Carol-Anne woke up that morning as alert as
an alley cat tracking a mouse. She wished that she could feel as confident as
the cat would but all in all her senses were wide open in nervous anticipation
of the day. She went to her closet to pick out what to wear, not that it mattered to her, she would much rather be comfortable but Robert would want her to wear
something that made her look like the perfect, pretty little housewife. Clothes
whispered as she shifted the hangers across the rod and her thoughts wandered
to her plan.
Today is the day that she’s going to break
free. “This is it…” She thought to
herself. “This is the day I get out of
here.” Carol-Anne had made sure that everything she needed was stashed
away. The only things she wouldn’t be able to control would be how to get to
the accounts. She had her identification so all she needed was one card, one
card from his wallet and she could get to the accounts. Her ribs felt much
better although she wasn’t sure if they really felt better or if the adrenaline
she was pumping out was masking the pain. She could hear Robert whistling as he
usually did when they were going to Odds & Ends. She picked out her clothes
and hurriedly got dressed in fear of keeping him waiting if he was ready before
she was.
Robert liked to get there early so that he
could see new stock if any, as soon as it was removed from the box. Carol-Anne
came downstairs wearing her best navy blue skirt and a deep green blouse to set
off her red hair. Robert always liked her to look conservative and beautiful
while she waited for him on the little park bench in the sunlight. If he found something
he liked then he would want to make love to her later and the thought made her
stomach churn. To everyone else she was a pretty picture that he owned and
little did he know that today, underneath the conservative clothes she had on
her athletic gear and even though she was wearing low sensible heals, in her
purse were a pair of soft flat slippers. They weren’t much but they would
protect her feet from the rough pavement.
She checked her face in the mirror while
Robert gathered the rest of his things. He checked his wallet for her bank and credit cards and quickly
ushered her out of the house and into the car thankfully she noticed that in
his hurry he didn’t set the alarm. Her heart was pounding in her chest. Not
quickly but a steady thud that would echo in her ears, she couldn’t hear the
radio, the engine or even Roberts constant whistling. She heard nothing but the
beat of her heart as she tried to remain calm.
She swallowed and tested the waters. “Honey
did you set the alarm?” she said in her best good girl voice.
He stopped and just looked at her then. She
saw the quick shift of emotions on his face plain as day that she questioned
him and then the look softened.
“No I don’t believe I did.” Almost mechanically
he deposited her in the passenger seat and went back inside to enter the code
to lock the house.
The monitors were right there and she knew
that if she made a move now that he would see her so she sat with her hands in
her lap until he came back and got in the car. It was one of the hardest things
she ever had to do especially because his wallet was right there in the
compartment between the seats. Her nerves were already fried and they hadn’t
left the driveway.
“I
can do this; I just need to relax no matter what, even if I don’t get the money.”
She thought to herself.
The long road was just being touched by the
rising sun as they drove down the mountains twisty lane, the golden rays
bouncing off of the leaves of the trees when Robert suddenly stopped whistling.
From the corner of her eye she saw him turn his head towards her. He looked at
her for a few seconds and cocked his head curiously. Carol-Anne started to lose
the fight with staying calm. “He knows…” she
thought. “He knows I’m going to try and
get away.” Anxiety spiked and she thought her heart was going to break
through the breastplate. She tried not to move and keep still until she saw his
hand drift up off the wheel and move towards her.
It felt painfully slow as she tried not to
shy away from his touch. Feather light he touched a loose wave of her red hair
and slid it through his fingers.
“You are so beautiful.” He whispered. “You
are so beautiful and you’re all mine.” She felt her chest fall as she released
her breath. Carol-Anne turned to Robert and gave him the most sensual smile she
could while her brain thought of ways to hurt him. She realized then that she
was about to hurt him without touching him. Nothing belonged to him. Not the
house or the money and it would take her some time to get them away from him
but once she got to her brother they could start getting everything back.
So lost in her thoughts Robert had turned
his eyes back to the road while she continued to stare at him with revenge in
her heart.
The silence continued on the way to the
shop and with each minute they got closer Carol-Anne’s head started to spin as
different scenarios danced through her brain. Then the store front came into
view and an eerie calm came over her and everything stood out. She could see
the blinds being opened by a woman with dark brown hair. She didn’t know her
name but she had seen her enough to know that she wasn’t the owner but that she
helped Robert almost every time he went in to purchase something.
Robert almost stopped the car in the middle
of the street and became excited. Carol-Anne shook her head and looked out the
passenger window at the little lake in the park where her bench waited. He
regained his composure and parked the car. She knew better than to try and get
out before he opened the door for her. People thought he was chivalrous but it
was all about controlling her.
For her his childlike excitement disgusted
her. It made her think of what it was about him that she was interested in when
they first started dating. As much as her hatred for him was blossoming right
at this moment she smiled sweetly before she turned towards the park with a
slight sway in her hips that did not go unnoticed by Robert.
What did go unnoticed was that when he had
gotten out of the car and he was distracted by watching the shop open, she had
taken one of the lesser of the credit cards from his wallet. One she didn’t
think he would miss since he used the flashiest ones for his purchases. He didn’t
think long about her sudden shift. He watched her walk to the bench and sit
crossing her legs as the wind rustled her hair gently. She looked over at him
once and smiled.
He immediately turned on a heel and strode
away. Her smile was genuine as she tilted her face to the warming sun and said
goodbye.
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