On Ice (2 page)

Rene replaced the bills and closed the purse. Maddy always had a thing about money. Since marrying a successful doctor ten years her senior, she tucked away hundred dollar bills. “A little mad money---just in case.” she would say.

Mark never allowed Rene to have much cash and only one credit card which he monitored closely. Maddy made sure Rene had a little mad money of her own.

“
You have a reservation for Nichols?” she asked the slow moving, ginger-colored desk clerk. The new name tasted strange on her tongue.

The clerk bent his sparsely covered head to the computer, grimly studying the screen a few minutes. There were only three cars parked outside, but he acted as though there might not be a vacancy.

“
Oh, yeah, here ya’ are,” he finally pronounced. “A double, down and out.”

“
Excuse me?”

“
The room’s got two beds, it’s downstairs and outside. Wat cha’ wanted, ain’t it?”

“
Oh, yes.” Rene managed a dry laugh. “That’s right. I just forgot for a moment.”

Maddy prepaid by credit card, guaranteeing their late arrival. Rene took the key and drove to their room. It faced west, their getaway direction.

Rene only unloaded the bag from the bus station, piling it on the bed closest to the window. It contained changes of clothing, undergarments, sleep wear and toiletries.

She spread their meal from the ice chest on a towel. The children ate while Rene sipped a bottle of juice. She set out clothes for the morning and ran a bath for Sara.

Freshly bathed, Sara’s head popped through the neck of her new nightgown. “Look, Mommy!” she shrieked with glee as she saw her gown. “It’s Pooh!” Aunt Maddy forgot nothing.

Rene smoothed the gown over Sara’s still-damp body and gathered her into her arms. A lump formed in her throat, preventing any comment.

“
We’ll be okay, Mom.” Seth wrapped his arms around both of them.

Hugging her children, tears spilled down Rene’s cheeks. “Yes, we will!” she agreed.

Tucking them into bed, she wondered how Mark handled the situation when he arrived at the school. Had he lost his composure, screaming his head off in front of Mrs. Sloan? Or had he suppressed his anger and bluffed when questioned about the death in the family?

Rene stifled a shiver and stretched her arms to relieve her sore muscles. It had been a long, hard day.

If all went well tomorrow, they might actually make it.

After her shower, Rene climbed into bed weary from the long drive and the stress. She felt curiously content and safer than she had in years. Fear of the unknown was minor when compared to the terror she had known at the hands of her husband.

Far worse than the physical abuse were the threats. “If you ever leave me,” he said, “I’ll kill you. And if your sister doesn’t keep her nose out of my business, she’ll be next.” The threats, plus fear for Seth and Sara if she weren’t around to protect them, kept her imprisoned for years. Now they were free.

Rene awoke before dawn and dressed quietly. Pulling on the jeans and sneakers from the previous day and adding a clean shirt, she tiptoed into the bathroom to brush her teeth. Her nondescript attire lacked any memorable characteristics, just as she’d planned. Picking up her hairbrush, she began stroking it through her hair. She ran her fingers through the long ash-blond tresses.

Laying the brush aside, she rummaged in her purse and located a pair of tiny folding scissors. She smiled as she met her own gaze in the mirror. Mark claimed to love her long silky hair, yet he used it as a weapon in his assaults.

“
Rapunzel, Rapunzel,” she whispered, snicking the tiny scissors through the long strands. She left a couple of inches on top but cut off anything else she could grab.

Hair fell around her feet onto the checkered tile of the motel bathroom. Grinning at her image, she snipped until acquiring a pleasing effect.
What an ugly duckling!

She felt buoyant, as though the hair had weighed her down. Gathering the long strands, she hid them in the wastebasket under the remains of their supper.

“
Wow, Mom!” Seth stood in the doorway. “That looks awesome!”

“
I hope that means good,” she whispered.

“
Yeah, kinda,” he said slowly. “It’s different. You look---” He paused.

“
Yucky?” she ventured, using his vernacular.

“
No, younger.”

“
I guess that’s okay.” Rene noticed her son’s furrowed brow. “What’s wrong?”

“
I think Dad’s gonna be mad.”

“
I’m sure you’re right.”

“
Aren’t you scared, Mom?” His eyes reflected his concern.

“
Yes, I am.” She hoped her simple admission was comforting.

“
What’s Dad going to do when he finds us?”

“
I hope he won’t find us. I’ve got a pretty good idea it might take him a little while to get on our trail. If we’re really smart and don’t make people notice us we’ll have a better chance of getting away.”

“
What do you mean?” His small face turned up to hers.

“
We’ve got to be as close to invisible as we can. Our car is plain. We’re dressed plain. If we’re so plain and quiet that nobody remembers us, they won’t be able to tell anyone they saw us. We’ll just blend in.”

He threw his arms around her hips, hugging fiercely. “I hope he never finds us!”

Rene returned his embrace. “Me, too!”

“
Don’t worry. I’ll be so quiet nobody will see me.”

“
I know you will, Honey. Now hurry and get dressed. I’ll load up the car.”

Rene awakened Sara, who was delighted with her short hair, begging to have hers cut as well. Rene laughed and hurried her into her clothes and into the car.

Rene stopped at a local drive-through, ordering fresh flour tortillas filled with spicy chorizo sausage, potatoes and eggs for the road.

Seth remained tense, but Sara was thrilled by the unfolding events. Her shrieks of delight over each animal, billboard and car they passed reverberated within the confines of the car but Rene hadn’t the heart to quiet her. As time elapsed, the animals, billboards and other vehicles became less frequent. Rene too, was tense. She reminded herself to inhale when she found she had been holding her breath.

Glancing in the rear-view mirror, she scanned the horizon, expecting Mark to come swooping down on them at any moment.

Flexing her fingers frequently offered relief when they cramped from her tight grip on the steering wheel.

“
Mommy, I have to potty.”

“
Sara, there’s no place to go here. You have to wait.”

“
I can’t wait!” Her voice was a tremulous wail. “I have to go right now!”

“
Please try to hold on, Sara,” Rene pleaded with her. It would be dangerous to be caught in this isolated place.

“
Look! There’s something over there.” Seth pointed to a series of dilapidated buildings just off the highway.

Squinting in the bright sunlight, she slowed the car. A few abandoned shacks squatted by the road. She started to drive on, then braked and veered toward the last one. It appeared to be a functioning gas station flanked by an ancient house trailer.

Driving to the side, she stopped where a hand-painted sign declared a door standing ominously ajar to be a restroom. They all stared suspiciously at the uninviting prospects.

They screamed in unison as heavy knuckles knocked on the passenger window. Rene stared open-mouthed at the huge shirtless man smiling hopefully at them.

“
Didn’t mean to scare you none, Ma’am.” The enormous face was glossy pink like boiled ham and she counted at least three sets of chins, yet the voice was almost falsetto. “D’ju want some butane or propane, Ma’am?” The immense person pointed to the shining silver tanks labeled appropriately by the same sign painter.

A cold prickle of relief swept over her. “My daughter needs to use the rest room.”

“
Shucks, Ma’am, that’n don’t work half the time.” He wiped his sweaty forehead with a red rag pulled from inside the bib of his worn overalls. As he worked to dry his face, his pendulous breasts jiggled rhythmically. He used the same rag to noisily blow his nose and stuffed it back into the bib. “Why’nchu take the li’l girl in the house. Mama won’t mind.” He gestured to the faded green trailer.

“
We don’t want to intrude.” Rene couldn’t imagine taking her daughter into the decaying structure. A tiny elderly woman peered intently at them from inside the torn screen. She smiled and waved them inside.

“
I gotta go, too, Mom,” Seth whispered.

“
Well, I gotta go first.” Sara was insistent.

“
We’ll have to hurry.” Rene hoped a band of crazed bikers wasn’t waiting inside to attack them. No motorcycles were visible. In fact, she didn’t even see a car.

Seth freed Sara from her seat belt. She was now bouncing up and down in anticipation of relief. Reluctantly, Rene stepped out into the blazing heat. The perspiration that had formed on her brow dried instantly in the dry air.

“
C’mon in kids,” the tiny lady screeched at them in a voice not unlike her son’s.

Rene stepped onto a wooden pallet placed in front of the door to form a simple step.

“
Th’ john’s right back there. Jus’ ‘scuse th’ mess.” She tittered mindlessly.

Entering the comparative darkness, Rene’s senses recoiled from the odor of cat feces. As she became accustomed to the dim interior, she saw cats on every surface.

Beautiful, longhaired Persian cats lolled decorously on the table and countertops. They yawned from the chairs and switched their tails as they hung out of open cabinets, watching their passage with a combination of boredom and contempt.

“
Look, Mommy! Kitties!” Thrilled, Sara tried to break away from Rene’s grasp.

“
No, Honey. Don’t pet the kitties.” Rene dragged the squirming child toward the bathroom with Seth trailing close behind. She reached inside, finding the light switch, then drew back as she saw several over-full litter boxes crammed into the minuscule room. The acrid stench of ammonia cut her breath and made her eyes water. Rene and both children crowded into the small space. She ripped Sara’s panties off, ordering her to squat over the grime-encrusted commode.

“
I’ll fall in, Mommy!” Sara whined piteously as Rene set her shoes on the seat.

“
No, you won’t. I’m holding you. Hurry up. Don’t touch anything.” She heard a note of hysteria in her own voice.

Dutifully Sara gripped Rene’s arms and managed to splatter urine all over the seat and floor as she released her floodgate.

Seth took his turn while Rene cleaned Sara and managed to get the miniature panties back on over Sara’s shoes. She wiped at the splatters but gave up as the cheap toilet paper shredded when presented with moisture.

Herding the children out of the offensive quarters, she politely refused the offer of iced tea from their hostess.

The man stood just outside the screen, holding it open as they stepped down onto the pallet. “We don’t get many visitors out here.”

“
Thank you.” She was afraid to say more, lest she make an impression on these simple people. She slammed the car door behind the children, leaving Seth to assist Sara with her seat belt.

Invisible. We must be invisible.
Chanting to herself, she inserted the key in the ignition, her fingers shaking. Rene sighed as a blast of cold air hit her in the face.

“
Mommy, that place was stinky.” Sara wrinkled her nose in disgust.

“
Yes, Honey, it was.” Rene smiled at her daughter in the rear-view mirror.

“
It was yucky,” Seth agreed. “I can still smell it.”

Rene pulled onto the westbound lane. Few vehicles were on the road. The highway stretched on forever, a silver ribbon cutting across the golden West Texas plains.

Bright blue skies were accented with puffy, white cumulus clouds. Overhead, the sun washed everything to super brightness. Arid waves of heat rose off the asphalt. The flat horizon line would have been mesmerizing but terror kept her on guard.

~*~

CHAPTER TWO

“
Honey, you can’t drink any more juice. We don’t have a bit of time to waste.”

Sara’s bladder had been uncooperative. Frequent stops shredded Rene’s nerves. She tried to speed the child along but Sara refused to be hurried. Rene carefully placed tissue on the toilet seats. Sara was enthralled with the process.

“
It might not be clean enough for you to sit on,” Rene explained, deciding against trying to explain the concept of germs to a four-year-old.