“There’s nothing you can do.” Sadie turned to leave, but Leah’s arm shot out.
“Sadie, I…”
“What?”
The air dripped with tension.
“Nothing,” Leah said finally. “Forget it.”
As Sadie edged past her, the duffel bag bumped Leah’s legs.
“What’s in the bag?” her friend asked.
“Legal documents. Sorry, but I’m not in the mood to chat. I’m going to lie down for a bit. I’ll see you to the door first.”
“Fine,” Leah said with an audible sigh. “Let me know if you need anything.”
Sadie eyed the bag. “I’ve got everything I need.”
Just after six that evening, Philip called from prison.
“The house is sold,” she told him. “I said we’d be out by the end of the month.”
“No problem. I’ll call a moving company. Everything’s going into storage, including the furniture, right?”
Not everything.
She flicked a nervous look at the duffel bag. It sat on the table near the door. Ready, waiting.
“Yeah, put everything in storage,” she agreed.
“What about your things, Sadie?”
“I, uh, haven’t thought about where—”
“Just put it with my stuff. I don’t mind. That way you’ll have access to everything, in case either of us needs something.”
“Are you sure?”
“Hey, it’s not as if I’ll be needing it any time soon.”
Philip was right about that. He’d cut a deal and rolled over on his partner Morris, who had masterminded the embezzlement scam. With Philip’s cooperation and a plea of guilty, there was no need for a trial. His sentence had been reduced from twenty to ten years.
“So you’re going to stay with Leah for a few days?” he asked.
She lied. “Maybe a week or two.”
There was a long pause and when he finally spoke, his voice drooped. “Sadie?”
“Yeah?”
“Will you come visit me tomorrow?”
For a second, she considered his request. “No. I need some time… away. From you, from this house, from everything.”
“Fine.” He sighed. “I’m sorry, Sadie. For everything.”
“Me too.”
“It’s just that I got caught up with the wrong people. I know it changed me—changed us. Maybe with time we can be friends.”
“Look, Philip. I’m exhausted. I need to go to bed.”
“Where will you go after Leah’s?”
Nowhere, Philip. I’m going nowhere.
When she didn’t answer, he sighed. “Take care, okay?”
She eyed the duffle bag. “Yeah.”
Two days later, everything was set in place. She had managed to pack up their personal items on her own. Leah had offered, but Sadie declined. She didn’t want any witnesses to her crumbling life.
That morning, a moving truck pulled into the driveway. On both sides were the words, Two Small Men with Big Hearts. She had seen the trucks around town, and the name had always made her smile.
But not this time.
She showed the movers into the house, thankful that they’d pack up everything else. Exhausted, she flopped on the sofa.
“Let me know when you want me to move,” she said, stifling a yawn. “Mind if I turn the radio on?”
The younger of the two men grinned. “Not at all.”
She reached for the remote on the coffee table, turned on the stereo and searched for her favorite station, one she never got to listen to when Philip was around.
“Ah, 91.7 The Bounce,” the older man said.
“Unless you want me to change it to country.”
“No!” both men said in horror.
A smile flashed on her lips. Until she realized what she was doing. Berating herself for taking any pleasure in life, she watched as they packed away her entire existence.
And Sam’s.
The two men wrapped, boxed and covered all the symbolic items of her life—the dishes she’d received as a wedding gift, the new microwave Philip had bought her for Christmas, the crystal rose vase her mother had given her when Sadie had completed her first year of sobriety.
“It’s all going in storage?” the older man asked curiously.
She nodded.
Within a few hours, the movers were gone, along with a truckload of furniture and boxes. On the floor near the door, the suitcases and the duffle bag with the wine and gun box claimed their last stand in a vacant house that was once filled with joy, but now echoed tragedy.
It took her two trips to drag everything out to the garage. She started automatically toward the Mazda—until a silver gleam caught her eye.
Philip’s Mercedes.
“This is my car, Sadie,” he had insisted the day he’d bought it. “I’m the only one who drives it. Understand?”
She moved closer to the car.
Did she dare?
“Well, Philip’s not going to use it,” she muttered.
She popped the trunk of the Mercedes and pushed aside a plastic bin filled with files and letters. She wedged the two suitcases beside the bin and dropped the duffel bag on the passenger seat. Then she climbed into the car and flicked a look at the bag beside her. The shape of the gun box was visible. Giving in to a sudden urge, she unzipped the bag, just to be sure that the gun was still inside the box.
It was.
“Okay, let’s get this show on the road.”
She turned the key in the ignition. The car sputtered, then purred to life. She glanced at the gas gauge and smiled.
“And a full tank to boot. Thanks, Philip.”
Shifting the car into reverse, she backed down the driveway and pulled out onto the street. For a moment, she idled in front of the house, the place she had called home for over six years. Against her will, her gaze was drawn upward, to the empty window on the second floor and she saw Sam’s pleading face pressed against the glass.
“I know you’re not real. Goodbye, Sam.”
She sped away without a backward glance.
“Here,” she said, handing Leah three keys. “Car, house and storage. After you get my car, just leave the house key under the front doormat for the realtor.”
Leah peeked over her shoulder and caught sight of the Mercedes. “I thought I was storing Philip’s car.”
“I decided to take it instead.”
Leah blinked. “Won’t he be pissed?”
Sadie ignored the question and pulled some bills from her wallet. When Leah gave her a questioning look, she said, “My car probably needs gas.”
“Oh, sure.” Leah gave her a wounded look. “No problem.”
“Thanks.”
Sadie felt the awkwardness of their conversation, but it was a necessary evil. She had to cut herself off from everyone. That was part of her plan.
“Sadie—”
“I’m sorry, Leah. I really am. But this is what I have to do. I hope one day you’ll understand. I have to go now. Make sure Philip’s lawyer gets the storage key, okay?”
Leah gave a resigned nod. “Sure.”
Sadie climbed into the Mercedes and drove away. It was only when she was leaving Edmonton’s city limits that she allowed herself to consider the plan. She plotted the steps she would need to take, making a mental list of everything.
“Soon, Sam.”
She flicked a look at the back seat, half expecting to see him staring back at her. The seat was empty. She reached for the radio, then changed her mind. She’d leave it up to fate.
“I’ll drive in silence. When it’s interrupted, I’ll stop.”
Traffic was gearing up for the afternoon rush hour as she navigated Edmonton’s congested streets. Half an hour later, the traffic thinned and the bustling city was replaced by farmland. Muddy fields of dead hay lined with melting snow whizzed past, merging into a blur of endless flatlands interrupted by the occasional cattle farm. The silence and peace was mesmerizing.