A Happy Marriage?

Chapter 20: Evaporating

Furiously walking down the sidewalk, Beth tries to calm herself, but simply can't. Frustrating. Her life is frustrating and it only got worse when Daryl came into it. Those two months she was away in California, she was hoping that a little time away would make the heart grow fonder, but all it did was give her a cheating husband, an asshole employee, and a mess of everything else.

With the pavement wet from the morning rain, Beth splashes through puddles angrily and the gray sky over head becomes dark and angry like her. People rush passed her with umbrellas or newspapers covering their heads and Beth just ignores all life. She's hurt. Irrationally hurt. It's not like they love each other. It's not like she expected this marriage to work or be like able. And maybe that's the problem.

Her negativity.

Her grandpa always told her that negativity catches terrible weather. And isn't he right in his wisdom?

"Excuse me?" A man with a shuffle in his walk comes towards Beth from an ally way and she can't help but stop. "Can you point me in the direction of Lynx and Dime Bank?"

Beth studies the man and he simply seems disheveled and drenched.

"My car broke down in the back alley and I'm supposed to be picking up my wife from her shift. I need to get there to call Triple A." As Beth contemplates the man's sentence, she is given no time to tell the man the bank is across the street- before he grabs her around the waist and pokes her side with a sharp knife. "I'm sorry sweetheart. I need money and you're helping me get it. You scream and I'm taking your kidney."

Beth nodes her head as her changes positions with his body next to hers to look as though they are a couple. The knife is concealed in his long sleeve shirt with the tip poking Beth. Just a slight movement and the blade with be through her skin. As they walk across the street and into the bank, Beth becomes rather freighted by this man. She wishes she would have stayed home- or ran away from the man. As the man makes his way up to the counter, Beth eyes the teller and gestures with her eyes towards the deranged man pleadingly. The woman teller smiles and does a small nod, but makes no attempt to touch the secret button under her counter.

"Tell the woman you need $10,000." He growls in her ear.

"Hello...I need $10,000 to withdraw." Beth says cooly.

"Ma'am we don't carry such a large amount in this branch" The teller plays along and Beth just looks down and notices that the teller has a hand gun pointed directly at Beth's stomach. Beth's eyes go wide and soon the Teller and the man start yelling.

"This is a robbery! If anyone moves, we'll kill you." The teller says as she stands up on the counter with her gun and a few other men and woman pull their guns out. All the patrons of the bank hit the floor and cover their heads as one man fires his gun into the ceiling.

"Alright blondie, in the back." The guy pushes Beth and the teller opens the security door for them. As they get behind the counter- several other tellers are on the ground hysterical and Beth just follows orders. Getting to the vault behind the main wall, the security guards bring up their weapons. "Open the vault or we kill her."

"Put the knife down!" One security guy calls.

"My men have several people at gun point out their- do you really think we won't kill them and you to get what we want?" He brings the knife up to Beth's throat.

"We know your faces! The security camera has all the footage they need to find and arrest you. You won't get away with it." A woman security guard, says angrily. As Beth looks at her badge it says Dawn Lerner. Beth doesn't know this woman, but she figures she isn't doing such a good job of keeping the situation under control.