The Incubus

Chapter 2, Scene 10

'How do I look?' Justin asked.

'Like some big, fancy exec,' Rebecca said and straightened his tie. She took a step back and admired her well-groomed husband. It had been a while since he dressed up for anything, and it was a visual treat to her. 'Nervous?'

'A little,' he said. 'But I have a good feeling about this one.'

She smiled. 'So do I.'

'Are you sure Tanya's okay with picking you up for work?'

'She's fine about it. Just remember to fetch me after work, okay?'

'Deal,' he said and hugged her tightly. He then kissed her passionately and Rebecca wished that the moment would last forever. 'See you soon, hun,' he said. 'Wish me luck.'

She waited at the kitchen window as he got into the car. He waved to her as he drove off. 'Lord, please be with him during the interview,' she prayed as she boiled water to make herself some tea. 'He really needs this. Please let him get the job.'

Once the tea had been made, she put it aside on the coffee table in the lounge and switched on the television. It would be another twenty minutes before Tanya would be there to pick her up. Justin's interview wasn't for another while still, but he didn't know the neighbourhood that the company was based in too well. He had a rule where he would rather be an hour early than two minutes late.

'So let me get this straight. Your mother is married to a convicted killer, and now you're pregnant with his baby?'

The crowd cheered.

Another stupid talk show, Rebecca thought and pressed the button on the remote. The television flipped to another channel. It was the weather report. Dull, she thought, but at least better than the claptrap on the previous channel.

She scanned her eyes across the screen as the names and temperatures of various South African cities and suburbs scrolled from bottom to top. Finally Kelwick scrolled up.

'Oh dear,' Rebecca said aloud. 'That's warm for this time of the year.' It was, in fact, unusually warm even for summer in the tiny Gauteng suburb. Where rain was expected, the weatherman predicted an unexpected heat wave.

There was a fumbling at the front door.

Rebecca got up and as she neared the door, it opened. Justin walked in and smiled.

'Forgot something,' he said and walked briskly past her into the bedroom. He rummaged through a few drawers, pulled out a file, flipped through it, and then walked past her to the door again. 'See you later, love,' he said and stole a quick kiss.

Rebecca walked to the kitchen to wave him off through the window again, but he was already backing off into the road. When the car pulled away, her heart skipped a beat.

There's someone with him! She thought. It wasn't as much the fact that there was someone with him that bothered her, but the fact that he had neglected to mention anything to her about picking anyone up before the interview. She shrugged and made a mental note to ask him about it when she saw him again. Less than a minute later she was back at her tea and, for some unexplained reason, watching the talk show.