Chapter Five

 

Chapter Five

 

            “This looks delicious, Trish.” James crooned over the steaming plate that sat before him. The smell of sweet carrots, juicy potatoes, and tender meat smothered in brown gravy wafted across the sturdy oak table to Trisha. There she sat in front of her own plate with a small smile on her face. She knew that this had always been James’s favorite meal and tonight was a special occasion to celebrate.

            Most people would probably have been nervous but Trisha felt an overwhelming feeling of calm settle around her as she ate delicately in silence with her husband. She knew what she was doing and exactly what that would mean for her and her child. To her, tonight symbolized her newly found freedom.

             She snuck a few quick glances up at him over her fork. At one point her gaze met his. James took this as a look of endearment and gave her a smoldering look as he cut his roast beef. Years ago that look would have made her knees weak. She would have felt her stomach do a quick flip and her heart do a small dance underneath her top. Then most recently that look had filled her with venom that choked and gagged her. The look that had led to many steamy nights had began to remind her of whisky sweats and sour, bruising kisses that left her feeling dirty and used.

            Tonight however she felt a welcome sense of numbness that enabled her to return her own look of love and lust back to her husband. With another smile James wiped the corners of his mouth with a cloth napkin, where grease had accumulated there from his meal.

            “You have over done yourself tonight, my dear.” He purred. His Eyes burned into her with a look of wanting that seemed to never be satisfied. She knew that she would have to act fast before he decided to take the agenda of the rest of the night into his own hands.

            She smoothly pushed her chair back and stood up, the smile never melting from her lips.

            “Let me get you a drink” She offered as she walked to the liquor cabinet that James frequently entertained guest at. The cabinet itself was a beautiful piece of furniture. Solid oak like most of the furniture in the house, the top was covered in dark rich looking marble that reflected in the dim light of the dining area. On top of the cabinet sat assorted wine openers and a cigar case that held an expensive French cigar that Trisha couldn’t pronounce but knew that they were a waste of money. James only smoked when a few important investors or brokers came to visit.

            She opened the cabinet door and extracted a large bottle that was half filled with an amber liquid. On the other side of the cabinet was a pyramid of small tumbler style glasses. She twisted off the cap of the bottle and cringed as the sweet aroma hit her nose. She quickly filled the glass and put the bottle away as fast as she could. The smell made her stomach turn and she silently wished that she hadn’t of eaten as much as she had.

            She then snuck a quick glance across the room to where James sat almost drunkenly in front of his now empty plate. She knew that look well. It was part of his nightly ritual. He would eat himself into a stupor and then finish it off with a few glasses of whiskey. Most of the time he would be so bloated and full after a few drinks that he was barely able to crawl his way up the stair before falling into a sweat filled sleep. Other nights when he skipped his meal and went straight to the cabinet, the syrup colored drink would awaken something dark and dangerous behind his eyes.

            Tonight it seemed like she was going to be lucky. He had scooted his chair back and even though he was facing away from her she could already tell that his head was becoming loose on his shoulder. He would soon be slumped over and nodding off as he drank the concoction she was now mixing up for him.

            Now satisfied that he would not be paying any attention to her, she pushed her hand into the right front pocket of her jeans and it came back out holding a small vial. Inside this bottle were the remains of her own personal sleeping pills. After coming down stairs she quickly crushed the small handful of pills and put them into the vial for safe keeping.

            With one last glance towards her husband she opened the vial and tapped the sides as she suspended it over his drink.  The baby blue powder fell from its mouth into the tumbler glass, where the liquid turned cloudy for a few moments before dissolving completely.

            With that completed she quickly tucked the now empty vial back into her pocket and pocket and walked across the room to James who now had his elbow on the table and was resting his chin in his palm. He looked up at her and gave her a sleepy grin as she sat the glass down in front of him.

            “Thanks doll.” He yawned as he sat up straight. She began to turn around and sit down across the table. She gasped audibly as James’s hand clasped down across her wrist. She spun around to face him. His eyes bore deeply into hers. For a moment her heart skipped a beat and she knew that she had been caught. He must have seen her drug his drink or noticed the missing bottle from upstairs. Her heart was hammering in her chest and she was sure that he could feel her racing pulse as his fingers pressed down on her wrist.

            He pulled her down to his level and with a swiftness that shocked her, and steered her into a rough kiss. His moist lips still tasted of beef fat. As quickly as the kiss began, it ended just as fast. It left her breathless and a bit dizzy. For a short moment she studied James’s face. Looking for any kind of sign that she shouldn’t do this. Searching for a clue that she should quickly snatch the glass from his hand and pour it down the sink.

            He would be furious of course but for a split second she almost thought that it would be worth it. As if in response to her thoughts her body began to remind her of every bruise and broken bone that had been delivered to her over the years. A special delivery of pain courtesy of yours truly.

            With a shaky smile Trisha stepped back and composed herself as she took her place across the table from James.

            “Enjoy.” She grinned over at him. His only reply was to toss back the crystal glass and swallow half of the liquid in one gulp. If the medication had left any after taste James didn’t seem to notice. In a few more moments the entire drink was empty. With a satisfied look on his face he leaned back in his chair to relax and digest his meal.

 

 

 

Reviews

[KAOlmsted]

"Other nights when he skipped his meal and went straight to the cabinet, the syrup colored drink would awaken something dark and dangerous behind his eyes."
--I wanted to start with some praise. This is a great line, and not just because I wrote something similar in my own book, which, obviously, is brilliant *laughlaughlaugh* *laugh* *sigh* sillykimmer... Anyway, yeah, this is a great line, T. It is exactly this tone that will get your book sold. Well done.

"Most people would probably have been nervous but Trisha felt an overwhelming feeling of calm settle around her as she ate delicately in silence with her husband."
--you're slipping back into narrator mode. I want to hear from Trisha why she is not nervous, I don't want to know that most people probably would be. Actually, it's a great sentence, with the calm settling around her, and the delicate bites, I can see it, feel it...if you can get there without telling me most people would probably be nervous, well, please do.

I love that you brought us to where she once was with her relationship with James, that his gaze used to instill passion and now it just instills, well, disgust. This is great writing. It pulls me into her thought process.

"As quickly as the kiss began, it ended just as fast."
--you could eliminate 'just as fast' in this sentence; it is redundant.

"Looking for any kind of sign that she shouldn’t do this. Searching for a clue that she should quickly snatch the glass from his hand and pour it down the sink."
Ah...a glimpse of sanity. if only a fleeting glimpse *wink*

"A special delivery of pain courtesy of yours truly. "
--if you're going to have Trisha projecting what James would say, you know, if he was to say something about the bruises and broken bones, which is not a bad writing ploy, the thought needs to be italicized.

Good chapter, T, because it moves the plot along. Well done.

-kimmer *smile*

[Tabitha t]

Thank you. I always look forward to when I see you have reviewed. I take notes and them as soon as possible I get to work on trying to fix the mistakes that u noticed that time around. I havent posted the edited version on the site yet but once I am satisfied that I have a chance at you being satisfied I will! lol agauin ... thanks! and criticism is welcome

[KAOlmsted]

Tabitha my love, I am NEVER satisfied...*LAUGH* But seriously, you're welcome, I wouldn't waste my time reviewing your work if I didn't think you had potential. I love that you are taking advice and honing your craft. I wish I'd had these resources when I was your age. (oh f**k me, did I just say "when I was your age"?? I am so buying a motorcycle tomorrow *laughlaughlaugh*) I am looking forward to reading your revisions!!! Keep up the hard work, girl.

[Tabitha t]

thanks. Its funny how alot of the things you mentioned I kinda noticed as I wrote them down but then I shrugged and said no one would notice or care. Well now I know that Kimmer ALWAYS NOTICES! LOL

[KAOlmsted]

And cares. *smile*

[KAOlmsted]

Good night, T. I'll read more tomorrow.

[Craig2591]

You do such a good job setting the scene and describing the surroundings. And the suspense through this chapter was killing me! I kept thinking, "Hurry up and get it over with, before he catches you!"

[Tabitha t]

lol I am very glad! I hope this novel sticks with you better then my young adult novel! The progress on this one is so much faster and it comes much easier. I think I found my niche.

[Marie]

I haven't been following this book, but I cdecided to read this chapter. It's really quite good.