Squeak

Jezebel x Helen

Jezebel

Several minutes had passed since Erik sent me to the car to wait for him. I feared for Charles. The door wrenched open, and I screamed when Erik slid in, hands covered in blood.

"Jezebel...shut the fuck up...respectfully." I whimpered and shrank in my seat. "Yeah, you can shut that shit up, too," Erik gruffly said. I flinched away when he put his arm around my headrest to pull out of the parking lot. "Don't do that. I wouldn't hit you."

"H-how can I believe that?"

"Because I told you so. When have you known me to lie?"

I paused to consider. Erik was brutally honest, almost to a fault. "Never."

"That's right."

"Erik?"

"Squeak?"

"I-is he still alive?" I stammered.

"He had a pulse when I left."

"What did you do?"

"I did what needed to be done. That motherfucker hurt you."

"I'm fine, Erik. It doesn't even hurt any longer. Are you taking me home?"

"No, I'm taking you to my house."

"Er—"

"You might as well be late going home. I'm sure the school called and alerted your father about the altercation and that you skipped your remaining classes."

I slumped in my seat with a huge sigh. Erik was right. Either way, I'd get it when I got home. I checked my phone, and sure enough, there were several missed calls and voicemails from my father.

Voicemail #1 – Jezebel, I just received a call from your school, and it's obvious you didn't learn anything from our little lesson. Fighting and truancy? You're really showing your ass now. If I wasn't tied up with church business right now.... You better be home when I get home.

Voicemail #2 – I bet all of this is because of that boy. I bet everything I have that you're with him right now. What are you doing with him, Jezebel?

Voicemail #3 – I just checked your phone. Why are you at a plastic surgeon's office?

In a panic, I hung up and turned my phone off, hoping it would be enough to prevent him from finding me.

I don't know if I can do it. I don't know if I can survive another year in that house with that man.

The thought of running away pulsed in my brain. But how would I accomplish that with $40.00 to my name and the clothes on my back?

"We're here," Erik announced. I was so lost in thought about my impending doom that minutes flew by without my knowledge. I gawked at the sprawling residence before me. It wasn't Buckingham Palace, but I'd feel like royalty if I lived in it.

"Is this your home?" I asked curiously.

"Yeah, I live in this shit hole," Erik complained.

"A what? I'd hate to think what you thought of my house. You must think I live in a flop house."

"You must live inside my head," Erik chuckled. "Come inside and meet my mother."

I said a short prayer, hoping meeting Erik's mother went better than meeting his stepfather.

Erik

"Erik Anderson King!" my mom shouted as soon as we entered the house. For some reason, Jezebel cowered behind like a puppy that accidentally missed the pee pad. It annoyed me, but most things did. Dr. Moreno would tell me that Jezebel's behavior was an involuntary reaction due to the frequent abuse and couldn't be helped. I would have to practice patience, a quality I seldom practiced. "Erik, Charles called. What the hell is going on?"