9
TATI
The motivation to break out was strong this morning. Maybe it was because I was finally with Viktor last night, I don’t know. All I know is that I can’t be cooped up here anymore.
Over these last couple of weeks, I’ve learned my father’s schedule. He leaves for a few hours every morning like clockwork, so last night as I lay in bed, reminiscing about mine and Viktor’s one night together, I laid out my plan of escape.
This morning, I got up early and got dressed, then I texted Marla.“Want to swing by and get some lunch? I’ve got tea.”
Marla texted back that she’d be by to pick me up in an hour without question, so the plan was on. As soon as I heard my father’s car leave, I used the butter knife I stole from the kitchen and picked the lock to my door and I was free. Forty-five minutes later, I saw Marla’s car coming up the drive.
Now I’m sitting in the burger joint around the corner from the house, enjoying a greasy hamburger and fries and a chocolate shake. God, I miss junk food. And I miss hanging out with myfriend. Marla looks better than she has in a long time. There’s color in her cheeks and her rainbow-colored hair looks shiny and lush in the ponytail she’s wearing.
I’ve only taken a couple of bites before Marla asks me, “So, what’s this tea that warranted the big breakout?”
I snicker as I dip my fries into the little paper cup of ketchup on the side. “You’ll never guess,” I say. “Not in a million years.”
“So, don’t make me guess.” She laughs. “You only have enough time to eat and gossip a little with me before you have to get back in your cage.”
I snort a laugh. “I shouldn’t go back, you know. I should just finish eating and hitchhike across the country or something.”
“You don’t have any money,” she says. “You wouldn’t get very far.”
“I can try. I can dream. Maybe I’ll strip again along the way. I don’t know.”
She sighs and shakes her head. “Are you going to tell me about your big thing or not?”
I smile coyly. I can’t wait to see the look on her face. “Guess who got laid?”
Her face dropped. “What?You?”
I nod.
She sets her fork down next to her salad, her eyes searching my face for answers. “Did you go to your cousin's wedding last night?”
“I did.”
“So, who was it? One of the waiters?”
“Please. I’m not that desperate, Marla.”
“Oh, my God. Just tell me.”
“Okay, okay.” I take a deep breath, keeping her waiting a little longer, then, “Viktor.”
“Viktor, who?”
I just stare until she realizes. Her hand covers her mouth in shock. “Get the fuck out of here.”
“It’s true.”
“Viktor?Viktor Morozov?Eight-foot-tall wall of muscle covered in tattoos?” She leans over her plate and hisses, “Twice your fucking age Viktor Morozov?”
I nod. “One and the same.”
She shakes her head in disbelief. “How? I mean, seriously,how?”
I tell her how I was attacked on my way to the bathroom and how he came out of nowhere and saved my life by literally beating the life out of the son of a bitch who attacked me. “And after they took him away, he just looked at me and…” I shrug.
