Deadbeat Mother

SD Card

~Neela~

I sit in the limo, anxiously awaiting Steven so we can go home. I’m so tempted to grab the SD card and put it into my phone, but I’m sure the limo driver has eyes on me. I found out the hard way, long ago, that mostly everyone that works for Steven is also paid to spy on me. It’s a hard realization that you have no privacy in life.

I’m not sure how long I’ve been sitting out here, but I’m more than ready to go back to where we are staying. I definitely want to get out of here before one of Steven’s friends decides that he wants to have a go at me. I’m lucky that Soren was on my side, but I’m not foolish enough to believe that Nokio has more friends in the mists.

There’s a knock at the window, and it starts to drop. Steven likes all car controls to be in anyone’s hands but mine. Steven is at the window, and he reeks of liquor. I guess his way of getting ready to leave is to have a bunch of drinks. I cringe inside because a drunk or buzzed Steven is usually a bad thing for me.

He reaches into the limo and runs a finger down my face. There’s an odd smell to it that seems familiar, but I don’t react. Reacting could mean disaster for me. A woman comes walking up to Steven’s side. She whispers something to him and giggles, shaking her ass as she walks away. Steven turns to me and smiles. “I know you’re tired, babe. I’ve been invited to an after-party so I’m going to go to that and see you later. The driver will get you home safely.”

I give Steven a small smile. That girl, well, I know he’s going to f**k her. I know he f**ks lots of women who aren’t me, and I’m not mad about that. I quickly learned that when he’s with someone else, that usually means I don’t have to perform. I don’t have to be with him; I am usually not beaten either. If I had my way, he’d always be with another woman and leave me the f**k alone. It works because I play the game and act like I have no idea. “Be careful, sweetie and have fun. I enjoyed tonight.” I want to throw up in my mouth, but it’s imperative that I play the dutiful wife.

Steven leans into the limo and kisses me on the mouth. The scent of another woman and liquor is enough to make me ill, but I keep it down and kiss him back. He pulls back and hits the roof of the limo twice. The window goes up, and we start to move. I can’t wait to get back to the room so I can check this card out. I just have to keep my excitement hidden.

It doesn’t take us long to get back, and the driver helps me out of the car. Steven’s muscle meets me at the door, and we walk up the stairs. The room door is opened for me, and I walk inside, ready to strip this dress off. I can feel a presence in the room and realize one of the men has entered as well. God, please don’t tell me that he was given the green light to do what he wants with me. Steven isn’t above that.

He stands by the door and doesn’t move. S**t! I shouldn’t be surprised, but having some f**king privacy in my life would be nice. I grab a few items from the room and make my way to the bathroom. I’m about to close the door when a throat clears. “Leave it open.” Oh, hell no!

“Excuse me?” The man still doesn’t move from his spot.

“You need to leave the door open. I’m to have eyes on you at all times.” I keep my sigh in, but just barely.

“I’m going to take a shower and change. Do you really need to see me like that to do your job? I’m sure you checked out the room and bathroom before I got back. I’d imagine there are no threats to be worried about.” The man sighs.

“Leave it open.” I look at him hard, trying to find any weakness I can use to my advantage. I must be on a lucky streak tonight. I notice a tan line on his ring finger. It looks fresh, and I plan to exploit that.

“How long have you been married?” He looks a bit nervous but doesn’t answer. “Look, I’m sure you love your wife, but I don’t think you would be okay with someone watching her shower and change. All I’m asking for is the same privacy everyone else enjoys. I’m sure they even get some form of privacy in prison.” I stand and watch the man, different emotions crossing his face. “Please?” He sighs again.

“Make it quick.” I shut the door and lock it. I turn the water on at the sink and start the shower to get the water hot. I quickly put my phone in airplane mode and place the card in. I have no time to spare. I just hope that woman is occupying him enough that he doesn’t notice my disconnect. I sit on the toilet and find the file. I close my eyes and take a deep breath.

I open my eyes and find the file. I open it, and my heart stops. I scroll through photo after photo of my beautiful boy, Cooper, and his father, Evan. I haven’t seen Cooper since he was an infant. I tried to get a private detective to find him for me once, and Steven found out. I don’t need to go into how that turned out.

He looks so handsome, my boy. He looks just like his father and Evan, Lord. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him look so good. The tears start to build in my eyes, and I want nothing more than to look at these pictures all night. I know I have to hurry because if that man comes in here, he will tell Steven.

I pull the card out and turn my phone back on. I need to hide this card; Steven can’t find it. I place it inside a tampon and fold the edge down, so I know which one it is. I need a better plan, which should get me through the night. I quickly strip and take a shower. I hop out and turn off the shower and the sink right when there is a knock on the door. I quickly place the T-shirt on, my body still wet. I open the door and smile at him. “You have no idea how amazing that was. Thank you so much. I owe you.” I walk to the bed and get in, listening to him check the bathroom. I fall asleep with a smile on my face, something I haven’t done in years.

~Evan~

After I saw her, everything was a blur. I watched her get into a limo and sat there stunned. I couldn’t move from my spot. I couldn’t go back inside, and I couldn’t go talk to her. I watched a man approach the limo. They talked for a bit, and he reached in to kiss her. That shook me out of my daze.

I thought about going back inside to Natalia, but I couldn’t do it. I set up an Uber and left as soon as it arrived. When I got home, I relieved the babysitter. I went to check on Cooper as soon as she left and took a long shower. Now I’m sitting on the couch with a drink in hand.

When did my life get so complicated? I used to be so happy, but now it’s a struggle to find any type of contentment if it isn’t about my child. I never thought life could be so bleak, but here I am. I take another drink and refill the glass.

I don’t know how long I sat there on the couch or how many times I refilled that glass. I feel the sun shining on my face. I move to sit up, and my head starts to pound. I feel a bit sick and dizzy. I look at the bottle on the coffee table; maybe a fourth of it is left. I really did some damage last night, but who could blame me?

My head begins to throb as the pounding on the door starts. Whoever that is, is determined to get in here, and I really don’t want to deal. I remember Cooper is still asleep, and that pounding will surely wake him. I get up a bit too fast, almost falling back on the couch. I stumble my way to the door and throw it open, almost blinded by the sunlight. “How the f**k could you leave me at the club alone?!”