"May I get myself more coffee?" Arioch holds his cup out to me and nods. I grab the mug and shuffle my way into the kitchen. I can feel his eyes on me, watching my every move, his body tense, ready to bolt after me if I tried to run again.
"Once you're pregnant though, no more caffeine. Not good for the baby."
There won't be a baby
. I made us both another cup and just as I turned to walk back into the dining room he stood and made his way to me instead.
"I have some work to do in the garage and you have a house to start cleaning. I would like you to start with the laundry and dishes." A laugh bursts free and I quickly cover my mouth. He only chuckles and wraps a chain he pulled out from one of the cupboards around my ankle. A giant pile of metal links falls out, and he locks the other side to the loop closest to the back door, pulling each lock a few times to make sure they were secure.
"Aren't you worried I'll escape or find a weapon?" I ask sarcastically
"Nope! Eliza and I 'wife-proofed' the place. I'd start upstairs and work my way down if I were you, you'll find most things are sorta picked up, organized anyways, the washer and dryer are in the basement. I understand that you are going to have the urge to search every inch within your grasp, but I assure you, it will only be a waste of time. We thought of everything. However, I expect a decent amount of progress before I return." Then he left, the screen door slamming shut behind him and I stood in there in silence. I slowly began opening the drawers. He was right, the urge to look was too strong, but all I found in them was plastic, even plastic spatulas and wooden mixing spoons. I could try and use a mixing spoon, but something told me it would only be turned back on me. I noticed a few of the drawers had locks on them, so I noted it and kept moving. I wasn't sure how to pick locks, but it wouldn't hurt to try when I had the extra time, if I could find something to pick it with anyways. The chain was loud and snagged occasionally on things as I made my way up the stairs. My first stop was the guest bedroom and I stood in the doorway. It looked exactly as it had when I first walked into his house, back when I thought he was just a good guy helping a stranger.
My belongings were ashes now, well most of them. I knew my journal was in one of the locked drawers' downstairs and it was going straight into the fireplace the second I got my hands on it again. I pulled myself away, closing the door and moving onto his room. It was still a mess, but at least it was more separated. They had stacked most of the dirty dishes and the clothes were all in a one pile. But the beer bottles were gone, the bat that I had used to smash Judas with was nowhere to be found. Where had he taken it all? Hidden out in his garage? What would he do if I simply refused to clean? Just the thought of it made me shiver, he would do whatever he wanted, that's what he'd do. I wrapped my arms tightly around myself as I crouched in the middle of his room. I knew it wasn't the time to break down, he said he expected progress and running myself in circles wasn't going to help me. After a few deep calming breaths, I stood and began shoving the laundry into his wicker hamper. I hated that I had to walk down two flights of stairs but after a few trips I had a decent pile and a load already started in the washer. I tossed the galaxy dress in with the first load, I was sure he wouldn't mind. If I was going to be forced to wear the stupid things, I at least wanted to wear one of the prettier ones. I could see now why Sam was always doing something that didn't quite fit into the expectations of his family.
The dishes came next and I was surprised to find that besides some gross stale ketchup and hard congealed syrup, they weren't all that dirty, at least nothing that was moldy or rotten. As the sink filled with soapy water, I double checked that Sam was still outside, far away before I dared to reopen the coffee tin. I carefully tilted it to the side and dug two of my fingers towards the bottom, sweeping through the grounds, searching for the plastic baggie Emily had given me. I was finally alone, and I didn't want to waste time looking for a teaspoon; so, I took a pinch of what I thought a teaspoon would be instead and quickly tossed it into my mouth. It had a spicy carroty taste, but I quickly ate it, the texture is what bothered me the most. I folded all the air out, sealing it and tucked it back into the bottom of the coffee container, wiping away all traces I had ever been digging in it.
It was nearly two days after the first time, or was it three? Either way it was lot longer than what Emily had first recommended to me. She had said no longer than 12 hours and I knew at least the last time was within that time range. Well, it was worth trying, anything was worth trying. Just hearing him mention pregnancy, terrified me; I did not want to be responsible for bringing a life into my situation let alone into the world. How would I escape with a baby? What if they took it away from me the way they had taken Sam from Skye? My heart would never be able to bear it. And if it was a girl? Would he marry her off to one of his cousins? Or worse, fuck her along with the rest of his family? I leaned my head against the counter, arms stretched before me, the water still running, and I closed my eyes as I try to calm the racing thoughts.
Inhale. Exhale. Take it one day at time.
I just couldn't think about those things. After a few more deep breaths and I returned to washing the dishes; it didn't take long to learn where everything went. I simply opened every drawer and cupboard in the kitchen, searching them while I was at it. When I put the last dish away, I trudged back upstairs, pausing at the top as my eyes slid over to Eliza's door. I couldn't tell just by looking at it if it was still locked and I debated if it was worth trying. My hand began to shake as I slid across the floor and gripped the door handle. Slowly I turn the crystal knob and when I hear the mechanical click, I realize the door popped open. It was unlocked.
Now the real dilemma was, did I dare walk in? Arioch had said that they'd wife proofed the house, and the room was part of the house.
"Go on." I yelped, nearly jumping out of my skin and I felt my heart drop. How did he always manage to sneak up so quietly?
"I-I uh...I thought maybe there would be laundry...now that the secret is out that she's not actually dead..."
"I said go ahead. We're married now darlin, I got nothing to hide from you anymore." We stood there for several minutes before he walked ahead of me, shoving the door open wide and allowing me to stare inside. The bedding was wadded up in a ball, the closet wide open, utterly empty and the blinds were drawn so that sunlight poured into the room, particles of dust dancing in its bright beam.
"C'mon now." I took a few steps forward but remained close to the door.
"We are going to make this the nursery, I measured the difference and this door is closer for nighttime feedings. When he gets older, we'll turn the guest room into his room and hopefully by then we should already have number 2 or he'll at least be on the way." I felt a wave of nausea wash over me, he was already talking about a second one and we hadn't even had the first. He spoke with pure confidence, as if his words were fact; like he already peeked into the future and knew this to be true. In that moment I understood why Emily had been so serious when she told me to hide the seeds. I refused to imagine just how angry he'd be if he were to find out. Maybe I should have moved them somewhere else, but there was nowhere that I wasn't sure he wouldn't search. I had time to find a place, if I moved them before the coffee got too low.
"I figured we'd clear all this out, paint the walls, set up new furniture and before you ask, Eliza already knows what we are doing, it was her idea actually." And that's when I notice it, in the corner of the ceiling there's a small camera, or what I am pretty sure is a camera. It's a tiny little dome, the plastic dark and reflective. I squint a little and take a step forward, frowning. Arioch follows my gaze and holds up his hand before I can even ask him the next question.
"I am not going to lie to you, but you are not going to like the answer if you ask me," he warned.
"If I don't know, it will eat away at me." He sighed as if he had already concluded that.
"It was Eliza's idea and we needed the money..." I felt dizzy and I groaned as I shook my head and took a step back. I needed some distance between us. Just how many more Skellington's were in this man's closet? What disgusting secret was I going to find out next?
"Oh god, what did you do?" He was the one having trouble meeting my gaze now, was it possible even Arioch had standards? Lines he did not want to cross?
"She was over 18, I made damn sure of that at least," he mumbled.
"So, you made a video...and what? Sold it online?"
