Saving Tess

Twenty-five-year old Tess Holloway was lying completely still. Tony, her soon to be ex-boyfriend, was humping away in his characteristically self-absorbed manner. He was an impatient and inconsiderate lover who believed that her sexual gratification was entirely her own responsibility. Tess knew it would be over soon. She could hardly wait.

They had been together for five months now. Tess could no longer remember exactly why she was attracted to him in the first place. It was probably just his Mediterranean good looks.

It didn't take long for her to realize that his looks were all he had going for him. Within a month she understood just how shallow and mean spirited he was. What she didn't completely understand was why she had stayed so long.

To be fair, he represented a measure of security. His income, its source unclear to Tess, was probably several times greater than hers. Tess worked in the cosmetics section of an exclusive department store in a mall on the northern outskirts of Salisbury, Maryland. She enjoyed the work but the pay was uninspiring.

She got the job because she was a tall, drop-dead gorgeous brunette with a stunning figure and a winning way with people. The irony was that she used little makeup herself. She didn't need anything more than a little mascara and lip gloss. Her supervisor thought the whole thing was a hoot. Women stood in line to buy makeup from Tess, apparently believing that they would end up looking like her if they just bought the right stuff.

Tess didn't know what Tony did for a living because he refused to talk about it. Tess found this unnerving but allowed herself to be seduced by the relative luxury he provided. He had a spacious apartment with decent quality furnishings and he didn't protest when Tess added a feminine touch here and there by accessorizing to suit her tastes.

Tony kept irregular hours. Getting phone calls at unusual times, he would speak briefly to the caller and then leave the apartment. Tess had no idea where he went, or what he was doing, and she had finally stopped asking. He would often be gone for hours. Lately, he was becoming increasingly moody and argumentative.

Suddenly, Tony slowed his pace, let out a loud groan, and spewed into her. Tess could clearly feel his contractions but she took no pleasure from them. Her mind was made up. At the first opportunity, she would leave.

Aware for some time that their relationship wasn't going anywhere, Tess had been secretly stashing money in an envelope taped to the underside of her bottom dresser drawer. The envelope now contained exactly nine hundred dollars. She hoped it would be enough to get a small efficiency apartment. She owned her Honda Accord outright, had a couple of credit cards with minimal balances, and was naturally frugal. She believed she would be okay.

As usual, Tony rolled away and was soon snoring loudly.

****

Two nights later, on a Thursday, Tess was reading in the living room when she heard Tony's key enter the lock. He often returned home drunk and demanded sex. That night was no exception. Tess did not intend to have sex with him ever again. She set her magazine aside and rose to her feet.

"You smell like a distillery," she announced. "Don't touch me."

That's when he slapped her. Hard. The blow was sudden and unexpected. He had never hit her before. Tess staggered backwards, tripped over the coffee table, and fell to the floor.

"You fucking bitch!" he yelled as he walked slowly toward her with his hand raised, clearly intending to strike her again.

"Tony! Please don't! I'm sorry," she cried, her apology stopping his advance. Looking down at her for a few moments, his face suddenly distorted into an evil grin.

"Go into the bedroom and take off your clothes," he ordered.

"Okay, okay," she replied, tears welling up in her eyes. "I'm going," she added, unwilling to risk another blow.

"Hurry up! I'll be there in a minute."

Tess staggered into the bedroom. The side of her face was already beginning to throb. As she began removing her clothes, she vowed that she would leave the next day if she could just survive the night.

Unhooking her bra, she tossed it aside and then slowly slid her panties down over elegant legs to leave them lying on the floor. Moments later, Tony entered the room.

"I believe in letting people have choices," he began.

"What do you mean?" Tess asked hopefully.

"I'm going to fuck you, but you get to choose. Do you want it in your ass or in your pussy?"

"In...in my pussy," she murmured. Tess didn't do anal sex.

"Then get on the bed and spread your legs," he demanded. There was a noticeable bulge in his trousers. Tess realized that he was aroused by the violence. Now deathly afraid of him, she complied while he disrobed.

Apparently aware that Tess had no interest in sex and would not lubricate naturally, Tony retrieved a tube from the bedside table and smeared some of its contents on his now fully erect cock. Use of the lube was purely to make things easier for him. He gave no thought to Tess's comfort. Seconds later he entered her roughly and began to thrust.

Tess remained still, thankful for the lubricant and secure in the knowledge that he wouldn't last long. He would cum soon, roll over, and quickly fall asleep.

Finally, it ended and he turned away. Tess remained where she was until his breathing evened out and then slipped quietly out of bed.

"Tess?"

"What?" she asked, startled to find him awake.

"If you ever try to leave me, I'll kill you."

Her heart pounding in fear, Tess took a deep breath to calm down a little.

"I have to pee. I'm not going anywhere," she finally managed to say.

"You're right. You're not going anywhere."

Tess gently closed the bathroom door and retrieved a douche kit from beneath the sink. She was on the pill and didn't fear pregnancy, but she felt soiled and was desperate to flush away Tony's presence inside her body.

Satisfied that she was reasonably clean, she examined her face in the mirror. The woman who looked back at her was in no shape to sell makeup. The left side of her face was swollen and a bruise was beginning to form. She would have to call in sick in the morning.

When she returned to the bedroom, Tony was snoring. After debating whether she could get dressed, retrieve her money, and slip out the door with her purse and a few clothes, Tess finally chose not to take the risk. She would wait until the next time he left the apartment and then make a run for it.

Donning a shapeless flannel nightgown, Tess quietly eased her body beneath the sheets, holding her breath as she did so. The snoring continued as she quietly cried herself to sleep.

****

When she awoke in the morning, Tony was no longer in the bed and the apartment was silent. Easing herself out of bed, Tess put on her robe and went down the hallway to the bathroom. There was no sign of Tony.

Her bruise had turned purple during the night. After gently probing around its perimeter, she decided it looked much worse than the mild discomfort she was feeling. Satisfied that she wouldn't be disfigured for life, Tess made a quick tour of the apartment and then looked out the living room window into the parking lot. Her Honda was where she had left it the day before. Tony's Porche was gone.

Now was her chance. Tess sprang into action.

Not willing to use up valuable time to pack carefully, Tess filled a large black trash bag with a few essentials and a selection of clothing and shoes. Dressing in a navy blue track suit and matching tennis shoes, she pulled her long dark hair back into a pony tail and secured it with an elastic band.

Yanking her bottom dresser drawer open, Tess felt underneath for the envelope and ripped it free. The thin wad of bills inside felt reassuring. Then, grabbing her purse and the trash bag, she walked briskly to the apartment door, opened it, and peered cautiously into the hallway. She was met with silence.

Taking the stairs as quickly as possible, Tess reached the building's entryway two flights below in record time. Her car was about a hundred feet away. Sticking her head out the door, she surveyed her surroundings, detected no threats, then sprinted for the Honda.

Flinging the trash bag into the backseat, Tess threw herself into the front behind the wheel. Shoving her key into the ignition, she gave it a twist.

Nothing. Trying again, she got the same result; the engine turned over but wouldn't start. Tess couldn't believe it. She had driven her car the day before and everything was fine.

After banging her hands on the wheel in frustration, she glanced around to see if she had attracted any attention with her mad dash to the car or her little temper tantrum. She saw nothing of concern outside the car, but noticed a strange looking device on the passenger seat. It was a dirty black plastic box with a twisted pair of wires and some kind of connector on the end.

Tess had no idea what it was, but she instinctively understood what had happened. Tony had sabotaged her car and left the evidence in the front seat, obviously wanting her to know what he had done. Tess started to cry but quickly pulled herself together. She needed to think and she needed to avoid panic. A few deep breaths slowed her heart rate.

Tony had no way of knowing she would bolt today. But he probably knew she wasn't going to work with her face bruised and he wanted to send her a message if she tried to use her car. His message was loud and clear; Tess wasn't going anywhere without his permission.

But the message Tess received was quite different than the one he intended. There was no longer any doubt that she was in grave danger. Thinking hard for a full minute, she formulated a new plan. All she needed was for Tony to stay away from the apartment for another half hour or so.

Tess retrieved the bag and her purse. Locking the car, she walked as calmly as possible back to the apartment building.

Once inside the apartment, Tess moved quickly. Her new plan was simple. She would make it look like she had simply gone for a run as she often did when the weather cooperated. Unfortunately, her plan required that she travel light so she put all her clothing and shoes back where they belonged.

Pulling the envelope from her purse, she removed the bills, counted the ten fifties and the four hundreds, and put them back in the envelope.

Tess surveyed the contents of her wallet. Eighty-seven dollars and some change resided within. At her first opportunity, Tess would hit an ATM. Her checking account contained a shade over two hundred dollars. She would have a total of nearly twelve hundred dollars. It would have to be enough to start a new life. Adding the bills to the envelope, she left the change where it was.

She removed her driver's license, ATM card, smartphone, two credit cards, and a plastic case with two tampons from her purse. She wasn't exactly sure what to do about the credit cards since she would be on the run for a while with no fixed address, but she wasn't about to leave them behind. As an afterthought, she also took her car keys. She wouldn't have the use of her car, but neither would Tony.

She also removed a miniature vibrator from her purse and added it to the small pile of items. She was a sensual woman, naturally orgasmic, and the vibrator saw frequent use. Tony had never once attempted to make her cum. She carried it in her purse because she got horny at odd times. Just last week, she had taken a bathroom break at work. Finding the restroom empty, Tess had claimed a stall and brought herself to orgasm in less than a minute with one hand clamped over her mouth to stifle her uncontrollable cries of pleasure.

Moving quickly into the bathroom, she searched through the small basket of odds and ends under the sink and selected a spare toothbrush, a travel-size tube of toothpaste, a small hairbrush, a disposable razor, and an empty pill bottle.

She doubted Tony would notice the items were missing. After retrieving her birth control pills from the medicine cabinet, she dumped them into the pill bottle and left the empty container in its place. Returning to the bedroom, she added everything to her collection.

Tess needed to buy as much time as she could. Her best bet was to take as little as possible with her, making her absence look temporary. Leaving her purse behind was critical. Sooner or later, Tony would search it and discover that important items were missing, but she might have a few hours before he did so.

Pulling a fanny pack from her closet shelf, she put her meager belongings inside and strapped it on. Placing her purse in its usual location on one end of her dresser, she gave the bedroom a final inspection. Then, satisfied that the rest of the apartment gave no hint that she was fleeing forever, Tess headed for the front door.

Once again peering cautiously into the hallway, Tess concluded that it was as safe as it would ever be and pulled the door shut behind her. Pausing briefly in the entryway on the ground floor, she saw nothing amiss and stepped outside. She was now officially on the run. It was nine-thirty in the morning.

Putting some distance between herself and the apartment was her first priority. Finding a place to hole up until darkness arrived was her second.

The apartment complex was on the western outskirts of Salisbury. A few blocks to the west, farmland and patches of woods began to dominate the landscape. The thought of dense woods seemed comforting, so Tess took off at a brisk trot. Anyone in the neighborhood who saw her wouldn't think anything was amiss; she ran often enough that her activity would seem commonplace.

The closest decent patch of woods, probably eight or ten acres, was nearly a mile away. The road she was on split the small forest down the middle. Several minutes later, she glanced ahead and behind her, saw no vehicles or people, and leaped across a shallow ditch to enter the woods.

Mid-September's foliage was still dark and dense. Tess went about thirty yards into the trees where she found a huge fallen tree that would serve as a hiding place until dark.

Taking out her phone, she called her supervisor to report her illness. Her boss was solicitous and wished her a speedy recovery. Tess did not tell her that she would was never going to work there again. She did not yet want that known in case Tony decided to check with the department store once he realized she was missing.

Tess found a good place in the downed tree to rest. A natural recliner was formed by the trunk and three large branches. Two smaller branches provided a comfortable footrest. She removed her fanny pack and settled in to wait for darkness, still many hours away.

****

It was noon when she felt the first sharp pangs of hunger. Thirst followed.

"Nice work, Tess," she muttered. "You should have at least grabbed a bottle of water." She knew she wouldn't starve or die of thirst, but she was annoyed with herself anyway. Sunset was about seven hours away and it wouldn't be fully dark until around eight o'clock.

With hours to kill, she decided to review her plan. She knew her location precisely. On the western side of the woods was a huge farm field, perhaps a mile or more across, planted in corn that was nearly ready for harvest. At the far side of that field was a convenience store on the north side of U.S. Highway 50.

At sunset, she'd use the cornfield as cover for her approach to the store. Once assured that Tony's Porche was nowhere in sight, she would enter the store, use the ATM, buy food and water, and look for a car with out of state plates.

Once her target was identified, she would persuade its owner to give her a lift, hopefully out of Maryland. She was pretty certain of success. If the owner was a man, her looks, even with the bruise, would work in her favor. If it was a woman, the bruise itself would likely be persuasive.

The only risk was that Tony might show up while she was at the store. Tess thought that possibility was remote. The apartment was more than two miles to the east of the store and there was nothing to indicate the direction she might be traveling. If anything, he'd probably conclude that the mall was a more likely destination and it was several miles further east. Tess began to relax. Her plan was simple and it carried little risk. Now all she had to do was sit tight until sunset.

****

By late afternoon, Tess was getting restless. To occupy her mind, she started thinking about old boyfriends. Her batting average was less than stellar. Her nicest one was during her senior year of college but they didn't survive graduation, both going their separate ways.

Her next boyfriend was a total loser, barely lasting a month. His successor made it to the eight month point before their relationship died a natural death from lack of commitment on both sides. The next guy was very good in bed, giving her much pleasure. With his help, Tess became truly orgasmic, often cumming more than once during a sexual encounter. Unfortunately, it turned out that he was helping another young woman achieve orgasms at the same time. When Tess found out, she dumped him. They had been together for a little more than a year.

Tony followed a couple of months later, but he wasn't worth thinking about. She was ashamed of herself for participating in such a relationship and vowed that she would never again get involved with a loser like him.

Her thoughts drifted back to the boyfriend who was such a good lover and she realized it had been seven or eight months since she had truly enjoyed sex with a man. During those months, the little vibrator had been her best friend.

The day was pleasantly warm and Tess was quite comfortable nestled in her tree limbs. As she thought a little more about having sex, her hand drifted down between her legs and she began to stroke her pussy through the fabric of her track suit.

"Why not?" she murmured to herself as she reached for her fanny pack and removed the small vibrator. Although only about three inches long, it produced very strong vibrations.

Untying the cord at the waistband of her pants, Tess started the vibrations and eased the implement inside. For several minutes she teased her pussy by keeping the vibrations outside her panties and well away from her clitoris. Low pitched moans accompanied her efforts.

Eventually needing more direct contact, she slipped both hands inside her panties. Parting her labia with the fingers of one hand, she slid the vibrator into her pussy to pick up some of the abundant lubrication she knew would be there.

Tess was good at this. She had done it hundreds of times. Slowly rotating the tip of the vibrator around the base of her clit, she brought her arousal up to the precise level she wanted; just below the threshold of orgasm.

Struggling to keep her vocalizations in check, Tess continued for another minute or so before deciding to push herself over the edge.

Removing one hand from inside her panties, she clamped it over her mouth. Naturally noisy during orgasm, the last thing she needed was to let out a shriek just as a car went by on the road with its windows open.

When she was ready, Tess slid the vibrator directly across her clit and let it rest there. Seconds later, she screamed into her hand as her body began to tremble in release. Four or five intense orgasmic spasms later, she pulled the vibrator free and let out a long, low moan of pleasure.

As usual, it took Tess a little time to recover and once again become fully aware of her surroundings. Her vibrator was still humming away. Switching it off, she told herself to get more batteries as soon as possible. Tess was glad that she had decided to bring the little implement. A replacement might be difficult to obtain while on the run.