by Jody Pardo
Somehow, the bus ride back seemed quicker than last time, and before I knew it, I was pulling into the station. My car was waiting where I left it, and amazingly, it started right up. My first stop was the post office.
I waited in line for the next teller.
“I'm here to pick up my mail; it’s on hold.”
“May I see your ID, please?” I pulled out my driver’s license from my wallet and handed it to the clerk.
“Is this is the address the mail is on hold for?” she asked pointing to the address on my license.
“Yes, ma’am.”
“One minute, please.” She when the back room to look for my mail. When she returned, she had quite a stack.
“This is all of it. Will you be taking it off hold now?”
“No, I will need to put in a change of address please.” She handed me the form; I filled it out and returned it to her.
“You're going to have to give it about a week to take full effect. Some mail is already in transit here, but it will catch up.”
As I looked through the stack of mail she handed to me, most of it was junk. “I'm not worried; it doesn't look like I missed anything anyway. So I'm sure it'll be fine. Thank you for your help.”
It was midday and there was too much stuff back at the apartment that I had left behind. As I passed the apartment complex, I didn't see Bill’s car, so I stopped in. I walked up the stairs to our entrance and took a deep breath as I put the key in the door, constantly looking over my shoulder. I had to make it quick and just grab as much stuff as I could carry and get out. I didn’t want to run the chance of running into Bill.
I opened the door and stepped inside, giving one last look down on the parking lot. The complex was quiet, and the only sound was my blood rushing through my ears.
The living room looked the same, everything in its place, and I proceeded to the bedroom. I just wanted to get my clothes and get out. I made a beeline for the closet and when I opened it, nothing. Hanger after hanger filled with Bill’s suits. My breath caught in my throat, and my chest tightened. My things were gone. I went to the bedside table and pulled open the drawer. Only the TV remote and some matchbooks for candles were inside. I closed the drawer and the sound of a slamming door outside startled me.
I looked around to make sure everything was as I found it and hurried to the door. I opened the front door, poked my head out, and looked around before hurrying out and closing the door behind me. I ran down the steps to my car and locked the doors once inside. I took a deep breath and tried to stop shaking before turning the key and pulling out of the lot.
There was officially nothing left for me there, and I felt secure in leaving it all behind. I stopped at the Quickie Lube and waited while the mechanics changed all the fluids in my car. It was far from new but it had been reliable. If I was going to drive back to Centerville, I wanted my car running at its best, so an oil change couldn’t hurt. When the mechanics were done, I paid my bill and hit the road. I had one more stop to make. I had to sign some vacation paperwork at the office, and then I could be on my way.
I pulled into the parking lot of my office building. Human resources was on a different floor than my office or Bill’s, so as long as I could get through the lobby and short elevator ride, I was pretty secure I could avoid most colleagues and get in and out quickly. I made my way to the sixth floor and looked around; it was lunchtime. Crap, they might be out to lunch. Marie rounded the corner carrying a stack of crisscross papers in varying soft pastels. She saw me waiting by the front counter.
“Hey, Suzie. How are you feeling?"
"I'm well, thank you. You said to come in when I had a chance to sign some papers?"
“Yes, let me put these copies down and I will grab your file. Come on back.”
I followed her beyond the cubicle divide to her cluttered desk. Marie dumped the stack of papers on an already ominous-looking stack threatening to topple.
“Have a seat. I will be right back.”
I heard the clank of the filing cabinet opening and the subsequent slam of the drawer as Marie retrieved my file. Pictures of children were plastered on every inch of space that was not occupied by a mandatory labor notice or payroll calendar. I smiled at the picture on the top of her computer monitor of Marie and a group of children all making goofy faces.
“Sorry about that. The phone in the front rang,” Marie apologized as she took a seat in her little sanctuary.
“It's all right I was enjoying your photos."
“These two are my daughter and my son. And these goofballs are my grandchildren,” she said, pointing to the picture next to her monitor and the one on top.
“How many do you have?"
“Altogether, six."
“It looks like a lot more,”
“My daughter-in-law has three sisters, and they have children too. I love them all. How is your family doing?"
“They are okay.”
“Sorry, I don't mean to pry. I was just worried about you. I saw Bill the other day and asked how you were doing. He asked how long you'd be able to stay away. I told him I sent along all your vacation information. I found it odd that he wouldn't know, he said you have been busy.”
The sound of his name made me immediately on alert. Bill was asking for me. But he threw away all my stuff. My head buzzed with feverish thoughts and hackles raised with possibilities. He wanted to know how long I could be gone. Maybe he put my stuff in storage. Maybe he figured I was going to be gone that long I didn't need it. No, he erased every trace of me. He hit me.
“Just sign each one of these. I can only authorize one week at time, so each sheet is for one week of vacation.” Marie's voice brought me back to the present. She placed the short pile of forms in front of me. Marie extended a pen in her hand, and I was forced to focus on the task at hand. Taking the pen from her hand, I signed each form securing the four months to figure out what to do with my life. I clicked the pen to the papers before handing them back.
“Thank you, Marie. I appreciate all your help. You have my number if you need anything more.”
“Take care of yourself, Suzie.” The phone on her desk rang, and she promptly answered it with her canned greeting. I left with a wave, and she waved back as she helped whoever was on the line.
With the paperwork signed, I had no reason to return to the office for the rest of my leave. I felt like a huge weight was off my shoulders as I got into the elevator. The doors opened, and I stepped out into the lobby and looked in my purse for my car keys. Of course, they would find the deepest darkest recess of my bag, and I had to dig deep to get them. I wasn’t paying attention and walked straight into a suit.
“Oh, I’m sorry.” I looked up and was face to face with Bill.
“I was wondering when your ass was going to decide to show up,” he said through gritted teeth as he grabbed my arms.
“Let me go!” I hissed at him as he tightened his grip.
Another colleague came up behind him, slapping him on the back, “Hey, Bill, you ready? Meeting in fifteen minutes. Oh, hey, Suzie! How are you feeling? Are you back?” Tom, the junior executive said with a smile.
“No, not yet, Tom, but thanks for asking. I was just leaving,” I said over Bill’s shoulder shooting daggers at him with my eyes. I tried to free myself from his tight grasp and winced as he squeezed even harder.
“Are you okay?” Tom asked with concern as pain shot across my face.
“She is always falling down. Really, you have to be more careful, babe, before you really hurt yourself,” Bill interjected. He released his grip and rubbed up and down both my arms.
“Come on, man. Showtime in … twelve minutes … and you know the elevator is slow as molasses. Gotta go. Nice seeing you, Suzie. Feel better!” Tom said with another slap to Bill’s back, and they both walked to the elevators with Tom yammering on about their sales pitch presentation in the next few minutes.
I stood in the lobby, stunned, as the elevator doors closed behi
nd them. I released the breath that was stuck in my tight chest and bent over with my hands on my knees to take a few more steadying breaths. The elevator dinged, and I was on high alert and ran through the front entrance without looking back until I reached my car in the lot. I fumbled with the keys in the car door as I couldn’t stop my hands from shaking. I finally got the key in the hole, unlocked, crawling into the driver’s seat. I locked the door and rested my head on the wheel.
The ‘what ifs” raced through my brain of all the possible horrible scenarios that might have happened should Tom have not shown up right then. As I sat in my car trying to calm my racing pulse, I blinked past my welling tears. The worst was over. I was done. I never had to come back again.
I started my car taking once last look around. Leaving Dallas in my rearview mirror, I drove to my future.
Suzie
I took a slow ride back to Oklahoma from Texas. My poor car was not used to long drives, and it already had over 100,000 miles on it, so I was doing the speed limit and taking my time. It felt good to be behind the wheel again. It would make things a lot easier when I got back to town because I wouldn’t have to depend on anyone to get me anywhere anymore.
Kelli came off the porch and met me at the car. “Hey, you’re back. Need any help with anything?” I walked with her empty-handed back toward the main house.
“Nope, just got my purse and some mail.”
“I thought you were going to get your stuff?” she said, confused.
“Yeah, well it’s gone. There was nothing left.”
“What do you mean, all gone?”
“He got rid of it. I went back and there was nothing, not even a toothbrush.”
“Oh, sweetie, I’m so sorry. Come on inside and tell me what happened.” I followed her inside to the kitchen where she started pulling out lunch meat and cheese from the fridge.
“Well, I have been gone over a month already. I don’t know what I expected.”
“You expected him to be a human being, but I guess that was giving him much credit. But now we have an excuse to go shopping! We will hook you up!”
“I suppose it is truly a fresh start. All I have is whatever I brought with me.”
“Sometimes it’s best to start over fresh anyways.”
She put her arm around me and gave me a side hug, and I winced in pain.
“Are you all right? Did you hurt your arm?”
I lifted up my sleeve, and the outlines of Bill’s fingers were visible around my bicep and wrist.
“What the hell, Suzie? Who did this?”
I felt defeated. Kelli never questioned the bruises on my face when I arrived, but now there would be no avoiding a direct question.
“It was Bill. I ran into him, literally, at the office.”
“Holy hell, are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere else?” She looked me over to every part that was visible.
“No, it’s just my arms. He grabbed me, hard. We were in public so it ended there.”
“Well, thank heavens! No man should ever lay his hands on a woman except in love. I would rather see a wall full of holes than a bruise on a woman,” she said sternly.
Mike and Max came into the kitchen at Kelli’s raised voice to see what was the commotion.
“What’s wrong? Is everything okay?” Mike asked, concerned. Mike was usually very quiet, and the deep bass of his voice soothed me, like a low growl.
“Look at this, Mike. Look at what that animal did to her!” Kelli was furious, and I didn’t want them to make a big deal out of it.
“It’s nothing. I bruise really easily. I get marked up all the time.” I lifted up my pants leg to show a fading bruise on my shin. “See, I did this just last week on the coffee table.”
Mike lifted my sleeve again to take a look as Max looked on from behind Kelli.
“That is not ‘nothing’. Hell, I bet we can pull fingerprints off this mark if we tried. Who did this? Did you report this?” Mike urged on.
“No, I just came home. I don’t plan on going back, so I don’t have to worry about running into him anymore.”
“We should still report it, right Mike?” Kelli looked to her husband for guidance.
“Please, just let it go,” I pleaded. “It’s over, and I never have to see him again.” Kelli stared at me looking for any doubts why she shouldn’t drag my ass down to the police station and file a report. I stood firm, and her facial expression slowly softened.
“Well, are you hungry, then? I have some biscuits. I can fix you something.”
“Lunch would be great, Kelli”
“We are headed out to south fence. Call me on the walkie if you need anything.” Mike kissed Kelli on the forehead and left with Max in tow.
I hadn’t spoken to Max since I yelled at him at work. I wasn’t in the mood to deal with him right then, but couldn’t help but feel awkward to him bearing witness to my injury. He didn’t say anything, and why would he? I was sure Jenny was happy she had her man back. I remembered his kiss and the scratch of his stubble on my cheek and my hand drifted to my lips.
I might as well get that thought out of my head. That was a dead end street. Kelli placed a plate with a sandwich and some coleslaw before me and I dug in. In all the excitement of the day, I realized I hadn’t eaten anything all day, and Kelli’s lunch fixings were all I needed to focus on right then.
Max
It had been more than three weeks since the last time I spoke to Suzie. I saw her at a distance at Aunt Kelli’s, and I found myself making excuses to go out there. My property was on the outskirts of theirs, and I really didn’t have to enter from their ranch. I had my own private drive but I was drawn to Suzie and I could see her silhouette in the windows as I passed the guest house.
I couldn’t un-see her injuries. I didn’t know who caused them, and all I wanted to do was protect her, but she wouldn’t talk to me. A man should never lay hands on a woman, and just the idea that Suzie was in pain made my blood boil. Things started to make sense. When we first met, she kept her distance from me, but it just wasn’t me, it was everyone. She rarely touched anyone. At first, I was self-conscious and my own insecurity masked her lack of body contact. The first time I reached out to her, I thought she just didn’t like me. Memories of our night together at the barn raced across my brain, and I couldn’t stop the erection brewing in my jeans.
I couldn’t blame her for not talking to me. Jenny was a cunt, and I could only imagine exactly what she might have said to her. I didn’t know why she even cared what happened between Suzie and me anyway; Jenny got what she wanted. Ever since Suzie arrived into town, I hadn’t even looked in her direction. Besides, I was sure Jenny was well into the double digit, if not three digit counts of soldiers that had warmed her bed and filled her pussy since the night I tied her up.
Pounding away at the framework for my new house, I worked through my frustrations. With each board, it seemed like a plan was laid out as my base floor came together. I would have to get some help to raise the roof, but for now I was happy to work alone and build my dream house. It didn’t look like much except an expanse of two by fours and sheet rock, but in my mind’s eye, it was paradise. The sheet rock and insulation was an easy task, and I had my guys rock it out as soon as I made the call. First, I wanted to make sure I laid the means for a well-wired house so I wouldn’t ever have to worry about finding an outlet or a switch. I was pouring into my house every frustration I had ever found in the builds of others’ homes. I could see exactly where everything would go and every possible scenario that I might need electricity somewhere.
I shored up the next plank and pressed the lever on the nail gun, and it clicked in protest. Out of nails. Leaning back against what would be my bedroom wall’s corner, I tried to think of my options. I would have to grab more nails. No two ways about it because hammering nails one by one just sucked. I closed my eyes, rested my head back against the wall in progress as Billy Idol’s “Rebel Yell” screamed through the speakers of my tru
ck more, more, more.
I need more nails.
Suzie
Having my car back was a godsend. I loved being able to come and go freely. The weekend meant another auction, and Kristi called me late the night before when the cattle were delivered. The day would be a busy getting all the paperwork processed, cattle branded and accounted for, and ready for auction. Some of the calves were already sold, and those were the ones we needed to get out the door first, once the paperwork was sorted.
Twisting in front of the mirror one last time, I checked my appearance in the full-length mirror of my bedroom. I smiled as the Wranglers hugged my butt and thighs before flaring slightly at the bottom over my boots. My two braids fell just past my shoulders keeping my hair out of the way during the day. I grabbed my hat and headed out the door.
I missed my Beetle. People must not have seen too many around there because driving down the town streets, kid after kid would punch their friend. I couldn’t help but chuckle. Maybe they had their own form of Slug Bug out there, something different, but each punch I witnessed reminded me some things were just immortal.
It was still pretty quiet in town that morning at nine o’ clock. I pulled into my parking spot at Stocks and Plots and crossed the street to grab some coffee. There were just a couple diners eating their meals at the coffee shop when I stopped off for my morning brew.
“Soy milk, Suzie, right?” the waitress asked.
“That’s right. Thank you.” I peeked through the rodeo flyers on the counter as she prepared my cup.
“Hey, one of the guys was in here looking for you.”
“Oh, I’m sure, cattle came in overnight.”
“Is that right? I better make some more settings and another pot of coffee then.”
“I’m headed over there now. You know how these guys get. I’m sure he is wanting to be first in line to pick up his beef.”
“He didn’t look like a hand. Anyway, I told him he could find you at the office or out on the ranch,” she said as she pressed firmly down upon the coffee cup lid and slid it across the counter to me.