My Never: a novella (11 page)

“Darling?
If I said something wrong, please, tell me.”

I
sniffled. “I have to leave.”

Troy was waiting on the
porch when I returned. “Hey, how was-?” He took in my misty eyes. “What
happened?”

“Genetics.”
I plopped down next to him. “I’m going to be a lousy mother.”

“I
don’t think so.” He draped an arm over my shoulders. “You’re Ruby’s number one
fave person. That’s a highly coveted position.”

“It
is?” I said, “But I had nothing to do with her upbringing. What if I suck at
raising
a child?”

“I
think you’re so determined to not screw it up, that you’ll be totally fine.”

“Hm.
I guess that’s true.” I sniffed at his mug. “Coffee.”

“Come
inside. I’ll make you a pot of decaf.”

I
trudged in and hung my jacket. “I’ll split my toffee crunch cake with you, if
you would give me some
real
coffee.” I tugged the plastic container from
my handbag and waved it under his nose.

He
smirked. “Not even if you gave me a million dollars.”

I
followed him down the hallway. “Two million?”

“Nope.”

“I’m
a desperate woman.”

He
swivelled. “I know.”

I
sighed, tossed the dessert onto the counter and grabbed a cola. “I hate you.”

“Really?”

“No.
How’s Ruby?”

“She
wants to stay with Lauren tomorrow night.”

I
froze. “What are we going to do?”

He
tore the plastic open and handed me a fork. “I’m gonna let her go.”

“What?”

He
shrugged. “She still has custody.”

Not
for long.

Ruby
danced in. “Hi, Moni.”

“Hey,”
I said.

“We’ve
got something to tell you,” Troy said to her.

“Now?”
If Ruby tells Lauren, she’ll hurt her again, I was sure of it.

“There’s
no better time,” he said.

Ruby’s
eyes darted between us. “Tell me. Please.”

No
going back now. I slid the cake towards her. “How would you like a little
brother or sister?”

She
thought for a moment. “I’d like a brother.”

“We
can’t really guarantee that,” I said.

“A
sister would be cool, too.” She forked cake into her mouth.

“Cool,”
I said.

“It’s
bound to be one of those, right?” Troy teased.

I
unleashed an icy glare on him. “You are not helping.”

He
hid a smile.

“Are
you having a baby?” said Ruby.

I
nodded. “Yes, we are.”

“That’s
so awesome!” She hugged me.

* * *

“Got enough books here,
Mon?” Troy pushed through the front door with an armload of bags.

“Yep.
Have to fill my new book case.” I grinned.

“Remind
me next time I decorate an office for you, to not build a wall-sized one.” He
heaved a sigh.

I
paused. “No backsies, I’ve fallen in love with it.”

“Ah-ha.”

“Speaking
of, where are we going to put the baby when he-slash-she comes?”

Troy
dropped the bags then fell into the couch. “Hm. Good question.”

I
dragged a bag over. “Don’t suppose you have another spare bedroom hidden away?”

“Nope.”

“Big
closet?”

“Might
go to Narnia.”

I
elbowed him. “Be serious.”

“Thought
I was.”

“We
need a bigger house.”

His
brow arched. “How many kids you plannin’ on havin’?”

“I
didn’t plan on having this one!” I pointed at my belly.

“Okay,
okay.” His hands flew up in surrender.

I
hauled out a stack of books and glanced at their spines. “Why did you let me
buy two copies of
Wuthering Heights
?”

“You
were in a book buyin’ craze.” He shook his head. “Plus I was afraid of losing
an arm. You had that glint in your eye.”

“Hmph.
My husband’s afraid of me.” I thought about that for a beat. My lips pulled
into a grin. “Cool.”

“Okay,
I’d better pick Ruby up from school and drop her off at Lauren’s.” He touched
his lips to my forehead and stood. “You’ll be okay here by yourself?”

“I
will find a way to manage.”

Five
minutes later, the landline rang. I danced into the kitchen and grabbed the
cordless. “Hello?” Seconds passed. “Hello?”

Beep,
beep, beep.

I
shrugged and replaced the phone in its cradle. Must have been a wrong number.

A
few minutes later, I heard the door slam.

“Mon?”
Troy marched into my office.

“Yep?”

“Lauren’s
upset, said she called and you yelled at her.”

I
swivelled my chair to face him. “The only call was a hang-up.”

“Are
you sure?”

“Why
would I yell at her?” I said, “Are you sure Ruby’s safe there?”

“If
she isn’t safe with her mother, then where is she safe?” His voice raised an
octave.

I
stood. “Here, Troy.”

“She
won’t hurt her.”

“She’s
unstable.”

He
spun and stalked out.

“Where
are you going?” I said.

“For
a drive. I need some space.”

I
followed him. “Troy, this is silly.”

He
whirled around. “What’s silly is that my
wife
isn’t supporting me.”

“Come
on, let’s talk about this.”

“I’m
done talking. You can do whatever you want.” The door ripped open. He
disappeared through it.

My
hands cupped my stomach. “Don’t leave us.”

Mum offered me tea.

I
swiped at my eyes. “My marriage is doomed.”

“Oh,
Honey.” She handed me a tissue. “I’m sure it’s not.”

“My
husband hates me. It’s over.”

She
rubbed my shoulder. “Give him time.”

“I’m
sorry about the things I said to you.”

“A
thing of the past.”

“Can
I stay here tonight?”

Her
arms wound around me. “Of course. Let’s order ice cream and watch some mindless
TV show, eh?”

Me
and my stupid mouth, always getting me in trouble. “I don’t deserve the special
treatment.”

“Only
one
bowl of ice cream then.” She winked.

I
heaved a sigh. “Fine.”

She
picked up the phone. “Hey Jimmy. Can you send up two bowls of ice cream and two
bowls of malt balls?” She listened for a moment. “Ah-ha. Okay, thanks. See you
soon.” She replaced the phone in its cradle.

“Jimmy
again?”

She
nodded. “He’s Ann’s nephew.”

“Ah,
so
he’s
your connection to this place.”

“I
told her I’d check up on him while I’m here.”

A
sigh slipped from my throat.

“Sweetheart.”
She moved next to me. “You and Troy are so in love. What happened?”

“We
had a fight about Lauren. I don’t think it’s okay for Ruby to be alone with
her, Troy thinks it is.”

“The
first arguments are the worst,” said Mum.

“What
do you think? Should Ruby be alone with her?”

She
traipsed over to the mini bar. “You two have to work this out on your own.”

I
rolled my eyes. She chose
now
to mind her own business? Perfect.

Someone
rapped on the door.

“I’ll
get it.” She jogged over and opened it.

Jimmy
ambled in, carrying a tray.

“Just
put in on the table here, thank you,” said Mum. She slipped him a five dollar
note. “See you later.”

The
door swung closed behind him. I reached for a bowl and spoon.

“Let’s
see what movies are on.” Mum flicked through the channels. “Ah,
Titanic
!”

“There’s
only so many times a person can watch a ship sink.”

“Okay.
Twilight
?”

“Not
really in a vampire-y romance-y mood.” I mashed up the dessert. “How about
something sci-fi? Horror?”

“Hm.
We could watch
Saw
.”

“Okay.”

An hour into the movie, my
phone buzzed. I peeled my hand from my eyes and peeked at the screen. It
flashed
Troy
. I held it to my ear. “Hello?”

Mum
muted the TV.

“Mon.
I’m so sorry for what I said. You were right.”

A
chill ran from the base of my skull to the tips of my toes.

“Ruby
called a minute ago. She sounded so scared.” His tone was thick with emotion.
“Terrified.”

“Where
are you?”

“Home.
Mon, I need you.”

“I’m
on my way.
Please
, don’t leave without me.”

“Hurry.”

I
disconnected. How could we be so stupid? I knew something would happen.

Mum
slid a canister of pepper spray from her purse. “Let’s show that bitch she’s
messed with the wrong women.”

“I
think it’s best if you stayed here.”

Her
eyes hardened. “I’m coming.”

I
matched her stare.

“She’s
my granddaughter.”

I
blew a sigh. “Fine. But there will be no spraying unless it’s absolutely
necessary, are we clear?”

“Clear
as an empty wine glass.”

“Good.
Whatever that means.”

When we arrived, Troy was
pacing on the
porch
.
His head snapped up when
he saw us pull in and he sprinted over. “What took you so long?”

“We
stopped for doughnuts,” I said.

Mum
cut her eyes to me. “This is no time for your cynicism, Monique.”

Troy
slid into the back. “You know the address?”

“Yep.”
I reversed out of the driveway.

Hope
– a powerful emotion, one that is built on desire and trust. Trusting that
certain events will turn out for the best - winning that football game or acing
that test. It can have us cry out in joy, bring us to our knees. We all need a
little hope. God knows, I do. But I can’t help wondering – have I already lost
it all? Has Lauren’s ignorance killed that little girl?

My
eyes darted to the rear vision mirror. Troy was staring out the side window,
fingers tapping on his thigh.

“We’re
here,” I said.

He
jumped out and sprinted across the grass.

“Wait
up.” I cut the engine and followed.

What
happened next shattered my heart. I heard Ruby scream, followed by frantic
sobs.

“Ow!
Mummy stop!” said Ruby.

“Ruby?”
Troy ripped open the door and slipped inside. There was a moment of terrifying
silence. Then more screams. “Lauren, put down the belt!”

Oh,
God. I spun to face Mum. “Stay here. Please.”

She
opened her mouth to protest, but shut it and nodded.

My
heart beat accelerated as I searched for them. I sprinted past the living room
and kitchen then skidded to a stop. I wasn’t prepared for what I was seeing -
Ruby limp in the corner, Lauren whipping the belt at Troy.

Move.
You have to do something. Save your family.
I took a step, then another. I slumped to
my knees at Ruby’s side.

“You
brought
her
here?” Lauren said through gritted teeth.

I
brushed hair from Ruby’s forehead. “Sweetheart?”

Her
eyes fluttered open. “Moni, it hurts.”

“Where?”
My fingers wandered over her side. I heard a crack. My head spun.

Troy
cupped his nose. Crimson trickled through his fingers. “Laur. Calm down,
please.”

“You
let that slut into my house.” She gestured to me. “And you expect me to be
calm?” She snapped the belt at him.

He
danced away. The buckle caught his ribs. He winced and clutched his side.

I
retracted my hand from Ruby’s back, blood smeared over my fingers. “Oh, God.
Troy.”

“Kinda
busy here.” He dodged the belt again.

I
turned Ruby over. Five welts
sliced
across her back. I blinked back tears. “Troy. We need to get Ruby to a
hospital. NOW.”

He
lunged at Lauren. He pinned her against the wall. “Go.”

“But-”
I can’t lose him.

Lauren
struggled against him, fury bleeding into her features. “She deserved it.
Always yammering on about the
ever-perfect Moni Cullen
, her new best
friend.”

He
shoved her back. “Go, Mon.”

Sirens
whistled through the air. I met his eyes.

“Take
care of our girl,” he said.

I
breathed deep and rolled Ruby into my arms. Whimpers escaped her lips. Tears
spurted from her eyes.

“She’ll
never be yours, you hear me?”

If
I wasn’t so concerned about her daughter’s welfare, Lauren’s vindictive tone
might have paralysed me.

I
stumbled outside, trying not to see Ruby’s blood-stained clothes. Where was
Mum? “It’s okay, Sweetie.” I slid her into the back seat. “I’ll keep you safe.”
I heard footsteps behind me and I whirled. Something solid cracked against my
skull. My head swam. I slumped into the grass. The scent of rust and salt hit
my nose. Drops of crimson slithered across my cheek.

The
baseball bat landed an inch from my head. “She’ll never be yours.”

I
felt a boot connect to my ribs. I winced. Darkness threatened to overcome me.
“Ruby …”
Please, God. Save Ruby.

Someone
screamed. I heard a hard
smack
, tailed by a deafening
thump
.

“Mon?”

The
angel’s voice was muffled. I felt a weight on my shoulders and was lifted into a
pair of arms. “Ruby.” My vision clouded over. “Rubes.”

The dark consumed me.