Tarin had never been so glad to see 5:00 a.m. Stephen was out the door almost to the second the clock struck that hour. Just like every morning, off to the gym, shower and then to the office. Not that she cared but on this day she was more than grateful. The minute she heard the door close and lock, she flew out of bed. She pulled out her suitcase and quickly stuffed in the clothes she wanted. The closet full of long, flowing dresses made her pause; was there any way she could sell those and get some money? It seemed wrong to leave them, not because she’d ever wear them again but because she didn’t want him to have the satisfaction of having them.
The long, plastic-covered gown she hadn’t yet seen hung on the corner of the door. Grabbing it, she laid it on the bed and slowly stripped off the protection. She gasped as it was unveiled. The material was exquisite and she knew it would feel like delicate rose petals brushing over her body but what grabbed her attention was the plunging neckline, front and back. If she were to guess, her belly button would be bare in front and damn near the crack of her butt in back. She held it up. Light was visible through it. It was almost see-through.
“That bas—” She couldn’t believe it. It was similar to what he liked her to wear when they went out—slinky, tight. This one, though, was a lot more revealing and daring, something she would never wear. She wondered if he really did have that promotion or if this was how he thought he’d get it.
In the drawer beside the bed was a pair of scissors, and she stared at them long and hard, unable to believe what she was contemplating. She opened and closed them a few times, finding that she liked the sharp, slicing sound they made. Picking up the dress, she carefully separated the scissor blades and inserted them in the plunging neckline and cut downwards. Then from the bottom she randomly attacked it, slicing upwards to different heights. It wasn’t until a chunk of it flew past her head that she realized what she was doing and what she had done. Her eyes opened wide as she stared in horror at the shreds of material that looked like unwoven threads hanging there. Setting what was left on the blazing red silk comforter she hated, she plunged the scissors through all of it: the dress remains, the comforter, the eight hundred thread count bed sheets and the memory-foam-movement-isolation bed.
She blinked a few times as she looked at what she’d done. Her shoulders sagged in defeat as she realized she had given in to her basic urge—anger, albeit one she’d been suppressing for too long... obviously. Her father’s disappointment immediately came to mind. If he’d been a witness to her display of emotions, he wouldn’t have been able to look her in the face because she’d lowered herself.
Slapping her palms to her cheeks, she pressed hard to force the memories and the guilt to recede. She knew she’d never be able to please the man who’d fathered her, one of the reasons she was in this predicament. She turned her back on the mess. It truly made her sick to think she’d acted that way. And it scared her that she’d lost control. Realizing with a start that time was of the essence, she pushed it away.
On her dresser were three ornately carved jewelry boxes, each loaded with whatever baubles Stephen felt she should wear that week. Grabbing each one, she dumped them into a leather duffel bag. She thought about all the other ones, the more expensive ones he had locked in the safe. They were worth more but she’d never opened the locked compartment and wasn’t sure what kind of security measures he might have employed. What she had taken already should bring at least forty thousand dollars—or so she hoped. She was planning to pay cash for everything, at least for a while.
Fifteen minutes later, she was sure she’d taken all that would help her get some quick money. She was about to close her suitcase when she looked at the closet again. All the clothes she was leaving were worth thousands, if not hundreds of thousands. She hated to leave them for Stephen as he saw them as trophies. Without her in them though, they might not hold the same appeal. Since she had no use for them, she zipped everything and hauled her bags to the front door.
She quickly logged onto her computer, checking for anything important. It might be several days before she was able to log back on. Her future was a mystery. After checking her website and her emails and dealing with a few things, she was tempted to hack Stephen’s account but the few times she had, there hadn’t been anything in there, other than some love letters from his girlfriend, the one he didn’t think she knew about.
He was arrogant enough that he thought he was better than others but it didn’t mean he wasn’t cautious. It dawned on her that she really didn’t know the man she’d married; a fact she’d discovered almost from the moment she said her vows. As soon as the ring was on her finger, he’d hustled her out the door to a swanky hotel for a twenty-four-hour marathon of sex. When he’d finally let her get up, he’d thrown out her whole wardrobe and bought her a brand new one. It hadn’t mattered if she’d liked it.
He’d changed from a sweet, attentive guy, to a demanding, self-centered man. Even with that attitude, some of what he’d been doing had shocked even her. It seemed he’d been selling some of his father’s company secrets. She had no idea what he was really capable of but for a while he’d been a safe haven. It had been nice for the first few months not to have to think, simply to exist. And then there’d been Chance. He’d become her world. She could put up with anything as long as she got to spend her days with him. It was when she realized that Stephen was dictating those moments with her son as well that she knew she had to get out.
A sense of urgency came over her. He’d left an hour before but what if he came back? What if he’d forgotten something? It had never happened before but she knew it could. He had surprised her some days coming home early. She was not going to take the chance that it would be that day when he decided to take time off. Running to her son’s room, she gathered everything—toys, stuffed animals, pictures—that had meaning to him, along with some clothes. Then she awakened him.
Thankfully, the memory from Stephen’s callous behavior did not seem to have any lingering effects. She’d kept Chance away from Stephen for the last few days, which had not been an easy feat.
Chance’s eyes opened, full of the sleepy wonder and then he smiled at her and held out his arms. A smile tugged at her heart as she picked him up and hugged him. The feeling was so right and so intense, she would be more than happy to stay like that for the rest of her life.
Right now though, it was time to get moving.
“Okay bud. We’ve got a big, fun day ahead of us. I need you to get dressed and then we’re going on an adventure.”
As only children can, he went from barely being awake to fired up and ready to play. She swung him into the air. He giggled. The sound was so refreshing and filled her with so much joy, it reminded her of what was really important. His coming into this world might not have been under the best of circumstances but she wouldn’t give him up for anything. She would protect him with her life, which ironically, was what it felt like. She didn’t know if Stephen would make an issue of finding him; she couldn’t see why he would, as he’d never shown an ounce of love or compassion for Chance. In fact, he’d barely even acknowledged him. There was no way she was going to let Stephen have any kind of influence on her son. The thought of Chance turning out like Stephen made her shudder.
No doubt, leaving him wouldn’t go over well but she hoped he’d quickly move on. He seemed completely absorbed by only those things that brought him money or power. It made her wonder again why he had married her. She had a hunch that although he had not wanted to know about her background or meet her family, somehow he knew. Had he known she was the daughter of a hotel magnate? If he had, why hadn’t he used it? Or had he? She’d have guessed love but he dispelled that idea not long after they were married when he let her know she was to be at his beck and call. He was using her for more than eye candy, but she couldn’t figure out for what.
Chance wiggled, snapping her back to the present. She got him cleaned up and was walking to the kitchen with him when her cell phone chimed. She stopped so suddenly she actually jolted her whole body. Fear crawled up her spine and wrapped around her neck, making swallowing almost impossible.
“Again, Mommy.”
She smiled at her son before putting him down, distracting him with his latest toy car.
It’s okay. It’s okay. It’s okay. She chanted to herself. Finally, she was able to take a deep breath and with shaking fingers she picked up her cell phone from the charger by the front door beside her bag. With a quick stab she opened her text messages.
Not home tonight, something came up at work. Back tomorrow night. Buff my shoes again, I want them to shine as bright as you.
Almost gagging, her head dropped back and she found herself staring at the ceiling. The weight of those simple words almost sent her to do his bidding, but it didn’t take long for her to come to her senses. She’d just shined the stupid things. Yet it surprised her how quickly she had also jumped to his whims. Blowing out her breath, she reminded herself that meant she had another day to put between them before he discovered she was gone.