Page 68 of Fractured
“Nope! No sir! Nope, nope, nope. Not doing that.”
Black rook to A6, straight up across the board. No thank you, sir!
I back away from him towards the bathroom, stopping just at the entrance.
“Thank you for the coffee.” I open the door and close it, locking it for good measure.
Nope! Not playing, I’ll treat you like a dog and then kiss you till you forget I was a jerk and I can feel better, game. Nope!
I shower and wrap myself in a towel, and open the bathroom doors. Looking around, I see he’s gone.
White Bishop to F1, he’s retreating.
I go to my suitcase and gather up my clothes. I take the dirty ones to the hamper in the bathroom and pick out my Harry Potter sweatshirt and black leggings.
I grab my cold coffee off the floor and head to the studio. I put my apron on and dived right into the painting. I’ll work till Anna shows up or someone comes and gets me. The second scene is almost finished. It’s progressing faster than I would have thought.
“Anna’s in the house!” She bellows from the door. I quickly cover the painting and run out to hug her. I swing her around, missing her so much and hold her tight.
“Oh, someone missed me.” She laughs and hugs me as best she can with her huge purse and a tray of coffee in her hand.
“OMG! I love you so much. I need youandthe coffee.” Taking the tray from her hand and placing it on the coffee table. I hug her and drag her over to my messy couch bed, tossing the pink blanket on the back of it.
I take a cup out and hand it to her. “What’s with the giant bag? It’s bigger than you?”
“Oh girl, I have so much to tell you. A lot of shit can happen in a week.”
“Well, do tell. I hope you took the afternoon off. Because it’s been over a week since we last saw each other and I have stuff to tell you, too.”
She wiggles her eyebrows. “Ooooo. The wedding night? Did you ride a dick?”
I nod and burst out laughing at her expression.
“Isabella Gallo, you slut! Oh wait, you’re a Russo now. You go, girl! Pop that cherry.”
We spend the next hour and a half talking so fast and telling each other everything in our lives that it feels like only minutes. But then she looks over her shoulder at the door and turns serious.
“I have a plan. I bought you a burner phone. Helen needs a few weeks or more to get the last stage ready for you. I do, however, have a back-up plan. My big bag has a purpose. Every time we visit, we are going to stuff some of your clothes in it, so you have something to wear. I also set up a vault in the Archives for you. It’s empty and if shit goes south and you need out before Helen is ready, I will be.”
I’m so stunned, I just cover my mouth. This is really happening. I take a deep breath. My heart is beating at a hundred miles an hour.
“OMG, Anna. Really? Which Vault? The one in the back, with the half bath?”
“Yep, the very same. I’ve been bringing a few things to work every day. By the time you need it, I’ll have it set up as cozy as Ican. Plus, I’ll get to see you every day. So if you need anything, I can bring it.”
I look at her and hug her with tears in my eyes.
“How am I going to get to you? He was so mad at me. Last night he screamed so loud, his face was almost purple. And he acts as if nothing happened this morning, kissing me and bringing me coffee. But it’s only a matter of time before I piss him off again.”
“I know, girl. I have an idea about that too. I’ll ship your ass out of here to the museum.”
She smiles and hunches up her shoulders and takes a sip of her coffee.
“How are you going to do that? That’s just crazy.”
She jacks her thumb over her shoulder.
“Nope, Mr. Dickhead bought a sculpture for his garden, and he’s shipping it here. You just need to get in the fucken crate before I close it up. The catch is that I can only hold off for so long on shipping it. I can buy us a few weeks for sure. But when you’re ready, text me. And I’ll have that truck backed up to his pompous ass door so fast.”
