MIDNIGHT MAGIC - ch 2

MIDNIGHT MAGIC – ch 2

Julie

(*)(*)(*)

Mia entered the parking lot of the medical clinic. Before getting out of the car, she turned to face her friend and said, “What’s going on, Jules? Why are you terrified if he finds you? You need to talk to me.”

Julie’s face went pale but as she tried to calm herself, she told Mia her story. “When Tony and I began dating, I took his attention in me to be interest. Love. What it turned out to be was control. When I told my parents I was pregnant, they were so upset, they told me to leave. I did and then told Tony. He insisted that I move in with him. I thought it was because I was pregnant and that he loved me. It wasn’t and he didn’t. He decided I shouldn’t go grocery shopping without him. Again, I thought he was concerned about me carrying the groceries. Huh! Wrong again. He insisted I stop going to the gym - said he was afraid the exercise might hurt the baby. I believed him. That wasn’t it, either.”

Julie leaned against the seat, raised her eyes towards the roof of the car and continued, “I knew better than to have a glass of wine or a bottle of beer. But I had friends who weren’t pregnant, and I liked to entertain them. Suddenly, Tony put a lock on the liquor cabinet saying he was afraid I’d be temped to, as he put it, “imbibe”. Then said my friends weren’t welcome in his apartment because they were a bad influence on me. One day, I couldn’t find my cell phone. I looked everywhere. Mia, I think he took it. He had me totally isolated. When I said I was lonely, his answer was that I had him and that’s all I needed. If I’d have had a car, he’d have sold it, but I never bothered to buy one. The buses and subway were all I needed. He made me quit my job. When I’d complain, he’d get violent.”

“How did you manage to get away? I mean, he had you so isolated, so how were you able to get your hands on any money?”

“I began seeing the writing on the wall but was afraid to leave so before he made me quit my job, I went to the bank, opened a safety deposit box. I closed out my bank account and put all the cash in the box along with my passport. Each time he’d fall asleep, I’d sneak a few dollars from his wallet. I couldn’t take much; maybe five or if I was lucky enough not to wake him, I could grab ten. I’d put that in a pocket I’d sewn inside my small carry-on. I knew I’d have to leave eventually, so I was preparing.”

“Okay, I need to ask. Did you get married or just engaged? You said he gave you a ring. Where is it?”

“Our wedding plans were still in the making. He wanted to wait until the baby was born because he said his mother would be mortified having her friends see her son marry a pregnant bride. I left the 3-carrot diamond ring on the kitchen table.”

Mia leaned back on her door, thoughtfully, then said, “Okay, before we go inside, one more question. Why do you think he’d come after you?”

She watched as Julie’s face paled more and her bottom lip began to quiver. “He said, and his exact words, ‘Don’t ever think of leaving! NO BODY leaves Tony Moretti! Nobody! You belong to me! And so does my son!’ Mia, first of all, I have no idea what sex the baby is. I never wanted to find out. I just wanted him or her to be healthy and have the fun of picking out names for boys and girls. And the way he said ‘you belong to me’ scared the living daylights out of me. If you’d only seen the look on his face!”

Midnight sat in the back of Mia’s car but the hairs on her back were rigidly upright with temper and fear. She growled and hissed.

Mia said, “Midnight. It’s okay, baby. We’re okay, calm down. If and it’s a big IF, this guy shows up, I’ll let you at him, okay?” She heard her cat let out a calming breath, then she looked at Julie and said, “We’ll figure this out. But, first, let’s go inside and make sure your little “IT” is healthy. Then we’ll go home and find out what he’s doing.” Julie looked at Mia and opened her mouth to speak, but Mia said, “Don’t ask right now. Wait until we get home.”

(*)(*)(*)

“Well, Julie,” Morena gently proclaimed, “you little ..., on right, you don’t want to know yet. Anyway, Baby It is fine. Ten toes, ten fingers. Regular heartbeat. Appears to be a normal size for your term. If you don’t mind, I’m going to call my friend who’s an OBGYN. I’d like her to continue your care.”

Morena caught the look in her daughter's eyes and continued, “She doesn’t live far from here and for convenience’s sake, I’m sure she’d be happy to make house calls. Should any tests be required, we have a small wing here at the clinic for them.”

“Mrs. Diehl, that would be awesome. How can I ever thank you?”

Morena smiled. “For now, let Mia take you home and make you some soothing tea. You’ve had a long journey and need to rest. I’m sure Mia has shown you the guest bedroom. It’s beyond comfortable and you can feel free to stay here as long as you’d like.”

She looked again at Mia and finished, “In fact, I’d also like insist that you stay here until the baby is born. Is that alright with you?”

As Mia gave her mother an understanding smile, Julie hugged Morena and sobbed as she said, “I can’t thank you enough. I promise I won’t be any trouble, well, I hope not anyway.”

Morena gave her daughter a glance that spoke of confusion and portrayed her thoughts, “Mia, we’ll speak of this later.”