The Hungry House (17 page)

CHAPTER T
HIRTY-FOUR

Diana kept glancing over at Vicky as she drove. The girl looked terrible. Her arms were spindly, and her face was drawn and gaunt. She responded to attempts at small talk with polite monosyllables and weak smiles. Diana guessed that she had received some bad news at the doctor's office. The question was, what kind of bad news?  An illness?  An STD?  Pregnancy?  This young woman had everything going for her. She was smart and beautiful. Diana had known her so many years, she knew that her best attribute was her kindness. A sweet nature could get a girl in a lot of trouble.

Once t
hey entered the house, Diana took Vicky to the guest room sofa. She wrapped an afghan around her. Diana brought in one of Vicky's favorite drinks, a Rock Star. Then, she sat down with Vicky and waited for Betts to show up.

The
kitchen phone rang, and Diana ran to pick up. It was Betts. "Hi Mom. Is Vicky there?"

"Yes. When can you
get here?

"I'm heading to my car right now
--I was in class when she called and had my cell off. Why was she at the doctor's office?  And, why couldn't she drive home?"

"Your guess is as good as mine
. She's not going to tell me. Something is really wrong, though. She's in the guest room right now."

"Okay, okay
. I'm starting the car now--have to go. Be there in a few."

###

Betts unlocked the front door and called out "It's me! Where is everybody."

Diana yelled out
, "In the guest room!"

As Betts walked into the room, her mother stood. "Oh--well. I'll leave you two alone, now. Would you like more to drink, Vicky?"

"No, I'm fine Mrs. Harrington
." I tried to smile.

"Remember,
Vicky, you are to call me Diana."

When her mother
had left the room, Betts took her place on the sofa, anxiously studying her friend. "So, spill the beans, sister. What's going on? Why were you at the doctor's?"

T
ears began streaming down my cheeks. "I'm sorry. It seems as if all I can do today is cry."

Be
tts went into the adjoining bathroom and brought out a box of tissues for me.

"I don't even know where to begin."

"Just relax and start anywhere you like."

I
swallowed. "Okay. Remember the party?"

"Yes."

"Well, I passed out after you guys left. I only remember having a couple of drinks. The next morning, Frank told me that a he chased a guy out of my room when he came up to check on me after the party. I don't remember anything about it.. And, the doctor has confirmed that I'm pregnant and that he thinks someone may have slipped something into my last drink--I think now that it was Frank--" Tears had been falling throughout my entire recitation. I blew my nose.

Betts looked shocked
. "Oh, you poor thing!  What are you going to do?"

"First of all, I'm not going back to Frank's house
. Never again. You know how controlling he was. If someone had been in my room, he would have flipped out. It doesn't make any sense. I should have realized that before. Plus, the doctor said there was no way I could have amnesia for the sex, if I only had two drinks. Now that I've thought about what the doctor said, I'm pretty sure it was Frank. At least he had something to do with what happened."

"You're going to press charges, aren't you?"

"No, I'm not--and don't look at me like that." Bett's mouth was open. She was ready to interrupt me and put up a fierce argument.

"It would be very hard for me to prove anything, because I've waited so long
. All the physical evidence is gone. And, Frank has unlimited resources. His lawyers would beat me. I'm going to wait until this child is born, and then I've decided I'm going to take Frank or whoever's responsible for all he's worth. I'm going to check with an attorney. Remember when Eileen went through her short pregnancy?  We checked with the child support collection people, and, in Oregon, if a man refuses to take a paternity test, he's assumed to be the father. I'm going to make sure he provides for this child, but it will have no knowledge of his father. Frank doesn't like children anyway, so he'll have no problem with that."

Betts star
ed at the floor deep in thought. "Okay. I hope you know what you're doing. What can I do for you right now?"

"Margaret is back no
w. I'll call her and ask her to pack up some of my things and bring them here. I'm taking you up on your offer. It will give me time to find a place of my own."

CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE

I opened my eyes and for a moment could not remember where I was. Then, it all came back to me. As of yesterday afternoon, I live at the Harrington's. The clock said 6:00 a.m. I put on a borrowed robe and slippers and went downstairs to the kitchen. Already, fresh coffee had been brewed. Dianna was placing blueberry muffins in the oven.

"Hey there
. I didn't think you'd be up this early. How did you sleep?" Her intelligent face projected cheer. She was already dressed and wore a colorful apron.

"I slept great
. I feel like a couch potato looking at you."

"Oh, don't pay any attention to me
. I've always been an early riser. Plus, I actually enjoy feeding and watering my brood before they take off, so I have to get up early. Have some coffee or whatever you want. Don't be shy."

I
went over to the pot and poured myself a cup of coffee. The smell made me feel sick. I ran into the downstairs bathroom to retch and returned to the kitchen feeling sheepish.

Diana came over and gave me
a hug. Then she stood back. "Betts told me what's going on. I hope you don't mind. Coffee did the same thing to me, with my first. I've put on some water for tea. How about if I add a little honey?"

"Okay."

I took my tea out on the back deck. It was furnished beautifully. I sat listening to the birds and wondered when I would stop vomiting. I thought, I'm not the first woman to have morning sickness, and I won't be the last. If other mothers can do it, then I can do it. Still, I felt as if my body had been taken over by an alien.

As I
sipped my tea, I wondered how I could have been taken so far into Frank's world of privilege. It had nothing to do with reality. It was not so much because he had so much money; it was because he lived as if no one else existed. And, I had been drawn into his isolated fantasy world. I had been living in the cocoon. And, look where it's gotten me.
In retrospect, I realized that Frank had wanted me to stay depressed and isolated, so that I would not leave and so that I would spend more time with him.

As the first few days went by,
I wanted to go right back to school and find my own place, as soon as possible. Betts and her parents kept trying to slow me down. They told me:  you've been through a lot. Go to your counselor, keep your obstetrician appointments. Sure, sign up for a couple of classes, maybe.

I did have quite a bit of money saved. In fact, I had spent very little since I had begun working for Frank. Then, there was the nausea and the tiredness. I found myself falling asleep at all hours of the day, wherever I was. But, there was more to come.

Somehow, within a week, Frank found out where
I was staying. Every day, two dozen pink roses were delivered. There were so many roses that Betts began taking them to the local hospital to be distributed. Finally, after two weeks of roses with cards begging me to come back, Bett's father suggested I write a letter to Frank, return receipt requested. In the letter, I asked him to stop sending roses and to stop contacting me. When I received the receipt in the mail, I stapled it to my letter copy and assumed that would be the end of it.

The following afternoon, the doorbell rang
, and Dianna answered. It was a man asking for Vicky Howell. I went to the door. He asked me to sign for a small, rectangular package. He looked familiar, but I could not place him.

"I don't want to sign for anything
. Who's it from?"

"It's from Frank
Armstrong."

"Well, then, I
really
don't want it."

"Please, miss
. I won't get paid if you don't take it. You can just throw it away, if you don't want it. Just sign for it."

Against my
better judgment, I signed his paper thinking Frank probably told him to say that, because he knew I had a soft heart.

I
watched as the supposed deliveryman drove away in an Audi, rather than a delivery truck. Diana and I put the parcel on the kitchen table and sat down to watch it for a few moments, as if it were a dangerous snake that could leap up and bite us at any moment.

Finally,
I sighed. "I might as well see what it is. Maybe it's just something I left in the house."

"Maybe," Diana replied
. "And, maybe it's something really inappropriate."

"Well, there's only one way to find out.
" I began unwrapping the little package. I had felt well all day, more energetic than usual. I had not been as nauseated. Finally, I had ripped off the brown paper and the bubble wrap. The top of the box said Tiffany's. Definitely not a good sign. Not when it was coming from someone you never wanted to see again. Inside the packing popcorn was a box wrapped in silver paper. I opened the box and inside was a jewelry case. The case contained a pearl and diamond necklace nestled on velvet.

Diana got up to look at it
. "Let me see that." She held the box closer to her face. "Those are diamonds, beautifully cut diamonds. And very high quality pearls. Dave likes to give me jewelry when he's won a big case, but I've never had anything like this. It's probably worth at least twenty thousand dollars.

I
looked at the necklace with horror. "I have to send it back. What was he thinking?"

"I'm sorry, honey
. I guess he thought that if the roses didn't work, then the necklace would. You know, I'll talk to Dave when he comes home to be sure, but I think we'll have to document this gift. We'll have it appraised and take a photo of it before you send it back. Maybe Dave can draft a letter on his firm's stationary telling Frank not to send you anything and to have no contact with you."

"He'll never listen."

"Oh, but Vicky, he has to listen. We'll get a restraining order, if he doesn't stop."

"Women have been murdered who had restraining orders."

"Yes, that's true. But, if we're very careful, that won't happen to you."

CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX

Dave Harrington sent a letter, on his law firm's letterhead, telling Frank that, by the express wishes of Victoria Howell, he was to have no further communication with her of any kind. A copy of Vicky's previous letter asking him to stop all contact was referenced and attached.

A week went by, and
I heard nothing from Frank. I relaxed, and my appetite began to improve. I took my vitamins and worked hard at fulfilling the dietary requirements on the printouts my obstetrician had given me. I made an appointment with the counselor.

Betts and Diana
decided to take me out for seafood at a new restaurant in their neighborhood that specialized in "soul food” and invited Jennifer and Eileen. They did not think that a few hush puppies and some fried fish would do me any harm.

After they
had ordered, I went to the restroom. When I exited my stall, I saw Frank, leaning against a washbasin. I looked around in panic. We were alone.

"Don't scream
. I'll only be here a minute. I got your letter, and it's okay. I know your friends made you send it." He smiled tenderly, confidently. Feelings of dread raced through me, paralyzing me. This is a nightmare, I thought.

"Frank, you have to get a hold of yourself
. I don't want to have any further contact with you. You have to forget about me and carry on with your life."

"You are my life
. I can't believe you would leave me, after all the things I've done for you." His face took on a hard expression. "You owe me. You have to come home. You know it, and I know it."

"I appreciate all the things you did
for me. I'm going back to my lunch now." Even as I said the words, I knew I would not be able to eat lunch. As usual Frank had ruined everything. My legs shook, as I turned away from Frank towards the door of the restroom. Frank lunged and stood between me and the door.

"You're not going anywhere until you promise me that you're coming home."

My shaking stopped. Suddenly, I was angry, more filled with rage than I had ever been in my life/

"Now
--you--listen--to--me." My index finger jabbed the air to emphasize each word. "I've had enough of you." The volume of my voice increased as I advanced toward Frank. He retreated. He looked astonished. This was not the way things were supposed to go.

"Do you hear me?
Do you understand what I am saying to you, you idiot?  I'm not going home with you!" My voice had risen to a shrill, ear-splitting level, and I now stood directly in front of Frank.

"Get
--out--of--my--way!" My fists pounded into his chest. By this time, Frank had his back to the door and looked at me with horror. He had never seen me this angry, had not suspected I could be capable of such fury.

At that moment, t
he restroom door banged open, pushing Frank and me back, as the young host who had seated my friends and I charged into the room, his young face full of panic.

"What's going on in here?" He looked at
me, as I shook with a lethal combination of anger and fear and then turned to Frank. "You can't be in here. I'm going to have to ask you to leave the restaurant immediately, or I'm calling the cops."

Frank executed a hasty departure
.

I
rushed out the door and went to my friends standing behind the host.

Diana gathered me into a hug, then held me at arm's length to look at my
face. "You look as if you'd seen a ghost. Come on; let's get out of here."

"I feel sick." I said.

In the car, on the way home,
I became hysterical. "If he is this obsessed now, what will he do when he finds out I'm pregnant?  It might be his baby. Oh, my God!  What am I going to do?"

Diana answered, her tone of voice stern
. "First, you are going to calm down. You have explained to me why you want to keep this baby. Getting upset like this does a pregnancy no good. Have you made an appointment yet, with the therapist your doctor referred you to?"

"Yes
. It's in three days."

"Okay
. Good. You're going to need some regular counseling to get you through this. Now, take some deep breaths."

I
closed my eyes and began deep breathing.

"That's right
. Now count them. Count ten breaths. Breath deep, big stomach breaths."

After I
had counted ten breaths, I opened my eyes. "I do feel a little better."

"Are you in any pain?   Any pain at all?"

"No, just nauseated."

Diana nodded
. "As soon as we get you home, I'm going to have you lie down and rest. You've had a big shock."

Diana turned toward Betts for a second
. "Can you sit with her this afternoon?"

"Oh, that's not necessary
. Nobody needs to sit with me." I said.

"Don't argue with me
. I know what I'm doing."

###

Once we were home, and I was safely ensconced in bed, Diana pulled Betts aside to sit at the kitchen table.

"I'm concerned about this
. This man is dangerous. What if he decides to show up here?  I have the children to think about."

"I know, but we can't just abandon her now
.”

Diana gave no answer to that
. "Go back in and keep an eye on her. I'll talk to your dad this evening about all this." Betts returned to the guest room to keep me company.

###

Suddenly, a familiar face graced the doorway of the guest room. It was Margaret, her face looking troubled. She hurried to give me a hug.

"I've missed you so
. When are you coming home?"

I
looked at Betts. "I need to speak to Margaret alone. Just for a few minutes."

"Sure
. Want me to close the door?"

"
Yeah, thanks. I won't be long."

"Take all the time you need
. I'll be here." Betts closed the door behind her.

"Margaret, sit down
. First of all, how's everything with you and Tom?"

Margaret
beamed. "You know, he is already talking as if we'll be together at some future date, but I want to be careful he's everything he says he is. Oh, who am I kidding?  I just adore him. But, still, I'm trying to be careful and take things slowly."

"I'm so glad you met him
. You deserve it, and I hope everything works out for the two of you."

Margaret suddenly became serious
. "What's going on with you?"

"
There are a lot of things you don't know."

"I was wondering why you didn't simply pack your own clothes, instead of having me bring them
. I mean, I didn't mind doing it, but you just sort of disappeared."

"Yes
--" I sighed. "I had just been to the doctor. Remember that big party Frank had to 'cheer me up'?"

"Yes."

"I think Frank or someone else raped me."

"You
think
!" Margaret's hands flew to her cheeks.

"Yes
.
Someone
raped me, anyway. I remember having a glass of champagne, and then Frank gave me a blue drink. I don't remember anything after that. Frank said that he had to 'chase,' as he put it, some man out of my room later that night. The doctor thinks that I was given a date rape drug, maybe the blue drink Frank gave me, and that's why I don't remember anything about the rest of the night."

"Oh
, no!  I should have been there. I knew I should have been there. What was I thinking--?"

"
-- it's not your fault, Margaret. Don't even go there."

"But, if I'd been down the hall
--"

I
held up a hand to interrupt her. "Wait, Margaret, there's more. Let me get it all out. I want you to know what's going on. I'm pregnant."

"You're not going to keep it, are you?  No one would expect you to do that."

"No. No one would. And, I can't tell you how many times I've been asked that question. I won't lie to you. I thought about getting rid of it. But, this baby is innocent in all this. I just can't do it. There's more. Frank has been bothering me, stalking me actually, ever since I left. He sent me roses, then a hugely expensive necklace, which I sent back to him by a courier. When I went out to lunch today with my friends, he followed me into the women's restroom--scared me to death."

"Oh dear
. This is horrible."

"Yes
, it is."

"You know, ever since you left, Frank's talked of nothing else
. He's already booked a trip to Europe for the three of us. He's sure you'll come home--or back--I guess I should say. He's planning a wedding."

"He's completely delusional
. I could see that at the restaurant today."

"What can I do?"

"Act as if everything is normal. Don't say anything to him. He doesn't know about the pregnancy, yet. Just keep an eye on him for me."

"Of course
. Anything. Oh, I do hope for your sake that the child isn't his. Anyone would be better than Frank."

"I agree
, but what's done is done. I'm going to try to relax and rest for a bit now. Thank you so much for coming. See me as often as you can." We hugged goodbye.