by Joy Redmond
From that morning on, the car would start one day, then it wouldn’t the next.
Mandy had Friday afternoons off since the office closed at noon. Gill always went to Alabama to the go-cart races, or so he said, but Mandy had her doubts. By that time, she didn’t care. The sight and sound of him was sickening.
The lake house had finally sold, and though they hadn’t made a dime, they were rid of one monthly house payment. Mandy sat at the kitchen table and stared out the bay window, watching the squirrels scamper across the yard and gather pecans that had fallen from the two trees in the back yard.
She grabbed her purse and just as she had taken one step, she felt strong hands pushing her in the back. “Daddy, is that you? If it is, then help me pick out a car. I really don’t know what I’m doing.” A strong breeze blew over her head. “Well, don’t leave without me,” she said, and chuckled.
She was thankful the old station wagon started. She drove to the Chevrolet dealership. An hour later, she drove off the lot in an Iroc Z-28. She drove it around town, then she took it out on I-75 and opened it up. “Damn, this thing runs like a scalded dog!” she said. “And I deserve it. I’ve always wanted a sports car,” she said, and patted her leg, as if she were talking to Nikko in the mirror like she used to do back when Nikko had to stay in the dark crevice of her mind. Nikko had been in the lead for many years now, and Mandy’s personality only surfaced when she was around her parents.
She made a U-turn and headed home, her insides quivering with excitement.
One night Mandy was driving home in heavy traffic when suddenly the headlights on her car went out. She managed to get over on the side of the road. She pushed the headlight button in, then pulled it back out. The headlights came on. She pulled back out into traffic. Suddenly the radio started blasting so loudly it was piercing her ear drums. She reached up and turned down the sound. A block up the street, the radio started changing stations, and the volume got louder and louder. Mandy turned the radio off. The headlights went out again.
She was a block away from home and she managed to make it to the house by using the bright street lights. She pulled into the driveway, and before she could switch the key off, the motor died. She pushed the garage door opener. The garage wouldn’t open. She sat in the car for a few minutes, a bit shaken, wondering if wires were going to pop from under the dashboard and wrap around her neck.
She was tired from work and tired from the world as well. She sat in the blackness of the night and shook her head. She blew a weary breath and turned the key. The motor turned over. She pushed the headlight button. The lights came on. She turned on the radio. Normal volume and it stayed on the same station. She pushed the button on the garage door opener. The door went up. She breathed a sigh of relief, got out of the car and went inside the house.
The next day Mandy took the car to a garage, had it checked out, and as she suspected, the mechanic found nothing wrong with the workings. She drove back home wondering what IT was trying to tell her.
The garage door opened, she pulled into the garage, and went inside. Gill was gone on one of his unexplained trips. Abbie was at college, and Mandy felt so alone. She opened the fridge and took out a bottle of Coke, then sat down at the kitchen table. Her mind was racing. Her marriage had gone to hell. She had just learned from Gill’s parents that money was missing from the insurance company that couldn’t be accounted for. I’m married to a lying, cheating, embezzling moron! she thought, and her soul filled with anger and loathing.
Out of the death-like stillness in the house, she heard the garage door open. She wondered if Gill had changed his mind and came home. She waited, but Gill didn’t come inside. She walked to the back door of the kitchen which led out to the garage and opened it. Nobody was there. She pushed the button and the garage door went down. “Okay, IT, what’s up with you?” She stood in the doorway. The garage door went back up, then went back down. Five times it went up and down on its own. “I know you’re trying to tell me something, but I have no idea what,” she said, then closed and locked the back door.
A week after the malfunctioning of the car and the garage door opening and closing at will, Mandy was still trying to figure out what it all meant. It was Friday night and she was home alone, sitting on the couch, reading, trying to keep her mind occupied by something other than the heartache over her children and grandchildren, the fact that Gill was a lowlife, and how her life was turning to pure shit. She didn’t have the TV or radio on, and the house was quiet. She tried to concentrate on the book, but she couldn’t remember what she had just read after she turned a page.
Without warning, a loud crash startled her and she jumped, her heart thumping in her chest. It sounded as if it came from the master bedroom. She went into the bedroom, stood still and looked around, but didn’t see anything that had fallen. A rustling noise got her attention. It was coming from the walk-in closet. She walked into the closet and flipped on the light. In the middle of the floor lay a metal strong-box, the lid open and the contents spilled. She recognized it as the same box she had found in the closet right after she and Gill had gotten married, then she had found it in the footlocker the day she and Abbie heard meowing of a cat, which they believed to be Fluffy’s spirit.
She glanced upward and noticed the extra blankets she kept on the top shelf had been pushed sideways. The metal box must have been hidden under the blankets. Why didn’t Gill leave it in the footlocker?
She sat down on the floor and started picking up pictures that had been taken with a Polaroid. She thumbed through them, barely about to breathe as she saw shots of boobs and twats. There were no faces or other body parts. All twats looked alike to her, but the boob shots were all of different women. Some of the breasts looked like young buds that had just sprouted.
Then she picked up several shots of a man’s penis, fully erect, which she instantly recognized as Gill’s. She closely examined the background. She recognized the carpet that was on the floor of the bedroom at the lake house. The last two shots were taken right there in their new home. She recognized the bathroom counter top. Who took the pictures of Gill? Who was in this house with him while I was at work?
She dropped the pictures as if they burnt her hands. She peered into the box and saw a piece of paper. With trembling hands, she picked it up, unfolded it and began to read.
Hello Asshole,
I have no idea where you took off to, but I figure if I mail this to your parents, you’ll eventually get it. Did you really think my daughter wouldn’t tell me about her being in the shower, you coming into the bathroom, stripping, then getting into the shower and groping her? She is only 14, you sick son of a bitch!
The only reason that you’re not behind bars is because she cried and begged me not to press charges. She said she’d rather be dead than be put through the embarrassment of having to stand before a judge and testify to what you did to her. So, for her sake, I let it go. You better be glad you took off when you did or you’d be a dead mother-humper. You might have gotten by with it this time, but the day will come when you’ll pick the wrong little girl, then your ass will be in prison and Big Bubba will do to you, what you did to my child.
Your divorce papers will also be sent to your parents address. I strongly suggest you sign them and get them back to me along with the money to pay for the divorce, as soon as possible. If not, then I’ll have no choice but to report your sorry ass to the law, at the expense of putting my daughter through more humiliation.
Rot in hell,
Marie
Mandy sat paralyzed, but the name Marie kept running through her mind. Then it dawned on her. Marie was the woman he divorced, then remarried Susan. She searched the paper for a date. There was none, and no envelope with a return address. You stupid moron. Why would you keep this letter? Do you get your kicks rereading it, remembering what you did to that child? And I know you didn’t forget to lock the metal box. IT unlocked it for me.
Mandy felt her entire world swirl
and sway, her heart burning and hurting, and for a second she was disconnected from herself. Her hands clutched at her stomach as it churned and rolled and she raced to the commode and retched until she felt as if the muscles from her sides had pulled loose. When her stomach had completely emptied its contents, she wiped her face with a cold washcloth. She peered into the mirror. “Not only is he a lying, cheating, embezzling fool— he’s also a pedophile! Don was right. Gill is evil to the bone!”
Mandy put the contents back in the box, put it on the top shelf of the closet and covered it with blankets. “IT, lock it again. Gill can’t discover that I found his treasures.”
Her legs were trembling as she headed back to the living room. She sat back down on the couch, wondering what she should do. There was no way she could stay in the same house with such a lowlife.
Slowly she began to run things through her head and she realized IT had been telling her to get out, starting with the palmetto bug attack. Then she remembered the palmetto bug that had landed in her hair the first time she met Gill, when he came to Lee’s house that Christmas day.
She rubbed the back of her aching neck. Were they connected? Was that my first warning? Fluffy meowing from the footlocker was his spirit telling me about the strong-box. He wanted me to find it. She wanted to wad up into a ball and die. She stretched out on the couch, her tears flowing, when she felt the familiar warm, strong arms enfold her.
She wiped her tears, sat up with renewed strength, and started making her escape plans.
Chapter Forty-Six
Mandy took a second job, working at the hospital as a phlebotomist. She put in eight hours at the doctor’s office, had an hour break, then went to the hospital and put in six hours, during the week. On weekends, she pulled double shifts at the hospital. She was running on empty with little sleep, working seven days a week, but she was building a nest egg.
Gill questioned her about working two jobs, but Mandy sternly said, “One of us has got to pay Abbie’s tuition. It sure won’t be you, so I guess that leaves me!” And what you’ll never know is my dad is paying her tuition. I just send her spending money.
Mandy deposited her check from her day job into the checking account along with Gill’s checks and paid the bills. She cashed her check from her night job and stashed the money into a black purse, which she kept hidden under her bed. She also collected her and Abbie’s important papers, the papers a person has to carry from the cradle to the grave. She put them in the purse with the money.
As soon as Abbie was out of school in June, Mandy hoped to have enough money for them to go somewhere and start a new life. But she knew her timing had to be perfect if they were going to get out alive. She knew that Gill was capable of anything. And that included murder.
Mandy came home from work one Friday night and saw Abbie’s car parked in the driveway. Her heart pounded as she hurried into the house. Abbie met her at the door and grabbed her mother in a hug.
“I’m so happy to see you, honey. It’s been months, but I’m working all the time and I understand why you saw no point in coming home.”
“Mom, the spirits talk to me too. And I’ve been getting messages for several months that I needed to come home and check on you. So, I finally listened, and here I am. Are you going to tell me what’s going on? Why are you working yourself to death? What has Gill bought that you have to pay for? Or is it something worse? I’ve got a nagging feeling in my gut and it won’t give me a minute’s peace.”
“Let me get out of this uniform and take a shower, then I’ll fill you in on things. Go raid the fridge if you haven’t already and I’ll be with you as fast as I can.”
Mandy showered, put on her PJ’s and went into the living room and sat on the couch beside her daughter. She told Abbie about her findings in the strong-box.
“That doesn’t surprise me. You should see the lecherous looks he gives me, and he has since I started sprouting boobs. I never mentioned it to you because I wasn’t sure you’d believe me, and I knew how much you loved him and I didn’t want to hurt you.”
“He’s a sicko! But let me assure you—as much as I once loved him, I now loath him with the same depth of passion. All I want to do is get away from him. I’m just not sure where to go. I feel like a trapped animal.”
Mandy felt a tapping on the back of her head and she thought Abbie was playing as they often did with each other, but when she glanced down, she saw that Abbie’s hands were in her lap.
Mandy brushed the back of her head. As soon as she put her hand down, she got three more taps, and they were harder. She looked Abbie in the eyes, and said, “I think IT is telling us it’s time to go.”
“Now?” Abbie’s eyes were wide as saucers.
“I’m not sure IT means right now, but it definitely means soon.”
“And where will we go?” Abbie asked.
“I have no idea. I just know we have to get out of Georgia.” Mandy’s mind was racing and sweat was pouring down her nape. As she pondered, she heard a noise in the kitchen. “Sit still. Let me see what that weird sound is.”
She went into the kitchen and found the phone receiver had fallen off the hook and was dangling by the cord, beating against the wall. As she put the receiver back on the hook, she noticed a piece of paper on the floor. She bent down and picked it up. It was Don’s new phone number that he had given her the previous month, and she had put in the top drawer by the wall phone. As she stared at the number, she felt a gentle tapping on the back of her head. “So that’s what you were trying to tell me,” she said.
She dialed Don’s number and he answered the phone. As soon as Don heard Mandy’s voice he said, “Sis, God is telling me that you need to get away from Gill. You can come live with me and Anne, and when Abbie is out of school for the summer, she can come too. I know you’re not going to listen, but—”
“I’m listening, Brother. How soon can we come? Abbie is out of school and I’m ready to make a run for it.”
“Just pack what you can get into your cars and come as fast as you can. I’m telling you—”
“We’ll start packing our cars as soon as I think it’s safe. But I’m going to see if I can get a moving van to take the rest of our stuff. I’m not going to leave my antique pieces that my parents gave me, or my set of china and crystal they gave me, and all of Mother’s oils. And a bunch of other stuff. I just hope I can get a mover on such short notice.”
“Just leave it, Sis. Get out of there now!”
“I’ll call you tomorrow and let you know when to expect us.”
Mandy hung up and walked back into the living room. “Abbie, IT was telling me to call Uncle Don. He said we can come live with him and Aunt Anne. I’m going to call and see if I can get a moving van in the morning. I really don’t want to leave all my stuff—” she paused. “He’s taken all he’s going to from me. I don’t think he’ll come home until late Sunday night. He never does. Maybe I can get a mover to come Monday. I think we’ll be safe through Sunday night.”
“Great! We’ve got a safe place to go. He’ll think I’m home for my monthly visit and he won’t suspect a thing.”
“We can’t touch or pack a thing until he leaves for work Monday morning. I’ll call in sick at the hospital tomorrow morning. I’m not going to work and leave you.” She hugged Abbie. “IT has guided us so far. IT will get us out safely,” Mandy assured Abbie. And she hoped she was right.
The next morning, Mandy called in sick for the weekend. She opened the top drawer by the phone and pulled out the phone book. “I hope I can find a moving company that’s open on a Saturday.” She turned to the yellow pages and let her fingers do the walking. When her forefinger didn’t seem to want to move as it rested on a number, Mandy dialed it.
The company said they’d have a truck at her house by 8 o’clock, Monday morning.
“No!” Mandy quickly said. “You can’t have a truck here until nine o’clock. Don’t ask me to explain. Just be here by nine. Please.”
The man said a truck would be there at whatever time she specified.
Mandy and Abbie went shopping Sunday and stocked up on personal items. They came home and Mandy did laundry, making sure all their clothes were clean and ready to pack. Abbie had brought home three baskets of dirty clothes.
Gill came home by midnight. He walked into the house and saw Mandy and Abbie siting on the couch. He sweetly said, “Good to see you, Abbie.” He walked over and gave her a hug.
Play it cool, Abbie, Mandy silently begged.
Abbie smiled and said, “It’s good to be home and see you too.”
Gill bent down and kissed Mandy on the lips. Play it cool, Mandy, she silently said to herself. “Did you have a good weekend,” Mandy sweetly asked. Don’t over play it. He’ll know something is up.
“I had a great weekend. I won all the races and I’ve got more trophies to find a place for.”
Mandy smiled. And another stack of nude pictures, you sick sonofabitch, she wanted to scream.
The next morning, while Gill was in the shower, Mandy hurried into Abbie’s bedroom, “I’ve got to put on a uniform and act like I’m getting ready for work. When we leave the house, grab everything you can fit into your car and do it fast. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
Mandy and Gill always went to a local café and had breakfast before they parted every morning on their way to work. Mandy was too nervous to eat but she managed to get a few bites down, and she tanked on coffee. She carried on a pleasant conversation with Gill, doing the best acting job of her life.
After breakfast, they walked outside. Gill gave Mandy his usual peck on the lips and said, “See ya at the house for lunch.”
“Yep, see ya,” Mandy said, and tried not to run to her car. Play it cool, she reminded herself.
When Mandy got back home, Abbie was packing her car. Mandy quickly put on a pair of jeans, a blouse, and tennis shoes. By the time she was dressed, the moving van pulled into the driveway. She opened the door.