~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Urgency
The buzzing of the overhead fluorescents vibrated in Kathleen’s skull; the old bartender’s voice was barely audible. Did he speak? There was no way of knowing over the merciless hum of those lights. Either way, she ordered a double. Was she already drunk? What time was it? Everything was fuzzy. She placed a wadded twenty she had found crammed in her jeans pocket up on the counter, reached for her drink, and took a seat at a nearby table. Curtains hung over boarded up windows, there wasn’t a clock in sight, no answers. Where was she? Kathleen knew her name… but that was all. There were no familiar faces, and no one she felt like talking to.
She forced the shot back, the slithering burn dulled as it pooled into a puddle of warmth in her gut. More burning now, but this time from the guarded stares from those around her. Regulars…maybe? Apparently her face wasn’t familiar either, and they weren’t used to strangers. She expected to slip further into her unconsciousness, but the whiskey somehow cleared her head. Another shot couldn’t hurt so she waved for the bartender. Without even glancing up, he placed another on the bar. She slammed it back, like before, this time feeling the warmth spread beyond her gut.
The alcohol coursing through her veins gave life to her dead weight, but it came with a price. She was more aware of the stiffness, as if her bones were getting caught on one another. Her face ached. Maybe she had been in a car accident. She had heard of stories like this, to crash your vehicle and wander off forgetting everything that occurred. If only she could find her way back home, a hot shower would be the solace her body, and perhaps mind, craved. She decided, at the very least, to wash up in the bathroom, she felt the uneasiness in her step, a combination of her own tautness and the booze. The bathroom, though grungy, was better than she expected. It was darker, lit by a single light bulb behind a frosted cover just above the plastic mirror. At least it made her head feel a little better. What a comfort after the droning of those fluorescents. She turned on the tap, waiting for the water to reach the level of warmth that she felt within. She removed her glasses to wash her face, but what she saw in the mirror shocked her beyond belief. Looking back from the mirror stood a woman with an eye so black and a blue, there was no way this just happened. Could the other patrons had seen this beyond her glasses and that is why they stared? Looking at her own reflection made her wince but she continued to wash up, after all, it wouldn’t hurt anymore than the liquor. When raising her sleeves, she only found more bruises, some older than others. What had happened to her? There were only more questions, and still no answers. Her mind began to spin out of control as to the cause of these injuries. Was anyone else hurt? Her frustration grew.
“I’ve gotta get out of here,” she muttered aloud. Without the buzzing of the overheads, she heard her voice. It was strained and foreign, almost as scary as the bruises. Kathleen had only found more questions standing before the mirror and she couldn’t take anymore of that.
Suddenly, as if a veil was lifted, her surroundings acquainted themselves with her, like an exchange of handshakes. She had been in this bathroom before, though she couldn’t recall when. She knew she wasn’t lost, but still didn’t know why she was here now, and why she couldn’t recall anything more. Cleaning up did little to comfort her sore bones and flesh, but it cleared her mind immensely. Reality was coming back to her and that was good enough for now.
Another woman entered, and interrupted Kathleen’s sort of epiphany, but it wasn’t the woman from earlier, sitting at the bar. No, this face she recognized; it brought back more memories, and cleared some more of the fog. She approached Kathleen with a desperate fervor, taking her within her arms and holding her tightly.
“Are you alright? Are you badly hurt? Do you need a hospital? Please, tell me you’re really done this time,” begged the woman.
“Sandra?” was all Kathleen could mumble out at first. Speaking still sounded foreign and strained. She knew Sandra had been her best friend since grade school, she was her rock. She knew by the kind face and her comforting smell of diner food and Vanilla Fields perfume. Finally, the words began to fall out, flowing with such frequency, that it was hard to know what was recognizable. “I don’t know why I’m here, I know I’m not lost but….oh help me Sandra!” she managed to squeeze out between sobs. She was no longer just confused, she was terrified, and tears began to stream down her face.
“I’m here now, did you pack a bag this time, grab any money? We gotta get goin’ before he shows up here…” Sandra’s cheeks were stained from tears as well, but she seemed to know what she was doing, as if she had done this all before.
Kathleen crumbled to the floor, dazed and scared. This woman, her friend, spoke calmly but with a sense of urgency. She was here to help, but help her from what-who? Why were they here? If only she could remember. Why were some things familiar but others not? “Sandra? I… but… why? Who? Please!” she demanded.
“I know sweetie, and you’ll remember, but we don’t have time to get into all that right now.” “Tommy, she’s in here,” Sandra bellowed out. More quietly now, she locked her gaze on Kathleen. She forced all stress from her face, soothing the lines, but it burned behind her cool blue eyes. “You know you can trust me, right? Do you remember that much?” she asked, as if she were speaking to a small child.
Tommy entered; slamming the door back with no regard to the wall it crashed into, and scooped Kathleen up as if she were a baby doll. He was a large man, 6’4” 250lbs. He was a teddy bear to everyone who knew him, but for a moment she was not one of those people. Kathleen shrieked; balling her fists up, she began to beat upon his broad chest before she caught his scent. Tommy- her brother.
“He really got her good this time” “Kathleen, when are ya gonna learn? You’re done this time, right? You gotta be done! He’s gonna kill you!” he said. Though he didn’t sound mad, nor really scared, just urgent. Everything, everyone was urgent now.
“She don’t remember nothin’ yet” she whispered to Tommy. “Take her to my car, I got a full tank of gas. Did she have a suitcase, or anything in hers?”
“No, not this time, probably had to get away real fast again. I got some money in my wallet though, you girls need to get out of here now. Who knows how long ago she took off and he’ll be looking for her….maybe, this time to finish the job. I’ll ditch her car and try to hold her bastard of a husband off—just go!”Inspired by:
No comments:
Post a Comment