Whatever it had been, it wasn’t identifiable anymore, and she scooped it out into the garbage can under the sink. On the bottom shelf of the fridge, she found the leftover Greek salad from last night. That’ll do.
She settled into the armchair in the corner of the living room and polished off the salad while taking in the chaos of the living room. Wesley had always loathed coming home to a messy house, so she’d spend hours tidying up before he came home. Since he’d moved out, she’d become lax in her housekeeping. It was kind of liberating.
“We gotta clean sometime,” she muttered, strolling into the kitchen and setting the empty salad container in the dishwasher.
Back in the living room, she gathered up Ella’s sweater and Colton’s hockey uniform and threw on a load of laundry. She put away Colton’s Xbox and gathered up Ella’s half-naked Barbies that were scattered over the sofa. She also wiped what looked like dried peanut butter off the coffee table.
Then she turned on the laptop that sat on the desk in the corner of the living room. Planning to pay the electricity bill, she logged into the joint checking account. “What the―”
The account showed a negative balance. Wesley.
Rebecca wanted to cry. Next week the mortgage payment was due. That meant they’d be going into the overdraft again.
She clicked to view the check for two thousand dollars that Wesley had written. It had been made out to Jeffrey Dover, one of the guys her husband played cards with every week. It wasn’t the first time he’d owed someone money.
Suddenly, she didn’t feel like crying. She wanted to strangle Wesley.
The phone rang.
Seeing the name on the call display, she muttered, “Damn.”
“Hey, Rebecca,” Wesley said when she picked up.
“To what do I owe the pleasure?” She was being snide, but she doubted he’d pick up on her sarcasm.
He didn’t. “I wanted to thank you for being so agreeable about Colton.”
“Yeah, that’s me. Agreeable.”
There was a pause.
“You sound pissed,” he said.
“I am.”
“What’s up?”
“There’s no money in the bank account.”
“Oh yeah. I was going to mention that check, but I forgot.”
“How could you forget two thousand dollars?”
“I’ll make it back next week. We’re playing double stakes.”
“Jesus, Wesley! You can’t guarantee you’ll win at poker. Besides, where are you going to get the money to play?”
“Mike said he’d front me the money.”
“And what if you lose?”
“You sure have a lot of faith in me. No wonder I feel so shitty all the time. I can’t win with you.”
“Don’t make this about me. You’re the one who put us in the hole again. I’m doing everything I can to keep us afloat.”
At least until the divorce comes through, she thought. Then I can save my own money.
“Oh yeah. You’re so wonderful to be supporting us all.” There was acid in his voice.
“What are you doing to provide for your kids?” she snapped. “My lawyer and I would like to know.”
There was a low growl on the other end of the line. “Rebecca, we managed this separation without a lawyer interfering. That’s because we’re reasonable adults, and we’re thinking of our kids’ best interests. I should move back. We can work things out. I’ll go see someone—a shrink, if you want.”
Her eyes watered. Why does life have to be so hard?
Part of her wanted to beg him to move back home. Maybe she was contributing to Wesley’s employment problem and anger. How good could his self-esteem be if she kept nagging him? She should be more supportive. Her husband was a proud man who’d hit a crossroads in his working life. The economy wasn’t helping either. Up one week and down the other. It made finding full-time employment very difficult. Wesley wasn’t the only person looking for work. As for his anger issues, counseling could help.
But he won’t go. She’d tried before.
“Leave things as they are,” she said, drained of all energy.
“But how can we fix this if―”
“We can’t fix this, Wesley. Our marriage is over.”
Silence.
Rebecca juggled the phone and wiped a sweaty palm on her hip. She heard a clock ticking somewhere in the house and the kids giggling down the hall.
“Wesley?”
No reply.
“Wesley!”
“I’ve got a lead on a job,” he said finally, his voice icy. “It’s up north. Fort McMurray.”
“Did you go for an interview yet?”
“I’m heading up there tomorrow morning. I won’t be back until Sunday. How about we talk about everything when you get back from Cadomin? By the way, how’s everything at work? I heard they were laying people off.”
Tell him you’re going to quit Alberta Cable and start a business of your own. Don’t be such a coward!
For the past year or so, she’d been playing with the idea of owning a bed and breakfast outside of Edmonton yet close enough to the highway that she could advertise to travelers. Every time she’d considered bringing it up with Wesley, she froze.
What I do doesn’t matter now. Not to him.
“Everything’s fine,” she said. “We’ll talk later.”
“Becca?”
She sighed. “Yeah?”
“Enjoy your little holiday.” Slam.
She was left holding a dead phone.
At 8:50 Rebecca poured a small glass of white wine and sank into the faux suede recliner in the living room. She released a soft groan and mentally shook off the remnants of her day.
The kids were in bed. Ella was probably already asleep, dreaming of fairies and flowers. Colton had been playing Jade Empire on his Xbox 360. She’d given him until nine, then lights out. Of course she’d have to remind him more than a few times. That came with the territory of being a mom. She recalled reading with a flashlight under the covers when she was about Colton’s age.
She smiled at the memory.
Thinking of her upcoming holiday, she began her nightly ritual. First she turned on the TV for noise. It comforted her to hear someone else’s voice besides her own. Some nights she listened to music. Anything other than listening to the house breathe and creak and groan. She also turned on a light in the kitchen and bathroom, plus the lamp by her chair. She didn’t like the shadows or walking into a pitch-black room. One never knew what was lurking in the dark.
Or in the fog.
Back in 2007, a serial child abductor had terrorized Edmonton. Reporters had dubbed him “The Fog” because he struck on foggy nights. She’d cried when she heard about the children’s bodies found in the woods.
The Fog was gone now, yet when she thought of the open garage door, she shivered. Forget about it, silly.
At night, it was difficult not to think of her life with Wesley. She’d at least felt safe in her home.
Really, Rebecca? Safe?
One of the most difficult things she had to get used to after Wesley moved out was being alone. It wasn’t easy. She’d depended on him to at least be there. Most nights.
Sipping the wine, she flipped through the channels and paused on an episode of Law & Order. A wife was being grilled after the suspicious death of her husband. Rebecca wondered if the husband had driven the wife to do it. Had he abused his wife the way Wesley abused me?