Mila

 

The shower felt invigorating. It cleansed her of the nightmare that she’d lived through a thousand times over—wondering if the young Somali mother and her child had made it out of their home country alive.

As she got out and wrapped a towel around herself, Mila could have sworn she heard the sound of footsteps. They didn’t have live-in servants here. This was the home that Blake used to get away when there was no time to really leave Los Angeles County. The maid/chef that was employed here, usually came midday to ready dinner and do light cleaning. She sat at the vanity, applying lotion to her body, and put on a set of lilac-colored panties and bra. She then started to deal with the tangled mess of her hair.

Mila pressed her hand against the mirror and wiped at the condensation. An unwelcome dose of adrenaline slammed into her. Mila’s entire body went rigid.

Todd Welsh leaned against the door leading to the bedroom. He was five-foot-seven, but Blake’s old employee was now cut and ripped with muscles from his new prison life. He shook her cell phone in his hand. “Blake won’t stop calling. He never had a worry in his life until he stole you from a dead man.”

Ever so slowly, Mila turned around in her seat, hands clutched at her sides.

“No, don’t get up. I got it.” Todd wiped at his bifocals while answering the call.

Mila could hear the relief in Blake’s voice as he spoke. “Mila, shit, I’ve called you—”

Mila opened her mouth to speak, but Todd hung up. 

“Actually, I have nothing to say to him. Blake has everything but guess which one of his possessions he loves the most.” He chuckled, eyeing her crazily.

She didn’t even blink.

“C’mon, beautiful. The obvious answer is you. He’ll call back. Next time, I’ll tell him that I’m getting ready to screw every orifice of his woman’s body and murder her. Shit. That fell flat.” Todd bit his thumb in thought. “Or should I say, ‘I’m just about to fuck your bitch in the ass, and then murder her.’ I like that better. It’s metaphoric, you know, Mila? You will understand how it feels to have your shit pushed in too. And then I’ll squeeze your neck until your eyes pop out.”

Her skin burned with fury, and Mila saw herself attacking him. But could she gain the upper hand against a man who had spent the last few years in jail?

The phone rang again. Todd gave a devilish grin as it rang. “This is supposed to be fun, Mila. You haven’t confirmed which phrase I should say to your boyfriend. Time’s running . . .” He started as the phone continued to ring. With an unblinking gaze, Mila watched as it rang. Then the room was engulfed in silence. Todd shook his head. “Out. Oh, time has run out.”

He tossed the iPhone on the marble floor, and it cracked and scattered into pieces. His prescription glasses continued to fog, due to the heat of the bathroom. He took them off and placed them in his pocket. He started slowly toward her like a lion stalking its prey.

“We were just about to see how much he loved you, gauge it by the promises to murder me and the threats to take me out! But you didn’t help me, Mila. I’m socially inept these days, and you didn’t help me select the proper wording to dig under his skin.”

“Leave now.” Mila was surprised by how strong and confident her voice was. “Leave, Todd, or I will kill you.”

“Do you know what it’s like to become someone’s bitch in jail? Excuse me, not someone—let’s make it plural. Big fuckers, rancid smell of cock, it does something to you.” He paused for a moment. “Remember that friend of yours, Clarissa?”

Now he was inches away, she could smell the sweat on him—and a strong scent of iron. Mila looked down. Instantly, bile shot up her throat, burning her esophagus. She choked it all back down. Glancing down had been a mistake. Red splatters of fresh blood were on his boots.

“Do you remember your friend?” He repeated himself, caressing her cheek.

Mila slapped at his hand. He slapped her back. The hit was enough to send a burst of stars across her eyes, but she knew he was holding out on her. With his thick biceps, Todd could slap her unconscious if he wanted.

“Yes,” she snapped. “Clarissa moved away. Got a job in another state after you went to jail. You cheated on her. You fucked her over and your friend, Blake!”

“Oh yeah?” He chuckled. “So, like I said, I had a few things happen to me, unspeakable things that Clarissa never let me do. Diane’s ass wasn’t all that tight. But we’ll see if yours is.”

He pressed his hand between her legs. Todd groaned as his coarse fingers skimmed the inside of her thigh. “Does Blake’s little whore stay wet all the time?”

Mila shook as the muscles in her legs forced themselves closed. His fingers were rough, hard as he tried to push her panties over. Todd leaned down to kiss her. Mila’s left hand targeted his face, within her fist was tiny eyebrow scissors. It was the only weapon she had at her disposal. The only thing she could readily grab. With all her might, she stabbed him in the cheek. The sharp blade dove into his skin like butter, stopping only because of his molars.

He clawed at his face, yanking the scissors out, leaving a gush of blood in its wake. “Grrr. Fuck!”

There was no way she’d become a statistic. The woman who fought back and almost got away only to be caught. Mila aimed for his cock. She kneed him straight in his jewels. Set on fight mode, Mila grabbed a vase of lilies. She stood up, raised the vase high and slammed it down on top of his head.

Todd crumpled to his knees.

Finish him. The thought popped into Mila’s head to finish off Todd, knock him out or even kill him maybe, but her legs were rooted to the ground.

Jesus, help me! Mila began to sidestep him, eyes on the bathroom exit.

But Todd’s hand reached out, clutching her thigh, and he tugged her toward him. Mila’s feet flew up in the air. She landed on her ass with a thud. Then Todd was on top of her.