Edge of Midnight Read Online Free PDF

Kansas.”
    â€œ Kansas? That’s as far away as the moon.”
    â€œThe farther, the better.” Arlette handed Cary the plastic bag.
    Cary looked in, then pulled out a wig with short brown curls.
    â€œAnd I want you to have this.” Arlette held out a letter-sized envelope.
    Reluctantly, Cary opened the flap, knowing what was inside. Twenty dollar bills. “I can’t take this.”
    â€œYes. You can. It’s not all that much and you can pay me back.”
    â€œBut…” Cary put the wig over her fist and stared at the brown curls.
    â€œIf you feel yourself backing out, remember the last time he beat you and yell at him.” Arlette finished her tea and clattered the cup in the saucer. “Go to Kansas. Kelby’s a good person, she’ll help. And she has a suggestion about your vision.”
    â€œI don’t even know where Kansas is,” Cary said darkly.
    â€œLook it up on a map.” Arlette gave her a hug. “I have to get to work. You have to get out of here. And remember, do just what we talked about.”
    *   *   *
    Cary didn’t want to look Kansas up on a map. She looked around the bedroom she’d put in a lot of time making just the way she wanted. She’d refinished hardwood floors, painted walls a pale bluish green, Sea Mint, it was called. Finding the right bedspread with the swirls of blue and green. Making curtains that matched. She didn’t want to leave. This was her home.
    When she started crying again, she told herself to suck it up and get in the shower. With the hot water sluicing over her, she followed Arlette’s advice and recalled the last time Mitch hit her. You bastard! Cary screamed it over and over and let the words echo around the yellow-tiled bathroom. The yelling energized her. If she could get mad, she was still alive. Soap foamed over bruises on her arms that would never be there again.
    No more beating me up! I will tell the truth. I didn’t fall down the stairs. He threw me . She washed her hair. Long, because he liked it long. She turned off the water, grabbed a towel, and patted herself dry, then used the towel to swipe the steam from the mirror. Standing naked in front of the sink, she awkwardly cut off her hair, gathered all the strands and put them in a plastic bag.
    No more! I’m through. I’m leaving. Free! I’m going to be free of you! She couldn’t decide what to wear and finally dressed in pale denim jeans and a dark blue blouse. Making me quit my job . She blow-dried her jaggedly cut short hair and shook the curls loose on the brown wig Arlette had given her, then fitted it on her head. Turning me into a liar. Telling my friends I had the flu when you beat me so badly I couldn’t get out of bed . Adding tinted glasses, she examined herself in the mirror. A stranger stared back, a skinny, owl-eyed stranger with a pale, frightened face.
    With the money Arlette gave her and the money she’d managed to hide away tucked in her wallet and the wallet in her purse, she was ready. She couldn’t take anything that didn’t fit in the purse, and it wasn’t very large, just a shoulder bag big enough for wallet, sunglasses, cell phone, Kleenex, the paperback book she always carried, and a change of underwear. She didn’t dare pack a suitcase or take extra clothes. He’d know immediately that she’d run and would be after her like a cat on a mouse. You won’t catch me this time, you sick bastard!
    Using more makeup than she ever wore, she darkened the eyebrows of the stranger in the mirror, put blusher on her cheeks, mascara on her eyelashes and added bright red lipstick. She shrugged on her jacket, slipped the purse strap over her shoulder, and went to the kitchen. She couldn’t take much or Mitch would notice, but she fixed two peanut butter sandwiches and put some instant coffee in a baggie. You bastard! I loved you! She opened the door