Stowed Away

Chapter Eight

The clock struck nine on the mantelpiece. Apart from the croaks of toads nearby, and chirps of crickets, everywhere is quiet. The streetlight outside the mansion was bright enough to light up a reasonable part of the room. Eno was up, picking at the scabs in the headboard of her bed - scabs she had scratched out with her fingers. In hopes that if someone came for them, they would know she was there somehow. A lofty hope, but just the right amount to loosen the knots in her abdomen.

The door creaked slowly, and Pauline let herself in. She was doing it more frequently, showing up in her room every night. Some nights, they would just lay there until they fell asleep. Other nights they would talk about their lives and avoid the subject on ground, like speaking about it was going to jinx their escape.

"Hey," Pauline whispered.

"Hey," Eno said, in a hushed tone.

She crawls into the bed beside her, and lays there on her back. They stare at the white ceiling, as if something was going to spring out of it any minute.

"I want to talk about Kenneth," Pauline said, breaking the quiet.

Eno shifted. The bed creaks in response. "What about him?"

"You know when you asked me about the ring?" She asked, pausing to smooth invisible folds away from her sweatpants. "I didn't tell you the truth. I was just scared that he'd give the ring to another person if I made him change it to a smaller one."

Eno wanted to talk about how she had always known, but she held back. Pauline was a bird with newly healed wings, a slight movement would send her flying.

"I just am so scared, Eno. I'm not strong at all."

"But you are."

Pauline scoffed. She props a pillow against her back, and sat up. "You're just saying it to make me feel better."

"You are strong, Pauline."

"Strong? Have you seen you? You do your own thing without a care in the world. " She paused to look at Eno. "Even though you're not living your best life, you just go on. I didn't even want to study History in the first place. Mummy just mentioned it, and I jumped on it. "

Eno stayed silent for a while. As though letting the words, as heavy as they were, drop to the ground, before making a comment.

"You can do whatever you want to."

"But I'm just so scared of what people think that I'm not allowing myself to live like I want to. What would people say if they find out I'm thinking of cancelling my wedding after making Kenneth give me a ring about ten years after, eh? I made him commit, now I'm rethinking everything."

Eno sighed. "If you're rethinking it, maybe you should back out. You don't want to spend your whole life rethinking your marriage."

Pauline slid back into bed. "You're right, our parents won't allow divorce."

Eno felt the urge to shake her. So much that whatever is wrong would fall into place, and correct itself. "It's your life, Pauline. Your life.

Neither Eno or Pauline spoke for a while. The toads outside increased their songs, each one flexing its vocal chords, like they were in a concert.

"You know what," Pauline said. "It's my life. What has living my life worrying about others gotten me anyway? A job I absolutely loathe, and a man who forgets how to sit his butt down when another female is around." She threw her hands in the air in hopeless surrender. "That man is an animal."

Eno chuckled long and hard. "That's the spirit. "

"Eno?" Pauline called.

There was something in the tone that prompted her to whip her around, like Pauline was doing the physical action of prodding her.

"Yes?" Eno replied, shifting her body up and leaning even further on the headboard.

"I want to go into the forest," she started, then paused, as if reflecting. "I want to check what's out there and see if there's an escape for us. "

The words stumbled in Eno's mouth. After a stuttering that lasted a minute-long, she got the words out of her mouth: "Why you?"

"Someone has got to do it. I already surveyed the area when they went in their van outside the mansion to do whatever it is they do. I found an open space right in the middle and a path just across it. This could be our chance."

Eno regretted doing the pep talk. Maybe it was what had gotten into Pauline's head so much that she thought she could do what she was rambling about. "Are you crazy, Pauline Williams? Did someone slip something into the food you ate today? These guys are criminals, Babe. Have you seen their weapons? I won't let you leave for the forest, no. What if someone is there already?"

"Eno, listen, I feel like it's on my shoulder to carry this out. "

Eno laughed nervously "What, like you're some Jesus?"

"Look, Eno, you'll watch the mouth of the forest for me. Everything will turn out fine, you'll see. "

"Just this once -," Eno started to say, but stopped when the realization that she was conceding dawned on her. "Hell, what am I doing? You're not going anywhere."

"Please, Eno, give me a chance. What do you think will happen if I find an escape route?"

"What if you don't, and you get killed?"

The question rested as heavily as the heart from which it was spoken. It hung there while the songs of frogs and birds late to retire to their nests thinned and gradually faded.