Two

58 13 2
                                    


The cafe was deserted, A few more minutes till closing time. The only one left other than herself was Mr Alejandro one of their usuals.

A charming old man who for some reason loved the smell of freshly brewed coffee.

"Mr Alejandro?" She called out,tapping her wrist. She would be leaving soon and he needed to get home.

"Bell'Angelo" he replied smiling at her. His silky raven dark hair neatly pulled back in a pony tail.

"How are the kids?" She asked pulling out the chair next to him.

The old man snorted glancing around the café.

"Apparently I'm too old to even walk on my own two feet!" she had never really met his children but he raved about them every chance he got. She drifted off , picturing a happy family with her in between.

If only it were reality, instead when she pictured reality itself all she could see was Josie and the cottage hidden deep in the woods.

"Conde Dracula quisiera que tuvieran esa charla larga ahora mismo" he spoke fluently to someone behind her. A throaty chuckle resonated round the room. She turned to face Ashton.

"About what the kids?" He mocked in his velvety voice.

I didn't hear him walk in. She thought.

"Leave us" he ordered glaring at her.

"Good night Mr Alejandro" she whispered placing a gentle kiss on his cheek. He clenched and unclenched his fist, his patience running thin.

She made her way towards Lindsey's office trying her best to ignore, the holes his glare was burning through her back.

"Come in Jane" Lindsey chirped from the other end of the door. She froze, fist hung mid air in shock.


"I'm heading out just checking to see if you needed anything" She sheepishly mumbled.

"Actually I do, Ashton and I are going on a mini vacation, just for a week and I think it's best if you're in charge while I'm gone" she rushed out in a single breath.

Whoa

"I-uh, I don't I-"

"It's just for a week and besides the bar won't be open at all, he doesn't value that particular piece of property its basically for his own amusement and also to annoy the fuck out of me, but whose complaining right?" She rambled momentarily glancing at Jane

You are she wanted to say but kept her mouth shut.

"Alright" she sighed

"Thank you so much!" Lindsey squealed pinching her cheeks.

She made her way out the office back into the main cafe. They were both still seated speaking in hushed tones.

"Nunca se sabe, lo que has estado buscando puede haberte encontrado" Mr Alejandro said to Ashton his creepy gaze boring into her soul.

Ashton turned to face her dark calculating eyes glaring daggers at her. He pondered the old man's words cooking up some mischievous plan that would definitely not play out in her favor.

She fled, out of the cafe and into the night. Today was finally over her last day with josie. Earlier on she put a down payment on an apartment she had been eyeing for a while.

A few blocks away from the cafe was her apartment it was worth way more than it cost but who was she to complain? All that was left for her to figure out was how to sneak out of the house without Josie knowing.

The smell of weed and sex was suffocating, Josie was sprawled out butt naked on the couch surrounded by Paul and a few other men. Their sweating bodies clung to each other twisting in what looked to be a very uncomfortable position.

She averted her eyes from the mess tip toeing her way up the stairs. She didn't own much all her belongings fit into a medium sized army green duffel bag. The red fluffy blanket draped across her arms, it was the only link to her childhood they could find.

Abandoned on the steps of an orphanage. She was told that the blanket was all she had on her. The cursive words engraved on the blanket once upon a time sparked a glint of hope in her but after years of trying to figure out what the words meant with no success she gave up on it entirely.

Why try when they didn't want to be found? She had made up her mind, even if she did find them. There was no room for them in her life.

_________

She could make the jump down, it would sting a little but she could make it.

Hiking her bag high up her shoulders, she steadied her stance with a look of determination. She would've tossed the duffel bag out the window making her job a lot easier but amongst other things they were a few valuable items hidden deep in the bag courtesy of Lindsey.

A phone and a set of matching headphones, last years birthday gift. Keeping it a secret from Josie was even harder than accepting it in the first place.

Taking one last longing look at what has been her home for the last few years of her life she made her way out and into the night.

LINDALEWhere stories live. Discover now