Page 5 of Frankie and the Fed
CHAPTER2
Ayala
The noise of the engines mask the pounding in my heart as I fly back to the place I once called home, next to the man I never wanted to see again, the monster in my dreams.
And worst of all, I’m here willingly.
I was innocent and naïve when I got married, but now I know who he is. I know what I’m walking into. I’ve seen the monster raise its head, and yet, here I am.
The flight attendant offers me water or orange juice with a smile. Michael’s hand digs into my waist, hurting me. He makes it clear that I mustn’t say a word out of place. But I don’t need his warning to remember why I’m here. Ethan needs to live.
I take the water from her, and she continues down the aisle.
“Are you the one who followed Ethan with the gun?” I ask.
Michael grins. “Of course not. I hired someone. Do you think I would take the risk of being caught? I’m not stupid.” He pauses. “You know, when I met you, I was sure you would be the perfect match. Beautiful, shy, inexperienced. Religious education. Submissive. You ticked all the boxes. You should have been just right. And how wrong was I, huh? You’re just a simple whore. Did you sleep with him?” Michael squeezes my arm, and I wince.
“Yes.” I shoot him a look and raise my head in defiance. I’m so scared, almost paralyzed with fear, but I will never regret Ethan.
Michael’s face contorts in anger. “On the first opportunity you had, you opened your legs to someone else. After everything I’ve given you.”
“What you gave me?” I almost spit out the words. “What did you give me besides beatings?”
“If you hadn’t teased me, that wouldn’t have happened.”
I can’t believe he said that. I was a shadow of a woman. Bent under the rule of fear. I didn’t dare speak back then. How dare he say I provoked him? “You’re a joke of a man. You don’t even know how to have sex with a woman,” I taunt, gaining fake courage, taking advantage of the fact that we’re on a public flight, and he won’t dare hit me here.
A bitter smile appears on his face. “I didn’t teach you enough about sex, you say. Don’t worry, whore. I’ll show you what a man I am.”
I was wrong to provoke him. He was cruel before, and he’ll be crueler now that I ran away from him. But I promised to be strong. And I promise myself to draw my strength from Ethan’s image in my memory.
It will be harder to endure now that I know what a real relationship is supposed to be like, but I’ll have the memories to hold on to on hard days. This time, the monster won’t break me.
* * *
After the long drive, we arrive at an unfamiliar house. Michael forced me to lie on the floor of the car during the drive, so I have no idea where we are. I look around and try to absorb my surroundings. Where are we? In the middle of a forest? I see only trees as far as the eye can see, and the area seems quite isolated. There is no other house within sight.
Damn, this doesn’t bode well for me.
Why didn’t he take me to our house?
I enter the cabin while Michael takes his luggage out of the rental car.
After six hours of flying, of sitting on the plane with my muscles tight, I’m exhausted. And all I want to do is go to sleep. But sleeping with Michael? I shudder at the thought. There’s no way I can close my eyes when I know he’s close.
He puts his suitcases down and tosses the keys onto a table at the entrance. Every step he takes makes me cringe more. I want to disappear, but I’m planted in the entrance, debating what to do.
“Why aren’t we at home?”
“I arranged a short vacation for you. Aren’t you happy?”
I lick my lips.
“You need to be re-educated before I can bring you back into the public eye. Now go upstairs,” he orders, and I take my bag and go upstairs, knowing any moment away from him is a blessing. There is only one bedroom, with a bed in the center. I close my eyes and inhale. I should lock myself in the bathroom and never come out.
He’ll come right after me, though, and won’t hesitate to break down the door.
“If you’re thinking of running away, remember that I know where your boyfriend is, and I’ll have no problem sending someone to New York.”
