Never Open That Door – Not What You Know But Who You Know

This is part II of this story. Part I can be found here:

Gabby, the budding journalist, has a problem; she can never let things just be. She always has to know the answer.

Thrown out of her home by an abusive boyfriend, she finds some temporary solace in Mrs. Montgomery. She must now find somewhere to live, but it may not be all it seems.

******

“My boyfriend—no, sorry, my ex-boyfriend—has spent time in jail,” Gabby started to explain.

“If I go to the police, it will just make him angrier, and I don’t know what he will do next. I have tried that once before. All I got was beaten up again and told I was exaggerating."

“I just want to get my personal things and go somewhere he won’t find me and start again. I just want to finish my degree, and then I'm going to live with my sister in America."

Mrs. Montgomery had tears in her eyes.

“My dear,” she started, "you have to realize that he will find you if you do not do something to stop him. He knows which university you go to and can get to you there. You have to try to get a restraining order. It is not easy, I know, but I also know that if you don’t, you will regret it.”

Gabby had not thought about that. She was right; he could get to her anywhere he wanted. He wouldn’t be able to finish her degree. She was always going to be his prisoner. It all became too overwhelming, and she burst into tears.

“Shh! Shhh! We will sort this out; don’t cry.”

"That is a lovely bracelet; was it a present?'

Gabby had unconsciously been fiddling with a gold bracelet that had four charms on it. "Yes, it was a gift from my sister. The four charms mean a lot to both of us. She has one exactly the same, and we swore that we would always wear them. It is my good luck charm, and I fiddle with it when I am nervous or upset," explained Gabby.

“It is my turn to tell you my story and why I want to help you. We had a deal, remember?”

“My twenty-four-year-old daughter was murdered by her boyfriend. He got into drugs, and there was no coming back.” She wiped away the tears from her eyes before continuing.

“Like you, she didn’t want to go to the police; she didn’t want to cause trouble, and she didn’t want to upset him. She tried to leave him a couple of times, but he always managed to find her. He would beat her up, but she stayed out of fear.”

“I’m so sorry,” interjected Gabby.

"The police tried to get her to leave and file a restraining order, but it didn’t happen. They answered a 911 call one night. When they got there, she was lying on the floor. Drowned in her blood from the many wounds to her throat and head.”

“He was nowhere to be seen, and they have never found him.”

Again, Mrs. Montgomery paused and took a deep breath before continuing.

“My son joined the police force after he lost his sister. Wanted to make a difference.”

“I have told him that I suspected you had been bashed, but I didn’t know the details, of course, and asked him if he can help. "It's up to you, but with his help, we can get what you need from your house. Then, we can move you somewhere safe under a restraining order. This way, you can start to leave him behind."

“Can I call him and ask him to help?”

Gabby did not know what to say; she was so confused and scared. What Mrs. Montgomery said made perfect sense, but again, she wondered why. Why was she doing this?

She reluctantly agreed. What else could she do?

******

A few hours later, Mrs. Montgomery’s son arrived. He was not dressed in a police uniform; instead, he was sporting a black suit and a fabulous pastel tie. His tie was almost like a Van Gogh painting.

“Hi, I’m Daniel; you must be Gabby," he introduced himself in a confident and firm voice. He had dealt with a few of these cases, she thought to herself. He did not seem phased by the bruises and cuts on her face.

“Hi, Mum," he said, giving his mother a peck on the cheek.

“You look pretty banged up, Gabby. I’m sorry, but I have to ask you. Did he rape you?”

“Not this time,” she replied, bowing her head as if she had done something wrong.

“Well, that is good.” Daniel left it at that. He had seen the pattern too many times before.

“Here is my plan,” said Daniel, assuming that Gabby was already engaged.

“I have organized for a couple of my uniform mates to go with you to your place to get whatever you can. Take your personal stuff and what is important to you, because you won’t be going back there again.”

“I’m going with her, Daniel,” interjected Mrs. Montgomery. “Louise will be here shortly, and she will look after the motel while she does the cleaning. There were only a couple of guests here last night.”

"Once you have your stuff, they'll take you back to the station. There, they'll take some photos and get a restraining order from the judge. He is a mate of mine, so he will process it."

“I have also organized for you to go and see a guy called Cory, Cory Underfield. Here is the address. It is not far from here, actually.”

“What has he got to do with things?” "Mrs. Montgomery asked, worried that Daniel had strayed from their plan."

“You said that Gabby needed somewhere to stay; he is the answer.”

“I have never met him, but my girlfriend has just moved out of there, so he has a spare room.”

"Where is Leslie staying?" asked a confused Mrs. Montgomery, trying to catch up.

“Yeah! I need to talk to you about that, Mum, but not now. Later, O.K.?”

Mrs. Montgomery smiled. She thought things might be getting serious between Daniel and Leslie. Gabby felt tossed around like clothes in a washing machine. Still, she had no choice and was thankful.

“I have to be back here after, Gabby, so I won't be able to go to the new address with you.”

“Oh, that is quite all right," replied Gabby. "You have come more than enough.”

"Okay. Let’s get going then,” Daniel almost ordered.

Gabby got the sense that his life moved very quickly.

******

At around 4:30 p.m., Gabby pulled around the corner to the address that Daniel had given her.

She was dead on her feet; her face hurt. She just wanted to curl up in a corner and shut the world out.

The police officers had been great. She believed Daniel, who turned out to be an inspector in the crime division, had instructed them to be gentle with her. They were both female officers and more understanding of her situation. She had their number. She also had instructions to call right away if Luke or anyone else caused her trouble.

She pulled up in front of an old-style house. It was pleasant enough but needed some tender loving care. It was only temporary, she told herself. Nine months at the most. Just enough time to finish her degree and then run away to America to be with her sister.

She knocked on the door.

“Who is it?” a voice behind the door asked.

“It’s Gabby, Robinson. I called about the room.”

“Oh, yes, just a minute.”

The door opened. A scrawny, untidy man stood in a long corridor. A single window at the end let in fading light.

******

[Part I was submitted to he critique community because I hoped to get some feedback as this is one of the first fictional pieces I have done. It's a new genre, so if you have read it, I would love to know what you think. If you think it is h biggest load of crap you have read, please tell me! I will then abandon the remaining four parts and crawl back to my comfort zone in poems and non-fictional pieces. Thank you in advance if you do comment.]

Till next time,

Calvin