Total pages in book: 75
Estimated words: 71444 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 357(@200wpm)___ 286(@250wpm)___ 238(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 71444 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 357(@200wpm)___ 286(@250wpm)___ 238(@300wpm)
“I’m struggling to cover rent right now. Doesn’t look like I have much of a choice,” I say.
“I’ll call Josh,” Evelyn says. “He’ll know more.”
***
I wake up late with a sluggish head and dry eyes as the pipework in the upstairs apartment creaks like old bones, and outside, a police siren screeches loud enough to wake the graveyard. I climb out of bed, and in two steps, I’m in my kitchenette. The pan I use to boil water is waiting on the stove and I fill it with just a cup; no point wasting energy boiling more than what I need to make a single cup of coffee. My stomach rumbles. My decision to exchange dinner for beer last night has left me hollow and drained.
When I’m with Evelyn, I don’t make good choices. The sleezy man I danced with before the bar closed comes back to me, and I grimace.
I find a few slices of bread in the refrigerator, and some peanut butter on the counter. I don’t get paid until next week, so I have to eke out what I have. After work tonight, I’ll be able to bring home some leftovers. If I stop at the supermarket on the way home, I might be able to get some discounted food with the last few dollars in my purse.
As I spread the peanut butter, my phone rings. The saved photo of my sister’s happy face flashes up on the screen, cheeks squished by the chubbiness of her children on either side. I answer immediately, fearing the worst.
“Kennedy.”
“Lory.” She’s whispering, which is bad. It’s eleven o’clock in the morning, not the middle of the night when she might have reason to stay quiet.
“Are you okay?”
“He’s getting worse.” Her voice is tight like her throat is swollen with dread. I clasp the countertop and listen to her soft, shallow breaths.
“Did something happen?”
“He’s been yelling at me and at the kids. He threw their toys outside and they were crying. His eyes… I don’t know… it’s like they’re dead, Lory. It’s like there’s nothing behind them.”
“Shit.” I run my hand through my hair and pace the few steps that spans my tiny apartment.
“I can’t do this anymore.” The sob that escapes from her throat breaks me. She’s my little sister, and I’ve spent my childhood trying to protect her. Now, she’s too far away for me to shelter her with my body or defend her with my words. Men like her boyfriend only listen to the fists of a bigger, angrier man, and I don’t have a boyfriend or husband to step in.
“I know, sweetie.” The half-drunk conversation I had with Evelyn last night comes back to me through the fog. The auction. Josh confirmed the details. For someone like me, who’s been around the block more than a few times, it’s a thirty day minimum. The bidders want their money's worth. I’d heard the terms and discounted the idea, but Kennedy’s desperation resurrects it. What other choice do I have? Even if I work double shifts, I barely make enough to cover my own expenses. I chew on my nail and stare at the bubbling water that’s threatening to spill over. I’m out of time, and out of options. It seems like the theme of my life. I flick off the burner. “I have a plan to get the money so you can leave.”
“What plan?” She sounds so hopeful.
“It doesn’t matter. I’ll have it in a month.”
“A month? Where are you getting it?”
I ignore the second part of her question. “It’s the best I can do. Listen, if it gets worse… if you need to leave before then, find a refuge. I might not be contactable for thirty days. Just know that I’m coming for you then. Okay?”
“I don’t like this,” she says. When I don’t explain myself further, she sighs. “Okay.”
I hate being so far away from her, and I hate that I’m so helpless right now.
“I love you,” I whisper. “It’ll be okay.”
“Will it?”
When we were still living with my momma, and her boyfriend was raging, we’d hide under my bed with our stuffed animals and hope he wouldn’t come looking for us. I’d say the same thing, “It’ll be okay, Kennedy,” and she’d hold my hand until we were both sweaty with fear. I didn’t believe it then, and I’m struggling to believe it now. I’m going to do my best, but this plan I have isn’t without risk, and Kennedy staying with Derek for another month is laced with danger. I just don’t know what else to do.
“Just message me every day in case I can access my phone. Okay?”
“Okay.”
The line clicks off, but my heart races for another ten minutes.
2
KINKAID
SOFT HANDS
“Will you sit the fuck down?” Hyde barks. Tonight, his green eyes are a murky shade, like the mold that grows on days old bread. It isn’t a good sign.