Bleed

Chapter 6: The lullaby singer

Unable to restrain herself, Ana yanked the elastic off the end of the braid and raked her hands through her hair until it was a wild, tangled mess. This can't be true; there has to be a reasonable explanation for this, she thought again.

'Kate,' she called out. Maybe Kate, for some reason… That didn't make sense. You know who did it, Ana thought. When Kate didn't answer, Ana got very nervous. She headed for Kate's bedroom; half-expecting to find her best friend bound and gagged on the floor. Kate wasn't there. Still entertaining the idle hope that Kate would provide a non-scary answer for the existence of the braid, Ana quickly exited the house. She caught Kate as she was about to get into her car.

'Um, Kate? Weird question maybe, but did you by any chance braid my hair?'

Kate shook her head. She looked confused for a moment before striding around the apartment once and ending her inspection by checking the front door.

'No signs of forced entry on any of the windows or doors. How did he get in?' Kate wondered out loud. Despite Kate not saying his name, there was no doubt in Ana's mind that they were talking about Christian.

'I don't know,' Ana whispered. How awful was this? Why would he do this? She simply didn't get it. If he loved her, like he said, and if he wanted her back, why would he scare her like this?

'Could he have made copies of your keys?' Kate inquired. Ana hesitated. Wasn't that one step too far, even for Christian?

'He could have,' she reluctantly admitted. They looked at each other.

'That's it. We're calling the police,' Kate decided.

'Wait,' Ana objected. 'Is that really a good idea? Won't they think that this is silly?'

Kate stared at her as if Ana came from another planet.

'Silly? This is beyond creepy! This is terrifying. He was in our apartment while we were asleep. I'm calling the police right now,' Kate ranted. Of course she is right, Ana knew. All the same, Ana did not want Kate to call the police, so she lied.

'I'll do it. You go on and get to work. I'll call the police. This is my mess. I'll handle it,' Ana reassured Kate, wincing with every word. Later, Ana often asked herself if things might have turned out differently if she'd informed the authorities. Maybe. Maybe not.

(***)

Half an hour later.

The locksmith arrived and promptly changed the locks. I'm so late for work, Ana realised. She texted Elizabeth and promised her an excellent explanation for her absence in person. Then she did something stupid. Acting on an impulse, Ana stopped by Esclava on her way to work.

'Do you have an appointment, miss?' the receptionist politely inquired. Spotting Mrs. Robinson, Ana waved.

'Hi, Elena!' she exclaimed, cringing on the inside. God, I'm being such a liar today, she thought. Mrs. Robinson raised an eyebrow and approached them.

'Anastasia, what are you doing here?' Mrs. Robinson asked, extending her hand, which Ana pretended not to notice. She was not going to shake hand with the woman. Bad enough that Ana had to be here in the presence of pure evil.

'Getting a haircut, I hope,' Ana responded, laughing with false cheer. 'Can you squeeze me in?'

'Sure. It'll have to be me, though, if you don't mind. Everyone else is engaged,' Mrs. Robinson announced. It made Ana want to back out. She did not want this child molester touching her. Ignoring her misgivings, Ana slid into a chair and smiled.

'That's fine. Could we make it quick?'

'Whatever you want. What did you have in mind?'

'I was thinking about a pixie cut,' Ana said. Nothing to braid, she thought.

'I don't think… It wouldn't suit the shape of your face, I'm afraid,' Mrs. Robinson explained, smiling as if her skin had been tucked a little too tightly behind her ears the last time she'd visited her plastic surgeon.

'I'll be the judge of that, won't I?' Ana sweetly replied. Mrs. Robinson nodded reluctantly and picked up a pair of scissors. She stood behind Ana and sought out Ana's eyes in the mirror. Unflinching, Ana met her gaze. They remained frozen in place until Mrs. Robinson finally averted her eyes. She turned the chair and leaned down to address Ana.

'Christian won't like that,' Mrs. Robinson declared. Heaving an irritated sigh, Ana reached for the scissors.

'Give me those,' she demanded, when Mrs. Robinson refused to let go of them. Once Mrs. Robinson relinquished her hold on the scissors, it was easy. Ana snipped three, four, five times. Enormous, imprecise snips; intending to get rid of as much hair as possible without caring about the model. When she was satisfied, she handed the scissors back to Mrs. Robinson.

'That feels better already. Well, work your magic,' Ana happily instructed. Looking as if she'd taken a huge bite out of a lemon, Mrs. Robinson went to work. Physical contact was kept to a strict minimum. Occasionally, however, the older woman had to touch Ana's hair. Unbidden, that brought back vague and unpleasant memories. Ana froze. She remembered Christian softly singing something soothing last night. Had she woken up while he was braiding her hair? Had he been singing to her as if she was a child?

Suddenly, Ana was on the verge of crying. Swallowing, she tried to repress a shiver. I'll call Jason, she told herself. He'll know what to do. Slowly, she relaxed and managed to look at herself in the mirror. I'll call Jason and everything will be alright, Ana repeated, believing herself for the first time that day.