Misty Reigenborn Romance Boxed Set (184 page)

“Fine, I’ll take your stupid pills but you had better call the doctor and make sure that they aren’t going to give my baby birth defects or something.”

Mr. Archer’s face softened.  “Of course Molli.  We only want what’s best for you.  It would just be so much easier if you were a better judge of it yourself.”

“Yeah.  I’ll be right back.”

She went up the stairs and found her cell phone.  If only it weren’t completely dead she thought she could text Ricky.  She was sure he would be on his way to come get her in no time at all.  She looked at her phone and sighed, then dug her wallet out of her purse.  She took out the little cash that was left but removed the credit card and stashed it under her mattress next to the wall.  She was getting out of here if she had to climb out her second story window she thought.

She stopped in the bathroom for the bottle of antidepressants and went back downstairs.  While she was walking down the stairs, she realized she might have a way to get rid of the pill, or at least stop it from completely entering her bloodstream.  She’d tell them she was feeling sick and go in the bathroom and puke it up.

She handed her cell phone and the money to Tremont Archer without a word.  He made a face at the amount of money she gave him.  “Where’s the charger for your phone?  And why do you have so little money left?  I noticed that all of the grocery money was gone.”

“I can’t find my charger and it’s not like it will do me any good without the phone to go with it.  I bought a couple Christmas presents and ate out a lot.”

Tremont sighed.  “You’re going to start eating better.  No one will want to adopt your child if it’s born sickly.”

“I thought you said you were going to let me keep my baby.”

“If you behave yourself we will.  If not, then you know what the consequences are.”

“Yeah.”

“Take your pill.  Gladys, get her a glass of water.”

Gladys walked into the kitchen and returned with a glass of water.  She handed it to Molli.  Molli opened the bottle of pills and took one out and then sat the pill bottle on the table.  Tremont picked it up and put it in his pocket. 

Molli put the pill in her mouth and took a big drink of water, thinking I’m sorry baby; I’ll get it out as soon as I can.  She swallowed the pill and handed the glass back to Gladys. 

“Stick out your tongue,” Tremont said.

She stuck out her tongue.  “Satisfied?”

“Yes.  Now what is this about all those tattoos and piercings you have young lady?”

Molli put her hand on her stomach.  “I’ll tell you in a minute.  I think I’m gonna be sick.”

She ran up the stairs before either of them could stop her and went into the bathroom, locking the door behind her.  As she stuck her finger down her throat she heard one or both of the Archers’ footsteps on the stairs.

Luckily, it didn’t take much for her stomach to revolt again since she hadn’t eaten.  Mrs. Archer was pounding on the bathroom door and calling her name.  She had a feeling the door was going to be opened any minute and flushed the toilet and stood up, feeling a little shaky.

She washed her hands and her face, looking at herself in the mirror.  She didn’t like the look in her eyes.  She looked almost cornered and trapped.  There was no way in hell she was going to let the Archers trap her here.

She unlocked the door and opened it just as Tremont came back down the hall with a key ring.

He grabbed her arm and pushed her in the direction of her bedroom.  Once she was inside, he shut the door.  Molli heard him drag something heavy over and put it in front of the door.

“You can come out when it’s time to eat dinner,” he said.

“I’m afraid you’d poison me.”

Tremont laughed.  “Hardly.  Where did you get the money for those tattoos and piercings and who gave them to you?  You sure as hell never had parental permission for any of them.”

Molli laughed.  “You know what you can do with a tongue stud in your mouth that really drives a guy crazy?  Nah, you wouldn’t know anything about that would you, since oral sex is so dirty.  Seneca gave me the tattoo on my ankle, and I got my belly button and tongue pierced by a friend of Eduardo’s at his shop.  The tattoo on my back was kind of a show piece.  The tattoo artist was new.  She wanted to show off actual body art and no one else would let her give them one.  I think it’s hot.”

“They all serve to make you look more like trash than you already do.  You take after your mother; she always loved to look trashy too.”

“Go away Tremont.  Don’t bother to try to bring me food.  I won’t eat it.”

He chuckled.  “We’ll see.  You’ll be begging for food before you know it.  If you don’t want to eat today, we’ll bring you something tomorrow when it’s time to take your pill.  We can’t have you throwing up your medicine again now can we?”

“Goodbye old man.  I’m glad you’re not my dad.”

“So am I Molli.  So am I.”

She heard him walk away and then dug around for her oversized shoulder bag.  She thought she had cookies in there and maybe a bag of chips.  When she found her bag, she found she had two small packs of cookies, two bags of chips and two deli sandwiches.  She checked the dates on the sandwiches and they were still good.  She opened one, smelling it before she took a bite.  It smelled normal.  She realized she’d bought them at a convenience store when she had gone shopping for Ricky’s Christmas presents.

She had two bottles of water in the bag and a quart sports drink so she thought she’d be okay until the Archers went to sleep that night and she figured out how to escape.  She finished one sandwich and a bag of chips and then lay back on her bed, wondering how she was going to go to the bathroom. 

She fell asleep for a while.  When she woke up, she realized that she had to urinate.  She looked around the room and had no idea what in the hell she could piss in.  Finally she found an old pan that had been left in her room when the roof had been leaking last year that had never made its way back to the kitchen.  She felt better afterwards, but still had no idea how in the hell she was going to get out of there and away from the Archers.

Then she remembered that her old laptop had still been in her closet last she knew.   They had removed her new laptop since it was no longer sitting on her desk but she hoped they hadn’t remembered her old one.  She dragged her desk chair over and felt the laptop case on the shelf in her closet.  She wanted to let out a triumphant yell when she saw that her laptop was still inside but kept her mouth shut and took it carefully down out of the closet, breathing a sigh of relief when she saw the cord was still there.  The battery didn’t hold a charge for long.

She quickly plugged in the laptop and sat on her bed since her desk was closer to the door.  She hoped she’d have time to unplug her laptop and shove it under the bed by the time Tremont could drag whatever he’d placed in front of the door away. 

She booted up the laptop and waited for it to connect to the internet.  Her instant messenger popped up.  She quickly logged on and wanted to cry when she saw that Ricky was logged on, she was so happy.

‘Hi.’ She typed.  ‘I need to talk to you bad.’

‘Molli.  I’ve been trying to call you.  Is everything okay?’

‘No.  It’s a long story.  Let me give you a quick rundown.’

‘I’m at work sweetheart but I’ll take my break early and sit here and talk to you.  What’s going on?’

‘The Archers have me locked in my bedroom.  They’re threatening to have me committed and take the baby away if I don’t start taking those stupid antidepressants again.’

‘They can’t do that.  I’m calling the police.’

‘They won’t help me.  The Archers will say I’m crazy and they’ll drag me off to the mental hospital and steal our baby as soon as it’s born.  You have to help me get out of here Ricky.  Tonight.  You have to help me run away at least until I’m eighteen and can go back to my real mom.’

‘Honey, I thought Mrs. Archer was your real mother.’

‘So did I.  But the woman I didn’t think was my real blood sister is actually my mother.  I told you about Bethany didn’t I?  I can’t explain all that right now.  Will you help me get out of here Ricky?  I don’t know where else to turn.’

‘Of course I’ll help you darling.’

“Oh thank you Ricky.’

‘How are you going to get out of the house? How do they have you locked in your bedroom and why didn’t they take your computer?’

‘This is my old laptop.  I guess they forgot about it.  That old fart Mr. Archer put something heavy in front of my door.  I don’t care how I have to get out.  I’ll climb out my window if I have to.’

‘You have to be careful my love.  I don’t want you to fall.  Is there a way for you to get down safely without them knowing about it?’

Usually, the only thing she’d be thinking about was the fact that Ricky had called her his love.  But she was too busy racking her brain for a way to get out of her room and down to the ground without killing herself.

‘Molli are you still there?’

‘Yes.  I’m thinking.  There’s a tree outside my window that’s big and sturdy.  I used to climb it when I was a kid.  I don’t know if I can reach it safely though.  Hang on, let me look.  Please don’t leave me Ricky.  I’ll go crazy without you.’

‘I won’t leave you darling.’

‘Thank you.’

Molli walked to her window.  The tree was huge but she still thought it looked too far away for her to reach safely from her window.  She was so afraid of hurting herself and losing the baby.  The last thing she wanted was for the Archers to wake up and find her lying on the ground bleeding.

She sat back down at her computer.  ‘It’s too far away Ricky.  I don’t know what I’m going to do.’

‘We are going to get you out of there Molli.  I’ll think of a way.  Where is your window in relation to the street?’

‘My window faces the backyard.  There’s no fence.’

‘That’s good.  Where do the Archers sleep?’

‘The front bedroom.  It’s still upstairs but their windows faces the side yard instead of the back.’

‘Good.  Do they sleep heavily?  What time can you expect them to go to bed?’

‘Tremont sleeps like a stone but Gladys gets up a lot at night to pee.  And she’s got this thing about not sleeping in the dark so their light is always on.’

‘Okay.  Do you think you can keep the laptop?  Do they have a regular time they settle in for the night or does it vary?  Will you be able to tell when they go to sleep do you think?’

‘They normally go to bed around nine.  I should be able to keep the laptop yes.  I can tell when they go to bed because the TV goes off.  They play it really loud.  I think they’re both going deaf and don’t want to admit it.  Being old must suck.  I’m sorry, you’re trying to plan and I’m being a smartass like usual.’

‘Humor is a good thing.  I know you’re nervous sweetheart.  I’m going to leave work early.  I’m going to take all of my money out of the bank, so that we can have enough money to live on at least until you turn eighteen.  As soon as you turn eighteen, I would like to marry you.  We can
pay to have your first name changed if you’d like as well, but I would feel ever so much better if you had my last name.’

‘Really?  No, I don’t want you to marry me because my adoptive parents are crazy.’

‘Molli, I realize I have been an absolute idiot and not told you, but do you not know that I love you?  I adore you and always have.  I would be so proud to be your husband.’

‘Oh Ricky, I love you too.  So much.’

‘Those are the most beautiful words I think I’ve ever heard Molli.  But let me think.  Do you believe the Archers would report you missing?  Hang on a second, my boss is coming and I need to explain to him that this is an emergency.’

‘Okay.’

She waited impatiently for Ricky to come back to her.

‘Are you still there Molli?’

‘Yes.’

‘Thank goodness.  My boss understands.  Family is very important to him.  I am so happy to be starting a family with you.  I need to leave here in a minute to make sure that I can still make it to the bank, but let me straighten the rest of this out in my head.’

‘Okay.  So you asked me if the Archers would report me missing.  Yes.  I’d have to let Bethany know that I’m okay somehow and I have grandparents and four uncles too that I have to meet eventually.  They would report me missing, so we gotta be extra careful.’

‘Damn.  I have quite a bit of money stashed away but I do believe I may have to borrow some from my parents.  I’m going to go to the bank, go to the dealership and pay off my car and then go to another lot that lets you buy and pay there and trade in my car.’

‘But you love your car.’

‘My car is only a thing.  You are my love.  It may not be easy for a little while darling, but I promise you that it will be okay.’

‘What about your job and school?’

‘Nothing matters more to me than you and our child.  I can finish school online and I can get another job.  Would you be upset if I asked you to straighten your hair and possibly cut it, maybe even get colored contacts?’

‘No.  I would love to have shoulder length straight hair and I’ve always wanted green eyes.  Oh Ricky, thank you so much.  I think I’m going to cry.’