Terrified, I hadn’t even noticed what was in his hand until the cold metal pressed against my neck. Instantly I knew I was in a life or death situation. I shrieked.
He saw my date drop me off and in a fit of rage broke into my apartment. Where were my roommates? On a Friday night, there was no telling.
“Do you want to become a Lifetime special?” he hissed and I froze. “Who was that that you came home with?” He fumbled with the zipper on his jeans.
“How could you do this to me? How? I love you, and you break my heart over and over,” he howled digging the knifepoint into my neck.
I screamed again.
“Shut up. Do you see what you’re doing to me?” This is your entire goddamn fault.”
I struggled to get free, and that only infuriated him further. He slammed his elbow into my esophagus causing me to cough and sputter. Dark spots formed in my vision. I kicked, but the lack of space prevented them from having any effect on him.
“Stop squirming, you know I’ll use this knife.” The venom in his voice made me acutely aware he wasn’t lying. The point of the knife digging into my neck reassured me I would die that night if I couldn’t get out from under that cold blade. In his haste, he let go of one of my arms and I reached for the nearest thing. My shampoo bottle was on the corner of the tub. I squirted it at him as hard as I could.
The knife hit the porcelain tub with a clang. “You bitch. It’s in my eyes!” He let go of me to tend his burning eyes. I sprinted from the room and locked myself in one of my roommate’s bedrooms.
Naked, wet, and shaking uncontrollably, I dialed 9-1-1.
I tossed restlessly and pulled the pillow over my head to hide from the memories.
Chapter Sixteen
The Griffith Observatory sat on the side of a mountain overlooking the sprawling expanse of Hollywood. Jocelyn and I were going to forget our problems and enjoy the weekend taking in some tourist attractions. A breeze kept my hair dancing around my face and my skin cooled on the hot summer day. My phone rang while we were on the observation deck guessing the names of the buildings below. I answered without checking the caller ID, knowing it could only be one person.
Andrew texted me earlier in the day with a pouty face and “lonely without you.” He also helped me plan our sightseeing girls’ weekend.
Dan’s voice boomed on the other end of the phone. “Hey, why haven’t you sent the damn papers back, or at least respond to my email?”
“Hello to you too, Dan.” Knowing the email he was referring to, I grimaced. Truthfully with everything that’d happened over the week, I hadn’t even opened it yet.
“Look, I can’t wait until you whimsically decide to come home before we start the divorce. I started the procedure and sited irrevocable differences and abandonment. Just sign the papers and send them back so we can get this over with.”
Not one to let me enjoy a single moment of solitude, he was right on cue with this call. “Is your whore getting impatient?” I spat. I honestly don’t know what kept me from reading over the papers. Maybe I wanted to forget about him for a few days.
“Don’t be a bitch. Just tell me you agree and get the papers back to me,” he huffed. “Well, do you agree?”
My woman’s intuition told me something was off. He was being too persistent. “I’m not agreeing to anything until I read what you sent.”
“Jesus Marissa, it’s a simple divorce, we don’t have children, just say you agree.”
“I’ll look at it now and call you back.” Annoyed, and without waiting for a response, I hung up the phone and scrolled to his email.
What was on the screen made me laugh out loud and cause Jocelyn to jump at my sudden mood swing.
“What is it?” She looked at me with a deep V set between her eyes.
“Nothing. He’s being a sneaky bastard, that’s all, but he’s not very good at it.” I hit Redial and Dan picked up. “In your dreams, buddy. Do you really think I’m going to give you our house? I haven’t missed a payment on it, and I certainly haven’t abandoned it. I’m out of town for work. I also pay more of the mortgage than you.”
“I think it’s only fair, you abandoned us,” he began.
“What have you done with my dog, Dan?” I hadn’t been worried until that moment.
“I’m not a heartless bastard. He’s right here waiting for you to come home.”
Relief washed over me. “No, just a cheating, thieving bastard.” I’m not sure what caused me to provoke his wrath but I felt I held the upper hand now. “How about I counter with your infidelities, take the house, and have the judge grant me alimony?”
“What!” He shrieked so loud Jocelyn could hear. “A judge would never grant you all that.”
“Actually, I believe a judge will gladly grant me all of that after I show them all the proof that you’re a cheating bastard. We can do this the easy way, leave it as irrevocable differences only, and the house goes to me, and you are spared alimony and the humiliation of explaining—” There was a click and the line went dead.
“Mari, that sounded serious, are we going to be homeless?” she whispered as I glared at the phone.
“Nah, he’ll come to his senses. He knows I’m right.” My confident grin seemed to relax her. “Let’s get out of here and take one of those ‘Homes of the Stars’ tours you want to do.”
****
“Are we going to be okay, Mari?” Jocelyn appeared in the bathroom mirror next to me. Her doe eyes stared at me, wide and unsure.
My hand stopped mid-brush in my hair and I turned and hugged her. “Yeah, we have each other now.”
“I sure know how to pick ’em don’t I?” She glanced in the mirror and lowered her head.
“I fell for him once, too, and then married a cheater. Don’t beat yourself up about it. You never told me why Ray spent the night in jail though.”
She coughed deliberately. “He claimed he was only taking a piss in a bush.” She paused and shifted her weight from one foot to the other. I waited for her to continue, as her porcelain skin flushed red then she turned and walked away. I was barely able to hear the next words that came out of her mouth. “The fifteen year old girl claims he cornered her and jerked off, trying to get her to help him.”
“What?” I shrieked. “How the hell did he only spend a night in jail for that?”
“They didn’t believe Mr. Stallings’ son could be a pervert. The lawyers twisted the story to make it look like she wanted a moment of fame and blackmail money. I’m pretty sure they paid her off as well.”
“Did you believe him?”
She grimaced. “Did you really believe Dan when he said he would never cheat on you again? I mean, you always said you would never stay with a guy who cheated.”
“I wanted to. I kept waiting for that moment when I’d believe him and the hurt would go away.”
“Me too,” she whispered. Our eyes met, pain reflected in both, in that moment it was evident we would both be okay.
****
Andrew approached me on Monday while the production crew was repositioning the cameras for a few shots from the opposite angle. I stood on my marker glancing over the sides for the very next scene. With his back toward Jocelyn who was standing ten feet away watching the filming on the small director screen, he leaned in to whisper in my ear. “Someone called my phone several times last night. I believe it may have been Jocelyn’s husband looking for her already.”
Relief washed over me that he had the foresight to let us use his phone to call her parents. I was also thankful for that annoying security feature Andrew had on his phone prompting you to state your name before it would connect the call.
Raymond already had a Los Angeles phone number to track her down with though, the brief sense of security I had vanished. My world began to spin and I felt the color drain from my face. Andrew reached out a hand to steady me. Was bringing her here the right thing to do?
“He can’t find her here. She’s safe with me, right?”
Anxiety knotted my stomach. It was only a matter of minutes before fear would choke me. Would he be able to find her, and if he did, who would suffer his wrath? The fear that drove me into hiding was my guiding force to save her. Until this moment, I hadn’t thought my own safety could be at risk. I was too busy protecting my friend. The pages in my hand shook. Maybe I wasn’t as smart as I thought. Could we have done something different in bringing her here? Did I overlook some detail that he would catch onto and find us?
Andrew soothed me as best he could without being conspicuous to the others. “No one could be safer in such a situation.”
His attempt to console me was precious, but I wasn’t convinced. As hard as I tried to smile back at him, I couldn’t even force it. He brushed my shoulder—a very friendly gesture—as he walked away.
My dear friend had that same awestruck look on her face as I did the first day I was on location. She was having a blast watching the filming and crew scurry around to the barking sound of the director’s orders. She was able to escape her personal hell in the fantasy world of a movie set, at least for a few hours. Even if it was only a temporary mental escape, it was relief nonetheless. Seeing her joy reaffirmed what I was doing was the right thing, even if I was putting myself in danger as well.
Later that day, as we were wrapping up shooting, Andrew approached me again. Twice in one day? Why that’s almost as good as twice in one night. A devilish smirk spread across my face that stopped him in his tracks. He cocked his head to the side as if assessing the situation before deciding it was safe to recommence approaching me. Some of his friends were taking a weekend trip to Las Vegas, he explained.
“I believe you said you’d never been to the city of sin, would you and your friend want to join me?”
“That’s probably not the best idea. I’m sure she won’t feel up to partying so soon,” I said. In all honesty, the last time I’d gone anywhere with him, I’d completely thrown unnecessary drama into my life by sleeping with him.
“I think that’s what she needs, it’ll literally keep her mind off what’s happened to her,” he retorted. “Plus you’re not her bloody mum, you have to give her some breathing room and allow her to make some of her own decisions.”
I shook my head. That wasn’t what she needed. She could never see Andrew and me interacting when inebriated. I couldn’t even begin to count the ways that could go wrong.
“Why don’t you go find an extra tonight? You know they are leaving in two days. We’ll be done shooting the fight scene.” I tried to be understanding and offer him an alternative to not being with me. Even though the thought of him with anyone else made my insides coil tighter than a spring.
“Are you serious?” His cheeks burned red as he scolded me. “Marissa, I don’t want that. I got everything I want, and I intend to not screw it up. How could you even suggest something as preposterous as that?” His fuming caused his voice to raise an octave and exaggerated his British accent.
“I’m sorry, I just…” Surely he knew with Jocelyn here we couldn’t continue to behave how we had been—he’d said it himself. I thought I had him figured out. “I’m so confused.”
“That makes two of us,” he said rather gruffly.
Jocelyn, on the other hand, stood staring at us like she missed some pivotal point in a plot. If she only knew how much she really had missed.
Anne bounced up beside us. “So are you two coming this weekend?”
I started to object but Jocelyn interjected. “Going where?”
Anne’s eyes gleamed with excitement, and I knew from experience it could be contagious. Jocelyn opened up an avenue for her, and she wasn’t about to pass it up.
“We’re all going Vegas for a little gambling fun and to take advantage of the Labor Day holiday weekend. We’ll return Sunday so we can all sleep off our hangovers.”
“I don’t—”
“Not to mention it’s for my birthday,” Anne sang.
I frowned and looked from Jocelyn to Andrew’s hopeful face. “But Jocelyn just got in and I really don’t think—”
“Vegas? Are you serious? No it actually sounds like a lot of fun,” Jocelyn said. “It would be good for me to keep my mind off of things, Marissa.” She said the last past quietly intending only for me to hear, and it tore at the strings in my heart.
I added another mental note to painfully avenge my friend. Maybe chop off his manhood with scissors? Then again, that would consist of me being in close proximity to his manhood. Strike that idea.
“Are you sure?” I searched for a clue that she might be saying this for my benefit.
“Yeah, it will be fun. Are we that close to Vegas?”
Her black eye had faded to the point it was almost undetectable now. I was sure with a little cover up even I wouldn’t know it was there. She would be a normal girl going out for a little normal debauchery with friends. I smiled at the thought.
“We’re taking my dad’s jet,” Anne said. The way she said ‘my dad’s jet’ made me shake my head. I’d never get used to this.
Anne Holborn came from an exceptionally wealthy family that made their fortune in the entertainment industry with a patent that improved the cinema camera. She’d been in the business since infancy and was no stranger to flaunting her wealth or family power. After realizing she was no more than friends with Andrew, I liked her. She was a bit nosey, but everything considered, she was a sweet and fun girl to be around.
“Your dad.” Jocelyn stared wide-eyed. “His…jet? I mean, no offense, but are you serious?”
“Indeed she is.” Andrew smiled.
“As in private jet?”
“I know what you’re thinking, but I never get to use it. Last time was for my twenty-first birthday. It’s more of a company jet that I get access to for very special occasions,” Anne sheepishly explained.
“You thought I wouldn’t want to fly to Vegas on a private jet, Mari? Are you insane? I mean, for real?”
“All right then,” I said with a laugh. “When and where are we meeting?” I hoped I appeared collected, but in actuality I was as excited as Jocelyn.
Andrew’s face lit up. His smile widened bringing out that sexy dimple.
Anne clapped her hands and jumped up and down. “We’ll meet here on-set in like an hour. It’s going to be so much fun! My dad arranged it for my dirty thirty.” She wiggled her eyebrows. “He’s using his player’s club points to rent out a whole block of rooms for my party. We fly out tonight, tomorrow the festivities begin, and we come home Sunday and recover.” She ran off shouting something at us about having to go get ready.
“Well, okay then.” I looked from Jocelyn to Andrew. “I guess we’ll see you in an hour.”
We took off back to the hotel to change and pack a weekend bag. I was still concerned that Jocelyn wouldn’t be up for going out with a bunch of drunken party people. She’d never been much of a drinker or dancer in the past.
I busied myself getting ready for the Vegas strip, pulling short dresses and sequin tops out of my suitcase, not paying attention to Jocelyn. She sat quietly on the edge of the bed watching television a small neat pile of drab colored clothing sitting next to her.
“What happened to all your nice things?”
“Wh-what do you mean?” Jocelyn stammered, blushing around the faded bruise.
“You’re so beautiful. Why are you hiding behind these clothes? Please wear something sexy, it’s Vegas.”
She looked at me bewildered before trying on a few pair of jeans from her luggage.
I vetoed one pair of jeans after another based on several different factors. One pair had ripped knees. Another was far too baggy on her. Finally, I reached into my suitcase and produced a simple black dress. She was much too tall to wear my petite jeans.
It fit nicely, albeit a little shorter than she would have liked. She had nice legs though and should show them off. Jocelyn tugged at the dress to pull it down.
“Stop. It’s perfect,” I assured her.
/> “Mari, if I bend over, I’m going to flash people.”
I rolled my eyes. “No you’re not. Stop being melodramatic. You look hot.”
When I was satisfied with her borrowed look, I took her by the hand and led her into the bathroom to put a little cover up over her bruised eye. She was toughly unhappy with me. I chuckled and ignored her complaints as I worked to transform her from the drab little beat down mouse to the stunning girl I remember by adding a little mascara and lip gloss.
“Don’t try to fight me, you know you look good.” I laughed at her dismayed expression as she looked at herself in the mirror.
I grew concerned as I applied her makeup. I hadn’t noticed any cosmetics in her bags or any nice clothes. Did she not intend to stay with me long enough to need these things? If she wanted to get rid of her abusive husband she could not go home anytime soon.
“Jocelyn.” I paused, not quite sure how to broach the subject tactfully. “Why didn’t you bring all of your clothes? And no makeup, and no jewelry?” I decided the direct approach works best. I’ve never been one to tread lightly on a subject. She knew me well enough to know this.
Without answering my question, she walked out of the bathroom tugging on her dress trying to will it to become longer. “Are you sure this looks okay?” I folded my arms slightly annoyed, waiting for an answer. “And did you see that guy running around screaming about martinis before we left? He even had a martini on his shirt. What a hoot!”
“Yea, that’s Greg. ‘Martini’ means its wrap time. Kind of a little joke type thing. ‘Oh it’s been such a stressful day, time to go unwind with a martini’. Now stop trying to change the subject.”
“So, I can see why everyone is talking about you and that guy behind your back. The way he always positions himself so he can check you out, he does it a lot. It’s really clear that he wants you Marissa. You shouldn’t lead him on like that, it’s almost like you’re encouraging his behavior.”
It was not until she brought up Andrew that my attention diverted from my original goal. She was good, too good for being so out of practice around me.
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