by Twyla Turner
A corporal walked up then to hand Sloan some papers.
“Your discharge papers, sir. You’re free to go home, Lieutenant.” He said, patting Sloan on the good side of his back happily.
Oh great…home. Just another form of hell.
Chapter 1
“Why Georgia”
Savannah, Georgia
Two long years had passed and Lexi had finally made her way to her final destination. After deciding to press charges against Eric in the hospital the cops found and arrested him and put him in jail, much to his kicking, screaming and crying. And much to Lexi’s enjoyment, Officer Patrick had told her that some of the other felons in the cell had roughed him up for being a woman beater.
During the trial Lexi had stayed with her Aunt Betty, who had raised her after her mother and father died when she was eleven years old. Eric was found guilty, but the punishment for beating her senseless was too light in Lexi’s opinion. He was sentenced to one year in jail, one year of community service at a women’s shelter with an order to stay at least 500 feet away from Lexi once he was released. The easy punishment was due to it being his first offense and having such a squeaky clean life prior and having a better lawyer than she did.
The stress and worry of what he had done to her, the frighteningly short sentence and the restraining order they knew he wouldn’t follow, caused her aunt to have a massive heart attack, passing away only a few hours later, leaving Lexi completely alone and with a small fortune.
Her aunt had been a genius at investments and had saved nearly every penny she had made by living a modest life. So Lexi had no idea of the fortune Betty had amassed. In her will, she had left it all to Lexi, stating that she was like a daughter to her and that if she was still with “the abusive asshole”, to use the money as a way to get far away from him and to follow her dreams.
So after burying her aunt, getting her affairs in order and saying goodbye to Bianca, Lexi set off on a trip around the country in her aunt’s prized pretty blue nineteen sixty-six Mustang convertible, that Betty would only drive on Sundays during the summer. And in the first several months of her trip, Lexi felt free and a little more confident than she ever had. But the moment the day came for Eric to be released from jail, paranoia had set in and she couldn’t stop looking over her shoulder.
Once she knew he was out, she’d only stay in one spot for a week or two, but never longer than that, afraid that he might find her. But now it had been nearly a year since he was released and she hadn’t seen nor heard from him, so she felt that it should be relatively safe to come to the place she wanted to stay for good. Savannah.
Lexi and her mother had talked about Savannah many times. Her mother had always had a dream of moving there, after visiting when she was a little girl. And so they had planned to runaway there to escape her abusive father. But her father killed her mother and then himself before they could gather up the courage to leave.
So in honor of her mother, Lexi chose Savannah as the place she would finally stay for good. She had already purchased a fixer upper home, though she had enough money to buy a couple of brand new homes or at least finished ones, but she wanted something that she could make her own. Plus, she didn’t want to blow through her aunt’s money frivolously. She just hoped that it was at least livable, since she hadn’t seen it yet.
It was a beautiful late Friday morning in May and as she drove through the city, Lexi’s mouth hung open in awe. There were riverboats lined up along the Savannah River, old townhomes that had a Victorian feel to them. Horse drawn carriages clopped along the streets and she passed by trolleys filled with tourists. And the streets, parks and long driveways to huge plantation houses, were lined with huge trees that had gigantic reaching limbs, upon them Spanish moss hung from the branches creating a pale green canopy.
It was everything she had ever hoped for so far. The city was quaint but exciting, with many things to do, from fancy upscale restaurants to cozy cafes or nightclubs for dancing, jazzy lounges for relaxing and neighborhood bars for socializing. But mainly Lexi just wanted to work on her new home and enjoy the quiet. She just needed the world to be silent for a little while.
And her neighborhood looked to promise just that, as she turned down her new street. Her realtor that she had only communicated with via phone, fax and email was meeting her at the house at noon to give her the keys to her new home and talk to her about local construction companies that could help her with the renovations.
Lexi pulled up to the house fifteen minutes early. The yard was over grown with tall grass and weeds. The gutters hung drunkenly from the roof and the few shutters that were left on the windows looked like they’d fall at the slightest breeze. And the color was a sad faded gray with white peeling trim. Lexi couldn’t have been happier. All that mattered was that it was hers. And she had enough vision to see the potential the quaint two-story cottage had.
Lexi got out of her car and walked up to the house to get a closer look. There was an adorable front porch that looked in desperate need of repairing, but Lexi could see herself sitting on a porch swing drinking iced-sun-tea. Lexi walked around the back to see what her backyard would look like. There was another porch on the back of the house, but this one was enclosed with broken screened windows, a place for relaxing or having a get-together, catching the warm breeze while avoiding the mosquito bites.
The backyard itself was huge and had a collapsing gazebo in the middle that Lexi instantly wanted to restore. And her breath drew in on small gasp when she looked beyond the gazebo to see a picturesque river and a massive weeping willow, whose thin wispy branches touched the ground, creating a private little sanctuary next to the river. Lexi nearly danced in delight over the captivating view.
The low hum of a car engine pulled Lexi from her daydreaming of a finished beautiful home. Walking back to the front, Lexi saw her realtor Dominique Preston, getting out of her fancy luxury car that she had pulled behind the Mustang.
Dominique was a tall beautiful statuesque light-skinned black woman. She was sharply dressed in a knee-length professional coral sleeveless dress, in a material that Lexi could only dream of. The realtor’s strawberry blonde highlighted hair was cut in a super sassy asymmetrical pixie cut. All in all, to Lexi the realtor looked like she’d just stepped off the runaway at New York fashion week.
Lexi’s style was much more Bohemian in comparison. Long flowing skirts or dresses, wispy feminine blouses, scarves, hoop earrings and bulky jewelry were Lexi’s staples. At least now they were.
Eric had made her dress like a hoochie. He always wanted to show off her huge boobs, wide hips and big ass. He also made her get extensions, hating her curly Afro. She loved the way extensions looked on other women, but they just didn’t work for her. And now that Eric was out of her life, she symbolically burned the slutty clothing and took down the fake hair, restoring her Afro to its former glory. Her artistic nature was finally able to emerge and blossom.
“Hello. It’s nice to meet you Miss Preston.” Lexi said walking up to the woman and shaking her hand.
“Hi, Alexis. Please, call me Dom.” The realtor said in a cultured southern accent.
“Thanks Dom. And I go by Lexi.” She offered back.
“I see you’ve been taking a look around the place. What do you think so far?” Dom asked.
“It’s lovely. The outside is more than I could’ve hoped for. It has so much potential. And I think that backyard is going to be my favorite spot.” Lexi beamed.
“Fantastic!” Dom smiled happily.
“What is the name of the river that runs along the back of the house?” Lexi asked curiously.
“That’s the Hope River, at least at this section of the river.” Dom informed her.
Well that’s promising. I need all the hope I can get.
“So are you ready to take a look inside? The place needs a lot of work, but it’ll be worth it in the end.” Dom cautioned before handing Lexi the keys to her new home.
“Oh
, I’m not too worried about the work. But it is livable, right?” Lexi asked.
“Oh, definitely. The plumbing and electricity works. The roof has some damage with a few leaks but nothing too major. Though there isn’t any central air conditioning, so it might get a little hot in there. But that’s about it. The essentials work fine. It just doesn’t look all that pretty at the moment.” Dom assured her.
Hmm…sounds like she’s describing me. I guess me and the house could both use a little tender love and care.
The women gingerly walked up the rickety front steps of the porch to the front door. With hands trembling with excitement, Lexi slid the key in the lock and turned it. She heard the satisfying click of the lock and grinned. She hadn’t had a whole lot to smile about in the last nineteen years after her mother’s death and not much even before then, so she wasn’t used to smiling, but now she couldn’t help herself. The small grin eventually spread from ear to ear as she pushed open the door.
The front door opened to a fairly large living room and a staircase to the left. The living room extended to a partial wall and on the other side was the dining room. Next to that was a nice sized kitchen. Luckily for Lexi, the last owner had left behind a few pieces of furniture that she could use until she purchased her own. She didn’t want to bring in new furniture until the place was done. So the small scuffed and stained dining room table and chairs and the worn couch and scratched coffee table in the living room would work perfectly for now.
“The last owner used to rent the house, but the renters must have left in a hurry, because they left a few pieces of furniture behind. But that could be a good thing for you if you don’t mind used furniture.” Dom suggested.
“Oh, I don’t mind at all. I was just thinking that it’s perfect because I don’t have to buy anything new now until I’m done with the renovations. I’d hate to buy something new and get it all dusty.” Lexi said sensibly.
“Perfect. Now let me show you around.” Dom said leading the way into the house.
The kitchen was dated, with old cabinetry and appliances. But the water ran, the refrigerator worked except for the freezer, and only a few of the burners on the stove worked. So it would be only fresh food and cooking a few things at a time, but Lexi could work with that.
The kitchen led to a hallway that either went into the dining and living rooms in the front of the house or a full bathroom, bedroom and possible office towards the back of the house that led to the screened in porch. Heading upstairs a hallway ran along the right that had three doors. At the top of the stairs behind the first door was a fairly nice sized bathroom with an old claw-footed tub that Lexi almost passed out over. She was definitely keeping that, she would just design the bathroom around it. In the middle of the hall was a medium sized bedroom with a little bed and table. And at the opposite end of the hall was the door to the master bedroom.
It was an L-shaped room, the door opening onto an area that could be used as a sitting area looking out a dome shaped picture window. And around the corner was an old full-sized rod-iron bed and old chest of drawers.
The possibilities for the upstairs were endless and Lexi couldn’t wait to get started, making this house into the perfect home for her. She ignored all the faded peeling paint and hideous wallpaper, rusted pipes and moldy bathroom tiles, damaged wood flooring and the yellow water spots on the ceiling. She imagined everything pristine and new and her soul filled with a sort of hope for the future that she’d never felt her entire life.
“I love it.” She said whispering softly, for fear that it would all disappear like a dream if she said it too loudly.
“That’s great! I was so worried that all of the work that needs to be done would make you regret buying it.” Dom sighed in relief.
“Oh no, you did great Dom!” Lexi reassured the realtor. “I’m so excited to get started on making it my own. Which was the whole point in picking a fixer upper.”
“Okay, good. So I brought a list of contractors who specialize in renovations. I hope you don’t mind, but I called them for you and set up meetings for Monday and Tuesday. I figured you’d be too tired to want to make those calls today and they won’t be available during the weekend. I put the date and time for each meeting on the list next to each name.” Dom said handing Lexi the list with names and contact information.
“I don’t mind at all. Thank you so much for this Dom. This is going to help a lot.” Lexi said looking down at all the names and wondering how she was going to choose.
“No problem. I’ll have to stop in every once in a while to see how it’s all coming together. That is if you don’t mind.” Dom smiled at the serious and quiet woman, wondering about her story and wanting to ask her questions, but the short curvy woman seemed too closed off to reveal much about herself.
“Oh please do! I may need another point of view.” Lexi offered.
“Will do. Alright, I’m going to head out and give you some alone time with your new place. It was lovely to finally meet you in person Lexi. I hope everything works out for you here.” Dom said shaking her hand.
“Thank you. It was a pleasure to meet you too.” Lexi smiled at the stunning woman, before she turned to leave the master bedroom.
Lexi heard the front door close and with a shaky hand she reached for the iron bed post to steady her as she sat on the relatively clean, but squeaky mattress. Her eyes filled with tears and a sob escaped her throat. Once the dam broke there was nothing she could do to stop it. Her body shook, wracked with sobs as she let go. God, thank you. Thank you, Auntie. Thank you, Mom.
Lexi knew that she wouldn’t be there if she hadn’t had a little help along the way, and she couldn’t have been more grateful.
~~~
Lexi woke from an apparently much needed nap. She realized that she must have cried herself to sleep. Judging by the slant of the sun streaming in through the windows, she hadn’t slept for too long. She knew that she needed to get up and go shopping for some food for the house and unload her luggage and few boxes that were in her car before it got too late.
Grabbing her purse that she had dropped on the floor, Lexi headed downstairs to the kitchen. She looked through the cabinets and in the fridge to get an idea of what she wanted to get and how much room she had to store it.
She pulled her phone out of her purse and entered a list of everything that she needed, as well as some toiletries and cleaning supplies to make the house a little more livable in the meantime while she waited for it to be totally renovated. Satisfied that she had everything she needed on her list, Lexi grabbed her keys to head into town.
Chapter 2
“To Whom It May Concern”
Sloan was sitting in his favorite spot when he first laid eyes on her. He was at the park in the center of town, in the grass against a tree with Tank panting by his side from the heat. Sloan loved to sit and people watch. He watched the people in town interacting and going about their daily lives like they didn’t have a care in the world. Their normal lives fascinated him. It was what he had fought for, but that fight had changed him. So ‘normal’ was now foreign to him.
So when Tank started to whine and wag his tail looking off into the distance, bringing Sloan’s attention to the pretty short plump woman, Sloan sat up a little straighter. And it wasn’t just that she was an adorable tiny little thing that had dangerous curves she tried to contain in a long skirt and billowy blouse, that made Sloan sit up and pay attention.
It was her eyes. They were sad, scared and wounded but hopeful all at the same time. Similar to what he saw whenever he looked at his reflection. She seemed to be scared of her own shadow, occasionally looking over her shoulder like the Boogie-man was going to jump out and get her at any moment. He saw the hope and yearning in her eyes as well, when she looked at the two friends that were chitchatting at an open patio café or the couple that passed by holding hands.
As much as he instantly wanted her, Sloan sagged back down in disappointment. Before the war he would�
�ve sauntered up to her and charmed her right out of her panties, but not now. He knew that in his current state and situation that he was no prize and she’d look at him in disgust if he even tried to approach her.
But fate seemed to step in and took the choice right out of his hands. As she walked to her car with arms full of groceries, one of the paper bags she tried to balance teetered precariously and then toppled over to the ground. And being a Southern raised gentleman, good manners drilled into him since birth, Sloan automatically jumped up and ran over to help her, Tank trotting along beside him.
“Here, let me help you.” Sloan said his deep voice tinged with a light southern drawl, as he kneeled down in front of her.
She raised her eyes to his and his heart tripped over itself. From a distance, though he had mostly focused on her eyes and the emotions that radiated through them, he hadn’t realized just how beautiful they were. They were a mesmerizing shade of green that seemed to glow in contrast to her burnished bronzed skin. He was instantly enthralled.
“Thank you.” She said softly, breaking eye contact and flinching slightly when his hand brushed hers as he picked up a container of yogurt.
Sloan’s heart sank, thinking that she was disgusted by his appearance, sometimes forgetting he wasn’t his former self, the handsome clean-cut man he used to be.
Finished helping her with the spilled bag, Sloan stood up starting to back away, but Tank had other plans. He nudged her legs with his head and whined. Sloan was shocked by his dog’s reaction to the woman. Tank being a highly trained military dog was usually more reserved and well-behaved, watching everything intently for a threat.
The woman finally smiled and a laugh escaped her throat as she bent over to scratch Tank on the head, and he wagged his tail in appreciation.