By the time Tuesday arrived, I was starting to feel a little better. The bruises were still evident, but I was healing emotionally. I had even decided that I wasn’t going to let Margo down and would meet with her and her interviewee as planned. I got myself dressed and prepared for what lay ahead. With the help of some makeup I was able to camouflage the bruising on my cheeks somewhat and look a little more human. Giving myself one last look in the mirror, I fluffed my hair out with my fingers and was on my way.
The cab pulled up to Margo’s office building, and I took a deep cleansing breath as I stepped out. You can do this. You are stronger than ever, I repeated to myself with each step I took, getting closer and closer to the lion’s den. Moving my sunglasses from the top of my head and concealing my eyes, I lightly knocked on Margo’s office door before entering. Her jaw dropped when I entered. The pretty young brunette—her next victim—was in the seat across from her. Just by the way she seemed to be ogling Margo, I was fairly certain she had already been fed a bunch of lies about how wonderful the business was.
“Bree, I didn’t think you were coming.” Margo’s voice quivered, and for the first time ever I could tell she was actually nervous. I was holding all the cards, and I loved it.
“Whatever would give you that impression, Margo?” I asked, taking a seat next to the new sacrificial lamb.
“I-I don’t—” Margo stuttered. How I was enjoying watching her squirm.
“I’m Bree, by the way.” I extended my hand to the young girl, who looked barely legal. “Please forgive the sunglasses, but I have a terrible migraine.”
“Oh, hi. I’m Kristen.” The sound of her voice matched her sweet appearance.
“So, what did I miss? Did Margo tell you about how glamorous this job is?”
She smiled and nodded.
“And all the wonderful men you’ll meet and the fabulous places you’ll get to go with them?”
“Yes, she said that some are even TV producers, so I’m hoping maybe that will help to boost my acting career.”
I gazed deeply into her light brown eyes. She was like the fresh fallen snow after a storm, untouched and innocent, and Margo was the one who was going to cast those first footprints, damaging her forever. I was that same girl not so long ago—young, naïve, believing all of Margo’s bullshit lines. Changing my focus to the woman sitting on the other side of the desk, I had finally come to the realization that she was pure evil. She never cared about me like she had led me to believe. She just saw me as a young, pretty girl who would line her pockets even more. The same way she saw this girl.
“So, Kristen, Margo asked me to sit in on this interview to give you a little insight on the job, so that’s what I’m here to do.” I slowly raised my sunglasses to my head, revealing the purple rings outlining my eyes.
“Oh my god!” Kristen gasped.
“This is the part that Margo didn’t tell you about.” I glanced over to Margo, who was sitting still as a statue. “When she sets you up with a client who she knows is no good just for her own benefit.”
“Bree. That is enough,” Margo requested through clenched teeth.
I turned my head in her direction and stared directly into her cold blue eyes. “Oh, I know it’s enough. Enough of believing your lies and thinking that you have my best interest at heart. Enough of having sex with strangers to make you richer, and enough of hating myself because you stripped away every ounce of my self-confidence, making me totally dependent on you and your so-called business.”
She shook her head and looked away.
“Look at me, Margo!” I shouted. “You are just as guilty of doing this to me as he is. You knew he was violent. That’s why Kylee dropped him as a client. But instead of losing his business, you set me up! You’re no better than a cheap pimp standing on a street corner with his hookers.”
“Get out of here, now!” she demanded.
“Gladly!” I stood up, snatching my purse from the chair and flinging it over my shoulder. “Kristen, if you know what’s good for you, you’ll run as far away as you can from this evil bitch.”
She didn’t respond, nervously bouncing her leg up and down with her bottom lip quivering. I could only hope that she’d take my advice before it was too late.
Margo kept her head down the entire time I made my exit, holding back all of the anger that I was certain was growing inside of her. There was no doubt that she was still going to try to salvage the interview and keep up appearances with Kristen.
I stepped outside, opting to walk a few blocks instead of hailing a cab. After all those years, I was finally out from under Margo’s thumb. I was excited and terrified all at the same time. It was all so new to me. I had been under her control for so long, like a brainwashed victim of an evil cult, and now I was being set free to live my life. I wasn’t sure if I knew how to go about it on my own, but I was going to do everything in my power to try. I was starting my babysitting gig the following week, I planned on volunteering a lot more time at the shelter, and there was always Hannah’s romance novel to help me escape from reality. They were all things that I had to focus on as part of my new life. I pulled my ringing phone from my purse, fairly certain it was Margo wanting to get in the last word, but was pleasantly surprised to see it was my brother’s partner, Trey, instead.
“Hey there!” I answered.
“Well, well, well. She finally takes my call!” he teased.
“Oh, I’m so sorry, Trey. It’s been a crazy couple of days.” To say the least.
“I was calling you to tell you your brother is in Manhattan for business. You know, just in case you’d like to meet up.”
My heart sank. My brother was in the same city as me and couldn’t even pick up the phone to tell me himself. “Oh, I’m sure I’m the last person he wants to see.”
“Aubree, sweetie, don’t think like that. He loves you very much.”
“Okay, if that’s true then why are you calling and telling me he’s in town instead of him.”
He let out a deep sigh.
“Exactly! Look, Trey, I really appreciate what you’re trying to do, but Paul and I will never have the same relationship again.”
“That’s not true. He misses you just as much as you miss him.”
I blinked back the tears, deciding to switch topics. “I have some news.”
“What’s that?” he asked.
“I-I’m choosing a different career path.”
“What are you doing?” I sensed relief in his voice.
“Well…” I let out a little giggle. “I’m going to be a nanny.”
“A nanny?”
“I know. Crazy, right?”
“How did this come about?”
“I met this really awesome guy. He’s a single dad and he needs some extra help. The best part of all is, he knows all about me and still trusts me with his son. I’m not sure if that makes him a good person or just crazy.”
“Clearly he sees the Aubree we all know and love. It doesn’t mean he’s crazy, it just means he’s accepting, which in turn makes him a very good person.” He paused for a brief moment. “So, does this mean you’re retiring from your other career?”
“Yeah, it does. Even if this doesn’t work out, I know I can’t do that anymore, and I don’t want to do it anymore.”
“I love you, Aubree, and I am one hundred percent behind you with this choice.”
“I love you too. I just wish my brother could be as supportive as you.”
“This is great news that I think you should spring on him with a surprise visit.”
I sighed deeply. As much as I wanted to, I was fairly certain it wouldn’t go over too well. “I just don’t think that’s a very good idea.”
“If you change your mind, he’s staying at the Roosevelt, room twenty-two. I happen to know that he’s there right now working on his presentation for tomorrow. You know, just in case you decide that you want to pay him a visit.”
I couldn’t help but laugh at his persistence. “Thanks, Trey, and thanks for listening to me.”
“Anytime, sweetheart. We’ll catch up again next week, and I want to hear all about the new job!”
“Sounds good. Love you.”
“Love you too.”
We hung up, and I stopped dead in my tracks, ignoring the hurried pedestrians walking around me as I stood in the middle of the sidewalk. Maybe Trey was right: maybe this was the icebreaker I needed to win my brother back. What was the worst that could happen? He could become even more annoyed with me than he was already. If I was going to start a new life, it meant mending old fences, and I was going to start immediately, expecting the worst, but hoping for the best.