Read Online A Life Less Broken by Margaret McHeyzer - Free Book Online Page A

hopeful place.
    Sipping my
coffee, I’m totally captivated by the magical mystery of the clouds. They talk
to me; they yell at me; they scream at me; they soothe me.
    But when
they’re angry, they never let me forget.
    Ring.
    Ring, ring.
    My phone
snaps me out of my preoccupation and brings me back to reality.
    “Hello,” I
say into the phone.
    “Do I get to
come inside today?” Dominic says.
    “Are you
here already?” I go to the front door. I turn the alarm off, open the heavy
wooden door, and unlock the mesh door.
    We both hang
up at the same time.
    “I was wondering
if you were going to let me in. I’ve been knocking for a few minutes.”
    “Sorry, I
was just looking outside and thinking.” I look down and see he’s got two calico
bags in his hands. “What’s that?” I ask as I point to the bags.
    “It’s a
little early for lunch, but I thought we could have a picnic.”
    My heart instantly
pounds in my chest, bile shoots to the back of my throat and my stomach
contracts in a giant knot.
    “I…I… I...”
I can barely speak. I run to the bathroom and throw up my morning coffee. I sit
in front of the toilet bowl and dry retch as my stomach continues to spasm and
hurt.
    “Allyn,”
Dominic says as he comes into the bathroom.
    I look at
him and shake my head ‘no’ as my stomach continues heaving, even though
nothing’s coming up.
    Dominic
kneels beside me and holds my hair back as my stomach continues its ruthless rebellion.
    “What
happened, Allyn?” he asks as tears form behind my eyelids but don’t dare break
through.
    “I can’t go
on a picnic with you.”
    “Why not?”
    “I can’t go
anywhere, Dominic. I’m not ready, I’m too, too, I...” I pause to gather my
thoughts. “I’m too frightened.”
    “I was
thinking more like your backyard. It’s such a beautiful day and I wanted us to
sit out in the sun.”
    My stomach
calms and my heart slows from its rapid palpitations.
    “You mean
you don’t want to take me away from here?”
    “No, Allyn.”
He shakes his head. “You’re not ready for that. One day we’ll go out, but for
today I just want us to enjoy the fresh air and the sensation of the breeze on
our skin. And I made my best wraps ever, I have strawberries and blueberries,
and of course, cheese and crackers,” he says as he smoothes my hair to the
side.
    “You made
all that?” I ask as I stand from the floor. I go to the sink and get a spare
tooth brush I keep here for emergencies.
    “Not only
that, but I also made my secret recipe lemonade. It’s so secret that only about
three million people know the recipe…alright, I cheated. I Googled how to make
lemonade,” he says, and throws his head back and laughs. “I’ll wait for you in
the kitchen.” He walks out and lets me brush my teeth without watching over me.
    When I’m
done, I can hear Dominic humming a song. I follow the deep, hypnotic sound and
find him sitting in his chair waiting for me.
    “What song
were you humming?”
    “ All Of
Me by John Legend. Have you heard it?”
    “No I
haven’t.”
    “I’ll have
to play it for you; it’s truly a gorgeous song. Anyway, all I need from you is
two glasses for my secret recipe lemonade and for you to open that back door so
we can go outside.”
    I get two
tall glasses from the cabinet and take slow, cautious steps to the back door. I
turn the alarm off and just stand for a moment looking at the lock.
    There’s a
battle happening in my head. Part of me wants to open the door as easily as I
did yesterday. But another part is telling me that monsters can’t come inside
my house if I keep the door closed and stay inside.
    Open it.
    Keep it
locked.
    Open the
fucking door, Allyn.
    They’ll
come back to get you.
    Open the
damn door.
    Never
unlock it.
    Dominic
starts humming the same song, and the deep tone of his voice eases me back to
the present.
    “Do you like
chicken?” he asks nonchalantly. “I hope so, ‘cause I made us chicken, avocado
and lettuce