Chapter 25 – Maddie
The Universe and Elaine Servantes
Maddie
I DON’T THINK there have ever been this many people in my apartment. As a matter of fact, I know there have never been this many people in my apartment. Not since it's been mine, anyway. Leo and my parents are the only people who ever came here up until today.
Today, everyone and their sister is here.
Alexis and all her friends rallied, bringing a rented U-Haul and a bunch of boxes so I can get officially moved into Leo’s house.
I guess it’s our house now, which feels weird but completely normal at the same time.
In addition to Alexis and her friends, my Abuela is here, puttering around since she didn’t have anything else to do.
On top of Alexis and her friends and my Abuela, the girls from Sweet Side Apartments showed up, ready to help pack.
Leo and Gavin are supposed to come over after practice to help load furniture, but honestly I’m not sure they’ll fit. The place is packed to the gills.
Which is great considering I’m still green around the gills and there’s no way I could do this myself.
“I don’t think this is going to take us long at all.” Alexis surveys the situation, sipping at the coffee she brought with her. “Is there any special way you want everything packed up?”
I nibble my lower lip as I think. “Not really. I’m not sure how much of it we will even keep.”
Technically, I’m not the only one who will end up at the house, so I’m not sure what makes the most sense. I don’t have a ton of stuff, not really attached to any of it, so I honestly don’t care how it’s packed or organized.
“Got it.” Alexis asked like I gave her a perfectly reasonable answer. She turns to her friends, directing them into different realms before sending each one off with a box to fill.
Betty, Sharon, and Sylvia seemed to have come more to be nosy and socialized than to actually help, because they are all huddled together chatting up my Abuela.
If I’m not mistaken, they were actually trying to get her to move into my apartment instead of the sweet Leo is building specifically for her.
If she wasn’t moving in with us, Sweet side Apartments might have been a good fit. It would offer her more social opportunities and I would be here five days a week to keep an eye on her.
But talking her out of living with me and Leo – especially since her great grandchild is on the way – is going to be impossible. I’m not going to tell the girls that, because I don’t want to burst anybody’s bubble. Especially since they seem to be getting along so well with Abuela.
And I’m honestly not sure if that’s a good or bad thing.
I force it down a couple gulps of the Ginger tea Leo’s mom has been buying me in bulk, hoping it soothes the rolling of my stomach.
I’ve gotten used to the idea of being pregnant, but I’m not sure I will ever get used to feeling like this.
It’s freaking awful, and I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy.
Well… That’s not technically true. I would wish some pretty bad shit on Drake. And he would deserve every bit of it for trying to take Leo down in order to save his own skin.
I knew he was a terrible person. He did awful things to me, but for some reason what he attempted to do to Leo is what makes me hate him most of all.
Thinking of how the tides could have turned against the man I love makes my blood boil.
I faced so much unfairness throughout this mess, but that would have taken the cake.
Alexis is the first to return the pack box. The one she’s carrying is marked summer clothes in sharpie. Stopping in front of me, she lifts her brows, looking from my face, to my tummy. “Do we think you’re going to need these this year?”
That is a good question. One I don’t really have an answer to. After sitting down to do the math — and learning they count back to the first day of your last period, which I think is weird — I discovered I am around ten weeks along.
My body still looks pretty much the same as normal – if anything I’ve lost weight thanks to the constant nausea – but I’m sure once the sickness passes, I’ll make up for lost time and missed calories.
Especially with Abuela cooking for me every day.
“Maybe some of them?” I’m already overwhelmed and we just started. “I guess I’m going to have to go through them and see what stretches and what doesn’t have any give.”
“How about this.” Alexis taps her free hand against the box balanced on her hip. “Once we get everything moved, I’ll come over and we can go through all your clothes together. All you have to do is sit and say yay or nay, and I will handle everything else.”
For some reason the way Alexis has come in and handled this for me makes me emotional. I sniff, blinking hard as my eyes got watery. “That would be really great.”
“No.” She shakes her head, expression stern. “No crying.” She flails her hand in front of my face, fanning my skin. “Everything is going to be great and easy and organized.”
I nod, trying hard to get myself back under control. “Okay.”
I thought I got lucky finding Leo. Believed he was going to be the one person I could always count on.
And I did get lucky finding him. I can always count on him.
But he’s not the only one I have in my corner.
Once I’m no longer on the verge of tears, Alexis rallies everyone, and soon boxes are leaving my apartment at a quick pace. Nothing really looks too different, because all the furniture is still in place, but a lot is getting done in a short period of time.
Not by my Abuela and the girls. They’re still socializing. Now, they’re piled onto my sofa cackling over God only knows what.
And I love it. I love getting to see my grandmother get to be something besides by herself. She’s not like most of the women in her condo association, so she’s always been kind of the odd one out.
But she is for sure like the girls. They are peas in a feisty pod And I’m already imagining she’s going to hitch a ride with me to work on a pretty regular basis.
Alexis and her friends are in the back of my apartment collecting another round of boxes when I decide to go out and check to see how the truck is. I think I picked the correct size, but I’m a little worried maybe I should have gone for the bigger one.
I’m only a few steps out the door one my path is blocked by a sickeningly familiar face.
“Drake.” I stare at him, not believing what I’m seeing. “You’re supposed to be in jail.”
My ex-husband gives me a smirk. “And you were supposed to be my wife, so I guess we’re both surprised.”
He takes a step toward me and I take a step back, hard in my throat as my already upset stomach rolls. “You can’t be here.”
He snorts. “Why? Because of the piece of paper?” His head tips as he chuckles. “Did you really think that would keep me away?” His expression darkens. “You belong to me. You are my wife. No one has the right to tell me I can’t be near my wife.”
“I’m not your wife.” I won’t let him keep trying to possess me. “I don’t belong to you.”
“Until the divorce is final you do.” He continues trying to advance on me. “Did you think you could just walk away and play house with someone new and there wouldn’t be consequences?” He shakes his head. “You can’t just leave me behind that way. That’s not how this works.”
I’m starting to shake, flashes of the past making me want to cower. I’ve seen Drake like this before. It didn’t work out well for me then, and I’m terrified of what will happen now. Not to me. I don’t care what he does to me.
But I can’t let him hurt the tiny little peanut of a baby I’m getting more attached to every day.
But I don’t have anything to fight him with. Even my hot tea is gone. The best I can hope for is that Alexis and her friends see what’s going on and call the police, because I don’t want them to get hurt because of me either.
That’s why I can’t lead Drake into my apartment.
Trying not to make it obvious, I shift my trajectory, angling my steps away from the still open door toward the edge of the building.
“We aren’t together anymore Drake. The sooner you accept that and move on, the better your life is going to be.
” I know trying to reason with him is futile, but the longer I can keep him talking, the better off I think I’ll be. “You can’t keep going to jail.”
I’m not actually worried about him going to jail.
I am worried about Helen the fuck he keeps getting out.
Why is it so easy for violent men to be on the streets?
Shouldn’t they have called to tell me he was getting out?
Given me a heads up that the man who tried to kill me and has attempted to assault me multiple times in spite of a protection order is free?
“I don’t plan on continuing to go to jail.” Drake’s tone is scarily calm. “You’re going to come home, cancel the protection order, and tell the judge all of this was a mistake.”
That’s his plan? For me to make all his mistakes go away?
Actually, that is pretty expected now that I think about it.
“We’re not getting back together, and I’m not canceling the protection order.” If anything, I’m going to find out if I can make it stronger. Right after I find out why in the hell my victim’s advocate didn’t tell me Drake is free again.
Drake chuckles, the sound humorless. “I was worried you were going to try to say that.”
In the blink of an eye he lunges at me, both hands gripping my neck as he slams me back into the brick of my apartment building. My head hits the surface hard enough I see stars, and my hands automatically grab his wrist, trying to get him off me.
I’ve been here before and I thought I would be better prepared if it ever happened again. I thought I would fight. React differently than I did the last time.
But I don’t. Part of that’s because I don’t have time.
My brain is still trying to fully register what’s happening when everything is suddenly very loud. People are everywhere screaming and yelling.
And then Drake is on the ground in front of me and my Abuela is wailing on him with her walker. A group of my tenants surround her, occasionally kicking Drake if he tries to fight back. One of them holds him at gunpoint.
Another one of them is naked.
Am I dead? Did I die and this is the result of my brain’s final grasp at function?
Alexis rushes in at my side, hooking an arm around my waist as she hugs me away from whatever that is that’s happening. “You need to get inside.”
I let her get me into my apartment where she locks the door and settles me onto the couch, her cell phone pressed against her ear as she relays information to whoever’s on the other end of the call.
Like the last time Drake assaulted me, I’m in a fog. Everything feels surreal. Fake. Like it’s not really happening. I don’t know how to explain it, but it’s hauntingly familiar.
I don’t know how much time passes before Leo rushes in, scooping me off the couch and in his arms, holding me tighter than he ever has.
My Abuela comes in a few minutes later looking like she’s ready to rule the world. She’s always been a confident woman, but now there’s a straightness to her spine. A tip to her chin. A glimmer in her eye.
It looks an awful lot like pride. And it makes me ask, “you didn’t kill him, did you?”
“Why would I kill him, muneca?” She grins at me, eyes bright. “I want him to suffer for a long, long time.”
That’s a plan I can get behind.
I look up as a whole group of people come inside. There are police officers, Alexis’s friends, Betty, Sylvia, and Sharon. Even the old men who seemed to come out of nowhere are here.
Thankfully, the naked one found some clothes, because I’m not sure I have the capacity to deal with any more gray haired wiener.
Sylvia comes to sit beside where Leo has me tucked against him on the couch. She passed me on the knee. “You doing okay?”
“I think so.” I reach up to gingerly run my fingers over my neck. “I guess that depends on how soon they let Drake out of jail again.”
“I wouldn’t worry about that.” Sylvia smiles at me in a way that makes me think she knows something, but I don’t have it in me to ask what it is.
“They’ve let him out so many times already. I’m pretty sure that is exactly what I should worry about.”
“He’s not getting out this time.” Sylvia leans close, words quiet as the police talk to Alexis and her friends. “Remember how Betty told you she could make sure you had protection?”
Are we really circling back to the mob right now?
“I guess. She said something about some chick named Elaine too though, so I’m pretty sure she was talking out her ass.”
Sylvia’s lips curved in a smile. “Elaine Servantes is what your generation would call a girl boss. She felt really bad about that whole car being set on fire here at the apartments, so to make up for it she made an arrangement that will help put your ex-husband away permanently.”
I try to process her words, but they don’t really make sense. “How could she make sure he goes to jail permanently?”
A new police officer comes into my apartment, dragging everyone’s attention his way. “He had a weapon on him.” He holds up an evidence bag containing a pistol of some sort. “Same caliber as the one used on the guy we found in the car.”
“Imagine that.” Sylvia clicks her tongue, shaking her head. “You never really know what people are capable of, do you?” She gives my knee another pat then stands up. “It’s good to know you finally found the person responsible. I’ve been scared to death knowing a killer was on the loose.”
“That hasn’t been confirmed, ma’am.” One of the officers tries to burst Sylvia’s bubble, but she’s undeterred.
“I guess we’ll just have to wait and see them, won’t we?” She turns my way, giving me a wink over one shoulder.
Leo pulls me closer. “What was that about?”
I lean into him, tired and ready for all this to be over.
And if Sylvia’s right, maybe it is.
“I think the universe just evened things out.”
The universe and Elaine Servantes, whoever in the hell that is.