She pressed charges, one of the hardest things that she’d ever done, for fear of him, then she got dressed in something other than what she’d come in with. It had been her night gown, so she was glad for the other clothing. The shoes she was given pinched her feet a bit, but she didn’t care. If she could get away, then she’d wear them the rest of her life. After getting dressed, she was taken down the hall and put into an awaiting car and was on her way.

  Betty had been given money and a change of clothing from Megan. Megan told her that the next two places she went were going to be just as helpful and to do what she was told to do. Before she was even out of the parking lot, she realized that Megan might be hurt. But she knew that in order to make this work, she was going to have to do some things that she’d never have thought of doing with Larry. She was on her way to freedom.

  The first stop they made only switched out cars. She was given a wig to put on and this time told to sit in the front of the truck. The man driving didn’t say much, but he did tell her once again to do what she’d been told and she’d be safe. He also warned her that she’d never get to go back home again if she wanted to stay alive.

  “Yes, he’ll kill me if he finds me. He told me that a million times before.” She believed him, too. Larry was nothing if not a man who liked things to go his way, and that meant her to do what she’d been told to do. Like dinner was to be on the table and hot for him at six o’clock. Not a minute before nor after, or there would be hell to pay. Like tonight’s dinner.

  It had been one minute before six when he’d come in the door. Dinner was finished, and she put it on the table for him by six-zero-one. He’d slapped her so hard that she passed out on the floor, only to be awakened by a bowl of hot water poured on her head. After that, he took his time telling her what time he’d said and how she’d disobeyed him again. Also, that he hated hitting her, and it was all her fault. The mother fucker knew it wasn’t her fault but his own, but she never said a word differently back to him. That would cause another beating, and she didn’t have the strength to deal with him again tonight.

  The second place they stopped, a little after midnight, she was shown to a room and given blankets to use. The bed was soft and comfortable, but she was too terrified to even close her eyes. She must have slept some because when she was woken up the next morning for another leg of her freedom, she felt a little better than she did before.

  Three more times, they stopped for her to be given a new wig and something else to wear. She was also given a great deal more money, nearly two grand, to make her way in the new city when she arrived. Betty didn’t know how long she’d been in the car, but she’d bet that they were miles and miles away from where she’d started. Hopefully, Larry wouldn’t be able to find her after all this traveling.

  “You can’t contact your parents either.” She told the woman at the next house she was staying in that they were both dead. “I don’t want to sound insensitive, but that’s a good thing. No temptations for you to contact them.”

  “Yes, you’re right. Do you know how much longer I’m going to be traveling? I don’t mind, but my bottom is sore from all the sitting.” She was told that she didn’t know where she was headed, and they liked it that way in case something happened and they were asked. “Yes, all right. I can see that. You will be careful, won’t you? I don’t want anyone hurt for me.”

  “I can tell you that your husband has been arrested and will be in jail for two more days. That’s all I know.” She thanked her and told her she didn’t want her to get into trouble. “No worries on that. That’s the reason that the only person who knows where you’re headed is the driver. They switch out to keep you safe from harm.”

  Having slept better that night, she was ready to go in the morning. Given a new identity, she was told that she’d have to remember the details of her new life before she was finished traveling. She promised the woman—no names were ever given—that she’d have it ready to use before the end of the next day. Hopefully, she was far enough away from her little town that no one would have any idea what she’d been through, nor was going through.

  By the end of the third day, she was exhausted. When the driver pulled up in front of a hospital, she was taken to the emergency room and asked about her injuries. It had been in her file about herself to say that she’d been in an accident, and she played that well. After being admitted, another woman came to talk to her.

  “You have a house here that you’re renting. The first four months aren’t going to cost you anything until you’ve got yourself a job. You’ll need to get one too, as you have to blend into the community that you now live in.” She asked the name of the place. “You’re in South Carolina, in one of the tourist towns around the beach. Getting a job should be easy, but you’re to take a week off to get to know yourself by the file and to make sure that you’re healed all the way. It won’t do for you to show up to work on your first day with a black eye.”

  “I didn’t know that I had one.” She told her that it was fading, so she should be about another week in the hospital before she was able to get out. “They’re keeping me here because of the way I was moved away from my husband?”

  “Yes. This hospital, along with many others, is a part of the network that helps people like yourself get out of a bad situation and onto something healthier.” She nodded, not sure what she should say about it. “It’s all right now. So long as you follow the rules that have been given to you, not telling anyone about the path you’ve been on nor contacting anyone from before, you’ll be as safe as you wish to be.”

  Betty knew that this was costing someone a great deal of money, but she didn’t know what to do about that. One of the rules that she’d been given was to someday pay it forward if she could and not shy away from someone who might need a night in her home on the way to someplace else. She would become a part of the network so that she could help others. It was the least she could do for all that they’d done for her.

  For the next seven days, all she did was rest. Taking naps when she wanted had never been anything that she could have done before. The meals were healthy, and while in the hospital, she was given a cookbook as well as a newspaper daily. She was to use it to find herself a job, and she wanted that more than anything. To make her way in this new world that she found herself in. Excitement for this venture would sometimes hit her throughout the day, and she could barely contain herself. Freedom had never been anything that she’d ever considered for herself anymore.

  The staff treated her well. They never asked questions, but did continue to call her by her new name. She’d been given a driver’s license when she’d been released, as well as a new address where she was to live. Whatever she expected from that, a small shack was all she figured she’d get; the beautiful house was a big surprise. She even had flowers in the front of the porch that had a single rocking chair on the front of it so that she could see the bay from her home. Betty—or Susan Bash, as she was now to be called thought of herself as one of the luckiest people on earth.

  The house was furnished, including food, so she didn’t have to worry about any of that. The second bedroom was also done up in a way that made her think that it was that way because she was now a part of the network. She would do whatever they asked of her for being free from Larry, and she’d pay it back as soon as she could in ways of helping out others who might need her.

  Going into the kitchen, she wasn’t surprised to find a list of potential jobs that she could apply for, as well as more rules to go by when someone might come to her home with the network. Those rules were very easy as she wasn’t allowed to say where she was, even if asked, she was to tell the person that she’d find out things on the last part of her journey. That she was going to be responsible for her own bills, including food, after the four months were up. There was even a list of the amounts she’d be paying for things like the cable bill and electricity.

  She wasn’t afraid to work where she was needed and wouldn’t be late to work or anything forever, either. Susan was given a chance to do something that few others would have offered her, and she was going to do the best she could from now on. She was alive and safe, and she was going to stay that way even if she had to do one of the messiest jobs there ever was. She’d do it with a smile on her face and goodwill in her heart because someone had given her a hand up when she needed it.

  Chapter 2

  Aaron listened to the man bitch about someone taking his wife from him. He knew what had happened to her and had had a part in her being ‘kidnapped’ by all the right people. He would have to thank his brother for his part in this, too, as he’d been the cop who had filled out the paperwork for pressing charges against Larry Palmer in the first place. Wherever Betty was, she was in a much better place than she’d been before.

  “I have two questions for you. Do you have time to answer them?” He told his brother Zeno that he had plenty of time for him and wanted to know if he wanted to get lunch too. “I’m not off duty yet, and I’ve had lunch already. But I do need some answers. Can you tell me what sort of bullshit the boss is trying to implement at the stationhouse about uniforms? And what part did you have to play in it? You did, didn’t you?”

  “I only mentioned that you guys were paying for uniforms that no one was wearing, and that it shouldn’t be taken out of your checks if you’re not wearing the uniform. Secondly, I guess I should have answered it first; he just wants everyone to be uniformly dressed. Did you see that some of your buddies were wearing jogging pants instead of jeans? That’s not very professional. Get with them if you want someone to bitch at. I was only trying to save you money each month.” He asked him why he was against them wearing jeans with their uniform shirts. “I don’t mind the jeans, in fact, I think they look good in a small town setting like we have here, but jogging pants have to go. They looked dirty and unprofessional. I’m serious, get with them if you want someone to yell about with the changes.”

  “I will.” Zeno looked around the room before sitting down. “I have a message for you. The last shipment is safe and sound and doing a good job.”

  Nodding, he knew that he was talking about Betty. She’d been the last person that they had helped out of town, and it felt good. She’d been beaten up for long enough, and he was happy that the network they had had been able to get her out of town while Larry was in jail. He was still bitching about her being kidnapped, but he never got aggressive with any of them. Hopefully, it was because he knew better, but with Larry, it might just be that he’d not thought about lashing out at one of them. He was just stupid enough to try.

  After Zeno left him to his paperwork, it finished up faster than he thought it would. He was just putting it all together with a paperclip when his boss, Erlander Jamison, came in and heavily sat himself in the chair in front of his desk. He would swear on a stack of Bibles that he heard the chair screaming for help. The man had to be pushing five hundred pounds if his guess was worth anything.

  “What do you know of the Palmer woman who was kidnapped from the hospital?” Aaron didn’t so much as blink at the man. “I don’t know how he figures a grown woman could be kidnapped, but that’s what he’s saying. You want to know what I think?” Aaron nodded. “I think she left the little shitter and good for her. He was knocking her around more than I do that old bowling ball of mine on Saturday afternoon at the league house.”

  “He keeps talking like the police had something to do with it, and he’ll not be able to drive five feet without getting a ticket. What does he think we do, have an underground railroad or something?” Earl, short for Erlander, said he’d like to think that there is less to it than just someone helping a poor woman out. “I don’t know what you mean by that.”

  “You know, someone in my department being a part of…what did you call it?” Aaron told him. “Yeah, that’s it. Underground railroad indeed. Stupid jerk. He needs to get up off his ass and find himself a job instead of hitting up on a woman who worked hard all her life, only to end up with him. Well, I for one am glad that she’s got away. Won’t help him find her either.”

  “It’s doubtful that anyone in this department will help him. The way he’s been spouting off that we knew all about it won’t get him any help around here.” He asked him where he thought they might be hiding her. “I don’t know. I did allow him to look in all the cells when he was released. That didn’t appease him any. He must think we have her holed up in some house around here.”

  Aaron had been a part, well, his entire family had been a part of the network for the last fifteen years. They didn’t do it often; they didn’t want to have a lot of women and men disappearing off the face of the earth without raising suspicion. But they helped when the cases were really bad, as in the case of Betty Palmer.

  At first, she’d only been showing up at the hospital once in a while. Everyone who knew Larry knew that he was beating her. But nowadays it was more like two or three times a week. And the last three had been horrific. He’d seen the pictures of her leg the time before last and knew that even as a tiger, he’d be hurting a great deal, and she’d only been a human. The last time had ended up with her having a concussion, and that’s why they had moved her so quickly. He was escalating, and they were afraid that he’d end up killing her if they didn’t do something soon. They’d been ready for her since she’d hurt her leg and was just getting things in order when she’d come in that last time. Christ, why did humans have to feel good about beating one another up? He’d never understand it.

  After he was finished for the day, he headed home again. He was to have dinner with his parents tonight and was looking forward to it. Every Saturday, like clockwork, they’d get together for dinner as a family, and so far it had worked out better than even their mom thought that it did. It was her that had gotten the entire networking project started. But nowadays they stayed out of it for fear someone would know what they were doing, and it wouldn’t bode well for the people they were helping.

  Giving his dad a hug, Aaron was happy that he was the first one to arrive. He wasn’t jealous of his brothers being around their parents, but he loved having them all to himself for a change. Mom was fixing up dinner, and Dad was sitting in his office, going over files from his work for the day. Dad was a doctor of the finest order, and Mom, being a registered nurse, assisted him when he needed help. His brother Reagan had followed in their dad’s footsteps and had become a doctor as well. It was good for the family to have everyone working around town, too.

  “I’ve been giving some serious thought about the way things are going in the office of the Mayor. Do you suppose he has any idea that he’s an idiot? I just ask because you have to deal with him more than I do. Is he as stupid as I think that he is?” Without hesitation, Aaron told his dad yes, that he was far more stupid than even his dad knew. “I thought as much. I read about what he said after the school shooting. Did he even realize that the shooters were killed not by him but by some of the police officers in his town? The way he made it sound was that he was on-site when the boys showed up and talked them out of shooting anyone. I suppose that’s because he would have confused them, but he didn’t say that.”

  “I guess he wasn’t even on site when asked to be there. He was at a ladies’ luncheon on the other side of town, where he was eating with the chief of police, Jamison. The only reason that Jamison showed up was because he’d heard that the Feds had shown up, and he wanted to see what one of his officers had done again. They both are idiots if you ask me.” Dad laughed, and he joined him. “The luncheon was for him to be able to ask for donations for the next election. Both of them are worried that they’re not running without someone against them. That’s what they’re saying: someone is running against them. If they were to get their head out of their asses and get a clue, there wouldn’t be anyone against them.”

  “Your mom said she’d run if she didn’t have so much to do around here. I believe that she could win, too. She’s well-liked and has a good head on her shoulders.” He thought about his mom running for Mayor, and she’d have his vote. Even as chief of police, she’d do a better job than the man who was in there now. “I told her that she should do it, and you know how she can get when pressed. I’d tease her about it, but I’m sure that she could do the job hands down and not have to quit a thing that she does around here. Though I won’t admit this to anyone, but I have no idea what she does around here with the staff doing most of the housework. Don’t tell her I said that, son. We’ll both be in the dog house.”

  “No, I won’t say anything.” Dad had mentioned before that he thought that Mom could do anything she set her mind to, and that included his little practice. She knew more about doctoring than he did, he’d say, and she’d agree with him. His parents got along well, and he couldn’t have loved them more than he did today. Except for tomorrow, he’d love them even more. They were the best role models and parents anyone could ask for. “Did you hear about Betty Palmer?”

  “I did. One of ours, I take it.” Aaron told his dad that she was, and that would be all that was said about her. Instead of giving him details, he, like Mom, preferred to not have anything that might slip out when talking to someone. Not that he thought they’d ever do that, but they didn’t want to take a chance. He didn’t blame them; what they did could hurt a lot of people. “What do you know about the football team this season? Do you think they have what it takes to be a champion again? Last year, we nearly made it all the way to the playoffs. I’m hoping this year they’ll be a bit better.”

  They talked about the local high school team for the next hour or so. The others joined them, but Darius was running late. He was teaching at the local college and had been having a little bit of trouble getting out of the building. He’d never tell them this, but it was because he was so good-looking that he had to hide from the young college students, the females, and some males in order to get home. He was a good professor, too. Voted the best teacher at the school four years running. Aaron was proud of all his brothers, but especially fond of Daruis. He was the youngest of all of them and seemed to have the hardest time with women. He loved the kid for that.

 

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