Stealing Grace (37 page)

He genuinely wanted to know.

“Yes, I feel safe here. I’m sorry. I just...” She worked to slow her breathing.

He let go and walked over to the box, pulling his pocket knife out and slicing through the tape. Elena knew exactly what it was now and felt utterly stupid for her over reaction.

He pulled the painting out and laid it against the wall by the kitchen, stepping back to get a better look.

“I thought you might like one of your own since it reminded you of your grandmother.”

She cried again, but for a different reason. She walked over to hug him and sank into his chest in embarrassment and thanks. He had just been trying to be sweet and she ruined it. He had hoped she would open it before he got home and be thrilled when he got there.

“I’m sorry about that. Thank you, I love it,” she said earnestly.

He nodded and looked down to her eye level, looking somewhat pleased but also worried.

“Good. I’m glad you do.” He looked a little uncomfortable and proceeded carefully. “Did you make a doctors appointment today?”

“No, but I will first thing in the morning. I’m sorry ok? I really do love it. Thank you.” She smiled, thinking of a new thought and rubbed his chest. “My grandma would have really liked you, you know?”

“Oh, I’m sure.” He laughed and made his best old lady accent. “‘So kids. How did you meet?’ ‘Well grandma, he kidnapped me from the street and we just fell in love.’”

They both laughed and he kissed her hair and became serious again.

“I don’t want you to be scared here. I want you to feel completely safe. I’m going to ask the landlord about letting me install a security alarm, ok?”

“Ok, sounds good.” She wouldn’t argue with that one.

She was scared and skittish. An alarm might make her feel better, she thought, after all.

* * *

The next week, they had an alarm installed, paid for by Alex of course. The landlord laughed at his request advising them with these parting but allowing words.

“Security systems in this town are useless, but it’s your dime and you leave it when you leave.”

Elena finally got in to see the busy small town doctor, the only doctor in town, 2 weeks after making the appointment since it wasn’t an immediate illness or emergency. She had explained fatigue, severe hunger and crazy moods swings. She also advised she’s taken a pregnancy test and that it had been negative.

The doctor took some blood but seeing how the hospital was in the next town, he’d had to wait a couple days for results. He told her he thought it was due to exhaustion and stress.

Elena explained to him that she was neither stressed, anymore, nor exhausted and it must be something else, however he wouldn’t hear of it and sent her home with a prescription for ‘quality family time and a lot of relaxation’, and of course, plenty of water.

Elena wanted to hit that old coot. He had no idea what her life was like and how happy she was with Alex.
Just another unhappy housewife, right? No!
Why does everyone always assume you’re just unhappy and that must be what’s wrong with you? He had even made a jab at her job.

“Cutting flowers instead of receiving them must be depressing,” he had said in his superior tone.

Ha! Idiot!
Surely she would not be returning to him. Meanwhile, Amy was having to travel the thirty minutes out of town to see her OBGYN. Most of the time Roger tried to take off work to take her there, but sometimes she went by herself and somehow always came back in one piece.

Elena laughed to herself, thinking Roger’s paranoid attitude must have rubbed off on her.

They had dinner together often. Elena and Alex had been to a few yard sales and to her pleasure, Alex loved it. He had found all kinds of things and their house was slowly but surely becoming a home.

Between that and the furniture store they had acquired a dining room table, dresser, lamps and living room suit, among other things. It was fun starting over, she thought. Roger and Amy were on the same wave length and slowly making their home a nice place to live.

Amy had really blossomed in the past weeks. Her moods had calmed down some and the morning sickness was gone completely. Her and Elena had gone maternity shopping together as she no longer fit a single item of clothing, in fact she wore one of Roger’s shirt to the store that day. Elena laughed thinking it was hilarious.

* * *

The day was dragging, considerably so. She watched as the clocked mocked her. Mr. Pete had put that blasted clock right in front of the desk to taunt her all day, she knew it. It was only 11:30 in the morning, yet it felt like it should be after supper already.

She was hungry, irritated with nothing to do. Mr. Pete was out making deliveries and Mrs. Pete, whatever her name was, was in her usual spot in the back of the store blaring the television shows at top volume and hadn’t moved an inch.
Must be time for Matlock. I swear I know every old show theme song better than anyone now.

She had cauterized and PH’ed and stacked vases and replaced gift wrap and tissue paper and foil. She even swept the store, twice, and wiped the entrance door down with window cleaner. Mr. Pete usually wasn’t gone this long. She wasn’t really ready for him to come back anyway. She didn’t like standing around with nothing to do. Made her feel useless, and she didn’t wanna be useless around her boss. Suddenly the door chime.
Oh a customer. Thank you!

“Hello, there. Can I help you with something?”

The tall man just stood there, half hiding behind the hydrangeas.

“Is there something I can help you with?” Elena asked again, a little louder but still polite.

He finally spoke and stepped a little closer.

“Elena, right?”

“I’m sorry?”

“Your name. Your name is Elena, right?” he said and stepped another inch closer.

“Yes, can I help you?”

“Maybe... What’s a good flower to send to someone’s funeral? Or a plant maybe?” He now stood directly in front of her by the counter, looking her dead in the eyes.

He was tall and tan with his long hair pulled back in a ponytail. His voice was deep and gruff.

“Carnations are a good funeral flower. Would you like to look at some arrangements?”

“No. Well, not yet. So. Are you married?” he asked in a low deep voice.

“Yes, I am,” she answered firmly.

“Happily?”

“Very. Is there something flower related I can help you with, sir?” She was trying extra hard to not be rude but this guy was making it difficult.

“Darn, isn’t that just the luck? All the...good ones are taken.” He leaned on the counter on his elbows towards her and she retreated back to lean against the wall by the register. “You seem jumpy? Are you afraid of something? Waiting for someone perhaps?”

What is this guy’s problem?

“I’m sorry, who are you?”

“Juan. Juan Rodriquez. Pleasure.” He reached out to shake her hand and she did so, reluctantly.

“Ok, Juan. Can I ask why you’re asking me all these questions?”

“General curiosity? Do you not get approached often?”

“No, not really, and especially not after I’ve already told them that I’m happily married.”

“So Elena, what’s your husband like?”

“How did you know my name?”

“You didn’t answer my question.”

“You didn’t answer mine.”

He pointed to her shirt, almost touching her chest, and she jumped back prepared to grab whatever was handy for defense. She felt the harsh poke of scissors in her finger and grabbed them in her fingers.

“Name tag! Name tag,” he said hastily, sensing her reaction and put up his hands in defense but he smiling, clearly enjoying her reaction.

“Oh yeah, right. Look, I don’t wanna get in trouble for chit chatting. Is there something I can get for you?”

“You can answer my question. What is your husband, Alex, like?”

“Wonderful. Why?”

“Still just curious. I’m taking a poll of sorts. I wanna see why women do the things they do. Why some women stay with some men while other’s leave, how much can they take before they crack under the pressure? You know, things like that.”

“I’m afraid I can’t really help you with that one. My husband isn’t anything I would want to be away from. I stay because I want to.”

“Yes, but what if he were to do something terrible and... unspeakable? Could you stay with him?”

“Depends on what you’re talking about, I guess.”

“Let’s say he was involved in something like...human trafficking.” As soon as he finished that last syllable she froze staring at him.

Her breathing was rapid and definitely noticeable. She could feel the pink in her cheeks and her lips go pale and numb.

“Why are you asking me this?” she breathed afraid of knowing the truth.

Had someone found out their past? Had the community hired someone? Was someone playing a joke? They hadn’t shown their faces in the news for the coverage of the trial. He spoke, crossing over her running thoughts.

“Why not? Just curious. Why would a woman who was stolen, for lack of a better word, stay with the man who stole her? What would it take to break that man? Maybe he would have a change of heart. Maybe she tricked him into helping her like the evil succubus she is. Maybe all women deserve a little lesson in humility to be of any good use.” His voice was raising and becoming more agitated as he spoke and Elena was about as scared as she thought humanly possible.

Her hands shook behind her back with the scissors she had grabbed earlier in her plight for a weapon from his touch. She could feel her knuckles turning white from her grasp.

“I think you should...leave now. My boss will hear you from the back and call the cops.”

“I know he’s not here you stupid girl. Why do you think
I
am? And your precious Alex isn’t here to help you either. What to do, what to do? Are you going to try to tailor my shirt with those scissors?”

She gasped as he spoke and fell back into the wall.

This is it. This is not a joke. He’s gonna kill me.

“Stupid girl! Did you really think you would get away with it? Did your stupid husband think he could? Did you think it was just a few girls you were saving? Fools! You have no idea what you’ve done and the reign of horrors you’ve brought down on yourselves now.” He was glaring at her and leaning further on the counter. “We have eyes and ears everywhere.” He was yelling at her with his balled fist beating on the counter with ever sentence end, just as Mr. Pete came through the door.

Oh God no! He’ll kill him too!

“What’s going on here, Elena? Young fella, I think you should leave. What are you thinking talking to my girl like that? Go on, get.” He paid no mind and kept walking and mumbling as he talked and started putting things away that were in his arms.

“See you around, Elena,” the mystery man whispered and flashed her a devil’s smile as he slipped out the door and Mr. Pete still talking his gibberish the whole time.

Elena didn’t hear him either, she was making mental notes of the mans face and voice and the things he said. He must be someone that the community had hired.

So even jail wouldn’t stop the monsters.

As she ran through the conversation in her mind one thing stuck out more than anything.
He knew Alex’s name. I never said his name. Oh. This wasn’t some prank. They know. They know everything. They are gonna kill us. We have to leave, again.

After apologizing profusely to Mr. Pete and telling him what she could about the situation and why she had to leave. That she was involved in a federal case and was a witness and her cover had been compromised. He acted like she was speaking Italian, not understanding a word and then that turned into anger.

“Girly, you keep your lame excuses to yourself. I thought I hired you for the long haul, not a few weeks for you to waste my time! Just go on and get. I’ll mail your last paycheck, go on.”

He was mad and it irked Elena because he wouldn’t listen. He thought she was making it all up, lying. As she walked out the door, checking both ways of the sidewalk for the mystery man she pulled out her cell and dialed Alex.

Voicemail. She dialed Roger and Amy with the same results, leaving no one a message for fear of their reaction, she thought it best to talk in person so no one would freak out and they could rationally all come to a solution.

The end result would have to be leaving again. Elena knew that but could they really just keep moving, waiting for the next hired man to come and kill them?

She walked down the street, crossing at the bank and walking the 11 blocks to Alex’s office. She had never been up there before but after trying his number once more thought it best to head up and interrupt him, hoping he wouldn’t get into trouble or be angry with her. Though at this point, it wouldn’t matter as they’d have to leave anyway.

The walk was brutal. It was blazing hot in the midday sun and she hadn’t had lunch or breakfast, as she had been running late, nor anything to drink all day. The pavement under her seemed to blow hot air right into her bones and she could feel the heat through the soles of her shoes.

By the time she got to Alex’s office building, she was drenched in sweat, her heart was erratic and fuzzy feeling and her hands and feet were numb and tingling.

The stairs we’re musty and hot and winding. Alex told her his office was on the third floor. She made it, barely, but was panting and sluggish as she pulled frantically on the heavy door with a big black cracked number three.

Her head spinning, she managed to pull open the door. As soon as she felt the air conditioned air on her face, that was the last thing she remembered before the aching pain in her face.