Chapter Thirty-two
Zuri
After awaking from my power nap, I had to hit the ground running in Tionne’s absence. As much as I wanted to wait for her, I knew my window of opportunity was small. Jason would be home in less than three hours. Therefore, I had to get going. “Shit,” I said, suddenly remembering that I didn’t have a car. Thinking fast, I grabbed my phone and dialed Lyric.
“Hey, this is your girl Lyric. I’m unavailable at the moment. Leave me a message, and I’ll call you back as soon as I’m able. Have a great day and remember that I love you.”
“Hey, Lyric, it’s me. I was calling you for a ride. If you’re free, call me back. Love you too, girl.” I ended the call with a smile. My girl Lyric was a firm believer in saying she loved you at the end of every call to all her family and friends. I used to think it was strange before she explained her reasoning.
“Girl, people don’t last forever, so you never want to miss the opportunity to say I love you,” Lyric would always say. She was the reason I now said it all the time as well.
After calling Tionne twice, I finally gave up and grabbed the hotel phone to dial out.
“Front desk. This is Sarah.”
“Hi, Sarah, can you please call a metro car for me?” I said while slipping into my shoes.
“There is actually one out front already.”
“Good. I’ll be right down.” Grabbing my purse from the desktop, I ended the call and flew out the door.
The entire ride home had me nervous and sick to my stomach. There were so many questions weighing heavy on my mind that it was becoming hard to think. I knew I was making the best decision for myself and Jelly, but somehow I didn’t feel right about it. I felt like a criminal sneaking into my own home, stealing my belongings, and ultimately kidnapping my daughter. Speaking of Jelly, I wondered how my actions would affect her. It wasn’t fair to keep her away from Jason, but right now I had to do what I had to do.
“Missus, I said we’re here.” The driver of the metro car sat idling in my driveway. “Would you like me to wait for you?”
“Um, no. I’m good,” I said before handing him a $20 tip. The bill for the service had been added to the account we already had with them.
“Have a good day,” the driver said as I stepped out and closed the door.
Just as I approached the door, it popped open, and I jumped. “Hi, Mrs. Armstrong. I wasn’t expecting you back for a few days.” Helen, the nanny, greeted me with a smile. She was holding Jelly, who immediately reached for me when she saw me.
“There was a change of plans.” I took hold of my daughter and kissed her soft lips. “Where is Sylvia?”
“She just left for her daily walk around the neighborhood.” Helen closed the door and followed me into the house.
“I need you to take Jelly upstairs to get dressed. Then go to the MKX in the garage and strap her in. Stay with her in the car until I come out there, okay?” I kissed Jelly once more before handing her over.
“Yes, ma’am.” Helen didn’t ask any questions, which I liked about her. She simply nodded her understanding, then flew up the stairs. I raced up behind her as fast as I could. My side was still hurting, but the adrenaline racing through my veins had me going.
The minute I hit the top step, I entered my bedroom and went over to my side of the bed. After lifting the sheets, I ran my hand along the edges until I found the slit I’d cut years ago. It was one of my hiding spots that housed a few stacks of money. Hastily, I retrieved what was in there and tossed them on top of the bed. Next, I went over to the closet and grabbed two Dooney & Bourke duffle bags. One of them was empty, and the other served as another one of my hiding spots. It too was filled partially with money. One thing I learned a long time ago was to not trust the bank with all of your dough. After tossing the money on the bed into the bag, I took both bags into my daughter’s room. Helen had just finished putting her shoes on. Jelly was trying to eat them while sitting in her car seat.
“Helen, can you take her stroller downstairs for me?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Thank you.” I nodded before grabbing Jelly’s diapers, wipes, toys, and a few articles of clothing, then tossing them in the empty bag. Glancing down at my watch, I saw I was making good time, or so I thought until I heard the front door open and Helen address Jason. “Fuck.” Right at this moment, I could’ve passed out, but I knew if I stopped now, I’d be here forever.
“Zuri.” The sound of Jason calling my name locked my bowels up instantly.
Without responding, I zipped up the bag and grabbed the other one and Jelly’s car seat in one swift motion.
“Didn’t you hear me calling you?”
“No, I didn’t,” I replied before turning to face him.
“When did you come back? What happened?” Jason walked into the room, then stood behind me.
“Tionne left her passport, and Lyric never showed up.” Finally, I turned around slowly.
“Where are you going?” He looked down at the bags and the car seat.
“Well, I thought I would take Jelly to spend a few nights with Aunt T,” I lied with a straight face. “She’s been having a tough time lately and was really looking forward to our girl time.”
“You must think I’m stupid.” Jason’s jaw muscle clenched. “I saw you on the surveillance tape packing your money.” With a closed fist, my husband rocked my face, sending me stumbling backward. I’d completely forgotten about the nearly invisible cameras we had throughout our home.
“Are you leaving me?”
“Yes, Jason. I’m leaving and I’m never coming back. Fuck you and your money.” I tried to barge past him, but he caught me with a left hook and then a right. Losing my balance, I dropped both of the duffle bags and Jelly’s car seat to the floor, then hit the floor myself. Just as Jason lifted his right foot to kick me, I crawled over to his left leg and bit him so hard that I was sure I drew blood.
“Bitch.” He kneeled down to check out his leg. When he did, I snatched the lamp off the table near the rocking chair where I sometimes read to Jelly, and I broke it across his face.
By now, Jason was seething, but I’d bought enough time to stand and grab Jelly and one duffle bag and make it into the hallway.
“You will never leave me, Zuri!” Jason yelled from the bedroom.
“Fuck you. I’m done.” Although my body was weak, my feet kept moving toward the staircase.
“The only way you’re leaving is in a body bag. Do you hear me?” Jason was now in the hallway behind me. “Do you hear me? In a fucking body bag.” He flew toward me just as I looked back. The fury in his eyes had replaced the brown pupils I once knew to be kind and gentle. My husband was possessed and completely unaware of what he was doing when he tackled me at the exact time that I approached the edge of the stairs.
“No!” Sylvia screamed from the foyer.
I felt myself falling and watched in slow motion as she and Helen covered their eyes in horror when Jelly and I both went tumbling down the spiral staircase with force. Desperately, I tried to protect my daughter as she screamed for dear life, but there was nothing I could do. The sound of my head hitting the hard tile was loud enough for me to know that I was bleeding and hurt pretty bad. Finally, my body reached the foyer. By then, I couldn’t see or hear anything. I couldn’t move either.