4. Halo
Six months later….
Light was peeping through the blinds on the third story of the room that I occupied. Rolling over onto my stomach I stared at the rock occupying my left ring finger.
I still had holy shit moments.
Like, I’d gotten married.
I was married.
Although my husband seemed to hate my fucking guts.
Giving my finger a wiggle, I noted the light reflecting through the diamond. It almost appeared as if it were glowing.
There was a knock on my bedroom door and I sat up looking around. My robe was hanging on the back of the door.
“Just a second,” I gave a holler.
Once it was settled onto my body, and secure, I opened the door to find a teenager with attitude. Luna Tanaka had a purple hair and nose piercing that she’d just acquired in the last week or so.
“Hi,” I tried to offer her a smile.
Instead, she sneered. “Maggie wants you.”
My brand new step-niece seemed to hate my guts even more than her uncle seemed to.
“Is something the matter?” I asked following behind her.
She didn’t reply only kept walking until we were on the second floor.
“Hey Maggie,” I offered a smile stepping into the large bathroom that the two girls shared.
“My hair,” the eight-year-old sighed like she’d been on this planet way too long already.
“How can I help?”
She stepped up onto the pink and purple step stool that was decorated with unicorns, before handing me a brush.
“I need zig-zags, lady,” she said. “Every girl in my class has zig-zags and now that I don’t have a mom…”
“Maggie!” Luna cried and I looked back to see that her eyes had widened in horror.
From what I knew, their mom had been murdered and no one knew who had done it.
We locked eyes and for just a moment, I thought she might say something more but instead, she stormed from the room.
Maggie shrugged it off and waited for me to fix her hair.
When we were done, the two of us headed down to have some breakfast.
“How about pancakes?” I suggested. “And fresh fruit.”
“You know….” Maggie was thoughtful as she climbed up onto the stool. “You can cook really good.”
I smiled. “Why thank you, Maggie. It’s something I used to do with my mom…”
“Is she dead?” Maggie asked matter-of-factly.
I hadn’t mentioned my mother in a long time. She’d been bottled up and placed out of my thoughts. Lately, though, I’d been thinking about my past.
Turning away, I began to find the pancake batter that I’d bought a few days ago. “Yes, she passed away when I was eighteen.”
“I’m sorry,” Maggie offered.
“It’s okay, it was a long time ago,” I uttered softly.
Maggie had already begun clicking away on her iPad, soft sounds of some YouTuber explaining toys hit my ears as I worked.
Eventually, Luna wandered into the kitchen, still looking surly. “Are you driving us to school today?”
Sitting two plates of fluffy, perfectly shaped pancakes in front of them I nodded. “Yes, but I suspect when your uncle returns from his business trip tomorrow, he’ll resume taking you.”
The two of them didn’t say anything, only began eating.
“I’ll be back,” I told them.
Again, I was met with silence before leaving the kitchen.
Walking, I glanced at the ring on my finger once more. I’d inherited two nieces, a credit card with no limit, and a husband who couldn’t stomach being in the same room as me.
It was necessary though.
I’d become Halo Tanaka in practically a snap. Shedding my past like a snake had shed its skin and for the first time in a long time I’d been able to breathe.
The wedding had been small but the payout for this little venture was going to be close to three hundred seventy thousand dollars and I’d keep the ring which had to be valued at around a million.
Reaching my room, I went into my bathroom and started the shower. Removing the night clothes I had on, I tossed them in the hamper. Today was laundry day and the maid would be coming to collect laundry shortly.
As steam began to curl from the shower, I stepped in and washed up as quickly as possible. I was going to groceries after dropping the girls at their fancy private school.
When the shower was done, I stepped out and onto the fluffy bath mat.
Wrapping a towel around my body, I pulled the toothbrush out and began to scrub my teeth until they felt shiny and smooth.
My cell phone dinged while I was gargling some mouthwash.
Ashton was texting.
How are you?
It was a rather odd question, but it was even odder that he was texting me. My husband didn’t text.
Well, he didn’t text me. He was always on his phone or talking to a guard. Or literally communicating with anyone but me.
I paused wondering how I could reply to this. Maybe I didn’t need to think about it too much, it was a simple enough question.
Biting at my lip, I sat the phone back down and pulled on a pair of worn blue jeans.
I needed new clothes badly but I had no idea what was stopping me from using the credit card in my brand new name.
Staring at my reflection, I saw that my golden curls were unruly and disheveled. Instead of lingering on my reflection, I twirled my hair up into a bun on top of my head and grabbed my phone. Shoving it into my back pocket, I found the girls waiting for me.
“You took long enough,” Luna muttered.
“Sorry about that,” I grabbed a pair of keys from the hook by the front door.
The Porshe SUV was way nicer than the rinky-dink Toyota Corolla I drove but Maggie nor Luna would be caught dead in my shitty car.
The ride to school was relatively quiet, as we listened to the local radio station. Joining the car rider line, they said goodbyes before exiting.
Easing out of the car rider line, I found myself at a stop sign before maneuvering the sleek black vehicle into a new line of traffic. I decided
My phone began to ring and the screen flashed up to show my new husband’s name.
Shit.
I’d forgotten to respond.
With ease, I hit the screen to answer his call.
“Hey,” he said instantly.
“Sorry I didn’t respond,” I cringed inwardly almost immediately.
“It’s fine.”
A huge pregnant pause hit the air and I waited, taking my eyes off the road for a few moments to glance at the screen.
“The girls are fine…” I needed to say something to remove the awkwardness.
“Yes, I’ve talked to Luna a few times in the last week.”
Another pause.
“Oh.”
“She didn’t tell you?” Ashton’s voice sounded gruff and unforgiving.
“No. Luna doesn’t seem to like me very much.”
And you either,the thought gave a twirl through my brain.
“I wanted to know how you were,” Ashton took a deep breath. “I was thinking tomorrow night we could maybe…”
SCREEECHHHHHHHH!
The Porshe took control and slammed on the brakes for me. A shudder ran itself through my body as I peered over the steering wheel expecting to have rammed into the back of another car. Nothing was there.
The other car was gone but there were a few cars behind me honking. Looking around, I saw a peacock on the side of the road.
An honest-to-God peacock had walked into the middle of the road. It fanned its feathers looking in my direction. A man dressed in farm-like clothing was running to catch it while his truck sat nearby with the flashes on.
“HALO…HALO….ARE YOU OKAY?”
Ashton’s voice had brought me out of the stupor and finally, I drove away from where I’d been sitting. My breaths were coming out deep and labored as adrenaline rushed through me.
I found my voice. “Yes, I’m okay. I’m fine.”
He seemed unsure when responded. “I’ll be home soon.”
“Yes, I know.”
“You know our six-month anniversary is coming,” his voice turned soft.
“Oh, is it?”
Who was I kidding?
I’d been secretly counting. When I’d married Ashton, the contract had been for two years. The first six months had been incredibly easy for the most part. He avoided me every chance he had and I was fine with that.
He’d only needed me to help to stabilize his living situation for his nieces. The social worker had side-eyed us heavily the first three months but I’d found out a few things in talking to her.
She had a few vices.
Good coffee.
And good food.
I could make both and whenever she threatened a visit, I made sure to have a home-cooked meal waiting for her.
He gave a slight laugh. “I know, it’s gone by so fast. But I wanted to do something nice.”
I nearly choked but recovered.
“Halo, are you okay?”
My hand covered my mouth momentarily. “Yes, sorry. What would you like to do?”
“Would dinner and a show do?” He asked a hint of hopefulness in his voice.
“Careful, that would sound like something romantic…”
He chuckled probably remembering our first meeting. He’d slipped the current diamond ring occupying my finger for the first time.
I’m not romantic,the words floated around before disappearing.
“Not as romantic as you might like, but a nice gesture for sure. You’ve been good with the girls from what Luna has told me.”
“I’ve tried. She’s not easily cracked. But dinner does sound nice.”
“Use the credit card, Halo. To buy something other than groceries.”
Damn, he knows about that…
“I…”
“No buts, buy yourself something nice. You have the card for a reason. I’m going to send you the name of someone in the area. An old friend of mine, her name’s Ivy Scarpetta….she goes by Diamond. She owns a boutique.”
I bit at my lip. “It sounds expensive.”
Ashton sounded as if he were smiling, but the man didn’t smile. “It is, but I don’t care. Buy the place out. I have to go but I’ll see you tomorrow night.”
“Okay, good-”
He had already ended the call, the car growing silent as I pulled into the parking lot of the grocery store. Humming to myself I fiddled with the middle console to find something to put on my lips.
Pulling out a tube of worn-down Chapstick, I pulled down the visor and something floated into my lap. Startled, I thought it was a spider but realized it was just a piece of paper. I hadn’t remembered anything being there.
Unfolding it, I read the words and a chill worked its way over my entire body. Frantically, I looked around, seeing no one.
GOLDSwas printed on the paper.
Taking a few deep breaths, I crinkled the paper up. No one knew me by that name or what that could have possibly meant.
I’d been careful.
I’d been smart.
I didn’t even have a social media presence. When I’d undergone the background checks for the Wife for Hire Agency, Ms. May the owner of the company had even commented that I seemed as if I were a ghost.
I grabbed the tiny, tattered Coach wallet and my cell phone and hustled into the store. I’d promised Maggie and Luna that I’d make tacos for dinner. That was the one meal I knew they both liked, and I loved cooking for them.
Still, I couldn’t shake that feeling of being watched. That someone was keeping a close eye on me despite how careful I was.
I nearly jumped out of my skin when my phone vibrated but relaxed when I saw that it was Ashton sending me the address to the boutique.
Find something pretty, Halo. The text was simple and calming but I knew he could be dominating.
It wasn’t just a nice gesture.
My husband was commanding me.
And I wanted to obey him.