Page 6 of Carlos

Yet what was the worst that could happen? If it was a spam message, she either deleted the app or it corrupted her phone. Not exactly a bad thing, other than it would piss Davis off that he’d have to pay for a new one.

Zoe clicked on the link. Rather than bring her to her phone’s application store, it downloaded the app automatically. A screen that resembled an everyday calculator appeared. For a minute, nothing happened. Then, in the space where the calculations would write, words appeared. They scrolled to the left quickly like an ad.

Hello, Zoe. My name is Owen. I am here to help you.

The screen immediately went blank. It happened so fast that Zoe wondered if she’d even seen it or just imagined it.

Your husband is watching you on the monitors. Put the phone down and look like you’re doing something else while I talk to you.

Zoe put her phone down on the kitchen counter where she could see the screen but her body blocked it from the camera. She picked up the dishes in the drainboard and started to dry them off with a towel.

The words continued on the app, reminding her of the Speak and Spell toy she had as a kid.

Good girl. Conner called me when he was denied leave. I’ve been watching you. We’re going to get you out but it will take time. You cannot pack or take anything. I will get you what you need. Stay strong. I’ll be in touch.

The words on the screen scrolled to the left and away. One more message came across before disappearing.

If you need to go, go. Type the number 9 in this app as many times as you can and ditch your phone. I’ll find you.

If Davis noticed the new calculator app on her phone, he said nothing. Zoe continued to check for more messages from the mysterious Owen but never saw another come through. She was starting to fear she’d somehow missed a message.

Five days later, the doorbell rang. It was a messenger delivering flowers. The name on the card was for Amelia Cromwell. Zoe explained that no one at her address had that name. The messenger apologized and left.

Zoe went back into the kitchen. She had had to take Davey out of his highchair to answer the door. After putting him back in the chair, she went to reach for his pureed carrots and squash—and froze.

On the kitchen table next to the cup of baby food was a bottle of men’s vitamins. She recognized it immediately because she bought them for Davis every month. The fact that the bottle was in her house was not the issue. The issue was the fact that they had not been on her kitchen table prior to Zoe leaving to open the door.

She picked the bottle up, the pills inside rattling familiarly. Cautiously, she looked around her kitchen. The backdoor was closed and she could see the deadbolt was still latched. Was she imagining things? No one else was in the house or could have gotten into the house. Maybe Davis had left it on the table and she was only just now noticing it?

Zoe went to put the bottle away when she noticed something on the bottom. Carefully, she turned her body so her body blocked the camera’s view. Turning over the bottle, she saw a small piece of paper stuck to it.

Swap bottles.

That was it. That was all it said. Swap bottles. As in Davis’s vitamin bottles? She glanced over her shoulder at Davey in his highchair. He was safe. But clearly someone had been in her house. How had they gotten past the cameras? Wouldn’t Davis have seen them or will see them when he reviews the footage?

Zoe’s heart was beating extremely fast. What was she supposed to do?

Before she could think twice about it, she reached into the cabinet and swapped the bottles.

Zoe never did learn what was in the vitamin bottle or how it ended up on her kitchen table. Something happened at work that led to Davis being reprimanded. He came home drunk and fuming. As instructed by Davis himself, Zoe had had dinner ready for him by six-thirty. He did not get home until after eleven. By then, Zoe had packed up his dinner and put it in the fridge so the food did not spoil.

“Where’s my fucking dinner?” Davis stumbled into the kitchen.

“It’s in the fridge. I can heat it up for you—” The slap across her face cut off her words.

“I told you to have my fucking dinner ready for me when I get home, bitch! Do I have to do everything around here?! Is it too much to ask you to get off your fat, lazy ass during the day to cook me dinner so I have a hot meal when I get home from work? Is it?”

He was not keeping his voice down and Davey was already sleep in his crib upstairs. “Davis, please, Davey is sleeping—” Another slap. She backed herself up against the kitchen sink to put some distance between them.

“I DON’T GIVE A FUCK!” Davis roared. “This is my house and I can fucking shout if I want to.” He approached her faster than she would have thought possible in his inebriated state. His hand circled around the top of her forearm. He dragged her over to the fridge and threw her against the hard door. Zoe barely had a chance to catch herself before he had his hand gripping the back of her hair and slammed her forehead against the fridge. She could feel his hot breath as he spoke in her ear, smell the alcohol. “Get me my fucking dinner.”

Her head throbbing from the impact, Zoe could only nod.

After she served him his dinner, where he drank two more beers and had a shot of whiskey, Zoe started to clean up the kitchen again. He had not liked that she planned to reheat his earlier dinner plate and had demanded she make him a new meal.

Zoe was exhausted, and her head felt like it weighed a thousand pounds. All she wanted to do was finish cleaning up the kitchen and go to bed.

She thought Davis was in the living room. She had not heard him approach her from behind. Her hands were ripped out of the dishwater, flinging soap bubbles and suds everywhere, as she was thrown backwards onto the hard kitchen floor.