AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Chapter Fifty-Three
Fall blew into their part of Pennsylvania two days later. The end of September brought high winds and cold rain. The chill settled deep inside Elisa, but she didn’t blame the weather. Josh and Rachel were home from their whirlwind wedding vacation and announced they were coming over for dinner.
Elisa hated the idea of entertaining guests. But the arrival oftheseguests had every nerve ending pinging. Dizzy and aching, exhausted from her inability to sleep and grieving for the marriage she thought she had, she dragged her body downstairs after changing out of her lounge clothes. Every muscle rioted at the idea of pulling on less informal clothing, but she forced it.
From the second she stepped into the kitchen Harris watched her. He’d been watching her ever since their big fight. Since then he talked and she listened. She didn’t say much; keeping her body moving took most of her energy. And what did she say? He spoke as if he knew what was happening with Rachel and Josh, but he didn’t. She didn’t either but she knew the truth—neither of them was who they pretended to be.
“Elisa?” Harris called out to her in a soft voice as if he sensed she might explode if he talked any louder.
She had no interest in conversation. He’d made his position clear. She didn’t know how to respond, so she didn’t. Staying quiet seemed safer. He wanted acquiescence and harmony, no matter the price. She understood that now.
A rush of tears hit her out of nowhere, and she stepped into the pantry to hide them, pretending to look for her tea.
“Elisa, I want to—”
“Where’s Nathan?” Inhaling deep, she forced her emotions back into a mental cage. She stepped out of the pantry, tea bag in hand. “I want to make sure he changed his clothes.”
“I think we should talk.”
His timing sucked. She had no intention of engaging. “We talk all the time.”
“You know what I’m saying.” He sounded more desperate than angry.
She picked up on his emotion but couldn’t call up any of her own. “I already know your position on my mental health and ability to parent. You don’t need to repeat it.”
“I didn’t mean—”
“Nathan?” A second after she called out he popped up in the kitchen.
“Hi!” Nathan sounded a bit like his regular self. Happy, well-adjusted, and excited about things.
They’d all been kicking around the house, moving at half speed and not showing much enthusiasm for anything. Like any kid, Nathan picked up on his parents’ moods. She could barely muster a civil hello to Harris when he came home thesedays. He studied her as if he thought she’d shatter into pieces at any minute . . . which only made her angrier.
The bouts of sadness gave way to rage. She bounced back and forth, and not gently. More like flung from one end of the scale to the other. Rustling up even the littlest interest in anything was beyond her reach.
She fell back on pretending. She answered what needed to be answered but otherwise stayed silent. That guaranteed she never said the wrong thing. She held on, sucked it up... melted down only when alone.
Now she had to survive this ridiculous evening with people she wanted to turn over to the police and never see again. A celebration dinner for a woman with a manufactured identity and a man who had likely killed at least one wife. It was the nightmare-party scenario.
Elisa forced a smile for Nathan. “Nice shirt. Good job picking it out.”
Nathan beamed. “Am I allowed to call Rachel Aunt Rachel?”
Elisa fought to keep standing. Maintaining a smile took almost all the energy she possessed. “You’ll need to ask her.”
“Nathan, can you give me a minute alone with your mom?” Harris asked.
Nathan rolled his eyes. “Sure.”
That was the last thing she wanted. “I need to check on the food.”
She went over to the oven, but Harris caught her before she could open it. She tried to step away, put some needed distance between them, but he held on to her.
“Everything is fine, Elisa.”
The words grated across her nerves. Only someone not paying a bit of attention would spout that nonsense. She clamped her mouth shut to keep from screaming at him. “What do you need?”
That seemed to stump him for a second. “To explain.”
