“If she is angry, she needs to be angry at herself.” Jenkins shrugged. “If you really want to go back, then I will help you get back. But I really hope you’ll consider staying and giving this life a shot. You laid in bed wishing to switch for a reason. This is your chance at a new life.”
His blue eyes bore into hers, and he wished more than anything to know what she was thinking. Her face was unreadable as she hid the lower part behind the coffee mug.
“Okay, let’s do it. If I wished for a new life, and she wished for a new life, then maybe we should give her what she wants.” He smiled at her, and she returned her own brilliant smile.
Jenkins grabbed the notebook and pen, and the two huddled together.
“First things first, I think we should call you Pam since calling you Callie would raise suspicions. Second, I am going to teach you everything I knew about Pamela so that you won’t be caught without important information,” Jenkins paused to make sure Pam was following along.
Pam nodded. “Are you sure we should do this? This is the craziest thing I’ve ever done.”
Her eyes shone bright and when he stared into them he felt a wave of peace.
“I think this is the only right decision, we can do this,” he lowered his voice. “Together.”
In this short time with Pam, he felt like this was the beginning of the end for Darla. He knew there was a high chance she would show up to try and take back her life, and when she did, they would be ready.
Callie stared at the phone laying on the ground several feet away from her. It was broken in two as a result of her rage-induced throw against the nearest wall. She should have known better than to call Jenkins. After his change of heart with switching from Darla’s body to Pamela’s, he was never going to understand her plan to continue switching with people.
“That traitor!” Her scream reverberated around her in the small space she’d woken up in. The trailer was only about six feet wide and twenty feet long.
The number of roaches she had encountered already this morning made her skin crawl, and every time her hair brushed lightly against her skin, she was convinced it was a critter roaming around on her body.
The chance she had to get back to her life as Pamela Shaw was long gone as she stood panting alone in the trailer. The wedding picture on the wall showed a frizzy, red-headed bride with a hard line in place of a smile. She was standing next to a rather large man who wore a tuxedo shirt in place of an actual tuxedo. He looked the opposite of friendly, and even in thephotograph, she could see a faint purple color around one of her eyes.
How could Jenkins do this to me? Sentence me to this life? After everything I have done for him. I saved him from a similar fate and now he wants me to live out the rest of my life being abused surrounded by cockroaches and filth. No.Callie shook her head.I worked too hard to have it all taken from me.
“I need to get to L.A. and kill them both.” She clenched her fists and rolled her shoulders back. A new resolve formed within her, a new, but temporary, purpose.
A short, frantic search rewarded her with a small satchel that contained her car keys, a wallet with an ID, and a bank card. After a glance in the mirror, revealing her wild red curly hair that framed some small bruises around her eyes and cheeks, she was out the door.
“Callie, my name is Callie. I live in Traverse City, Michigan. I’m thirty years old.” She jammed the car key in the small, run-down car. “And I am absolutely not waiting around for whoever gave these bruises to me.”
The bank was close to the trailer park. She quickly parked and entered the bank’s foyer.My name is Callie, my name is Callie.She ruminated on her new name. A slip of the tongue could prove detrimental to her plan.
Inside the bank, the air conditioning provided relief from the blistering heat of the summer sun. She scanned the small lobby and found an open teller. She gripped her satchel tighter and tried to walk in a way that prevented her slick sneakers from squeaking against the tile floor. After a few steps she gave up and walked normally to the waiting desk.
“Hi, I need to withdraw some money from my account.” She set her satchel on the counter, and the dirty smell wafted up into the air. Her cheeks burned as the teller quickly looked away and avoided meeting her eye.
“Of course, can you please give me your bank card and ID?”
Callie slid both to the teller and fidgeted, waiting for the transaction to be completed. Her thoughts trickled to what her plan was. She needed to get a map, because Michigan was quite a distance from California. It was going to be a challenge to get across the country.
She glanced out the front windows at her beat-up brown car. The front driver’s side hubcap was missing. The paint was peeling across the hood, and she tried to ignore whatever problem was causing a high screech sound from the engine when she accelerated.
The car situation isn’t ideal, but I can hitch a ride if needed. More importantly, I need to buy a gun.
“How much would you like to withdraw?” The teller stared at her as she returned her focus to the current task at hand.
“What is my account balance?” She picked at her nail bed, which was already pretty ragged from the previous Callie chewing her fingers down to nubs.
You better not chew my precious fingernails on my body.Her skin grew hot at the thought of this low life nobody,Callie,in her beautiful perfect body.
“$475.” The teller did well to hide her reaction to such a small number as Callie groaned.
“All of it,” Callie said through gritted teeth.
“Ma’am, are you sure? Emptying it will result in a monthly fee.”
