes, as he gets in his car and starts to pull away. I force myself to count to ten, so he doesn’t see me run the second he leaves the driveway. When I feel like it’s safe, I drop the dishes back into the sink and run to the basement to grab Carl’s ancient suitcase. Returning upstairs, I shove it full of clothes, toiletries, and makeup, all while my stomach throbs in pain.

I check the front window every few minutes to make sure he hasn’t returned—so far, so good. I still have some room left in the suitcase so I shove some apples, granola bars, water, and crackers in there. I’m not sure when I’m going to be able to eat next, and I want to make sure I can keep my promise to Marie that she stays fed.

I fill my purse with all of the jewelry Carl has given me through the years. I’m careful not to take anything that was his mother’s or anything that’s his. I don’t need to give him another reason to come after me, or worse, send the police to bring me back.

I grab the phone and call a taxi to an empty house down the street. After hanging up, I dial the local movie line so he won’t be able to find the last number I called until he receives his phone records. He knows I don’t have any money, so hopefully he will think I left on foot and I’m just hiding somewhere around town.

I take one last look around the house. Is this finally it, or am I going to get myself killed here? I can’t say I care anymore. Free or dead, it’s all the same so long as Carl can no longer hurt me.

I slip on my shoes and open the window that leads from the dining room out to the back deck and climb out, reaching back in to take my suitcase and purse with me. I don’t need him seeing from his monitor at work that the front door was opened. I know he hasn’t done anything to the windows yet because he was hoping to put the alarms on those this summer.

I close the window and take a deep breath; my body is really working against me right now, and I almost wish I had decided to do this when my ribs were fully healed. Almost. I make my way through the neighbors’ backyards, hoping they don’t notice me; we were never really close with any of them, but my paranoia is in full force. I come into the front yard of a house that’s been on the market for almost a year now and I notice the taxi is already waiting. Relieved, I slide into the back seat, keeping my baggage with me.

The driver is a big guy, probably three hundred or so pounds. He’s wearing a baseball cap, and sporting a scruffy beard. His taxi smells like stale cigarettes and spearmint gum. I cringe slightly before speaking. “Could you take me to Howard’s Pawn Shop on Ninth, please?” My voice is shaky, and he looks at me inquisitively through the rear view mirror. I figure he can probably still see the bruising on my face. I look a lot better than I did, but all the makeup in the world couldn’t make it disappear entirely. He starts the meter and backs the car out of the driveway. I do a quick scan of the road for Carl’s car and come up with nothing. “I’ll just need to run into the pawn shop a moment, and then North Valley High School, please. My final stop will be at the airport,” I say, as my voice cracks.

“Of course, ma’am, not a problem at all,” he says with a curt nod before turning his eyes back to the road.

I’ve heard some women in the grocery store talk about how Mr. Howard is a fair man, and I hope that proves true. We pull up to the store front, and I grab my purse and rush inside. I’m aware that I look a bit frantic, so I take a few calming breaths before walking up to the counter.

Mr. Howard is a short man who appears to be at least eighty. He has a small ring around his head of sparse grey hair and light grey eyes that exude warmth. I feel myself relaxing in his presence.

“What can I do for you this fine day, missus?”

“I’m looking to sell some jewelry. I was told this was a good place to go,” I say, pulling the boxes from my purse and opening them, my hands shaking slightly. I slip my wedding rings off of my fingers and set those on the counter, too.

“Now, what’s a pretty lady like you doing, selling all of your stuff?” he asks, looking into my eyes. I begin to panic and search for an exit. He knows. Maybe he’s a friend of Carl’s.
God, Brynn, what were you thinking
? This is incredibly careless and risky. I look back up at Mr. Howard who’s looking at me sympathetically, and not in an accusatory way.

“Now, now, calm down, I was just teasing you. That’s none of my business at all, now is it? I’m just a nosy old man, don’t mind me,” he says, taking out an eye piece. He looks the jewelry over. “This is some beautiful stuff you have here—all high end.”

“It’s been well taken care of, sir. I also have this necklace,” I say, undoing the clasp and removing it from my neck. With that, his eyes grow wide.

“Now, this I might need to keep for myself,” he chuckles. “She’s like a crow, she loves all things shiny. I’m coming up on almost sixty years with the missus. I think she would like this, don’t you?” he asks looking it over. “What were you looking to get for all of this?”

“I would think she would. I’m not sure what it’s all worth, to be honest. I just need ... as much as possible,” I say awkwardly. He looks into my eyes, and I swear he can sense my fear.

“Well, this necklace alone is worth about ten grand, new, and the other stuff here, all together, is probably about the same.”

I gasp, wondering how Carl ever came up with that kind of money, or why he would ever spend it on me. I guess there’s a lot about Carl I will probably never understand.

“What would you say to ten thousand cash?” he asks with a partially toothless smile.

“I would say you’re a most generous man,” I say, breathing a sigh of relief. He opens the safe behind him and returns with a stack of money and a little oval coin with a woman’s face emblazoned upon it. I recognize it as some sort of religious medallion, as he places it in the palm of my hand.

“You take care of yourself, you hear? A pretty lady like yourself shouldn’t carry this much cash around for long. You’re smart; make sure you find yourself someone who appreciates that,” he says and then points to the little coin. “This is just a little something so you always know someone is looking out for you. Take care of yourself,” he says kindly.

“Thank you. You have no idea what this means to me. Happy anniversary to you and your wife, and may you be blessed with many more happy years together,” I say sincerely, before turning and leaving the store.

I climb into the back seat of the taxi, and the driver starts off again without a word. I slouch down, terrified that someone will recognize me and report back to Carl before I have the chance to flee town. His warnings that he has eyes everywhere have always made me nervous. The taxi driver glances back at me skeptically.

We pull up in front of Marie’s school, and I mentally prepare myself for the task ahead before climbing out of the taxi. I say a little prayer that she remembers who I am and that she will want to come with me. I walk into the front office, and give the secretary Marie’s name before walking back into the hallway so she won’t be privy to our conversation.

I pace back and forth apprehensively until I catch sight of her coming down the hallway. She’s tall now—so much taller than I remember. She’s almost as tall as I am, which is roughly five foot five. Her eyes are cast to the floor, and her long blonde hair spills in front of her face. It takes everything in me not to run and pull her into my arms, but I don’t want to scare her.

She looks up and recognizes me immediately. She looks good—she could stand to gain another fifteen pounds, but overall, she looks healthy. I let myself smile genuinely for what seems like the first time in forever.

“Marie?” I ask cautiously. But there’s no need for caution as she throws herself into my arms and buries her face in my neck.

“I thought you were a dream. I knew I had a sister. I knew you would come back. Ma told me I was crazy,” Marie rambles with a mix of excitement and disbelief. I can feel her hot tears trickle onto my neck, and I’m shocked to find I’m also crying.

The taxi driver honks outside and brings me back to reality.
We don’t have much time
.

“Marie, listen carefully. I left my husband, Carl; he’s a very dangerous man, and he will come after the both of us if we don’t get out of here quickly. I need to go far away, and I want you to come with me. I’ll take care of you as best as I can. You can call Ma when we get there, but please, please say you’ll come with me. I can’t do this without you,” I beg. She looks like she wants to say something, but stops and nods her head instead. I breathe a sigh of relief.

I grab a hold of her shoulders gently. “I’m going to sign you out; run and grab your backpack and anything else you need, okay?” I say in a hushed voice. I rush back into the secretary’s office and use my ID to prove that I’m her sister. I’m able to sign her out for a doctor’s appointment. I’ll let Ma deal with any further questions. I step out of the office and see Marie running back toward me. Her blue eyes are shining, but she looks nervous. She links her arm with mine, and we run back to the taxi.

I check the clock in the front of the car—it’s 10:15. Carl will be calling the house at noon on his lunch hour. When I don’t answer, I know he’ll come home searching for me, which means we don’t have much longer now. I grab Marie’s hand and squeeze it tightly. She stays silent the entire ride to the airport.

I pay the taxi driver for his time and give him an extra ten in exchange for his silence. He nods, and looks as though he wants to say something, but I close the door before he’s able to. He takes the hint and leaves without a word. I check my watch to see that we have a little over an hour left before Carl will start his frantic search for us. I grab Marie’s hand and my suitcase, and we make our way toward the front of the line.

Deep breaths, Brynn
.

“Are there any flights that depart in the next half an hour?” I ask the receptionist a little shakily.

“Where to, ma’am?” she chirps, flipping her long brown hair behind her shoulder. She stares at me expectantly, and I try my best not to look suspicious. I should have thought this through more. I give her the speech I practiced in my head last night and hope that it’s enough.

“It’s my little sister’s birthday soon, and every year we just up and visit a new state, spur of the moment kind of thing. Whichever flight is leaving next is fine. The farther away, the better, since we have visited most of the nearby states already,” I say, lacking confidence. This seems to appease her, however, and she starts typing away at her computer.

“Well, let’s see here, if you can be quick through security, you can just make the flights to Arizona, Texas, and Ohio,” she offers. I try to think back to my high school geography class and remember which is the farthest away.

Marie must sense my confusion because I hear her reply, “Ohio! Let’s go there, sissie. That’s where I was hoping for last year, when we ended up going to Alabama instead,” she says, plastering on a huge fake smile. I have to stifle a nervous laugh. God, I missed Marie. I turn back to the agent.

“Ohio it is; two tickets, please, and just the one suitcase.”

I purchase our tickets and we rush through security in record time. Fortunately, Marie kept her ID in her backpack with her which allowed everything to run smoothly. I have so much I want to ask her, but I know now isn’t the right time. We board the plane just in time and make our way to the back where we find our seats. We sit down, and Marie grabs my hand and leans her head on my shoulder. It feels good to have her here, safe, with me. I scan the plane, certain I’m going to find Carl—that he’s going to come barging on and drag me back to his house—but he never does. The flight attendant runs through the safety information, and Marie and I listen intently. I’ve never flown, and I doubt she has either. The plane readies itself on the runway, and we take off. I can feel the pressure building, and my ears pop uncomfortably.

Once we’re safely up in the air, I start to relax. I did it.
We
did it. How could it have been so easy, though; I feel as though I’m missing something, that he’ll be waiting in Ohio for us to arrive. What if he calls the airline and finds out where I’ve flown into?

Brynn, how could you have been so stupid
?
Think, think, think
.

“Marie, I think we need to go a little farther than Ohio; that’s still pretty close to Oregon,” I say nervously. She looks up at me curiously, so I explain further. “Carl could call the airline and find out where we’ve flown into. I think we should get a bus in Ohio and go a little farther. Maybe even a state or two over. Is there anywhere you can think of that you’d like to go?” I ask.

It’s not exactly fair that I just completely uprooted her life without warning. I feel as though I should at least give this choice to her. I can tell she’s thinking; her blue eyes are looking up, as if she’s searching the top of her head for information. It’s pretty funny to watch, but I manage not to laugh. I patiently wait for her to come up with a plan.

“What about New York?” she asks.

I process what I know about New York, but it’s not much. There are a lot of people there; it’s busy, and we could easily get lost in a crowd. That sounds perfect actually. How did she get so smart?

“New York sounds wonderful, Marie. How did I ever get so lucky to have such a clever little sister?” I ask. “You have no idea how much I’ve missed you. There wasn’t a day that went by that I didn’t think about you,” I say, thinking back to how many days she got me through. There was always the hope of seeing Marie, and that kept me fueled.

 “You’re going to have to call Ma on a stopover somewhere. I know she doesn’t have caller ID, but if Carl manages to get a hold of her phone records, I don’t want it to be from ...” I start but she cuts me off.