"There's someone at this party, that fucked me over. I need you to seduce him. I need you to make him want to fuck you, let his guard down. Then...I want you to kill him."
In this quick burn romance, Catherine escapes an abusive polygamist marriage...
I'm in the kitchen, making a racket trying to get dinner going. The clock is ticking loudly, reminding me that time's running out.
Then, he barges in, his face all twisted, his hair grayer than it was this morning. "Catheeeerine," he says, drawing out my name. "Why isn't dinner ready? You know what's expected. A good Mormon wife keeps things in order. What would the brethren say if they knew you can't even handle a simple meal?"
Out of nowhere he slaps me, and it hurts like hell. The force jolts my head to the side, and I taste blood from biting my lip so hard. I regain my footing, and he stumbles up to bed without another word.
I can feel their eyes on me; my sister wives watching in shadows of the living room. Nothing new.
I see Penny lurking in the background, witnessing the whole thing from the safety of the hallway. As soon as his bedroom door slams, she darts to me, wide-eyed and worried. Her little arms wrap around me, and she whispers, "Are you okay, Mommy?"
I muster up a weak smile, trying to reassure her, but the truth hangs heavy in the air. My brave little girl, too young to understand the craziness, yet wise enough to know it's all kinds of wrong.
It is my fault, sneaking on to my husband's computer to talk in chat rooms made me lose track of time. If I had dinner ready, he wouldn't have blown up like that. It's always something, though. Too slow, too sloppy, too this, too that. But tonight's different. After the hundredth beating you get sick of it, and I can't keep living like this–I need out, and I need out tonight.
I wait it out for a few hours, and when the house is dead silent, I slip into his room. The smell of booze lingers in the air, and I know he won't be waking up anytime soon. He's sprawled out, snoring like a buzzsaw. I grab $300 from his wallet and snag a flip phone from the dresser.
I scrawl a hasty, "Take care of Penny -Catherine," and leave the note under my sister wife's pillow.
She'll get it. She's the only one I can trust with my little girl, and she knows I would never leave my Penny behind for good.
I'll be shunned when they find out I left, but I'll hustle, scrape together enough cash, and then I'm coming back for my baby.
I stand in front of the mirror running my hands through my tangled mess of hair. I re-braid it, hoping the neatness might straighten out the chaos happening in my head.
My old blue dress lays on the chair in the corner; ankle-length, long sleeved, and collared. It has seen one too many showdowns. Slipping into it, one button at a time, I take a deep breath.
I tiptoe into Penny's room, trying not to disturb the silence. She's sleeping peacefully, unaware of what's going to happen next. Leaning down, I press a soft kiss to her forehead, whispering, "I love you, Penny," like a lullaby.
It's a bittersweet moment, knowing I have to leave her behind to set us free. But my kiss holds a promise–I'll be back for her, no matter what it takes.
And with a heavy heart, I slip away into the darkness.
Aᴜᴛʜᴏʀs ɴᴏᴛᴇ❤︎︎ Hi, hi! Thanks for taking the time to read my book. You all are in for a wild ride ;)
Please don't forget to comment (if that's your cup of tea) I love reading everyone's thoughts, opinions and reactions to the story as you go along!
That's all from me for now :)
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