Bill had been colder and more distant since he shaved her head. He was a little confused and freaked out by her reaction to it. Since then she had turned to the wife he had wanted with a dead smile plastered on her face. It was unnerving. Bill took another sip of his coffee, unable to concentrate on the morning paper. He would need to work on the nursery soon, she was getting further along in the pregnancy.
Bill jumped when he felt Emily's gentle hand on his shoulder. "Good morning my love." She said in a soft, hollow voice. She had that creepy grin plastered on her face again. "Morning." Bill managed to grunt. She looked creepier with a shaved head. He was expecting her to scream and cry...not thank him for it.
He put the paper down when she sat across from him. Emily placed her hands on top of his. Bill grew angry, "Stop looking so fucking creepy!" He snapped, recoiling from her. "That's rich coming from you, love." She said her eyes flashed dark. Bill made a face and got up to cook since he still didn't trust her. Could he ever?
"You look stupid with no hair." Bill snapped.
"I wouldn't know since we don't have any mirrors in the house. It can't be that bad, dear, it was your trade after all." She said in a dead sickly sweet voice.
Bill grit his teeth, this was becoming more hassle than it was ever worth, even the unborn child he had desperately wanted for years. He was unhappy. He continued to cook, growing ever resentful, it should be the other way around.
Emily took his still warm coffee and sipped it. Watching him. It had been too long since she last had any, even if he did take it too sweet. She felt so exposed without the thick wavy curtain of hair. She couldn't stop touching her scalp, it felt so weird, the hair left had softened some after a couple of days. It kind of hurt to lay her head on a pillow too. Emily was dying to know how she looked. Bill had kept reassuring her she was ugly as sin. What he didn't know was that he had actually unwittingly gave her a gift now that he couldn't yank her around by her hair anymore. No one would.
She took another sip, half expecting him to burn her hands on the stove or something. He was getting more and more violent. She scoffed quietly, maybe she did break his heart. What did he even expect.
"Are you going to take me to a doctor so we can make sure the baby is okay? Or maybe find out the sex?" Emily asked softly. Bill tightened his grip on the spatula. "Bill?" She called his name in sweet haunting voice.
Bill sighed heavily. "Yeah sure."
"Oh good! We need to pick out names." She said, feeling something crack inside of her.
Bill turned around and glared at her. "Do you enjoy toying with me woman?"
"No dear, I was just asking you an important question."
"There it is!" He pointed, "This is an act too."
"Believe me, love, this isn't an act." She said hollowly. Bill narrowed his eyes. "I've finally seen the light." She giggled, a hint of aggression behind it.
Bill finished up cooking and threw it on a plate before slamming both plates down on the table. "Careful dear, you almost threw all your hard work all over the table." She said quietly. Bill grumbled something she couldn't quite make out.
They both ate their meals in cold silence.
A few days had passed. Bill was still creeped out by her but he tried to accept it. He entertained the thought of taking her to church again but quickly squashed that idea, still embarrassed from last time. Bill decided he would take a trip to Arlen and visit the guys, it had been too long. He regret moving sometimes. He felt a flash of resentment in his chest.
"Emily!" Bill called for her.
"Yes love?" She said sweetly as she came from one of the empty guest rooms.
"I'm going to go visit some friends today." He said, thumbs in his pockets.
"Oh! What time are we leaving?" Emily asked excitedly.
"There's no we, just me." Bill said sternly.
"Oh." Emily deflated.
Bill rubbed the back of his head. He grunted when she threw her arms around him. "Be careful love, and have fun." She said with a dead warmth.
"Yeah..." He said before pulling her in for a kiss. Emily leaned in to the kiss and returned it. He pulled back. "Are you okay?" He asked.
"Never better."
"Okay, we'll I'll see you later..." Bill said before briskly walking out of the house.
Emily watched him leave from the window. She hummed quietly to herself. A glance at the clock told her it was time to find the cat again since it usually showed up by now. Emily grabbed the last can of tuna from the pantry and opened it. With her being chained up, Bill didn't care about padlocking the doors anymore. She heard soft meowing as she opened the back door. "Hello baby!" She cooed softly, a bright smile on her face. The cat meowed again and walked closer. She took a bit of tuna out of the can and offered it to the cat. The orange tabby hesitantly took it from her fingers.
Once it gobbled up the small piece it came back for more, licking the juice off her fingers as he eventually took the chunk. Emily stepped back some, holding out another piece. She did this until the cat was a couple of feet in the house and clear of the door. She quickly shut the door, trapping the cat inside with her. "Now Mr. Sprinkles, I have a mission for you." She said. The cat rubbed against her leg, wanting more tuna. "In a moment, I'll be right back." Emily walked to their room and grunted as she crawled halfway under the bed. She retrieved her message, now to attach it to the messenger. Mr. Sprinkles looked well fed so he had to have an attentive owner. She grunted as she crawled back out from the bed and got to her feet.
The sound of the chain startled the cat as she made her way back to it. "It's okay!" She cooed, trying to soothe it. She sat back down with the tuna and tried to coax the cat back to her. It took awhile but the cat did come to her. She carefully pulled it into her lap and managed to tuck the piece of mail with her message on it into its collar before it protested too much. "You're a really nice cat, you know that?" She cooed.
She let it have the rest of the tuna, hoping it would go home soon. This was her last hope. Emily popped the seam of her dress and pulled out a piece of string before snapping it. She pet the cat before carefully tying the letter to its collar so it would be more secure. She made sure it didn't make the collar too tight for her little friend. "God I hope this works." She whispered out loud.
She put the cat outside and prayed it would go home. "Go home now, Mr. Sprinkles!" Emily instructed the cat. The cat lazily walked to a sunny part of the porch and laid down. "No! Go home!" Emily shouted, clapping her hands. The cat looked at her before closing its eyes. "Just don't be here when he comes back, please!" She pleaded with the cat.
Emily sat at the back entrance with the door open for a few hours, watching the cat.
Lenore paced back and forth at her apartment. She had been trying for over a week now to find where Bill lived. Everyone she called would give her the cold shoulder or run around. She had a bad feeling and needed to help this other woman out. Who knows what that brute was doing to her? Dave wasn't much help at all. Saying how Bill had turned a new leaf and all. Dave was a fucking enabling moron, thought Lenore.
What was she to do now? This woman sounded like she was in real danger going off of what she herself had to endure for all those long years. She was still rebuilding her life while that pig got to keep everything. She couldn't even go back for her belongings after she escaped that fateful day. The cops were no fucking help either since they were good ol' boys. She got railroaded in court when he pulled his lies and sob stories. No one believed her. She lit another cigarette. She wondered if he just tossed her family heirlooms she had to leave behind. At least she made out with one of the most important things, her life and mother's ashes.
Her life, as shitty as it is now, is lightyears better than being stuck at Bill's mercy. She had to save his new victim. She combed through another phone book, hoping he wasn't unlisted. He certainly didn't have social media like the boomer he was. Why did Nancy have to be so tight lipped! She cursed.
Lenore Dialed Dave's phone again, and again it went straight to voicemail. "God fucking dammit Dave, pick up the phone!"
She was at a loss of what to do now. Lenore took a long drag on her cigarette and cried.
Bill arrived at his friends, surprising Hank when he pulled up into the driveway. They greeted each other like no time had passed at all.
Soon all four of them were drinking in the alley.
"Like old times huh." Hank said before opening another beer.
"Yup."
"Yep."
"Mhmm."
Dale lit a cigarette. "Nancy told me that Lenore had called her a few nights ago."
Bill's eyebrows shot up. "What did she want?"
"Nancy didn't say much. She said Lenore had asked her a few things like where you lived now." Dale said casually with a hand wave.
"That's funny, now that you mention it, She called Peggy earlier this week too." Hank said.
Bill took an uneasy sip of his beer, denting the can a little. "I guess now she wants back in my life now that I have a new wife." Bill said.
His friends shrugged uncomfortably.
"Hey Bill we haven't actually been to your new place." Hank said, scratching the back of his neck.
Bill shifted uncomfortably from foot to foot. "We're just now settled in." He offered lamely.
"We're going to be setting up the nursery soon. Would you mind letting me borrow a few tools?" Bill asked after a silent moment.
"Sure, would you uhh, want some help?" Hank asked, excited about a new project.
"Sure, I want to surprise Emily with a cradle." Bill said, with a fake grin.
They talked animatedly about designs and what not for the rest of the afternoon.
