All Roads Lead Home (Bellingwood)

by Diane Greenwood Muir

  They drove into Council Bluffs and he directed her to cross the river into Omaha. "We've got a couple of errands before we head south," he said.

  He directed her through several streets of the city and then told her to stop the truck in front of a used car lot. Damn it. He'd done some thinking about this.

  "Do not leave this truck," he instructed, taking the keys. Then he pulled her purse out and dumped the contents on the seat. He slipped her phone into his back pocket and shoveled everything back in to the purse. "Just in case you decided to try to contact your friends. I will let you call them when we get home, but not until then. They don't need to be involved in this, it's between you and me. I want you to know how much I am willing to sacrifice in order to make you part of my life."

  He walked into the dealership and in a few minutes walked back out. The dealer led him over to a green SUV and put the keys into his hand. Joey walked back to the truck and told her to get out. He gathered up the bags from the back seat and nodded at her purse, so she picked it up and followed him to the SUV with tears in her eyes. That was the last vestige of her Dad and she couldn't believe it was going to end up in a slimy used car lot in the middle of Omaha, Nebraska.

  "Joey, why are you doing this?" she asked. “That was my dad’s truck. I can’t believe you just did that!”

  "Don't worry, Polly. You won't miss anything once you are back in Boston. I'll make sure you have everything you need. Get in. You’re driving again.”

  She drove off the lot and once again, he directed her through the streets of Omaha, looking closely at a laminated map. “Wait," he said. “Pull over here.”

  There was a food truck serving tacos in a parking lot. She pulled in and he got out, made the transaction and came back. "We're lucky they were open. They usually aren’t on Sundays, but there was some big run happening in town today. They were just getting ready to close."

  He opened the paper wrap on the taco into a pocket and handed it to her. She pushed it back at him.

  He took her hand and wrapped it around the taco, then said, "Honey, I love you so much. You're going to have to eat because you need to keep up your strength. We still have a long day ahead of us. Now, if you don't eat this, I will make you pull over to the side of the road and force you. I don't want you being faint or anything. So, either eat and drink on your own or I will help you, only because I want you to be okay."

  She took a bite. It wasn't the worst thing she'd ever tasted, but she was certain it was going to sit in the bottom of her stomach like a rock. He kept watching her until she took another bite. Then, he opened the bottle of water and handed it to her. "This will help wash it down. I wish it were a lobster dinner, but, like everything else, that will have to wait until we get home."

  They crossed the river back into Council Bluffs and headed south to Kansas City. Joey tried to engage in conversation with her, but she was having nothing to do with that. She remained silent. Enough time had passed that by now someone knew she wasn't where she was supposed to be. Every once in a while her emotions tumbled up into her throat and a tear squirted out one of her eyes. She reached up to brush them away and once, Joey tried to pat her leg. She pushed him away and said, "Don't you dare touch me."

  "I'm sorry you feel badly, Polly. I want to make you happy. One of these days, you'll see. You will have everything you want and I will be the one to give it to you."

  Polly ignored him again and kept driving. When they got close to Kansas City, he directed them to the airport, where she put the car in long-term parking.

  Now what! She started to panic. She had no frame of reference for the Kansas City area and couldn't imagine how she was going to get help. Joey couldn't take a gun into the airport, but she didn't know what else he would do. If she tried to flag down a security guard, all hell could break loose and she didn't want to be the cause of that. Polly sighed. Maybe she should just get on the airplane and try to reach out to her friends in Boston. She knew plenty of people there and she knew the city well. So far, Joey hadn't hurt her and that was a good thing.

  Joey pulled the gun out of his pocket and pushed it into the glove compartment. "I hope that gun wasn't the only thing that kept you behaving like a normal person today," he said and she rolled her eyes.

  "There are only a few hours left before we're home. If you can hold out until then, I promise you will be able to call your friends and tell them where you are. Everything will be alright then. Can I get you to promise me that or do we have to sit here a while longer."

  She didn't say anything.

  "Polly,” he said “I don’t want to hurt you, but if you try anything, anything at all, I will make your life a living hell and I promise you I will go after every person you've ever known in your life. Now, do we have a deal?"

  Polly set her jaw. Her lips were moving over her teeth as she pursed them together. One more time for the weekend, she breathed deeply and tried to collect her thoughts.

  Then she said, "I will go with you today because you seem to be in control. But, I promise you, your life is over. This is the last day you will ever see freedom. I will do everything I can to see you rot away in some hole. Yes. I will go to Boston with you. Yes, I will stay quiet in the airport. And this is the very last time you will get any acquiescence from me. Do you understand?"

  "That's all I needed, sweetie. We have a deal."

  She looked at him in astonishment. Her threats hadn't penetrated his mind at all.

  They got on a shuttle to the airport and it seemed Joey had already purchased their tickets and printed them out. The flight was taking off in one hour. He carried her bags onto the plane for her, stowed them in the compartment above their seats, then sat beside her.

  "I bought three seats for us so you would have room to stretch out and relax. I didn't think you would want to sit by some huge, ugly person who smelled bad."

  "No, because I want to sit by some crazy person who hurts people," she retorted.

  "We're going to have the best life," he said and tried to take her hand.

  She pulled it back and snarled. "I told you not to touch me."

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Over the loudspeaker, the pilot announced their descent into Logan International Airport. Polly had attempted to sleep, but it quickly became apparent her mind wouldn't allow her to relax, so she kept her eyes closed. Anything to avoid talking with Joey. After the announcement, he tentatively touched her arm. "Polly? Honey? We're almost home. My car is waiting in short-term parking and soon we will be able to have everything I've always wanted. I'm so excited to begin our new life together. Just you and me with no one to interfere."

  Polly opened her eyes and glared at him. "I told you not to touch me. Get your hand off my arm or I will make an incredible scene. I don't think you want that to happen while we're still on the plane, now do you?"

  He retracted his arm and said, "I love that you have so much spirit. I don't want you to ever lose that, because I believe it will make our children successful, but you are going to have to find it in your heart to forgive me for the things I did last spring. Maybe that will finally allow you to show me how much you truly love me. I've been patient this summer and I can afford to be patient a little longer, because I know in the end we will be together forever."

  Polly could barely contain her shudder. His words seemed like some hideous parody of an awful movie in which the serial killer dressed dead bodies in wedding gowns. She could barely wait to get on the ground, even if it was to get in his car. There would be opportunities to get away from him and now they were on her turf. She had friends in Boston and she knew how to get to them.

  The plane landed and taxied to a gate. It was an interminable wait, but Polly did her best to stay calm. From this moment she would be on high alert, looking for any opportunity to break away. Joey had to be exhausted since he hadn't slept the night before. Soon he would begin to relax and let his guard down.

  They waited while other passengers disembarked, then h
e stood and pulled their luggage out of the overhead compartment. She took her purse from him as he handed it to her and then accepted the overnight bag as well. Walking in front of him, she exited the plane. As soon as he was able, he once again grabbed her elbow. Polly tried to pull away, but his fingers dug in and held on. "Don't try to get away, Polly. You're the love of my life and we'll soon be home where you can be happy."

  She did what she could to maintain her composure and continued walking. Polly glanced around, looking for anything that might allow her to get away. Then, she saw it. Drea Renaldi was there with her brothers standing beside her. Polly nearly collapsed with relief, until she saw Drea's nearly imperceptible shake of the head. She was telling Polly not to do anything.

  What in the world did she mean by this? Drea's brothers dropped back and followed them, while Drea turned aside so Joey wouldn't see her. He guided Polly through the crowd and she allowed him to continue, wondering what might be happening.

  They exited the terminal and he began to walk toward a shuttle for long-term parking, but as soon as they cleared the doors and were on the street, Polly heard a thump and felt him drop away from her. He was on the ground, out cold, with two smiling Renaldi brothers standing over him. Drea ran up and pulled Polly in close.

  "You're here and you're safe,” she cried. “Oh, Polly, I've been so worried."

  Polly's eyes filled and she began to sob uncontrollably. Then she leaned over into the gutter and retched. She looked at Joey on the ground and retched again. Drea, pulled a bottle of water out of her bag and some wet wipes. She wiped Polly's face and asked, "Did you get it all out? Are you better yet?"

  "I think so,” Polly said. Her legs were trembling and bile filled her throat.

  "Swish some of this around in your mouth and spit."

  Polly obeyed, then said, "I'm so sorry" and began sobbing again.

  "It's alright, Polly." Ray came up to stand beside her. He reached out and patted her on the shoulder.

  She looked at him and said, "Oh, I'm a pretty sight, aren't I?" then giggled.

  "You're fine, Polly. You're always fine. Don't you worry about a thing." he replied.

  She looked down at the man slumped on the street in front of her and bile rose in her throat again. Without a second thought, Polly pulled her left leg back and kicked him right in the balls, and then she picked up her suitcase and turned back into Drea's arms. A Boston police car drove up, two cops got out and spoke for a few minutes with Drea's brothers, obviously laughing at what had just happened. They picked Joey up, pulled his arms behind his back, placed handcuffs on him and put him in the backseat of the car. Joey had come to when he was kicked and he struggled to maintain his posture, but doubled over on himself.

  "We'll need you to come in tomorrow morning and file a complaint, Ms. Giller. Jon and Ray here will bring you and I'm sure they'll take care of everything else for you. Don't worry, we've got this. Go get some rest."

  Ray, the older brother, whistled for a taxi, and put his sister and Polly in the back seat. "We'll be by first thing in the morning, Polly girl. You're alright now."

  "Wait!" she said. "I don't know what just happened. Thank you. Oh, thank you," and she began to cry again.

  "Don't worry, Polly," Ray said. "Drea will tell you everything tonight, I'm sure. She's your savior, we're only the muscle." He punched his brother in the chest. "And that was fun!"

  Polly watched them through the back window as the taxi pulled away and into traffic.

  "Drea," she started, then slumped into the seat.

  Drea scooted next to her friend, pulled her close and held on while Polly cried.

  "You need to call your friends in Iowa," she said finally, picking Polly's purse up off the floor of the taxi. "They're worried about you."

  "How did? How do you? What happened here today?" Polly stammered.

  "I tell you what. It's a great story, but first you make a call to your friend, Lydia. She's probably started walking east already. Tell them you're safe. We'll go back to my apartment, pour a few glasses of wine apiece and tell each other what happened today."

  Polly opened her purse and dug around for her cell phone. It wasn't there. Then, she remembered. "I don't have it anymore. Joey took it and it's in his back pocket."

  "Oh, alright." Drea replied, "Here, use mine. Lydia's number is probably the last call on there anyway." She scrolled through the call list, pressed ‘send’ and handed the phone to Polly.

  "Have you found her yet? Did he take her to Boston?" Lydia’s voice came ringing through the phone.

  "She found me, Lydia. I'm with her right now. I'm alright." Polly said, her throat choking up at the sound of her friend's voice.

  "Oh, Polly. I'm so glad to hear your voice. We've been worried sick today." Lydia pulled away from the phone and said, "She's alright. She's with her friend!" Polly heard shouts and yells in the background.

  "I have a houseful of people, Polly. It's not a party without you though. I'm not going to ask you for all the details tonight, but tomorrow I want you to call me and tell me everything, then tell me when you're coming back home, alright?”

  Lydia took a breath, and continued, "Oh, Polly. I'm thankful you're safe. We're all so thankful you're safe." She paused. "Doug wants to say something to you."

  Polly heard her say to Doug, "Here you are, honey. Tell her you're doing fine." Then Doug's voice was in her ear.

  "Polly. I wish I would have been stronger. I'm so sorry we didn't take him down last night. I'm so sorry he messed with you."

  Polly began to sob. "Doug. Thank you. You did everything right. I'm fine and I'll be home soon and then, I swear to you. I'm taking you out for steak. Are you all right?" She snorted and sobbed through the words and hoped he'd be able to understand.

  "I'm okay. The doc says I'll be good as new in a week. Take care of yourself, Polly. Here's Lydia."

  Lydia’s voice returned, "What did you do to that poor boy. His face is all red ... Oh, there, now he's crying. What a bunch of soggy we've got going on here." She blew her nose loudly on the other end of the phone and said, "Beryl says to tell you that first thing when you get back, she's taking you to Victoria's Secret, because you have to attract some better men than that thing. Everyone wants you to know they're happy you're alright and that you are supposed to come home soon. Got it?"

  "Okay, Lydia, got it. I'll call you tomorrow. Thank you, it seems, for everything."

  "Good bye dear."

  Polly pressed the button to end the call and handed the phone back to Drea, who exchanged it for a wad of tissues. Then, Polly leaned her head back on the seat and shut her eyes. She reached her hand out and Drea gripped it. They sat in silence until the taxi came to a stop in front of Drea's apartment.

  The two girls went up the steps and into the building where the night receptionist recognized Polly. "Hi, Polly! Welcome back to Boston! It's been too long."

  "Hello, Frances. It's nice to see you."

  "I hope you have a good stay with us. Good evening, Miss Renaldi."

  "Good evening, Frances." Drea replied.

  They took the elevator to the fifth floor and didn't see anyone else. When they reached Drea's apartment door, she unlocked it and motioned Polly inside. Drea flipped the lights on and Polly kicked her shoes off in the foyer. She'd been here often enough to know that Drea didn't appreciate shoes on her carpet.

  "Come on in, Polly. Sit down and I'll be right back with some wine."

  Polly sat down on the end of the sofa, curling her legs underneath her. In a few moments, Drea returned with two glasses of white wine, knowing Polly's aversion to anything red and a plate with some soft cheese and Italian bread slices.

  Drea set everything on the table in front of the sofa, tossed a blanket over Polly's lap and then curled up on the other end, sharing the blanket.

  "Are you doing alright, now?" Drea asked.

  "I am. It's good to be here with you."

  "Do you want to talk about your day yet?"
<
br />   Polly took a sip of wine. "Really, I think I want to hear about your day. How did you know to come find me?"

  "Well, I will be glad to tell you, but first you have to eat something or else that wine is going to seriously mess you up." Drea leaned back in the couch with her glass and began to tell her side of the story after watching her friend take a slice of bread and a piece of cheese.

  "My understanding is that Lydia went over to your school to take you to the hospital for that boy Joey beat up. When she couldn’t get in, she refused to accept that everything was fine. She called her husband, who got hold of a key and he opened up the school. She ran upstairs, saw your clothes were gone and made him start calling people. Then, she called everyone in town ... it's not a big town, right?"

  Polly laughed. "No, it's not a big town at all."

  "She called your friends and they went to the school to create a plan of attack. Her husband wanted to call the FBI because he was sure you'd been kidnapped, but of course there's that whole 48-hour thing and he didn't have enough to prove your life was threatened and you hadn't gone somewhere on your own.

  "Then, Lydia remembered you saying something about putting a recording on your laptop and some boy remembered seeing you put the laptop with the candy?

  Polly nodded. "Billy. I did that ... wow, was that just last night? I jammed it down in the cupboard to get it out of the way."

  "Anyway, another friend opened it up and found the file. Then, Lydia also remembered you said you had emailed yourself numbers from Joey's phone, so this other friend opened your email.

  "When they scanned through it, they saw my name and read the email I had sent about Joey. Then, Lydia remembered you mentioned something about some Italian boys and put that together with my last name.

  "They found my phone number and called me and told me what they thought had happened, so I called Jon and Ray, who called their chief of police friend. He contacted Aaron and they began setting it up.

  "Polly, we've been watching every flight from the Midwest come into Logan today. I was so afraid we had missed you or that he would stay somewhere tonight and not come in until tomorrow or there could have been a million other things he might have done, but I counted on him being dumb and predictable and showing up here as fast as possible.