Leah
The car was a black SUV, with rims shinier than my bathroom mirror at my father's house. The driver, who opened the door for me, was a tough looking man with a buzzed haircut and broad shoulders. He looked like he might smack a bullet back if someone tried to shoot him, I thought to myself. It would have made me feel safe if I was actually Jacob's girlfriend, but as his prisoner, I just saw another person that would make my escape that much tougher.
One step at a time, I told myself.
Tatiana closed the door once I slid inside onto the leather backseat. I could see through the tinted window glass that they were discussing something, and then Tatiana walked around to the other side and sat next to me. The car started, and I thumbed my finger to put the window down, as it was too tinted for me to see through, but there was a child lock on the window. I felt scared for a second like I'd done something wrong and the seat was going to electrocute me, but the driver clicked something on his panel, and my window started to go down. The bracing whip of the wind was a welcome distraction from the storm inside me.
I watched us pull from the gates and out of a long driveway. Jacob's home is truly separated from anyone. When we hit the highway, and then the city, I'm excited despite all my misgivings. I've only been in the city a few times, and Alanor Heights is instantly an exciting, if not an overwhelming, change of pace. I've been shut in my whole life, though, and when we step out of the car and toward the salon, seeing the sheer number of people actually hits my chest like a brick is dropped on it. I suddenly have the urge to hold my hands together. I wish for a second that Jacob was there.
I curse that thought. Why would I think that? I don't want that. I unclench my fists and breathe slowly. Of course, trying to control my breathing sends erotic flashbacks of Jacob Renaud licking my pussy so good that I almost get dizzy just thinking about it. Fuck.
"Carlotta, she's my girl now, she'll take care of you," Tatiana says, and she puts her arm on my back and walks with me. "Do you think you want bangs? With that baby-doll face, they could be so cute. Mr. Renaud would like them," she says, adding that last part like she might be measuring my response.
I want to build up her trust in me, and I don't want to be any ruder to her than I might have already been, so I smile, nod, and tell her that I'd like that, too. "Let's try it!" I hope my enthusiasm rings true. I am curious to know what I'd look like with well-coiffed hair, with adult, well-done makeup. With fancy clothes. Maybe today will be exciting and feel good, and that's okay. It isn't like I could run right now, and I don't know where I'd run to. I have to let go of the feeling like static under my skin and quicksand under my feet, that I'll never get away if I don't do something now. There's nothing to do now. Right now, I need to assess the situation. Besides, I never thought I'd get away from my father, and now I'm free. If I'm honest, I know that I was never going to try to get away from my father's house. I knew he was going to sell me someday, but it wasn't until it was really happening that I felt a fire was lit under my ass. Now, I have to bide my time and be smart.
And for just a moment, maybe be a little happy. I know better than to think I'll ever be fully happy, because if it is a destination, then it isn't one for me. But for a few moments today, I'm normal. I'm just another girl getting her hair cut.
We walk into the salon and a gorgeous woman who's nearly as tall as Jacob walks up to Tatiana and they hug. "Darling, who is this angel cakes you brought me today?" The woman I presume is Carlotta says, looking at me.
My face heats. When Jacob said he thought I was beautiful, it was shocking to me. I feel plain. When Tatiana was sweet to me, I thought that's all it was. Carlotta now is probably just being nice. Still, I'm shy again, and I try not to stammer as I put my hand out to introduce myself. "Leah Waterson," I say. Part of me wishes I didn't use my last name. I don't want anything that reminds me of my father.
"Sugar, please," Carlotta says and shakes her head. She wraps her arms around me and pulls me in for a tight, squeezing hug. "Lotta gonna take care of you, come over here." She points to a seat, and I sit down. She adjusts the stool with her foot and puts a smock on me, lifting my hair up and securing it at the nape of my neck. "So tell me you're keeping this length. This color is perfect too. Ooh, let me play with it. Can I?" She's talking fast, and despite everything, I have a huge grin on my face and simply nod along with her, even laughing when she finally pauses to let me answer. "Good, good. Now, let's shampoo first, come here," Carlotta says and extends her hand. I take it and follow her over to the sinks, laying my head back when I sit down and feeling the extra-hot water sink into my scalp and transport me to a calmer state of mind. Tatiana can't have known just how much this would put me at ease, but she did well in making me comfortable. Before I close my eyes, I see her sitting down at a station for a pedicure. I've never had one of those. It sounds totally indulgent, but after feeling how soft Jacob's sheets are, the next time my feet are on them, I want them baby smooth. After everything on that list, I know that Jacob won't care that I'm spending whatever it costs to get a pedicure, so I think I'll have to give the pedicure a try.
I suppose knowing that he has so much money and knowing that I want to get far away from him, I shouldn't care about how I spend his money. But I know that's not right. It feels gross to imagine using him like that, which is maybe foolish.
"Child, your shoulders are so tense." Carlotta says and does a tsk, tsk sound sucking at her teeth. "Is the water too hot?"
And now, again, thoughts of Jacob have ruined my relaxation!
"No, I just got lost in unpleasant thoughts. Please, keep working your magic," I say earnestly, taking a moment to try and still my mind.
"No problem, girlfriend," Carlotta says with a chuckle. "I've got you."
The water cascaded down my scalp. Carlotta's long, strong nails worked circles through my scalp, scooped up all my hair to the top of my head, and then lathered the most incredible smelling shampoo through my hair. It was similar to the shampoo in Jacob's shower, but the scent was somehow more upbeat. I didn't know scents could have moods, but this one definitely did. Carlotta worked the shampoo out of my head, giving my scalp a gentle raking motion that felt really good. It was impossible not to feel relaxed. After she'd turned off the water and worked conditioner through my hair, I felt overwhelmed with gratitude. "Your hands are magic," I told her, laughing. "I will have to do this again, soon."
"Girl, with them ends, I expect to see you at least every few weeks. You're abusing some otherwise beautiful hair." She shook a comb at me. "That shit won't fly!"
"Yes, ma'am," I said, laughing with her.
She rinsed my hair a few minutes later and walked me back to the chair. "I'm going to turn you around. I don't want you to see the messy part in between, just the happy ending," Carlotta said, and there was a far-off look in her eyes for a second.
I gave her a solemn smile. I didn't want to see the messy parts of many things, just the happy ending, if there was one, so that was fine by me.
Besides, I knew that Carlotta wasn't going to change much. I wondered if I should tell her about the bangs conversation that I'd had with Tatiana, who I could see was getting a very bright neon pink on her toes and fingers now, or if I should just let Carlotta do her thing. Decidedly, I was not the expert here, and I had put myself in her hands. The person with sharp objects near my face was the safest person that I could trust in my life, I told myself. Which I then realized was melodramatic. I drank the coffee this morning too fast and I needed to make sure that I ate a healthy lunch and drank lots of water and flushed that whole stimulus from my body.
My mind wandered to the level of sated I'd been after how many times Jacob had made me come. I didn't think I could be that spent, even if I ran a marathon. That could turn my caffeine high right around... I blinked rapidly, not shaking my head even though the actual motion wouldn't clear my mind. Still, maybe...if I was going to give him my virginity tonight, perhaps I should think about the good parts and not the things about Jacob that frightened me. Or how when he scared me, that turned me on, too.
I focused on the small pieces of my hair that I saw on the ground. Not much came off, but I felt it, somehow, there was something dramatic happening. I was glad. I wanted to end this day nothing like the person I was just three days ago. I wasn't Leah Waterson anymore. I wasn't Leah anything. I was just Leah. I needed to figure out who that was.
I closed my eyes as Carlotta started work on pieces of my hair that were closer to my face. Bangs, I supposed. I thought about what I might look like with bangs. Different. That's for sure. And that was good.
"Carlotta?" I said, hoping I wasn't disturbing her.
"Yes, sweetie?" Carlotta said, continuing to work on my hair. So I must not have disturbed her.
"Do you do makeup here? I was kind of hoping you could help me out. I...I don't really know anything, but I want to look...different."
Carlotta stopped, and I opened my eyes to see her looking at me. "You don't need to be different, but if you want a change, sure. I'll help you out, Leah." There was a somber note in her voice, and even though it wasn't logical, I felt like she understood what I needed. Maybe she did, somehow, without even knowing my situation.
"Thank you," I whispered.
Carlotta nodded.
I gave a half smile and closed my eyes.
She returned to working on my hair. I started to think about the list. Not to stress myself about whether or not I wanted Jacob to be able to develop the architecture of my life, but because the reality is that I would probably be doing those things regardless of how I felt about him facilitating them. Now, I didn't have to worry about affording college. My father told me, the one time I asked to be able to go school, that if someone worth selling me to wanted me to go to college, they'd pay. The irony of this situation was not lost on me. I was going to have a job...I had real options. I knew what I wanted to major in. It was fantastic that I could choose that major and not worry about money if I chose it. Because wanting to study literature and be an English major wasn't exactly a valid career choice...but I could bide my time at Renaud's place, in his world, until I could afford the school I was going to and find my job.
But I resigned myself to the fact that it was a hopeless fantasy. No, if I were going to get away from Jacob Renaud, I would have to hide. And I would have to hide damn well from a man who stole whatever he wanted. If there was any trace of me in this life that remained.